By Carol Cratty and Larry Shaughnessy
Audio of Pfc. Bradley Manning telling a military court that he provided classified information to the WikiLeaks website has been posted on the Internet by the Freedom of the Press Foundation.
"This marks the first time the American public has heard the actual voice of Manning," the group said in a statement Monday.
Access to the military court proceedings for Manning is limited, and observers are not allowed to use recording devices. The foundation did not say how it obtained the audio but complained that the proceedings should be available to the public.
"By releasing this audio recording, we wish to make sure that the voice of this generation's most prolific whistle-blower can be heard - literally - by the world," said the group's statement.
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By Carol Cratty
A naturalized citizen living in Portland, Oregon, has been charged with one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.
The charge is related to the May 2009 bombing that killed 30 people at Pakistan's intelligence headquarters in Lahore, said Amanda Marshall, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
Reaz Qadir Khan, 48, faces life in prison if convicted.
According to the indictment, Khan provided money and advice to Ali Jaleel, who was one of the suicide bombers in the attack.
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By Carol Cratty and Mark Morgenstein
A former CIA officer who pleaded guilty to identifying a covert intelligence officer was sentenced on Friday to 30 months in prison.
John Kiriakou and prosecutors agreed on the term as part of the plea agreement he struck in October.
Kiriakou, 48, declined to make a statement at the Alexandria, Virginia, federal court prior to sentencing by U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema.
"Alright, perhaps you've already said too much," Brinkema said.
She rejected defense attempts to characterize Kiriakou as a whistle-blower.
The judge was bound by the plea agreement, but said she would have handed down a tougher sentence had Kiriakou been convicted at trial.
"This case is not a case about a whistle-blower. It's about a person who betrayed a very solemn trust," Brinkema said. FULL POST
By Carol Cratty and Susan Candiotti
FBI Director Robert Mueller met with Libyan officials in Tripoli on Thursday for discussions about last year's deadly terror attack on a U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, an agency official said.
Another law enforcement official said Mueller met with the prime minister, justice minister, intelligence chief and others.
That official said the investigation of the September 11 assault has made "significant progress" and charges were expected although no timetable for action was given.
"We're still focusing on more than a dozen people," the second official said.
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By Carol Cratty
As law enforcement agencies finalize security preparations for Barack Obama's second inauguration, an FBI official said Tuesday authorities have "no credible corroborated threats to any of the activities."
Debra Evans Smith, the FBI's acting assistant director in charge of its Washington field office, said the FBI will have specialized personnel ready to go to meet any security challenge.
"We will have our SWAT team, pretty much all of our specialty teams will be available and on standby to include (weapons specialists), our dive team, our intelligence team - working around the clock - our hostage negotiators, (and) our special agent bomb technicians will also be available," Smith told reporters.
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By Carol Cratty
The FBI performed nearly 2.8 million background checks on people wanting to buy guns in December, a record month that capped a record year.
The numbers from the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System on Wednesday did not show how many firearms buyers actually took home from federally licensed gun stores. Some purchasers may have bought more than one weapon.
Data is made publicly available, but the FBI but does not generally try to explain increases in the number of checks.
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By Carol Cratty
A Florida man arrested on terror charges allegedly wanted to attack a landmark in New York City but didn't have the money or bomb-making components to carry out his plot, according to arguments made by federal prosecutors during a detention hearing Tuesday.
According to a federal law enforcement official familiar with the case, the government alleges Raees Alam Qazi, 20, wanted to avenge deaths in Afghanistan and those killed by U.S. drone attacks.
Prosecutors said Qazi, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Pakistan, considered such potential targets as Wall Street, Times Square and theaters.
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By Carol Cratty
The FBI has launched an international publicity effort asking for tips from anyone with knowledge about the September 11th attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi which killed four Americans.
The FBI is using the Internet and the social networking site Facebook to solicit help on the case. Last week the FBI posted "Seeking Information" notices in English, Arabic and French with pictures of the damaged consulate.
The "Seeking Information" posters say the FBI is "asking Libyans and people around the world for additional information related to the attacks." Respondents can text or e-mail the FBI or fill out a form on the FBI's website. The FBI notice says the information can be submitted confidentially. FULL POST
By Suzanne Kelly
In yet another twist in the aftermath of the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus last Friday, the CIA is now opening an investigation into his conduct as Director of the spy agency. The investigation will be led by the CIA Inspector General.
"At the CIA we are constantly reviewing our performance. If there are lessons to be learned from this case we'll use them to improve. But we're not getting ahead of ourselves; an investigation is exploratory and doesn't presuppose any particular outcome," said CIA Spokesman Preston Golson.
Petraeus resigned a week ago citing an extramarital affair as the reason for his stepping down. According to friends of Petraeus, he began an affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell shortly after taking the job as Director of the Agency last fall. Ms. Broadwell has not responded to CNN requests for comment.
The announcement of the internal investigation comes on the eve of closed door testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Petraeus is expected to offer his thoughts to the committee members on what the Agency knew and when it knew it in the days after the attack in Benghazi, Libya that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans on September 11.
By Carol Cratty
A convicted terrorist was found guilty Thursday in North Carolina of plotting to kill witnesses who testified against him at his terror trial.
Hysen Sherifi, 28, was found guilty in Raleigh on nine counts of conspiring with his brother and a female friend to hire someone to kill the witnesses in retaliation for their 2011 trial testimony. Sherifi directed the plot from behind bars, prosecutors said.
"The trial evidence and testimony proved that from November 2011 through January 2012, Sherifi conspired to pay a hit man to murder and behead three witnesses and three law enforcement officers who testified against him," according to a news release from the U.S. attorney's office in the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Prosecutors said Sherifi wanted revenge, hoped to get his conviction overturned and wanted to help one of his alleged terrorism conspirators who had not yet gone to trial.
The scheme was foiled as a result of a sting operation. In October 2011, Sherifi asked a fellow inmate in his North Carolina jail how to hire someone to commit the murders, according to testimony. The inmate told his lawyer and federal law enforcement officers about what Sherifi was up to. The government then secretly taped conversations between Sherifi and his fellow inmate in which Sherifi talked about wanting the witnesses killed.
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