Pentagon chief Leon Panetta on Tuesday denounced a book by a US Navy SEAL about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, saying it was an unacceptable breach of secrecy that could jeopardise future operations and the safety of American troops. Panetta, in his first remarks on the book since its release last week, told "CBS This Morning" that Americans had a right to know about the effort to take out bin Laden but US commandos who took part had to abide by rules barring them from exposing sensitive information.
"I cannot, as secretary, send a signal to SEALs who conduct those operations, 'Oh, you can conduct these operations and then go out and write a book about it, and/or sell your story to the New York Times.'" "How the hell can we run sensitive operations here that go after enemies if people are allowed to do that?" said Panetta, who oversaw the raid as the then director of the CIA. The Pentagon has threatened legal action but taken no steps yet against the former Navy SEAL who wrote "No Easy Day," which has shot to the top of best-seller lists while provoking an angry reaction from some military commanders and fellow SEALs.
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