WASHINGTON - U.S. officials said Monday that they are reviewing a copy of a soon-to-be-published account of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, checking for leaks of classified information.
Pentagon spokesman George Little said Defense Department officials "received the manuscript and we are looking at it."
CIA spokesman Preston Golson would only say that "the CIA has a copy of the book."

The book, "No Easy Day," is scheduled for publication on Sept. 11.
The author, a former Navy SEAL who participated in the raid, did not submit the book for pre-publication review that is required by the military secrecy agreements officials say he signed.
Pentagon regulations stipulate that retired personnel, former employees and non-active duty members of the Reserves "shall use the DoD security review process to ensure that information they submit for public release does not compromise national security."
Pentagon officials say that if they determine the manuscript reveals classified information about the raid, the Pentagon would "defer to the Department of Justice."
If there is classified information in the book, the former SEAL could face criminal charges.
The publisher says the author intends to give the "majority" of the proceeds to charity, but the Justice Department could still sue to collect any future book proceeds as well.
A special operations advocacy group, Special Operations-OPSEC, which is criticizing President Barack Obama over alleged leaks and making the raid the national security centerpiece of his re-election campaign, asked the attorney general to block the book's release until the government can make sure it reveals no classified information.
In a letter released to The Associated Press, the group asked the Justice Department "to immediately seek...an injunction in federal court to prevent this book from being published and distributed" until it can be reviewed.
Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd says the department is reviewing the letter.
Dutton announced the book's pending release last week, saying that "No Easy Day" will "set the record straight" on the bin Laden operation.
After the initial burst of publicity, the book shot up to the top of the Amazon.com chart, reaching No. 1 as of late Friday morning and remaining there Monday, displacing the million-selling erotic trilogy "Fifty Shades of Gray."

© Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. 

 The below comments are peoples reactions;

• ArmyAirRecon

  Aug 27, 2012 10:52:53 PM

  "After the initial burst of publicity, the book shot up to the top of the Amazon.com chart, reaching No. 1 as of late Friday morning and remaining there Monday.", couldn't have been all that free publicity, ya think?
• soldiermom11

  Aug 27, 2012 11:01:12 PM

  Did they check obama's transcripts/film from the meeting with the movie producers right after the raid? As they say in the movie Remember the Titans....attitude reflects leadership.
• 24848339

  Aug 28, 2012 12:04:03 AM

  Let me see if I understand this correctly. A book is being published after the fact a couple of years after the fact. And the CIA and FBI want to see if any secret information was released. Secret information two years after the fact. hello. Our elected officials in Washington tell the press what's going to happen before it does. That information is made public putting our military in harms way. Watch the television there are stories of Hypersdonoic air planes, advances in weapontry and much much more. Yet a member of the tean who got Bin Laden writes a book and the entire US Government is interested. I tell you this country has got its priorities fu--ked up.
• conradswims

  Aug 28, 2012 12:39:41 AM

  Too Late!
• rfailing

  Aug 28, 2012 1:58:54 AM

  Obama's face said it all during the raid. He's done nothing but talk about what HE DID to complete the mission. What a joke. Then the administration he leads leaks secret information. Now they are "looking at the book for breeches in security". I doubt they'll find one because SEALS are not politicians. They talk straight talk. Read Dalton Fury's book "KILL BIN LADEN". In it he says WHY he (a retired Delta Force Col) wrote it. To inform US the American Citizen what happened in Tora Bora mountains. So we'd get the truth. NOT what the mainstream (government controlled) Communist News Network CNN reported. Ever notice that the way they report things, you'd swear that American soldiers cry and hide every time they hear an AK47 in Afghanistan. But that's the information we get. Thank God for the SEALS who LOVE our USA and don't want distortion to be broadcast to us who are working to pay the bills!
• peredavid

  Aug 28, 2012 11:41:01 AM

  How come they only do this after the book is printed? Ensuring that sales are 100 percent and the writer and the publisher both make their profit off the taxpayer, who isn't allowed to read the crap. Sounds 'socialist' to me.
• peredavid

  Aug 28, 2012 11:44:17 AM

  Obama and the White House bunker boys wanted to be there - that's why the helmet cams. They would have liked to be there to get some jihadi poontang and bust a cap in Bin Laden's ***, too. But somebody needed to be there to throw the seals a fish.
• 6123904

