A Defense Department Linguist was sentenced to 23 years of imprisonment on June 23 for transmitting highly sensitive classified information related to national defense to a foreign government. Mariam Taha Thompson, 62, from Rochester, Minnesota, pleaded guilty on March 26, admitting that she was aware that the information she passed on to a Lebanese national would then be retransmitted to the Lebanese Hezbollah, a designated terrorist group. “Thompson’s sentence reflects the seriousness of her violation of the trust of the American people, of the human sources she jeopardized, and of the troops who worked at her side as friends and colleagues,” stated Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers for the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “That Thompson passed our nation’s sensitive secrets to someone whom she knew had ties to Lebanese Hezbollah made her betrayal all the more serious. Thompson’s sentence should stand as a clear warning to all clearance …