People hid under the tables. More than that, Koza wasnt just asking for information on what these ambassadors and their governments were planning, he seemed to want dirt. At the time, I was really focused on the Iraq invasion issue, Gun told Vanity Fair this month, ahead of the August 30 premiere of Official Secrets, an intelligence thriller recounting this terrifying chapter of her life and starring Keira Knightley. I mean, its every journalists dream to have these, you know, front-page splash stories that get followed up around the world. The daughter of Maurizio Gucci and Patrizia Reggiani was overwhelmed as a child by a wave of tragedy and looked for a gasp of air to breathe, even as sharks circled all around. Now, she tells, Monica Lewinskys Verdict on the Johnny DeppAmber Heard Trial: We Are All Guilty. Katharine spent that night in a cell underneath the local police station. It didnt just end when George Bush said, Mission accomplished. Its heartbreaking that its affecting so many lives, and for what? Katharine was amongst them. "My boys," the "Waitress" actress captioned the snap . Soon after, they moved to Turkey in 2011, and for the most part, the family has stayed away from the public . The diplomats were from member states of the 2003 Security Council, and they were due to vote on a second United Nations resolution on the future 2003 invasion of Iraq. AMY GOODMAN: Because Chile was one of the six. AMY GOODMAN: You said, May I please speak to Mr. Koza?, MARTIN BRIGHT: May I please speak to Mr. Koza? And they said, We dont give out names. And he says, Excuse me, Mr. Bright.. Today, she lives in Turkey, with her husband and their child. We welcome you all to Democracy Now! Katharine feared she'd be fobbed off and then put under surveillance should she report it, so instead she kept silent and headed home for the weekend. The next morning, Katharine returned to the office as normal and got on with her work, trying as best as she could to not think about it. Katharine McPhee shared a sweet snap of her 6-month-old son, Rennie, playing with husband David Foster in the cabin of a private jet. By Nick Wall/IFC Films/Everett Collection. But it seemed inevitable. I think the film will help to focus people on those issues again. Gun had, of course, been forced to abandon her career in the civil service and finally, struggling for work, left Britain altogether. But of course that did not stop the war. When Katharine blew the secret off the American-British spy efforts in 2003, her husband was thrown into troubled waters, which few people knew. She is known for having exposed a plan by the US government to spy on the United Nations shortly before a vote concerning America's illegal invasion of Iraq. After the incident, Katharine struggled to find work, and her husband had grown disillusioned with Britain and then . It looked like a very exciting story. Katharine Gun. Yasur Gunnis is the husband of Katharine Gun, a linguist who specializes in translating Mandarin Chinese into English. She remains an intensely private personbut, when director Gavin Hood began the process of adapting 2008s The Spy Who Tried to Stop a War: Katharine Gun and the Secret Plot to Sanction the Iraq Invasion, by Marcia and Thomas Mitchell, Gun felt it necessary to revisit this difficult chapter of her life to help make the film. Whos that? I said, Im ringing about the GCHQ memo that you sent. Click. KATHARINE GUN: When I saw this email asking GCHQs help to bug the six swing nations to gather a vote for war with Iraq, I was very angry at first and very saddened that it had come to this, and that despite all the talk from both Tony Blair and George Bush about how important it was to get the U.N. on board and to legitimize any kind of aggression, that they were actually going around it in such low-handed manner. She had leaked a secret email revealing what was called at the time an illegal dirty tricks campaign to fix the UN vote. View this post on Instagram. Now the public knew. In 2004, Democracy Now! AMY GOODMAN: The guy at the NSA. So I was bailed until . Gun leaked the memo to the press, setting off a chain of events that jeopardized her freedom and safety, but also opened the door to putting the entire legality of the Iraq invasion on trial. Two weeks later, on the 15th of February, 2003, a million people took to the streets of London to protest the prospect of Britain joining the war in Iraq. Your email address will not be published. A translator for UK intelligence agency GCHQ, Gun read a brief from the US National Security Agency urging its British sister organisation to spy on members of the UN Security Council, to gain influence i n a vote on whether to sanction an invasion of Iraq. She was brought up in Taiwan her parents moved there to work when she was three and so was fluent in Mandarin. Ever since their story was documented in Marcia and Thomas Mitchell's 2008 book "The Spy Who Tried to Stop a War," Gun, the British whistleblower who attempted to prevent the Iraq War, and . Revealed: US dirty tricks to win vote on Iraq war. She became the spy who tried to stop a war. When I saw the red flagit was like, Oh, my gosh, this is so explosive. AMY GOODMAN: So, you call Ed, and you say, Can you track down this guy? Among many other things. Almost a decade ago, the world was gripped with anxiety as it watched the legal proceedings against a young Se. And you were what? KATHARINE GUN: If we do not go public, we would be conceding that no one can ever tell the people when their government is lying. We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work. "The problem was that I just didn't feel guilty," she tells me. Ive always been very proud to work at GCHQ. Two, there is a shadow intelligence operation going on through the Pentagon, all your favorite names on this programDouglas Feith, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle. Katherine Ryan's Family. