U.S. court rules bin Laden photos can remain classified

WASHINGTON, May 21 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. Federal Appeals Court ruled on Tuesday that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) can keep the photos of al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden's corpse classified.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia rejected a lawsuit from Judicial Watch, a watchdog group that had sued for the photos to be released to the public, and unanimously ruled that the photos can be kept classified.

"The CIA's declarations give reason to believe that releasing images of American military personnel burying the founder and leader of al Qaeda could cause exceptionally grave harm," the court wrote in its decision.

"It is undisputed that the government is withholding the images not to shield wrongdoing or avoid embarrassment, but rather to prevent the killing of Americans and violence against American interests," wrote the decision.

Judicial Watch had requested the CIA to release 52 photos of bin Laden after he was killed by Navy SEALs in 2011. The CIA refused, arguing that the photos were classified top secret. The watchdog then filed suit, but the suit was dismissed in a District Court.

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