NSA surveillance exposed by Snowden ruled unlawful – BBC

Edward Snowden wants to go back to the US but faces espionage charges if he returns

A National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance program has been ruled unlawful, seven years after it was exposed by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

The surveillance of millions of Americans' telephone records first came to light in 2013.

And Mr Snowden has said he feels vindicated by the ruling.

I never imagined that I would live to see our courts condemn the NSAs activities as unlawful and in the same ruling credit me for exposing them, Mr Snowden said.

"And yet that day has arrived," he added.

Accept and continue

Top US intelligence officials had publicly insisted the NSA had never knowingly collected data from private phone records, until Mr Snowden exposed evidence to the contrary in 2013.

Following the revelation, officials said the NSA's surveillance program had played a crucial role in fighting domestic terrorism, including the convictions of Basaaly Saeed Moalin, Ahmed Nasir Taalil Mohamud, Mohamed Mohamud, and Issa Doreh, of San Diego, for providing aid to al-Shabab militants in Somalia.

But, on Wednesday, the Court of Appeals said the claims were "inconsistent with the contents of the classified records" and the program had violated the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

The ruling will not affect the 2013 convictions.

Todays ruling is a victory for our privacy rights, the American Civil Liberties Union said in a statement.

"It makes plain that the NSAs bulk collection of Americans phone records violated the Constitution.

Excerpt from:
NSA surveillance exposed by Snowden ruled unlawful - BBC