The White House said Wednesday US President Barack Obama has named the top legal adviser to the National Security Council to be deputy director of the CIA, dpa reported.
Avril D Haines, 43, will become the first woman to hold the position, which is being vacated by Michael Morell, who retired.
CIA director John Brennan said in a statement Morell decided to retire to spend more time with his family and to pursue other professional opportunities. Morell led the CIA from November through March after David Petraeus resigned as director of the CIA over an extra-marital affair.
Prior to joining the White House counsel's office in 2010, Haines was an assistant legal adviser at the Department of State. She also worked for the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and was a Legal Officer at The Hague conference on private international law.