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US election: FBI probe into Clinton emails - what we know | US election: FBI probe into Clinton emails - what we know |
(7 days later) | |
After a review of hundreds of thousands of emails, the FBI has once again cleared Hillary Clinton over her use of a private email server. | |
The first verdict came in July, but in a bombshell announcement on 28 October, the FBI said it had found new emails that "appeared to be pertinent" to its investigation. | |
The revelation angered the Clinton campaign, and Mr Comey came under fire from some Democrats for allegedly interfering in the election. | |
Donald Trump, meanwhile, seized on the news to accuse Mrs Clinton of grand corruption. | |
Mr Comey now says that after reviewing the newly discovered emails, the FBI has not changed its position that Mrs Clinton's should not face criminal charges. | |
He has not provided many details but here's what we know about the FBI probe: | |
Where did they find these emails? | Where did they find these emails? |
The emails, including some from top Clinton aide Huma Abedin, are believed to have been found on a laptop belonging to her estranged husband, former congressman Anthony Weiner. | The emails, including some from top Clinton aide Huma Abedin, are believed to have been found on a laptop belonging to her estranged husband, former congressman Anthony Weiner. |
In a letter to Congress, Mr Comey said the FBI had discovered the emails "in connection with an unrelated case". He used similar language in the latest letter. | |
The unrelated case is said to be an inquiry into Mr Wiener, with FBI officials investigating whether he sent sexually explicit emails to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina. | The unrelated case is said to be an inquiry into Mr Wiener, with FBI officials investigating whether he sent sexually explicit emails to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina. |
Devices belonging to Ms Abedin and Mr Weiner were seized as part of the investigation. | Devices belonging to Ms Abedin and Mr Weiner were seized as part of the investigation. |
Anthony Weiner: Behind the scenes of a political marriage | Anthony Weiner: Behind the scenes of a political marriage |
What do we know about the emails? | What do we know about the emails? |
There are said to be about 650,000 emails in total on the laptop and the FBI is said to have used special software to comb through them. | |
The aim? To see if any contained classified information. | |
At the end of the original investigation into Mrs Clinton, Mr Comey said her handling of sensitive material during her tenure as secretary of state was "extremely careless" but not criminal. | |
FBI investigators had been "working around the clock to process and review" all of the new emails "that were to or from Hillary Clinton while she was secretary of state", Mr Comey said. | |
He did not give any further details. | |
But US media reports say that investigators established the newly found emails were either personal, or were duplicates of correspondence they had previously reviewed. | |
What happens next? | What happens next? |
The review of emails linked to Mrs Clinton's server is understood to now be complete. according to the New York Times. | |
But Mr Comey's letter to Congress was very short on detail and it's unclear whether further emails found on the laptop are still being examined. | |
While the announcement will come as a relief to the Clinton campaign, it does not mean the email scandal will go away. | |
After all, the FBI's original verdict in July did not stop many Trump supporters from demanding that she be "locked up". | |
What was the initial scandal about? | What was the initial scandal about? |
Before becoming secretary of state in 2009, Mrs Clinton set up an email server at her home in Chappaqua, New York, that she used for all work and personal emails during her four years in office. | Before becoming secretary of state in 2009, Mrs Clinton set up an email server at her home in Chappaqua, New York, that she used for all work and personal emails during her four years in office. |
She did not use, or even activate, a state.gov email account, which would have been hosted on servers owned and managed by the US government. | She did not use, or even activate, a state.gov email account, which would have been hosted on servers owned and managed by the US government. |
She said it was for convenience but critics said it gave her control over what information entered the public domain. | She said it was for convenience but critics said it gave her control over what information entered the public domain. |
What is the email scandal all about? | What is the email scandal all about? |
What is Clinton saying? | What is Clinton saying? |
When news of the new emails first emerged, Mrs Clinton said she was "confident" they would not change the outcome of the FBI's previous investigation. | |
She was right. | |
"We're glad this matter is resolved," her campaign communications director Jennifer Palmieri said. | |
The candidate herself has not addressed Mr Comey's new letter directly on the campaign trail. | |
What is Trump saying? | What is Trump saying? |
Donald Trump says Mrs Clinton is "being protected by a rigged system". The Republican candidate says he believes investigations into his rival will continue. | |
"The rank-and-file special agents at the FBI won't let her get away with her terrible crimes," he said after the latest news broke. | |
"You can't review 650,000 new emails in eight days." | |
What does the FBI's verdict mean? | |
Anthony Zurcher, BBC North America reporter, writes: | Anthony Zurcher, BBC North America reporter, writes: |
When determining the political fallout of this latest development, it's worth remembering that the race between Mr Trump and Mrs Clinton was already tightening in the days leading up to the first Comey letter. | |
Surveys taken after the revelation indicated that few Americans considered the story grounds for changing their vote. The divide between the two candidates is simply too great to allow much ticket-switching at this point. | |
What the story did do was knock Mr Trump out of the headlines for over a week, giving him space to bring disaffected Republicans back into the fold. It also prevented Mrs Clinton from ending the campaign on a positive message and increased negative perceptions of her, which will make it harder for her to govern if she is elected. | |
Once this election is in the rear-view mirror, there will have to be a lot of soul-searching within the FBI and the media about how this story has played out and been covered. Following Mr Comey's original letter, the nation's top law-enforcement became a constant source of leaks, as internal factions and disputes spilled into public view. | |
You can read Anthony's analysis in full here. | You can read Anthony's analysis in full here. |