Nineteen of the approximately 1,700 emails released on Monday by the State Department contain information that has been classified as “Secret,” the second-highest classification category.
That marks the largest number of “Secret” emails contained in any of 14 batches of Clinton emails that the State Department has released since last May. Forty-four emails out of the more than 52,000 pages of Clinton’s work-related emails have been found to have “Secret” information.
One of the records is an email that the intelligence community inspector general had previously deemed to contain “Top Secret” information. But State Department spokesman John Kirby announced on Monday that the assessment had been incorrect and that the inspector general had determined that information in the email should have been classified as “Secret.”
That email, dated July 3, 2009, discussed North Korean missile launches. The classified portion of the email chain was originated with a senior watch officer and was eventually forwarded to Clinton.
Sidney Blumenthal, Clinton’s longtime friend and off-the-books intelligence provider, also sent one of the 19 highly sensitive emails — which the State Department insists were not classified when they were originated.
The April 23, 2010 memo was entitled “Kyrgyzstan update,” and the portion redacted as classified seems to refer to a criminal investigation.
One the now-classified records is especially curious because it is an email of Clinton’s daily schedule. The Dec. 15, 2011 memo redacts the name of an individual that appears to have been scheduled to take an official photo with Clinton following the day’s presidential briefing.
Three more are emails and memos from then-Sen. John Kerry, who currently serves as secretary of state. One of the “Secret” emails has already been reported. It was released last month and shows that Kerry emailed Clinton his thought about a situation unfolding between India and Pakistan. Kerry, who sent that email from his personal email account, acknowledged last week that he sent the email but claimed that he was not aware of Clinton’s email setup while he corresponded with her.
Two of the “Secret” Kerry records are memos that were emailed to Clinton which appear to pertain to Pakistani Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. One, from May 18, 2011, provided details from a dinner that Kerry had with Kayani. The other, from July 24, 2011, also related to a meeting with Kayani, but it is completely redacted.
Several of the other emails from late-Aug. 2012 deal with tension in the Sinai peninsula. One, from July 6, 2012, deals with drone strikes in Pakistan. Others pertain to Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar.
According to the Republican National Committee, which has kept a running tally of the sensitive information contained in the Clinton emails, Monday’s release brings the total number of records with information classified at any level to 2,075. Most of those are at the “confidential” category. Besides the 44 classified as “Secret,” another 22 have been deemed to be “Top Secret.”