US State Department to reopen probe into 'email gate'

In a dramatic turnaround, the US State Department has said it will reopen its own probe into the allegations that presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton violated rules by using a private email server while she was secretary of state.

"Given the Department of Justice has now made its announcement, the State Department intends to conduct its internal review," State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.

Earlier, the State Department had suspended its own investigations after the FBI started its investigation into the matter. The US Department of Justice on Wednesday had closed the case and decided against filing any charges against Clinton.

"I cannot provide specific information about the Department's review, including what information we are evaluating," he said.

The internal probe is likely to include several of Clinton's personal staff including Cheryl Mills, Huma Abedin and Jake Sullivan.

"We will aim to be as expeditious as possible, but we will not put artificial deadlines on the process. Our goal will be to be as transparent as possible about our results, while complying with our various legal obligations," Kirby said.

"I'm not able to make commitments today one way or the other about what we will be able to disclose?" he asked in a statement.