  Aug 28, 2012 12:46:31 PM

  Interesting, last time I heard of a service member leaking information that could damage mission and personnel he was taken into custody and awaits a capital court-martial in Ft. Leavenworth.
• cpjoe2007

  Aug 28, 2012 1:14:02 PM

  "Pentagon officials say that if they determine the manuscript reveals classified information about the raid, the Pentagon would "defer to the Department of Justice." | Are the Pentegon Officials the Joker, Ridler, and Penguin???
• shawn1999

  Aug 28, 2012 1:17:07 PM

  1) You give Obama credit for the fiasco that he inherited from Bush and tried to fix, so you have to give him credit for the the raid too.
  2) You can't sit there and give Obama crap about leaking information (which did not compromise any individuals or their ops) while ignoring Bush's intentional leak for the express purpose of compromising an Agent's cover (which he blamed on Scooter then gave him a pardon so he didn't get in trouble).
  3) The book was published BEFORE being reviewed by DoD, which is why there is a whoop-de-do about it, which violates the NDA's the operator signed.
  4) At least Obama was smart enough to keep the Abottabad raid a secret until AFTER it was completed, which is more than can be said for a number of politicians (no, I'm not including Bush as I don't recall him doing this) and military flag officers have done regarding ONGOING ops (like the fact that we regularly hack Taliban resources for intel)
  5) None of it can be any worse than Manning's mega leak or his "superiors" allowing him to do so (superior used very loosely since they are as guilty as he is and should be co-defendants)
• 2571722

  Aug 28, 2012 1:19:01 PM

  Did Obama lead this mission to get UBL ?
• RobertBurkholder

  Aug 28, 2012 1:59:01 PM

  Sniping-- this article certainly sounds like the Obama Administration caught in a ***-a-tat.Wern't they exposed for leaking "secrets" so now --like petulant children they are going full guns against this Navy Seal.After the horses been let out of the barn it seems silly for 'em to close the door.Too bad they weren't distracted by "leaning against the wall" (Old Testament reference for Micky Mouse)when it was someone in the Administration using getting Osama to score points.Now they want to shut down the blow-back?
• hubbert45

  Aug 28, 2012 2:45:02 PM

  Shawn 1999, Get ready to be ripped apart on your comments. Some people on this site can't handle the truth nor the facts, but it is refreshing to here the truth and facts every now and then just saying. I was the G3 NCOIC in Somalia during the Black Hawk Down time frame and used to handle classified information everyday. As a matter of fact, all branches of the armed forces except the Coast Guard worked out of my office and the Army had the Command and controlled over all with-in the G-3. For six months i was the only NCOIC. During that time even after leaving there I never once though about writing a book about what really happen during that time or during that event because I knew that there are things you see and read you just don't run your mouth about. For six months i briefed the coalition forces daily which consisted of 22 different countries. I believe that when the government or your command puts you in a sensitive position or situation you don't run your month unless you know that you were told to break the law. I know for a fact that all Spec-Opes units are told that what ever mission they go on is classified nuf said. I for one will take all of the secrets or classified information i know to the grave.
• majrod

  Aug 28, 2012 2:55:25 PM

  There were MANY administration excuse artists that were accusing OPSEC of partisanship because they weren'going after the pending SEAL book. They'll be as quiet as a field full of cricket's now.
• 1sgtvela

  Aug 28, 2012 3:00:56 PM

  those seals should shut their mouth about that operation, be proud of what they did for America as America is proud of them.we dont need to know details. carry on soldiers , job well done
• DaleAS

  Aug 28, 2012 3:20:15 PM

  Typical. If they went after the leakers in the White House and its administration with the same vigor that would be nice. Can you spell retribution? I'm sure the SEALS expected this action as the Obama administration is almost entirely predictable.
• majrod

  Aug 28, 2012 3:34:40 PM

  shawn - you need to get a ticket out of the Obamaverse as soon as you can before you suffer permanent brain damage. The view from Uranus can't be that pretty anyway.
  Armitage released Plame's name no Libby who wasn't charged with outing Pflame. Note Armitage wasn't charged because Pflame was not operating as a NOC. The lib talking point is a lie and in no way equates to the MULTIPLE leaks this administration is guilty of e.g. OBL raid operational details, stuxnet virus operational details, the process for targeting of drone strikes, outing the existence of an Al Qeada double agent as the second underwear bomber.
  
