Pentagon linguist pleads guilty to sharing classified info to a Lebanese man linked to Hezbollah

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WASHINGTON — A woman who worked as a contract linguist for the U.S. military in Iraq pleaded guilty Friday to sharing classified information with a romantic interest linked to the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Mariam Taha Thompson was arrested last year in an espionage case that investigators said put the lives of American military members and confidential sources at risk and represented a significant breach of classified information.

Thompson, 63 and formerly of Rochester, Minnesota, pleaded guilty to a single count of delivering national defense information to aid a foreign government. She admitted as part of a deal that she shared the names of U.S. government assets with a Lebanese man with connections to Hezbollah.

Assistant Attorney General John Demers, the Justice Department’s top national security official, said in a statement that the actions represented “a disgraceful personal and professional betrayal of country and colleagues.”

Assistant Attorney General John Demers, the Justice Department’s top national security official, said in a statement that the actions represented “a disgraceful personal and professional betrayal of country and colleagues.”

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