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, you work for the British government? Some call that treason. It actually didnt really make a big difference at all., Gun and her legal team decided to fight charges in late 2003. Our Daily Digest brings Democracy Now! Your viewers will recall them; I hope not, for their sake, but some of them will. The highly confidential memo revealed the United States was collaborating with Britain in collecting sensitive information on United Nations Security Council members in order to pressure them into supporting the Iraq invasion. Guided by her conscience, Katharine Gun defied her government and leaked the memo to the press, setting off a chain of events that jeopardized her freedom, her safety, but also opened the door to putting the entire Iraq invasion on trial. Gun, the consciencestricken spy, will almost certainly remain the only British official charged with anything to do with the war in Iraq. The advice was that, by accepting what she'd done was illegal, the jail time might end up reduced. "The world is moving in a completely fascist, corporate direction," she tells me, when I ask if thinking back she'd do it all again. After the incident, Katharine struggled to find work, and her husband had grown disillusioned with Britain and then kept away from the general public eye. Robbie Robertson Reflects on His Legendary Rock Career, Iraq War Whistle Blower Katharine Gun Shares Her Story, Jack Goldsmith Discusses the Limits of Executive Power, + Major support for Amanpour and Company is provided by the Anderson Family Charitable Fund, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim, III, Candace King Weir, Jim Attwood and Leslie Williams, Mark J. Blechner, Seton J. Melvin, Bernard and Denise Schwartz, Koo and Patricia Yuen, the Leila and Mickey Straus Family Charitable Trust, Barbara Hope Zuckerberg, Jeffrey Katz and Beth Rogers, the Filomen M. DAgostino Foundation and. In fact, your husbandwould they attempt to deport him? Back in 30 seconds. KATHARINE GUN: Youre putting me on the spot now. What do you do? I talked to a couple of colleagues about it, about even taking it to the editor, because you dont want to take a half-baked story to your editor, particularly at the time of intense prewar preparation. This is a clip. Katharine Gun knew exactly the sort of work she was employed to do; two years into a job at GCHQ as a Mandarin "analyst" and "translator", it's hard not to. I am so sorry. 2019 | Maturity Rating: R | 1h 51m | Social Issue Dramas. The terror of that period took a toll on Gun, who suffered from PTSD for years. We're looking at the real-life political thriller of a British intelligence specialist, Katharine Gun, who risked everything to blow the whistle on U.S. dirty tricks at the United Nations in the . This information could be huge for the growing anti-war effort Katharine thought it might even help put an end to talk of invasion once and for all. Only a select number of people had received the communication, and GCHQ were going to want to know who'd blown the whistle. KATHARINE GUN: Detective, I dont object to being asked to collect information that could help prevent a terror attack. Katharine Gun. today: https://democracynow.org/donateFOLLOW DEMOCRACY NOW! All I could was this looming war. Yasur Gunnis is the husband of Katharine Gun, a linguist who specializes in translating Mandarin Chinese into English. When asked by Salon how it felt to see a famous actress act out her life for an audience . Copyright All rights reserved | I mean, you were the man of the hour. Gun, her husband, and their four-year-old daughter shed their coveted privacy long enough to allow Katharine to be one of two former Sam Adams Award winners to present this year's award. Katharine Teresa Gun (ne Harwood) (born 1974) is a British linguist who worked as a translator for the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). Katharine Gun's age is listed as 47 years old as of 2021. UNIDENTIFIED: This proposed war is historically unpopular. Scott Davis was asking the questions.Synopsis: The true story of a British whistleblower who leaked information to the press about an illegal NSA spy operation designed to push the UN Security Council into sanctioning the 2003 invasion of Iraq.A morality tale for the 21st century, Official Secrets tells the true story of British Intelligence whistle-blower Katharine Gun who, during the