  Next you’re smoking some high quality stuff if you think the leaks to gain political points hasn’t hurt this nation. Most are thoroughly familiar with the details of the Bin Laden raid. Exposing how we found, confirmed and decided to launch a raid on Bin Laden did not provide more security to those that go out and do it. This informed the enemy how to be less vulnerable in the future (just like when that congressman said we were tracking Bin laden through a phone a decade ago). Stealth drones doing recon and mapping radar corridors, the use of an indigenous doctor and a vaccine program, placing CIA “eyes on” the target inside Pakistan all warn future enemies what to look for either causing a blown opportunity or an opportunity that would make Eagle Claw (Iran hostage rescue) look like a success in comparison (think ambush).
  
  The NYT drone story reveals what caused the CIA to downsize the size of munitions. What is the vetting process and criteria that goes into identifying targets and how often it's done. It reveals the military is responsible for targets outside Pakistan and the CIA inside Pakistan (letting our enemy know which intel agencies they are likely to be arrayed against). It details how collateral damage impacts the decision process and that “signature” targeting is no longer authorized giving the enemy ideas on what they can and can’t do to avoid a hellfire through the window. Not a security issue is the unabashed detailed descriptive of the Pres' day to day personal involvement. For that aspect alone I recommend all read it and reconsider the commentary of how deplorable it is for OPSEC to be using their military service for credibility (talk about using the military…). Note the title… nytimes.com/2012/05/29/world/obamas-leadership-in-war-on-al-qaeda.html?pagewanted=all
  
  The Stuxnet story in the NYT highlighted how long and what it took to create that virus but more importantly stated the code name for the Op (Olympic Games), Israeli assistance in virus development and the insertion of the Virus . It further discusses the Natanz nuclear facility was compromised to the point that we were able to assess early Iranian confusion and responses to their centrifuges self-destructing and “The architects of Olympic Games would meet him in the Situation Room, often with what they called the “horse blanket,” a giant foldout schematic diagram of Iran’s nuclear production facilities”. This not only compromises assets on the ground but gives the enemy clues to our ability to monitor their communications and to what level they have been penetrated. The story also states that from those present in the situation room that Pres O, “repeatedly expressed concerns that any American acknowledgment that it was using cyberweapons — even under the most careful and limited circumstances — could enable other countries, terrorists or hackers to justify their own attacks. acknowledges for the first time a nation has used a computer virus to destroy another country’s material.” The story’s publication can also be seen as an escalation by Iran requiring a response (remember the Iranian plot last year to bomb a restaurant in D.C.). There are tons more details in the story itself and numerous statements showcasing the pres personal involvement and desire to take action (and gain political points). Note the title… nytimes.com/2012/06/01/world/middleeast/obama-ordered-wave-of-cyberattacks-against-iran.html?pagewanted=all
  
  Of course these sorts of leaks have secondary and tertiary effects like confirming enemy intel assets credibility and causing a great deal of concern in allied intel agencies in our ability to keep a secret. If these weren’t issues I’m sure Sen Feinstein wouldn’t have agreed an issue exists or the DOJ would start an investigation with results due sometime AFTER the election or Sen Kerry wouldn’t have made comments about his concerns for the nation’s security and how leaks impact.
  
  So come out of your “I Luv Obama” snuggie and enjoy some cold hard facts. The leaks to gain a political advantage are not to the nation’s benefit. Only those that would put party before country could think otherwise…
• Radar_designer

  Aug 28, 2012 3:53:12 PM

  With all the leaks the White House let out putting our good men and women in danger, both in and out of uniform, why the heck should CIA, DOJ, NSA, DIA or DOD give a sh|t??
• Bobch47

  Aug 28, 2012 5:30:03 PM

  You asked the right question "soldiermom 11". Bet you do not get an answer to it however.
• maxketter

  Aug 28, 2012 6:03:17 PM

  Why should they receive an advance copy for Free?? Let them buy it like I did today
• hubbert45

  Aug 28, 2012 9:55:31 PM

  As every veteran and active duty soldier knows your mission sucesses and securities is only as good as your weakest link. As we can clearly see it's the Ex-SpecOpes. No one on here has any proof that President Obama releasted one or two years of detailed secret information about that mission before or after it was accomplished. It is so easy to start a rumor or a lie about anything or on anyone for that matters. Think about it, how many times we have read comments from each other on this site without having any facts or proof, our comments are just opinions thats it. We all are just getting our blood pressure up about stuff that none of us have any proof of or have any direct inside information contacts within the DOD, CIA, SECRET SERVICE or the White House. So lets keep blaming the President for all of the here say BS. I say about this matter, lets see what the DOJ has to say about it all sense they would have more facts than we all do. For right now the only info we have is from Fox news, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, CBS and talk radio.
• 29148401

