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| CIA chief confirms Afghan deaths | CIA chief confirms Afghan deaths |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Seven CIA agents were killed in a bomb attack in Afghanistan, the US agency's director, Leon Panetta, has confirmed. | Seven CIA agents were killed in a bomb attack in Afghanistan, the US agency's director, Leon Panetta, has confirmed. |
| A bomber wearing an explosive vest entered Forward Operating Base Chapman in Khost Province, near Pakistan. | A bomber wearing an explosive vest entered Forward Operating Base Chapman in Khost Province, near Pakistan. |
| A Taliban spokesman said a member of the group working for the Afghan army had carried out the attack. | A Taliban spokesman said a member of the group working for the Afghan army had carried out the attack. |
| Earlier reports said eight CIA agents had been killed in the attack - the worst against US intelligence officials since 1983. | |
| The attack has raised questions about the coalition's ability to protect itself against infiltrators, analysts say. | |
| 'Close to the enemy' | |
| Paying tribute to the fallen, Mr Panetta said six other agents were injured in Wednesday's attack at the Forward Operating Base in Khost Province. | |
| The Chapman airfield is reportedly used for launching drone planes | |
| "Those who fell yesterday were far from home and close to the enemy, doing the hard work that must be done to protect our country from terrorism," he said. | |
| "We owe them our deepest gratitude, and we pledge to them and their families that we will never cease fighting for the cause to which they dedicated their lives - a safer America." | |
| Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told the BBC the Khost bomber was wearing an army uniform when he managed to breach security at the base, detonating his explosives belt in the gym. | |
| 'Real danger' | |
| Neither the names of the CIA officials killed nor the details of their work were released due to the sensitivity of their work, the agency said in a statement. | |
| "Yesterday's tragedy reminds us that the men and women of the CIA put their lives at risk every day to protect this nation," said Mr Panetta. | |
| "Throughout our history, the reality is that those who make a real difference often face real danger." | |
| The flags at the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, were to be flown at half-mast in honour of the dead, he added. | |
| Reports say the Chapman base is used by provincial reconstruction teams - which include soldiers and civilians - and is protected by some 200 Afghan soldiers. | |
| The base has been described as "not regular" - a phrase that implies it was a centre of CIA operations in Khost province, the BBC's Peter Greste in Kabul says. | |
| Khost province - which is one of the Taliban's strongholds - has been targeted by militants in the past year. | |
| The number of foreign civilians deployed in Afghanistan has been rising as international efforts there focus increasingly on development and aid. | |
| Elsewhere in Afghanistan: | |
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