U.S. FBI closes unit policing compliance with surveillance rules: report

NEW YORK, May 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel has closed an internal watchdog office established in 2020 to uncover and reduce the risk of misuses of national security surveillance, reported The New York Times on Tuesday.

"The elimination of the unit, the Office of Internal Auditing, comes as Congress debates whether to reauthorize a high-profile warrantless wiretapping law, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA," noted the report. That law, which was a chief focus of the office, nearly collapsed last year before lawmakers extended it until April 2026.

The move is significant because it could give skeptics of the program new ammunition to argue that Congress should sharply curtail the law or even let it expire given that a guardrail has been discarded, said the report.

It also poses a crucial test for Patel, who rose in pro-Trump circles by attacking the FBI over its abuses of the surveillance law but said during his confirmation hearing that he saw the program as a vital tool for gathering foreign intelligence and protecting national security.

"The closure was part of a larger reorganization," added the report. The functions of the office, along with another, the Office of Integrity and Compliance, which helps ensure that employees comply with laws, regulations and policies in general, have been absorbed by the inspection division. Enditem