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The White House has announced it will go ahead with the nomination of General John R. Allen as NATO commander in Europe.
The announcement comes after John Allen was cleared of allegations he had “inappropriate” communication with Florida socialite Jill Kelley.
Gen. John Allen is to relinquish command of the NATO mission in Afghanistan next month.
Unrelated harassment complaints by Jill Kelley led to the revelation of an affair between CIA chief David Petraeus and his biographer, Paula Broadwell.
General Allen’s nomination to lead the NATO command in Europe was placed on hold after it was revealed last year he had communicated repeatedly with Jill Kelley, whom he met when he led US Central Command at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida.
The emails between the two first came to light as part of a wider investigation into email harassment against Jill Kelley, who knew both Gen. John Allen and David Petraeus, a former general, through social contacts at the base.
When the FBI investigated, it traced the emails to David Petraeus’s biographer Paula Broadwell, bringing to light her affair with the CIA chief.
The White House has announced it will go ahead with the nomination of General John R. Allen as NATO commander in Europe
Earlier reports suggested Gen. John Allen had exchanged over 3,000 emails, some described as inappropriate and flirtatious, with Jill Kelley.
The Afghanistan commander had also written a letter to a judge in support of Jill Kelley’s twin sister in a messy child custody dispute.
A spokesman for Gen. John Allen said the general was “obviously pleased” to be cleared of the charges he had violated the prohibition against conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman.
“From the outset, the general placed his faith in – and fully supported – the investigative process,” Maj. David Nevers said.
Pentagon spokesman George Little said the defence department “was pleased to learn that allegations of professional misconduct were not substantiated”, adding that Defence Secretary Leon Panetta had “complete confidence in the continued leadership” of Gen. John Allen.
Defence officials told the Washington Post that the full investigation had shown that there were in fact only several hundred emails exchanged between Gen. John Allen and Jill Kelley, mostly notes on current news topics and social matters or compliments on General Allen’s television interviews.
“Some of the messages are not the sort of things you would print in a family newspaper,” the official said.
“But that doesn’t mean he violated military regulations by sending and receiving them.”
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General John R. Allen has been cleared of misconduct by the Pentagon for more than 3,000 emails exchanged with Florida socialite Jill Kelley and revealed during David Petraeus scandal.
John Allen’s nomination to head NATO commander in Europe had been put on hold amid reports the emails were inappropriate.
He is due to relinquish command of his Afghanistan post in February.
Harassment complaints by Jill Kelley led the FBI to unmask an affair between CIA Director David Petraeus and his biographer, Paula Broadwell. He later resigned.
Defence officials told the Associated Press that the White House had not decided whether to go forward with General John Allen’s nomination to Supreme Allied Commander in Europe.
Pentagon spokesman George Little said the defence department “was pleased to learn that allegations of professional misconduct were not substantiated”, adding that defence secretary Leon Panetta had “complete confidence in the continued leadership” of Gen. John Allen.
The emails first came to light as part of a wider investigation into email harassment against Jill Kelley, who knew both Gen. John Allen and David Petraeus, a former general, through social contacts on the Florida army base where US Central Command is headquartered.
When the FBI investigated, it traced the emails to David Petraeus biographer Paula Broadwell, bringing to light her affair with the CIA chief.
General John R. Allen has been cleared of misconduct by the Pentagon for more than 3,000 emails exchanged with Florida socialite Jill Kelley and revealed during David Petraeus scandal
Earlier reports suggested Gen. John Allen and exchanged thousands of emails, some described as inappropriate and flirtatious, with Jill Kelley.
The Afghanistan commander had also written a letter to a judge in support of Natalie Khawam, Jill Kelley’s twin sister, in a messy custody dispute.
After being contacted by the FBI, Leon Panetta announced the inquiry into Gen. John Allen and put the commander’s nomination on hold.
Defence officials told the Washington Post that the full investigation had shown that there were in fact only several hundred emails exchanged between the two, mostly notes on current news topics, social invites or compliments on Gen. John Allen’s television interviews.
“Some of the messages are not the sort of things you would print in a family newspaper,” the official said.
