Media statement: Declassified Operation Burnham material

The New Zealand Defence Force is aware that a small amount of declassified material relating to Operation Burnham was provided to requesters including Richard McLeod and Nicky Hager on Friday 14 June following a request under the United States Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and a court process.

The NZDF subsequently received a copy of this declassified material and last week we provided it promptly to the Inquiry.

The NZDF has previously received and provided to the Inquiry a classified version of all the material it had, including all the Apache camera footage.

It should be noted that the material being released today is only a very small part of the material that the NZDF has passed to the Inquiry.

The NZDF has provided thousands of items to the Inquiry including up to eight hours of near continuous Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) footage from Operation Burnham, and all the Apache camera footage it has in its possession.

The NZDF is pleased that this portion of the material, which clearly shows armed insurgents operating in and around the village, has been declassified by the US, as it is consistent with other evidence NZDF has provided to the Inquiry.

Contrary to the suggestion from Mr Hager that the NZDF has opposed the public release of this material, the NZDF was not in a position to publicly release the material, given that it originated from a foreign government and was provided in-confidence.

The NZDF sought permission from the US Government to release the Apache camera footage, but the request was formally declined on the basis that the material remained classified at that time.

The NZDF understands that the material which has been released now was declassified in the US pursuant to a court order in that country.

The NZDF continues to participate fully in the Inquiry and will make further public submissions on issues relating to Operation Burnham at the Inquiry’s next public hearing on 29–30 July.

The Inquiry will make its determinations based on all the evidence.