LETTER TO JAMES ABOUREZK FROM STANFIELD TURNER RE LETTER REQUESTING CLARIFICATI

Created: 11/11/1977

OCR scan of the original document, errors are possible

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apppcved rop

release

date: feb ZCCt-

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Honorable James Abourezk United States Senate

Dear Senator Abourezk:

In response to your letter ofctober requesting clarification of

the subject of documents released by this Agency to the American

Palestine Committee concerning7 Israeli attack on the USS Liberty.

I am enclosing the complete fUe of correse en the Agency

You state in your letter that assurances were given to the American Palestine Committee that CIA files contained nothing that would contradict the documents which were released to the Committee. Tho file of correspondence reveals no such assurances. In fact, tho Committee waa advised that the materials being released were sanitized and lhat other documents were not releasable. Furthermore, the reports released were clearly marked as being unevaluated information or in one case as being an intelligence memorandum compiled from all sources and therefore evaluated information.

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For yourm forwarding the text of my comment to the press to which you make reference. It was made In responseuestion on the ABC Good Morning America show on You will noticeetrained comment on the action of the American Palestine Committee in its use of the documents released to it. Similarly, our press relations office has scrupulously avoided characterizing the action of the Committee. In response to press queries, two points have been noted; first, lhat the three documents printed by the Committee in the New York Timesformation, and secondly, that the intoTTi gence memorandui which was also released to the Committee contained evaluated information drawn from all sources, and that information received subsequently, did not alter the judgments contained in the intelligence memorandum.

Any embarrassment or Inconvenience that may have resulted from the Committee's publication of these documents is most regrettable. However, the interpretation placed upon these reports collectively by the American Palestine Committee was in no way dependent upon advice received from the Central Intelligence Agency.

i hope this is of assistance to you.

Yours sincerely, SIG1ED

STAKSFD3LD TURNER

Enclosures

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excerpt from abc good morning america show7

A* r particular incidt.nl lhat has just come into

p'pf7 corning, namely,roup of palestinian support. t's'8d* in the new york times which use raw

5ordered the attack or. the uss

Liberty in iheiddle east

can you five us any enlightenment on that?

admiral tt'.rneriertainly can. and I'm clad. Sieve emphasiied ihe word "raw" intelligence data. -

- we are required, under the freedom of information act.roduce to those who atk for it intelligence documents which car. be unclassified.

Original document.

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