“But that doesn’t mean he violated military regulations by sending and receiving them.”
In addition to the inquiry into Gen. John Allen, Leon Panetta asked the Joint Chiefs of Staff to review ethics training after a series of misconduct cases.
General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, has not released the results of his review but has said he found that ethics training for senior leaders should begin earlier in an officer’s career and be reinforced more frequently.
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Jill Kelley, the Florida socialite at the centre of CIA director David Petraeus downfall, is planning a tell-all book, according to friends.
Jill Kelley, 37, is understood to have held preliminary talks with publishers to tell her side of the story that led to the resignation of General David Petraeus.
“Trust me, there is going to be a book in the New Year. You can count on it,” said a friend of the Tampa socialite.
She has not spoken about her pivotal role in the scandal which led to David Petraeus’s affair with his biographer Paula Broadwell being exposed last month.
David Petraeus, 60,resigned as CIA director when the affair became known following an FBI investigation that was sparked by Jill Kelley.
Another senior military figure, General John R. Allen, became embroiled in the scandal after allegedly exchanging inappropriate emails with the Tampa based Jill Kelley.
The mother of three had befriended David Petraeus and General John Allen when they were both stationed at US Central Command at the MacDill Air Force Base near her home overlooking Tampa Bay.
She threw lavish parties for the generals and used her connections to military to visit the White House on three occasions.
Jill Kelley was also accused of using her high powered connections to try to secure an $80 million check by brokering an energy deal between a New York businessman and her contacts with the South Korean Government.
Jill Kelley, the Florida socialite at the centre of CIA director David Petraeus downfall, is planning a tell-all book
Friends say Jill Kelley’s book will be “payback” for the humiliation she has suffered since her name became linked to the scandal.
“Jill is very angry, and it’s fair to say she wants to tell her side of the story,” said a friend.
“She has been lampooned on Saturday Night Live and feels she has been made to look like a fool.
“She said her best way of putting the record straight is a book. A TV interview only lasts a few minutes, but a book is there all the time. That is why she has said no to doing any TV. She wants it to be a matter of record and will do TV when the book comes out.”
As an apparently wealthy socialite who schmoozed some of America’s most senior military figures, Jill Kelley has an intriguing story to tell.
With its ingredients of sex, spies and lies any book would likely be a best seller – and generate a large sum of money for the cash-strapped Kelleys.
Jill Kelley and her cancer surgeon husband Scott have faced the embarrassment of having their personal financial details made public.
They owe millions to banks and facing foreclosure on their $1.3 million mansion overlooking Tampa Bay.
Jill Kelley, who enjoys shopping for designer clothes, is being chased for $25,000 in unpaid credit card bills
But despite her perilous financial state being laid bare she told friends the most humiliating part was being compared to the reality star Kim Kardashian.
Jill Kelley and her sister Natalie Khawam have been nicknamed the “Tampa Kardashians”.
A colonel at the MacDill Air Force Base said many people there were considered her a military groupie and likened her to the Kardashians.
“Of everything that has been written and said about her, that is what hurts the most,” said the friend.
“She finds it insulting as the Kardashians go out of their way to get publicity. Jill did not seek any of this.”
As part of the fallout from the scandal Jill Kelley’s role as a goodwill ambassador to the MacDill Air Force Base has been suspended.
She has also been stripped of her title of Honorary Consul that was bestowed upon her by South Korea.
Officials with the South Korean Government said she losing the title for misusing it for personal gain.
Jill Kelley received no official privileges from the title, but did try to claim diplomatic protection when the media swarmed over her house after her name became linked to the scandal.
She has also been ordered to remove the vanity license plate that says Honorary Consul from her silver Mercedes.
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has spoken out for the first time about the allegations against General John R. Allen, that he had “inappropriate communications” with Florida socialite and military social liaison Jill Kelley.
General John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, is under investigation for his correspondence with Kelley, who is also embroiled in the David Petraeus sex scandal.
Investigators are looking at 20,000-plus pages of documents and emails between Jill Kelley and John Allen, some of which have been described by Pentagon officials as “flirtatious”. General John Allen has denied any wrongdoing.
