[QODLink]
Americas
CIA boss to be new US defence secretary
Leon Panetta will take over following Robert Gates' retirement later this year.
Last Modified: 27 Apr 2011 12:05
Leon Panetta will need to be confirmed in the position by the US Senate [AFP]

CIA director Leon Panetta will become US defence secretary and be replaced at the spy agency's helm by General David Petraeus, current head of military operations in Afghanistan, ABC News reported on Wednesday.

Panetta, a 72-year-old Democratic politician, lawyer and professor will take over from Robert Gates following his planned retirement this year. 

President Barack Obama will also nominate veteran diplomat Ryan Crocker as the next US ambassador to Afghanistan, according to an NBC News report.

The positions will require Senate confirmation.

A shuffling of top national security jobs has been an object of speculation for weeks, says Reuters.
Source:
Al Jazeera and agencies
Topics in this article
People
Country
Organisation
Featured on Al Jazeera
Murder of Somali draws ire of foreign African nationals over rising xenophobic violence.
We look at the impact of increased sanctions against the Islamic Republic and ask who it really affects.
Tupamaros enforce rough justice in Venezuela's slums to support socialism, but critics say the group are violent thugs.
More than a decade ago the US launched a war against Afghanistan, but was it a justified battle?
Featured
Syria's War
Two years since the start of the uprising, rebels and Assad's forces remain locked in conflict.
Turkey Protests
Extensive coverage of political unrest that spread from Istanbul to other areas.
Obama's scandal
Revelations over NSA spying are threatening president's European trip.
Farming in Greece
Some urbanites are returning to their rural roots to farm the land.
People 'without'
Kuwait's 'Bidoon' have been stripped of rights and treated as second-class citizens.
join our mailing list