The CIA "assassinations" program begins to be defined.

The NYTimes reports that one "toxic" bit in that CIA assassinations program that was hidden from Congress and canceled so suddenly by Panetta was that they were paying Blackwater for some role as yet undefined in assassinating foreign targets.

Later: The WaPo adds that Blackwater's role was "operational,"

...given operational responsibility for targeting terrorist commanders and was awarded millions of dollars for training and weaponry, but the program was canceled before any missions were conducted, the two officials said.

It's curious that this great secret is so suddenly leaking in detail to so many different sources. This feels like a "first version" leak, intended by someone to write the narrative before the full truth comes out.

The WaPo adds

The effort, known to intelligence officials as the "targeted killing" program, was originally conceived for use in Iraq and Afghanistan, but officials later sought to expand it to other countries in the region, according to a source familiar with its inception.

"Countries." Plural.

And this,

The official said the teams simulated missions that often involved kidnapping.

"They were involved not only in trying to kill but also in getting close enough to snatch," he said.

So, US "contractors" conducting private renditions in multiple "countries" (plural) outside the battle zone? That sounds a little more like a program hidden from Congress and canceled upon discovery.