The CIA was warned that a man who claimed to be al-Qaeda turncoat might be plotting an ambush, weeks before he exploded a hidden bomb inside an agency base in Afghanistan, killing nine people and himself, an internal investigation has found.
The warning, from a Jordanian intelligence officer, was never passed along, one of a chain of lapses that ultimately allowed a double agent to penetrate the CIA's secret base in Khost, Afghanistan, CIA Director Leon Panetta said Tuesday. Panetta provided an overview of the agency's still-classified report, which he said points to multiple failures but stops short of recommending disciplinary measures against any individuals.
Standard precautious used in dealing with informants - including proper vetting - were relaxed amid an eagerness by CIA officers to meet Humam al-Balawi, a Jordanian physician who promised he could deliver al-Qaeda's No. 2 commander, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Panetta said.
"There was a systemic breakdown with regard to the kind of judgment and scrutiny that should have been applied here," Panetta said in reviewing the key findings with reporters in the agency's McLean, Va., headquarters.