U.S. officials debating response to 'targeted killing' suit
NEW YORK, April 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. Attorney General has personally asked for more time for the government to file papers in a lawsuit launched by a civil liberties group seeking the legal records authorizing strikes that have killed U.S. citizens abroad.
In a publicly filed letter on Monday to U.S. District judge Colleen McMahon, federal prosecutors in Manhattan said that Attorney General Eric Holder had instructed them to request an extension.
Holder "has personally directed us to seek this additional time to allow the government to finalize its position with regard to the sensitive national security matters presented in this case," the prosecutors - who represent the U.S. government in this case - said.
"Given the significance of the matters presented in this case, the government's position is being deliberated at the highest level of the executive branch," the letter said.
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