Related: Bush comments on CIA leak case

    WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 (Xinhuanet) -- US President George W. Bush has ordered White House staff to attend briefings beginning next week on ethical behavior, a move that was seen as a response to the indictment last week of a senior White House aide in the CIA leak probe.

    The White House staff will also be briefed on rules governing the handling of classified material, the Washington Post reported Saturday.

    "There will be no exceptions," according to a memo sent to all White House aides on Friday.

    "The White House counsel's office will conduct a series of presentations next week that will provide refresher lectures on general ethics rules, including the rules of governing the protection of classified information," the paper quoted the memo as saying.

    The mandatory ethics lecture is the first step the US Presidentplans to take in coming weeks in response to the two-year CIA leakprobe that led to the indictment of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby.

    Libby, former chief of staff of Vice President Cheney, was indicted last week for his role in unveiling to reporters a CIA operative whose husband was critical of the Bush adminstration's prewar assessment of Iraq's weapons capabilities.

    Libby was charged in a five-count indictment, including one obstruction of justice, two charges of making a false statement and two charges of perjury.

    He resigned when the indictment was announced and pleaded on Thursday not guilty to the charges. Enditem