US Warns Hundreds Named in WikiLeaks Cables

The State Department is working overtime to warn hundred of people whose names appear in some of the 99% of diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks that haven't been published yet. After combing through a majority of the still-under-wraps cables, dozens of staff in Washington and in embassies around the world have been informing human rights activists, business people, and government officials that they could be in danger, administration officials tells the New York Times. A few have been moved to safer locations.

Officials say there have not yet been reports of anyone being attacked or jailed based on the information contained in the 2,700 cables released to date, but note that since some dissidents are regularly harassed by their government, it may be tricky to determine the cables' effect. The Times notes that the fallout has been surprisingly manageable, with most US diplomats weathering the storm just fine. But State Department officials worry about the foreigners who spoke to those diplomats—from a gay person in a country that doesn't accept homosexuality to a businessman with information about government corruption—and say protecting them will be a long-term undertaking.
(More Wikileaks diplomatic cables stories.)