WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. officials have secretly monitored radiation levels at Muslim sites, including mosques and private homes, since September 11, 2001 as part of a top secret program searching for nuclear bombs, U.S. News and World Report said on Friday.

The news magazine said in its online edition that the far-reaching program covered more than a hundred sites in the Washington, D.C., area and at least five other cities.

"In numerous cases, the monitoring required investigators to go on to the property under surveillance, although no search warrants or court orders were ever obtained, according to those with knowledge of the program," the magazine said.

The report comes a week after revelations that the Bush administration had authorized eavesdropping on people in the United States. U.S. President George W. Bush has defended that covert program and vowed to continue the practice, saying it was vital to protect the country.

Just another covert intelligence operation compromised by illegal leaks to the media. According to the article, the scope of the program was fairly isolated.

At its peak, the effort involved three vehicles in the Washington area monitoring 120 sites a day, nearly all of them Muslim targets such as prominent mosques and office buildings selected by the FBI, it said.

The program has also operated in at least five other cities -- namely Chicago, Detroit, Las Vegas, New York, and Seattle -- when threat levels there have risen, it said.

I don't see where a warrant would ever be required to simply monitor radiation levels. I'd think that this would be no different than, say, an officer noticing a funny smell outside a home. Of course, this program targeted certain homes and businesses for monitoring, but the parallels are there.

Going onto private property, of course, would be a different matter entirely. But still, what kind of private property are we talking about? Are agents going into prayer services in mosques under cover? I don't think that would require a warrant either.

I really don't see much to be concerned about here. This seems to be more piling on by the media. Just another log to add to the growing fire over domestic intelligence gathering. Given the negative hype already surrounding the NSA story, most people will see this and jump to the conclusion that it is another example of the government overstepping its bounds.

I just don't think a careful review of the facts supports that. At least, not the facts made public by this article.

Again, what is troubling is the way the media has made public the details of yet another covert, anti-terror espionage program. At some point our government needs to address these leaks as they are doing untold amounts of damage to our ability to detect and stop terror attacks.