Defense to present case for WikiLeaks suspect

FORT MEADE: Attorneys for US Army Private Bradley Manning begin presenting their defense Wednesday of the low-ranking soldier blamed for one of the biggest intelligence breaches in US history.

The defense is to call its first witnesses to the stand Wednesday morning at a hearing being held on this sprawling army base to determine whether Manning should face a court-martial on charges that could send him to prison for life.

The government rested its case Tuesday after calling a parade of witnesses that included soldiers who served alongside Manning, digital forensics experts who examined his computers and the man who reported him to the US authorities.

Manning, 24, is accused of giving secret-spilling site WikiLeaks a trove of US military reports from Iraq and Afghanistan, classified State Department cables, Guantanamo detainee assessments and videos of US air strikes.

US Army investigators have testified that contact information for Julian Assange, online chats with the WikiLeaks founder, and a trail of incriminating digital footprints was found on Manning's computers and other devices.