Petraeus resigns as CIA chief

CIA Director David Petraeus today resigned over an extra marital-affair, saying his behaviour was "unacceptable".

The top intelligence official of the US submitted his resignation to US President Barack Obama during a meeting at the White House.

"After being married for over 37 years, I showed extremely poor judgement by engaging in an extramarital affair. Such behaviour is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organisation such as ours," he said in a statement, according to a news agency.

Obama accepted his resignation and praised Petraeus on his extraordinary service.

"I am completely confident that the CIA will continue to thrive and carry out its essential mission, and I have the utmost confidence in Acting Director Michael Morell and the men and women of the CIA who work every day to keep our nation safe," he said "David Petraeus has provided extraordinary service to the United States for decades.

By any measure, he was one of the outstanding General officers of his generation, helping our military adapt to new challenges, and leading our men and women in uniform through a remarkable period of service in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he helped our nation put those wars on a path to a responsible end," he said.

"By any measure, through his lifetime of service David Petraeus has made our country safer and stronger," Petraeus said. Before joining the CIA, Petraeus successfully headed the US army operations in both Iraq and Afghanistan.