immediate run-up to the 2003 Iraq invasion, leaked a top-secret NSA memo exposing a joint US-UK illegal spying operation against members of the UN Security Council. I had found a source called Mel Goodman, namesake of yours, who was the ex-head of the Soviet desk at the CIA, had kept his clearance. Were looking at the real-life political thriller of a British intelligence specialist, Katharine Gun, who risked everything to blow the whistle on U.S. dirty tricks at the United Nations in the lead-up to the Iraq invasion in 2003. KATHARINE GUN: Actually, time-wise, I was bailed for eight months. And tell the final results of what happened. [1]Katharine Gun arbetade som versttare fr Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ). MARTIN BRIGHT: It was NSA 'dirty tricks' at the U.N. Yeah, yeah. She was arrested and held at the police station in Cheltenham for 24 hours before being bailed. The British governments own lawyers were afraid that without specific UN authorization, the war might be illegal; British soldiers could even be prosecuted for war crimes. Yasar Gun is the husband of a British whistleblower, Katharine Gun, who revealed top-secret information. delivered to your inbox every day? The Smash actress, 36, admitted her 35-year age gap with Foster, 71, was a concern for her - but more because of the . List of Wanted Pages on Real Life Heroes Wiki. The AFI Life Achievement recipient discusses her most memorable filmsand what moviegoers actually misremember. But we werewithin The Observer, AMY GOODMAN: Of course, thats the time you should run the fastest to the editor, but. GAVIN HOOD: We have to protect the innocent and source, yeah. She was the real-life translator who photocopied . We should think about that and remember that., 2023 Cond Nast. I gather intelligence so that the government can protect the British people. "And I immediately decided the public should know the lengths the Americans were going to in order to secure legitimacy for this war. It was a Friday when I saw the email. Katharine smuggled the printed email out of GCHQ and leaked it to the media, on the 2nd March it was . All rights reserved. "I immediately felt like I was in danger," she says, describing her internal panic, the desperation to look calm and to not draw any attention to herself. It seemed like it was, you know, the wagons were rolling fast and furious towards this awful situation and I was kind of in tunnel vision. But the difficulty was that it was just words typed on a piece of paper. Then the story went away, and that's how I wanted it at that time, because I was actually quite traumatized by the whole thing. She did add, however, that she's hopeful the film will shed much needed light on the subject. . I actually felt like, if I do this anonymously, nobody will realize its me and Ill carry on as usual. But about a month after leaking the letter, Gun was stunned to see that The Observer had published the document in full on its front page. Blogus by Themeansar. Official Secrets is a movie about real-life whistleblower Katharine Gun, a relatively low-level British Intelligence agent (she was a translator in the Government Communications Headquarters) who . But within days, Bush declared he no longer needed UN backing and invaded anyway. AMY GOODMAN: So it was sort of chicken scratch on the back. But, in 2003, when she came across an email suggesting that the United States and the U.K. governments were intending to blackmail members of the United Nations to authorize an invasion of Iraq, Gunthen just 28felt morally obligated to leak the letter. But the Iraqis were right and the Americans were wrong. Someone within the antiwar movement, who was a former journalist, took the memo initially to another newspaper. KATHARINE GUN: And then I mailed it to a contact, who then passed it on to a journalist, who then passed it on to Martin Bright. In 2003, Katharine Gun exposed a plot by U.S. security officials to spy on United Nations members as they ramped up pressure to secure a resolution to go to war with Iraq, and she leaked the . I didnt know why, but I was going nuts. Says He Will Sign Bill Criminalizing Drag as Old Photo of Him in Drag Circulates, Lori Lightfoot Loses Reelection for Chicago Mayor; Paul Vallas & Brandon Johnson Advance to Runoff, El Salvadors Pres. Gun says the film-makers were not projecting backwards what we learned later. Katharine Gun : I work at GCHQ. Official Secrets recounts Gun's story, from her fateful decision (which of course accomplished nothing in the end, even though the leak quickly went public) to her bizarre criminal trial. It was intended for someone else but had been distributed to everyone in her section. On January 23 2003, Gun, who worked at GCHQ translating messages from Mandarin Chinese into English, discovered an email from American intelligence agent Frank Koza. The CIA knows it. When the former husband and wife square off in a Virginia courtroom this week, it will mark the culmination of a divorce that has been without comparison in the annals of modern American celebrity. They wont just put you through to a man who doesnt exist in a place that doesnt exist. "Official Secrets," which