US spy agencies ‘probe staff after al Qaeda tries to infiltrate’

Al Qaeda and other hostile groups have repeatedly sought to infiltrate US intelligence agencies, which are investigating thousands of their staff to counter the threat, The Washington Post has reported.

The CIA found about a fifth of job applicants with suspect backgrounds had “significant terrorist and/or hostile intelligence connections,” the paper cited a classified budget document as saying.

The document was provided to the paper by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden, now a fugitive in Russia under temporary asylum.