Leon Panetta, speaking at a news conference in Perth on Wednesday, cautioned against reaching early conclusions about the veracity of allegations against General John Allen, which have added a new dimension to the Petraeus matter.
“No one should leap to any conclusions here,” Leon Panetta said in his first public comments on the matter when a reporter asked what John Allen might have done wrong.
Leon Panetta said he supports John Allen, who has been in command in Kabul since July 2011. He took over that summer for David Petraeus, who retired from the Army to head the CIA.
“He certainly has my continued confidence to lead our forces and to continue the fight,” Leon Panetta said.
Leon Panetta has spoken out for the first time about the allegations against General John Allen, that he had inappropriate communications with Jill Kelley
The Pentagon chief declined to explain the nature of John Allen’s correspondence with Jill Kelley, the Florida socialite connected to the scandal that led to David Petraeus’ resignation last week as director of the CIA.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who appeared with Leon Panetta and their Australian counterparts at Wednesday’s news conference, declined to comment on the Allen case except to suggest it has not harmed the war effort.
Jill Kelley, the Florida housewife whose complaint over threatening emails revealed David Petraeus’ affair, has attempted to exploit her connections once again.
In her first words since her part in the scandal was revealed over the weekend, Jill Kelley has sent a string of pleading emails to the Tampa Mayor, complaining she has been receiving threats and claiming: “The truth will one day prevail.”
The anguished messages, seen by the Tampa Bay Times, were sent in the early hours of Tuesday and Wednesday to Bob Buckhorn, whom she knows socially.
Jill Kelley claims her three children are scared to return home and her husband, Dr. Scott Kelley, has been forced to sleep at the hospital because he cannot get into their driveway, due to the swarms of media.
“Dear Mayor Bob,” Jill Kelley wrote, adding that she, David Petraeus and General John R. Allen – whom she was found to have exchanged “flirtatious” emails with – “have been exploited by the media”.
“I wouldn’t care – if they got the facts right and the focus was on the criminal that stalked all of us,” she added, apparently referring to David Petraeus’ mistress Paula Broadwell.
“But the truth will one day prevail.”
It is the second instance of her trying to exploit her “position” – after she called the police asking for “diplomatic protection” from the media due to her role as honorary consul to South Korea.
“I’m an honorary consul general, so I have inviolability, so they should not be able to cross my property,” Jill Kelley told the 911 operator.
“I don’t know if you want to get diplomatic protection involved as well, because that’s against the law to cross my property because, you know, it’s inviolable.”
But the move backfired – with the police releasing the calls to the media and failing to provide her the protection reserved for those in positions of genuine authority.
“To put insult to injury, your police dept gave the local 911 tapes to the press!” Jill Kelley wrote to Bob Buckhorn, adding that the recordings included her cell number, so: “I have been receiving threats all night.”
“I’m scared and cannot believe what my city, in which I have contributed so much of my love, time, money and leadership, has now done to me and my innocent family,” Jill Kelley wrote.
Bob Buckhorn told the Times that he did nothing in response to Jill Kelley’s complaint and simply said that the 911 recordings were public records.
He added that he knew the Kelleys socially after he won the mayoral race in March 2011 – even though they did not support him in his bid and he had never met them before.
Jill Kelley with General David Petraeus and his wife Holly at her home in 2011
Yet just three weeks after Bob Buckhorn was sworn into office, Dr. Scott Kelley and his wife hosted a reception for him at their lavish $1.3 million home on Bayshore Boulevard.
Jill Kelley has since invited Bob Buckhorn to a string of social events, including her daughter’s sixth birthday party, which are also documented by email, the Times reported.
She invited him and his wife to a dinner party for the King of Jordan and, after he was unable to attend, she wrote to him again.
“The King and his sister [the Princess] are awesome people!” Jill Kelley said.
“Actually your name was brought up by the Generals when they were showing off the party I hosted you! (everyone loved that party).”
They met again when Bob Buckhorn and his wife gave her a ride home following an event at MacDill Air Force Base, for which she organized events as a volunteer social liaison officer.
