KABUL, Afghanistan, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- A Jordanian doctor was able to kill five CIA officers at an Afghan base because of violations of basic security standards, sources told The Washington Post.
Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi set off explosives as a U.S. security guard approached him to conduct a pat-down search. The meeting at a base in Khost province was supposed to provide information on finding and killing Ayman al-Zawahiri, the No. 2 man in al-Qaida.
Balawi had worked for the CIA as an informant and agents, hoping he would provide valuable information on al-Qaida, tried to balance respectful treatment with security needs. But sources who did not want their names used said such meetings should be kept small and untested double agents should not be trusted.
Balawi left a videotape, released Saturday, in which he called for revenge for a Taliban leader who died in a U.S. drone strike in August.
"We will always demand revenge for him inside America and outside," Balawi said.
One former CIA field officer told the Post Balawi would have looked like a "superstar asset" up to the point where he set off the explosives. In addition to the five CIA agents, the dead included two U.S. security guards, a Jordanian intelligence agent who had vouched for Balawi, and a driver.
"You get somebody who has helped you and is incredibly important for the information he's going to potentially provide, these are prize possessions," said a former CIA field officer. "Somebody comes and it's like a celebration that they're coming. It's good to make them feel welcome. It's good to make them feel important."
