Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked Pentagon Papers on Vietnam War, dies at 92

History-making whistleblower's actions revealed long-time government doubts and deceit during the war

Former Pentagon employee Daniel Ellsberg poses for a photo in central London in 2004. Reuters

Daniel Ellsberg, the man known for leaking the Pentagon Papers, has died at age 92.

The history-making whistleblower's actions revealed long-time government doubts and deceit during the Vietnam War and inspired acts of retaliation by Richard Nixon that helped lead to the president's resignation.

Mr Ellsberg, who announced in February that he was terminally ill with pancreatic cancer, died on Friday morning, AP reported, citing a letter from his family released by a spokeswoman.

Until the early 1970s, when he revealed that he was the source for the stunning media reports on the 47-volume, 7,000-page Defence Department study on the US role in South-East Asia, Mr Ellsberg was a well-placed member of the government-military elite.

He was a Harvard graduate and self-defined “Cold Warrior” who served as a private and government consultant on Vietnam throughout the 1960s.

Mr Ellsberg also risked his life on the battlefield, received the highest security clearances, and came to be trusted by officials in Democratic and Republican administrations.

After he leaked the Pentagon Papers, Henry Kissinger called Mr Ellsberg “the most dangerous man in America”.