“Gen. [James] Mattis, was so kind to offer, but I realized you two were passing my way,” Jill Kelley emailed the mayor the following day.
Their messages also show how she involved herself in a spat over a radio host’s claims that he was going to deep fat fry the Koran earlier this year, according to the Times.
Officers at MacDill told the mayor that the publicity stunt could harm troops, and asked him to speak with the host.
Jill Kelley also called the mayor to tell them she had been speaking with Gen. John Allen and Vice Admiral Robert Harward, the deputy commander of CentCom, who said they needed the mayor’s help.
When Buckhorn responded to say it was being dealt with, Jill Kelley said “they asked me to get involved, like I did when it happened with the Pastor last year”.
Her shrewd social-climbing tactics also came to light this week when she was pictured with Marco Rubio and her twin sister, Natalie Khawam, when he was running for the Senate.
The photograph was tweeted by Republican Angelette Aviles who said that it was taken at a March 2010 fundraiser, where tickets were $1,000.
But the twins didn’t pay – instead, they appeared, took the photo and left, Angelette Aviles told the Times. They did not contribute to his campaign.
Yet over the past week, Jill Kelley’s connections have given her more exposure than she was perhaps intending.
After David Petraeus dramatically resigned from the top of the CIA last Friday, it emerged that Jill Kelley had played a key role in exposing his affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell.
In May, Jill Kelley alerted the FBI that she had been receiving threatening, anonymous emails warning her to “back off” David Petraeus, whom Kelley and her husband are good friends with.
The FBI was forced to launch an in-depth investigation as some messages contained classified information about David Petraeus’ whereabouts, and they feared there could have been a security breach.
The military scandal gripping America took an extraordinary twist yesterday, when a second general, John R. Allen, was linked to one of the two women who precipitated the fall of CIA director General David Petraeus.
David Petraeus, 60, hailed by some as the finest officer of his generation, was forced to step down after the exposure of a scandal involving X-rated emails, compromised state secrets and an affair forged in the ruins of Afghanistan.
His mistress was revealed as Paula Broadwell, a glamorous defence academic and ex-army officer, who had written a fawning biography of David Petraeus after she was “embedded” with him in Afghanistan.
Though they conducted their affair via private email accounts and with sufficient discretion to hoodwink even the suspicious minds of his CIA subordinates, it came to light thanks to old-fashioned female jealousy.
Paula Broadwell became convinced that she was, in fact, involved in a love triangle – and not one that involved David Petraeus’ wife, Holly.
The “other woman”, a 37-year-old Florida socialite and mother of three named Jill Kelley, went to the FBI after receiving threatening emails from Paula Broadwell.
But, almost incredibly, the investigation she set in train not only led to the demise of David Petraeus, but has ensnared another senior figure, General John Allen.
Yesterday, the Pentagon announced that General John Allen, 58, – who was about to be appointed NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe – is being investigated for “inappropriate communication” with Jill Kelley.
Paula Broadwell, a glamorous defence academic and ex-army officer, had written a fawning biography of David Petraeus after she was embedded with him in Afghanistan
While investigating Jill Kelley’s case, the FBI discovered what it says amounts to between 20,000 and 30,000 pages of emails between her and General John Allen between 2010 and 2012. Yesterday, some of those emails were described by a senior defence official as “flirtatious”.
John Allen succeeded Petraeus as the head of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, but his new European post is now on hold.
Like David Petraeus, John Allen got to know Jill Kelley when he was stationed at Central Command near her home in Tampa, Florida, where she organizes social events for senior military families.
Not only has the widening scandal been disastrous for the Petraeus, Broadwell and Kelley families, but it has also caused major ructions in Washington as the first nightmare of the new Barack Obama presidency.
Some FBI agents considered the missives too trivial to warrant following up, but – encouraged by Jill Kelley’s FBI chum – investigators spent weeks tracing where the emails had been sent from, and eventually matched them to hotels where Paula Broadwell had been staying.
Gaining a warrant to monitor her emails, they discovered Paula Broadwell and David Petraeus – using a pseudonym – had set up private Google Mail accounts to send steamy messages to each other.
