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Employees at the White House were requested to hand over all materials that might be linked to the leak of a CIA operative's identity to facilitate an ongoing investigation before next Tuesday.
The employees received a memo from Alberto Gonzales, the president's legal counsel, on Friday which said all materials must be turned in to his office by 5 p.m. Tuesday to comply with deadlines set by the Justice Department.
The materials include electronic records, correspondence, computer records, notes and calendar entries, and the employees are asked to sign a certification form declaring they have turned in relevant materials or do not have any at all.
A federal investigation is going on to determine who leaked the identity of Valerie Plame, an undercover CIA officer, whose husband, former US ambassador Joseph Wilson, has accused the Bush administration of using false intelligence to justify the Iraq war.
The Justice Department moved the investigation beyond the White House and the CIA on Thursday to include the State and Defense departments.
The Justice Department will not inquire of the reporters who made Plame's name public, as seeking subpoenas of reporters is considered a last resort for the department, officials said.
(Xinhua News Agency October 4, 2003)
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