CIA Hired Blackwater to Help the Agency Find and Kill Terrorists

The CIA hired the private security contractor Blackwater in 2004 to help the agency track and kill al-Qaida terrorists, but abandoned the program after spending several million dollars.

CIA director Leon Panetta notified Congress about the secret program in June, the New York Times reports. The newspaper says it is unclear whether Blackwater employees were asked to kill terrorists, or whether they were merely helping the CIA do the job.

No terrorists were found or killed as a result of the program.

The House Intelligence Committee is investigating whether the CIA broke the law by failing to notify Congress about the program, the Washington Post reports.