The U.S. Senate today approved an extension of a foreign electronic and telephone surveillance program widely used by U.S. intelligence agencies but criticized by rights groups.
The White House welcomed the expansion of the program, "one of the most important intelligence-gathering tools in the United States," and announced that President Joseph Biden would quickly sign it into law.
At issue is Section 702 of the Foreign Surveillance Act, which allows US intelligence agencies to conduct electronic or telephone surveillance programs without necessarily seeking a court order.
The program specifically targets non-Americans abroad, and surveillance of emails is also possible.
Organizations that defend privacy and freedom strongly condemn the text.
The law on this was adopted in the House of Representatives of the Congress a week ago, but the extension of its validity was the subject of heated debates.
Former US President Donald Trump, who wants to be re-elected, called on members of Congress to "kill that regulation".
The program "was used against me and many others. They spied on my campaign team," Trump said without providing evidence for his claims.
An unnamed senior White House official argued in mid-December for extending the law because of "conflicts in the Middle East, Ukraine and the threat posed by China, as well as hacking."
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