Why is WikiLeaks leaker in solitary confinement?

As a suspect in the leaking of tens of thousands of secret documents, Army private Bradley Manning is in jail, all alone

Brad Manning.
(Image credit: Facebook)

Suspected Wikileaks leaker Pfc. Bradley Manning has been placed in solitary confinement at a detention facility in Quantico, VA, where he will be held while he awaits trial. Authorities have charged Manning, 22, with the leak of a classified 2007 video, which the whistleblower website posted in April, showing two Reuters journalists being killed in a U.S. military attack in Iraq. He is also a "person of interest" in the investigation into the publishing of more than 91,000 secret military documents that pertain to the war in Afghanistan, the release of which the Army says has endangered the lives of hundreds of Afghan informants. "Complete isolation will be key to silencing this man who knew too much," says James Ridgeway in Mother Jones. And with the severity of Manning's charges, he can also expect "severe restrictions on his communications" with the outside world for a long time to come. This isn't about punishing Manning, says Hugh Collins at AOL News. That will come later if he's found guilty. But investigators believe whoever leaked the documents "may have had civilian help" — an informant says two buddies at MIT helped Manning encrypt data — so they want to get to the bottom of this quickly, before any accomplices still on the loose can release more secret files. Watch a CNN report about Manning's incarceration below:

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