Wikileaks' Diplomatic Damage: Is Publishing Documents Worth Risking Lives?

(ABCNEWS.com)

World leaders today are scrambling to respond to a quarter-million leaked diplomatic cables posted on Wikileaks and many are condemning the non-profit for risking international relations and possibly even lives.

The White House has assailed Wikileaks for blowing the cover off the secretive communications between Washington and diplomats stationed around the world.

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"By releasing stolen and classified documents," the White House said in a statement released Sunday, "Wikileaks has put at risk not only the cause of human rights but also the lives and work of these individuals."

Included in the leaked documents is the potentially damaging revelation that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Condoleezza Rice before her, ordered U.S. diplomats to gather sensitive and personal information about United Nations leaders, including DNA data and credit card numbers.

Our question to you today: Does public knowledge of the government's secret communications risk the lives of those involved?

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