The White House has agreed to provide the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence with all legal opinions justifying the use of armed drone strikes, Dianne Feinstein, the panel's chairwoman, confirmed Tuesday.

"I have reached an agreement with the White House to provide the committee access to all OLC (Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel) opinions related to the targeted killing of Americans in a way that allows members to fulfill their oversight responsibilities," Feinstein said in a statement.

The Senate panel late Tuesday voted on the nomination of John Brennan, President Barack Obama's pick, as the new director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Brennan had served as the president's counterterrorism adviser and chief architect of the targeted killing program.

Feinstein said last month that the administration refused to provide some Justice Department-drafted documents outlining its legal basis for the targeted killing of suspected terrorists, including American citizens abroad.

Conducting drone strikes is one of Obama administration's most secretive and controversial polices. Targeting U.S. citizens, in particular, have drawn fierce opposition from civil liberties groups in the country. Several groups have been calling for more transparency from the administration on its use of drone strikes.

NBC News last month obtained and reported on a copy of a confidential Justice Department memo which concludes that the U.S. government could order the killing of American citizens who are believed to be "senior operational leaders" of al- Qaida or an associated force, even if there is no intelligence indicating they are engaged in an active plot to attack the U.S.

The memo showed the U.S. government dramatically increased the use of drone strikes against al-Qaida suspects abroad, including those aimed at American citizens. Endi

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