opened Friday in New York and . Theyre one of Hollywoods brightest starsand most troubled actors. I was quite nervous. KATHARINE GUN: I translated signals intelligence, and I reported anything I thought might be of interest to my clients. Forty years later, JoBeth Williams and Craig T. Nelson tell all about the horror classics secrets, tragedies, and controversies. TINTIN: You eavesdrop on private conversations. Acclaimed Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg described Katharine Guns action as the most important and courageous leak I have ever seen. Dan Ellsberg said, No one elseincluding myselfhas ever done what Katharine Gun did: tell secret truths at personal risk, before an imminent war, in time, possibly, to avert it.. Finally, she called someone (she has never named) who had connections to the media, telling them: I have something explosive, I think it has the potential to avert a war with Iraq. She went back into work on Monday, printed the email, folded it neatly and put it in her bag. AMY GOODMAN: And then everyoneFOX, CNNand then they all cancel. The email was a request to tamper with the debate of whether or not to invade Iraq. At great personal and professional risk, journalist Martin Bright published the leaked document in The Observer newspaper in London, and the story made headlines around the world. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Manage all your favorite fandoms in one place! Target. Were talking about Official Secrets. KATHARINE GUN: [played by Keira Knightley] Do you mean have I leaked anything else? In the movie "Official Secrets," the character called Katharine Gun, who is played by Keira Knightley, actually discusses this memo with colleagues at GCHQ. In 2003, she leaked top-secret information to The Observer, concerning a request by the United States for compromising intelligence on diplomats from member states of the 2003 Security Council. She is known for having exposed a plan by the US government to spy on the United Nations shortly before a vote concerning America's illegal invasion of Iraq. Katharine Gun explains how she exposed a plot by U.S. security officials to spy on United Nations members in 2003. Yeah. Her net worth has been growing . Official Secrets is a 2019 British drama film based on the case of whistleblower Katharine Gun, who leaked a memo exposing an illegal spying operation by American and British intelligence services to gauge sentiment of and potentially blackmail United Nations diplomats tasked to vote on a resolution regarding the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Members of the Security Council were outraged and any chance of a UN resolution in favour of war collapsed. And he had told me over two meetings, A, we know that Saddam Hussein has no weapons of mass destruction. Katharine Gun was a translator at GCHQ, when she received an email in her inbox from Frank Koza, a leading figure in the American National Security Agency. This is the trailer. Right away, Katharine knew the significance of this message. KATHARINE GUN: Well, I was just appalled. The Crown Prosecution Service was about to charge her. . However, the two really got to know each other on the set of a horror movie called "The Legacy" in 1978. Katharine Teresa Gun (ne Harwood; born 1974) is a British whistleblower who worked as a linguist at the Government Communication Headquarters (GCHQ; a British intelligence facility) from 2001 to 2003. "At the back of my mind, the question remained: 'What are they going to do to me? Sign up for our Daily News Digest today! . Martin Bright, youre able to move forward with this story. GCHQ began a leak inquiry, interviewing everyone. JASMINE: [played by MyAnna Buring] Youre asking me to collude in a breach of the Official Secrets Act. You tried to call. When she leaks an NSA memo to the press exposing the American covert manipulation of allies, she will be forced into the spotlight. Please do your part today. She struggled to find work after being sacked by GCHQ but she has no regrets. The invasion proceeded more or less on time with a coalition of the willing led by the United States and Britain. You see this headline splashed across the front page. On 5 March Gun confessed to leaking the plot and was arrested for violating the Official Secrets Act. AMY GOODMAN: And the idea was they would figure out which way they were going to vote, so that they could sway them. The 1967 film Guess Whos Coming to Dinner starred Sidney Poitier and Katharine Houghton as a ne, As the open-hearted matriarch Hattie Mae in Tyler Perrys 2022 film A Jazzmans Blues, Amirah Vann demonstrates a great tenderness and fierce love to b, This story includes spoilers for Saint Omer. Ad Choices, In any walk of life, you can choose to do the right thing, whistle-blower Katharine Gun, whom Knightley plays in the film, told, Jimmy Kimmel Roasts Fragile Snowflake Donald Trump for Allegedly Trying to Censor Him, Scene Stealer: The True Lies of Elisabeth Finch, Part 1, Scene Stealer: The True Lies of Elisabeth Finch, Part 2. AMY GOODMAN: I mean, the paper had come out supporting the war. And then, one by one, the American networks pulled out.