(Terrorists use the technique, by which the sender can leave messages in a “draft” folder so the recipient can log in and read them without anything being emailed.)
By late summer, the FBI had worked out the general was involved and – alerting the U.S. Justice Department and Attorney General Eric Holder – they interviewed Paula Broadwell in September.
Paula Broadwell admitted the affair and agreed to hand over her computer. On its hard drive, investigators found copies of undisclosed classified documents – a discovery that inevitably rang even louder alarm bells. (Federal agents returned to her home on Monday night and removed boxes of documents and two computers.)
Confronted by the FBI with its evidence the week before the presidential election, David Petraeus also admitted to the affair, but insisted he hadn’t sent the secret material to his mistress.
Officials are reportedly convinced David Petraeus is telling the truth, but still don’t know how the documents were found on Paula Broadwell’s computer.
General John R. Allen is the second top military official dragged into the David Petraeus sex scandal after being accused of sending thousands of “inappropriate” emails to socialite Jill Kelley, the woman responsible for exposing the former CIA director’s extra-marital affair.
General John R. Allen, commander of U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, is under investigation by the FBI after the agency discovered between 20,000 and 30,000 pages of communication between him and 37-year-old housewife Jill Kelley.
Jill Kelley entered the public eye when she was the target of threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, which the FBI used to uncover the affair between Broadwell and david Petraeus, leading to the former general’s resignation from the CIA.
John Allen, 58, who is married with two daughters, succeeded David Petraeus in Afghanistan and was due to take over as NATO’s top commander – his appointment has been suspended while his relationship with Jill Kelley is investigated.
John Allen, who graduated from the Naval Academy in 1976, was Deputy Commander of Central Command, based in Tampa, prior to taking over in Afghanistan. He also is a veteran of the Iraq war.
He lives in Washington D.C. with his wife, Kathy, with whom he has two daughters, Bobbie and Betty. Betty is a teacher, while Bobbie, a 27-year-old graduate of Virginia Tech, is a singer and released her debut album last year.
John Allen, who is married with two daughters, succeeded David Petraeus in Afghanistan and was due to take over as NATO’s top commander
After growing up in Oakton, Virginia, John Allen graduated with military honors from the Naval Academy with the class of 1976. He is a 1998 distinguished graduate of the National War College.
John Allen holds a master of arts degree in national security studies from Georgetown University, a master of science degree in strategic intelligence from the Defense Intelligence College, and a master of science degree in national security strategy from the National War College.
General John R. Allen assumed his duties as the Commander, International Security Assistance Force – Afghanistan and United States Forces – Afghanistan on July 18, 2011.
John Allen played a key role in countering the Iraq insurgency between 2006 and 2008. He then oversaw a surge in US troops in Afghanistan in battling the Taliban.
In Afghanistan, General John R. Allen commanded coalition troops from 50 different countries.
He was nominated in October by President Barack Obama to be Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of the U.S. European Command – that is now on hold.
But if John Allen is found to have engaged in an extramarital affair – a crime in the military – he faces being court martialed, bringing a spectacular fall from grace and the end to a glittering army career that has spanned nearly 40 years.
President Barack Obama had nominated John Allen to take over as chief of the military’s European Command and NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, but that nomination is now on hold as the Pentagon investigates Allen’s relationship with Kelley, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told reporters.
John Allen had been expected to take that new post in early 2013 if confirmed by the Senate, as had been widely expected.
The FBI notified the Pentagon of its investigation into John Allen’s communications with Jill Kelley on Sunday evening, an unnamed senior defence official said.
Leon Panetta said he immediately notified the White House and top leaders in Congress of the investigation.
Leon Panetta said John Allen would remain as commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan for now, “while the matter is under investigation and before the facts are determined”.
Pentagon officials have declined to comment on the nature of the relationship between Jill Kelley and John Allen except to say that it was “potentially inappropriate”.
Officials have not said whether any national security secrets were breached.
General John R. Allen, a second top military official, was dragged in to the David Petraeus sex scandal early this morning after being accused of sending thousands of “inappropriate” emails to socialite Jill Kelley, who was responsible for exposing the former CIA director’s extra-marital affair.