  Aug 28, 2012 10:12:17 PM

  Not so good. only time will tell,who runs will this! Some times we have to do what we think is right, for this county.Meaning sacrifice. HOOT
• DustyOR

  Aug 28, 2012 11:15:43 PM

  Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm I guess the WH had insufficient classified to release to every la la land producer eh? Kind of beating an old drum IMO But inquiring minds want to know why the operatives were necessary given the WH was the real source of terminating Bin Laden. Still believe what Admiral Mullen said was best "time to shut up" or words to that effect, but I believe it should have happened immediately Bin Laden Terminated is what the headlines should have released. PERIOD. Or 'We finally got him'
• 625752

  Aug 28, 2012 11:21:26 PM

  US Officials checking.. after the fact.. two years later.. and let me guess.. NOT checking the White House and State Department for leaking most of the details at the time..LATE as usual.. I am betting that the SEAL vetted his info before submitting it. .and it was double checked before it was printed- unlike our politicians who just blab anything to get a vote.
• indianmedicine

  Aug 28, 2012 11:39:48 PM

  The "POOR" Operational Security Measures openly displayed by many with "Blow by Blow" accounting speaks for its self; and the people that disregarded that "methodology" is NOT included in "Bragging Rights" was openly ignored..... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... The SOF Community knows very well that the wrong public comments can "harden" future Targets that most likely would not have that extra layer of difficulty when engaged. ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... A "generic" type explanation would suffice for "Public Need To Know", and let it go at that...................... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... Review will show that the SEAL Community was instructed to remain silent on the Subject to protect future operations, operators, and methods............................... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... The "Politic" of this Nation was also alerted to EXECUTIVE OPSEC REQUIREMENTS, after the "horses were let out of the barn"................................................ ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... Admiral McRaven had too become vocal with OPSEC Instructions because of the "details" of operational knowledge were being "openly discussed" by those that knew or reasonably should have known "NOT" to admit, deny, or say any operational or personnel information that could be used against the SOF Community....................... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... Generals & Politics like to exercise "Bragging Rights" under the guise of needed morale jumps, show Job Performance, etc. - when the "bottom line" is aren't we (I) Great............................................ ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... It is a human trait to be recognized for good work and out come, however in this particular event - should have been within its own Ranks................................. ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... I applaud SEAL Team Six and the other SOF Military - but like you learned in "High School" - you don't get re-invited when you talk "locker room talk" to others - it clearly demonstrates Immaturity at any level......... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... As to the "Book", let it speak for its self - it either is a generic restatement or it is not - presents a Danger to Others or it Does NOT!............................... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... Again, SEAL TM 6, good job - but now you have learned a hard lesson on the Subject of "Bragging Rights"...... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... Admiral,YOU have your hands full educating many in the "Fine Art of Professional Silence"............... ..................................................... ..................................................... ..................................................... - De Oppresso Liber - Non Gratum Anus Rodentum -.... ..................................................... ..................................................... .....................................................
• 28010144

  Aug 29, 2012 12:17:48 AM

  Whatever happen to the "Code of Silence"??? Or is it a matter odf disrespect for the President(???).
• OS1Johnson

  Aug 29, 2012 12:35:58 AM

  I read portions of Scwartzcoft's book about desert storm. As I recall he didnt even write the thing. He has some ghost write gin something up who couldnt be bothered fact checking details. Unless the general really was that far out of touch with reality. The details about the ship I was on was totally fabricated and false. I dont expect this book to be anything much different
• bjhnsn

  Aug 29, 2012 12:57:36 AM

  Effe this BS. Give the man his due respect an back him at any cost! He has a right to tell his story as long as he stays w'in the parameters of divulgement! I salute him as a veteran and am looking orward to reading his take on the op.
• RobertAMelley

  Aug 29, 2012 12:58:41 AM

  Lots of comments herein..........just how many of these erstwhile folks have a DD-214.....we know for sure.....BHO does not have one......If you don't know what a DD-214 is..... you should not be posting on military issues....so AMF.
• Model1911A1

  Aug 29, 2012 2:42:18 AM

  Amazing the the "book" shot to the top of the charts aqnd it hasn't been read as of yet by anyone of the viewing public.