The White House is investigating how the name of its top CIA officer in Afghanistan was mistakenly divulged to the press during President Barack Obama's surprise visit to the troops over the weekend.
White House chief of staff Denis McDonough has asked White House counsel Neil Eggleston to look into the matter -- and "to figure out what happened and to make sure it won't happen again," Obama's deputy national security adviser Tony Blinken told CNN.
Blinken wouldn't say whether the station chief would have to leave Afghanistan because his identity is now known, but said "you can rest assured that the security of this person is foremost in our minds and will be taken care of."
The Washington Post reported Sunday that the officer was exposed by the White House when his name was "inadvertently included on a list provided to news organizations of senior U.S. officials participating in President Obama’s surprise visit with U.S. troops.
"The White House recognized the mistake and quickly issued a revised list that did not include the individual, who had been identified on the initial release as the 'Chief of Station' in Kabul, a designation used by the CIA for its highest-ranking spy in a country," the Post said.
Comments