A military judge says a member of the military team that raided Osama bin Laden's compound may testify in the trial of Army Private Bradley Manning, who is charged in a massive leak of U.S. secrets.
The government contends that the witness, presumably a Navy SEAL, collected digital evidence proving bin Laden had received some of the classified documents Manning sent to WikiLeaks.
During a pretrial hearing, the judge said prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Manning intended to aid the enemy when he released hundreds of thousands of sensitive files in 2009 and 2010, while working as an intelligence analyst in Baghdad.
Manning's defense says the documents were of "enormous value to the American public," and that their dissemination by WikiLeaks would lift the "fog of war."
Manning pleaded guilty in February to lesser versions of some of the 22 charges he faces, but prosecutors say he faces possible life in prison if convicted of aiding the enemy.
His trial is scheduled to start June 3 at Fort Meade, near Baltimore, Maryland.