Clandestine

CIA Gathering Intel in Libya

Aiding airstrikes and meeting with rebels for weeks.

The CIA has been involved in a secret mission in Libya, gathering intelligence to aid the NATO airstrikes and meeting with the rebels for several weeks, U.S. officials said Wednesday. News seeped out earlier Wednesday that President Obama had approved secret aid to the rebels, and officials confirmed that an unknown number of American spies are meeting with the rebels to figure out who exactly they are—a burning question, as some have suggested al Qaeda is among their ranks. In addition to the CIA presence, British MI6 officials are also stationed in Libya, directing airstrikes from British jets and gathering intelligence. This makes the situation in Libya much murkier, as the stated goal has been not to oust Col. Muammar Gaddafi, but to enforce the no-fly zone.