Chelsea Manning posts first photo day after release from prison
US army private Chelsea Manning has posted a new photo of herself after being freed from a Kansas military prison and a 35-year sentence for leaking classified materials.
The transgender soldier formerly known as Bradley Manning took to Twitter and Instagram on Thursday, posting a portrait photograph of her with short-cropped hair, bright red lipstick and a dark outfit with a plunging neckline.
The 29-year-old, from Oklahoma, included the caption: "Okay, so here I am everyone!!"
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Chelsea Manning celebrates freedom with moving Instagram post
Ms Manning was released early on Wednesday from confinement at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas, having served seven years behind bars for giving classified materials to anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks.
She and her lawyers have refused to divulge her post-prison whereabouts or immediate plans.
In an earlier post, she wrote "First steps of freedom!!" alongside a photograph of her feet.
Okay, so here I am everyone!! =Phttps://t.co/NuyZlcWfd9#HelloWorld pic.twitter.com/gKsMFTYukO
— Chelsea Manning (@xychelsea)
Barack Obama, in his final days in office, commuted the final 28 years of Ms Manning's 35-year sentence.
She announced her gender transition while the US Army was keeping her in the men's prison and forcing her to wear a male haircut.
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Chelsea Manning freed from prison - a timeline of events
In a statement Ms Manning said she appreciated the support she had received from people all over the world.
"The past will always affect me, and I will keep that in mind while remembering that how it played out is only my starting point not my final destination," the statement said.
Ms Manning said in 2014 that she disclosed the classified information to expose truths about the civil war in Iraq "out of a love for my country”.
Reuters
