Sydney - Australia lashed out on Wednesday at WikiLeaks, calling it “incredibly irresponsible” for publishing a secret US cable detailing Australians with suspected links to Yemeni terrorism.
The whistle-blowing site's latest batch of confidential and secret documents includes one from the US embassy in Canberra that recommends 11 Australians be placed on a no-fly list and a further 12 on another “selectee” watch list.
The cable, dated January 2010, names the 23, linking them to radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, a US citizen believed to be a key figure in al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
Canberra normally does not comment on material published by Wikileaks, founded by an Australian, but Attorney-General Robert McClelland broke the government's long-standing policy to condemn the latest unredacted release.
“I note that on occasions in the past, Wikileaks has decided to redact identifying features where security operations or safety could be put at risk. This has not occurred in this case,” he said in a statement.
“The publication of any information that could compromise Australia’s national security - or inhibit the ability of intelligence agencies to monitor potential threats - is incredibly irresponsible.
“The government condemns the publication of any document that could seriously impact Australia’s national security.”
Several of those named by Wikileaks are female, with the cable suggesting they were potential recruits for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula which was looking to groom young women for suicide missions.
McClelland admitted Canberra had concerns about the growing terrorism threat emanating from Yemen, and its links with some Australians.
“Yemen is becoming an increasingly important hub for al-Qaeda associated terrorist activity, particularly as al-Qaeda encounters mounting pressure in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq,” he said.
“A number of Australians have been drawn to extremist figures in Yemen, including to Anwar-al-Awlaki, an al-Qaeda linked-cleric based in Yemen.
“Australian authorities are working together with international partners to identify and mitigate threats, including by preventing Australians to travel overseas to undertake terrorism-related activity.”
WikiLeaks, founded by Australian Julian Assange, has published thousands of cables since last year in which US diplomats give their often candid views on world leaders, to Washington's acute embarrassment.
It has also leaked countless secret documents about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. - Sapa-AFP