General John R. Allen, commander of U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, is under investigation by the FBI after the agency discovered between 20,000 and 30,000 pages of communication between him and 37-year-old housewife Jill Kelley.
Jill Kelley entered the public eye when she was the target of threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, which the FBI used to uncover the affair between Broadwell and David Petraeus, leading to the former general’s resignation from the CIA.
John Allen, who succeeded David Petraeus in Afghanistan, was due to take over as NATO’s top commander, but his appointment has been suspended while his relationship with Jill Kelley is investigated.
Barack Obama had nominated John Allen to take over as chief of the military’s European Command and NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, but that nomination is now on hold as the Pentagon investigates Allen’s relationship with Kelley, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told reporters.
He had been expected to take that new post in early 2013 if confirmed by the Senate, as had been widely expected.
The FBI notified the Pentagon of its investigation into John Allen’s communications with Jill Kelley on Sunday evening, an unnamed senior defence official said. Leon Panetta said he immediately notified the White House and top leaders in Congress of the investigation.
Leon Panetta said John Allen would remain as commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan for now, “while the matter is under investigation and before the facts are determined”.
Pentagon officials have declined to comment on the nature of the relationship between Jill Kelley and John Allen, who is married, except to say that it was “potentially inappropriate”. Officials have not said whether any national security secrets were breached.
Adultery is classified as a crime in the military.
Jill Kelley has been in the news this week after it emerged that she was the target of harassing emails from Paula Broadwell, a 40-year-old mother of two from Charlotte, North Carolina who was engaged in an affair with David Petraeus.
Paula Broadwell sent Jill Kelley a half dozen emails from anonymous accounts earlier this year warning her to stay away from Petraeus. Paula Broadwell perceived Jill Kelley as a threat to her relationship with David Petraeus, which began in the summer of 2011 and ended the following summer.
Jill Kelley notified a friend of hers who worked for the FBI of the emails, and he referred the case to a cyber crimes unit.
That agent was later banned from the FBI’s investigation into the source of the emails when officials discovered that he was sending shirtless photographs to Jill Kelley and seemed to become “obsessed” with the case, the Wall Street Journal reported.
General John R. Allen was dragged into the David Petraeus sex scandal early this morning after being accused of sending thousands of inappropriate emails to Jill Kelley
Jill Kelley is a volunteer who organizes social events for military families in the Tampa area. She often hosts the events at her million-dollar Bayshore Boulevard home, which is located only a couple miles from MacDill Air Force base, where Allen served from July 2008 to June 2011.
John R. Allen, a four-star Marine general, succeeded David Petraeus as the top American commander in Afghanistan in July 2011.
A senior official told the Associated Press that 20,000 to 30,000 pages of emails and other documents from Allen’s communications with Jill Kelley between 2010 and 2012 are under review.
He would not say whether they involved sexual matters or whether they are thought to include unauthorized disclosures of classified information. He said he did not know whether David Petraeus is mentioned in the emails.
“General Allen disputes that he has engaged in any wrongdoing in this matter,” the official said. He said John Allen currently is in Washington.
The FBI’s decision to refer the Allen matter to the Pentagon rather than keep it itself, combined with Leon Panetta’s decision to allow John Allen to continue as Afghanistan commander without a suspension, suggested strongly that officials viewed whatever happened as a possible infraction of military rules rather than a violation of federal criminal law.
John Allen was Deputy Commander of Central Command, based in Tampa, prior to taking over in Afghanistan. He also is a veteran of the Iraq war.
Leon Panetta said Barack Obama was consulted and agreed that John Allen’s nomination to the NATO post should be put on hold.
John Allen was to testify at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday. Leon Panetta said he asked committee leaders to delay that hearing.
Leon Panetta also said he wants the Senate Armed Services Committee to act promptly on Barack Obama’s nomination of General Joseph Dunford to succeed John Allen as commander in Afghanistan. That nomination was made several weeks ago. Joseph Dunford’s hearing is also scheduled for Thursday.
