Only 1 per cent of the classified files leaked by US whistleblower Edward Snowden to Britain’s Guardian newspaper have been published, its Editor told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday.
The Home Affairs Select Committee is investigating claims that the newspaper has endangered national security by publishing information about the activities of Britain’s spy agency GCHQ and its US counterpart the National Security Agency (NSA).
“We continue to publish stuff, it’s about 1 per cent of what we were given,” said Alan Rusbridger, during evidence at a televised hearing.
He insisted that he and his Guardian colleagues were "patriots" and that his was not a "rogue newspaper." He also quoted US and British officials who said that the paper had done no damage.
Earlier this year the head of Britain’s MI5 spy agency, Andrew Parker, warned that publishing details of GCHQ’s work was a “gift to terrorists.” John Sawers, head of the sister agency MI6, said terrorists were "rubbing their hands with glee" at the revelations.
Snowden, who has been granted temporary asylum in Russia, handed over 58,000 files divided between the Guardian, the Washington Post, a place in Germany and a place in Rio de Janeiro, Rusbridger said.
“This is an ongoing story we are writing,” he replied, when asked where the remaining 99 per cent of the files were.
“If you think it’s sensible I talk about where the exact files are I can write to you. But I’m not sure that’s really sensible to talk about the existence of other files in other bits of the world.” His journalists were working “slowly and responsibly” through Snowden’s material, said Rusbridger, and had 100 contacts within the Government and the spy agencies.
“We’re not going to be put off by intimidation but nor are we going to behave recklessly,” he added.
He also denied that the Guardian had ever published the names of any NSA officials, “We have never used a single name. We’ve published no names and lost control of no names.”