U.S. Denies Stories of CIA Spy Ring

Two military officers claimed on state television that they had delivered secrets to the CIA. The confessions of the officers and two taxi drivers who allegedly worked with them were broadcast on the same day that Iraq announced it had cracked a CIA spy ring. Although the CIA refused to comment, the U.S. State Department dismissed the allegations as propaganda. “If anybody believes these reports, they ought to have their heads examined,” spokesman Nicholas Burns said in Washington. Spying is punishable by death in Iraq, although culprits become eligible for pardons if they confess. It was not immediately clear how--or whether--the four who appeared on television would be punished.