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Jill Kelley leaves her home in Tampa, Fla., on Nov. 13.

Jill Kelley, the Tampa, Fla., socialite who inadvertently launched the FBI investigation that led to the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus, will be sacked as an “honorary consul” for South Korea because she used the title for personal gain, a senior official said Monday during a U.S. visit.

South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Kyou-hyun first revealed Kelley’s removal from the post, which pays $2,500 a year, on Monday during a visit to Washington, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported.

"It's not suitable to the status of honorary consul that (she) sought to be involved in commercial projects and peddle influence," Yonhap quoted Kim as saying.

The Associated Press reported that an unidentified government official in Seoul confirmed the action on Tuesday.

The South Korean Embassy in Washington, D.C., did not immediately return phone calls from NBC News seeking comment.

It was not immediately clear what Kim was referring to as far as Kelley’s alleged efforts to benefit from the honorary consul post.

A New York businessman, Adam Victor, told Dateline NBC that Kelley was introduced to him at the Republican National Convention in Tampa in August as someone whose friendship with Petraeus would help facilitate a no-bid deal with South Korea on a coal-gasification project. She would supposedly be in a position to help broker the billion-dollar deal directly with the Korean president, and expected a 2 percent commission, according to Victor, president and chief executive officer of TransGas Development Systems.

ABC News has reported that it reviewed emails that appear to support Victor’s account. 

But Abbe Lowell, a Washington, D.C., attorney representing Kelley, on Tuesday disputed Victor's account, telling NBC News that the businessman misrepresented the fee that was discussed, that Kelley never accepted any offer and that Victor falsely claimed that the discussions had anything to do with her connections with the U.S. military.

The 37-year-old Kelley also cited her honorary post in 9-1-1 calls complaining about members of the media who besieged her house after the Petraeus scandal broke, incorrectly maintaining that it entitled her to some type of diplomatic protection.

"I'm an honorary consul general, so I have inviolability, so they should not be able to cross my property," she said on tapes released earlier this month. "I don't know if you want to get diplomatic protection involved as well, because that's against the law to cross my property because, you know, it's inviolable."

A senior South Korean Foreign Ministry official who handles consulate affairs in the United States told the AP on Tuesday that honorary consuls don't have diplomatic immunity, and that the ministry applies much less strict standards in appointing them than it does for potential government officials.

Kelley also had worked as a volunteer “social liaison” to MacDill Air Force Base until mid-November, when her participation in the “Friends of MacDill” program was revoked as the Petraeus scandal erupted.

Kelley met Petraeus after he took over as head of U.S. Central Command at MacDill in October 2008, and became friends with him and his wife, Holly, during his time there.

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Numerous government and law enforcement officials have told NBC News that Kelley inadvertently triggered the FBI investigation that led to Petraeus’ resignation as CIA chief on Nov. 9, citing an extramarital affair.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, say Kelley complained in mid-May to an FBI agent she was acquainted with about harassing anonymous emails warning her to stay away from Petraeus. The agent turned over the emails to the local FBI cyber investigations unit, which traced them to Paula Broadwell, Petreus’ biographer, the officials said.

In the course of the investigation, the agents discovered evidence that Petreaus and Broadwell had engaged in an extramarital affair, they said.

Kelley has largely remained silent since her role in the case became public shortly after Petraeus resigned. She and her husband, Scott, issued a single statement on Nov. 11, saying, "We and our family have been friends with Gen. Petraeus and his family for over five years. We respect his and his family's privacy and want the same for us and our three children."

In a separate investigation, the Pentagon’s inspector general is looking into “potentially inappropriate” emails that Kelley exchanged with Petraeus’ temporary successor as CentCom commander, Marine Gen. John Allen, defense officials tell NBC News.

The officials say a small number of the emails contained language that could be considered “inappropriate” or even “suggestive.” They also said that the investigation was deemed necessary to remove any suggestion that the Pentagon was covering up any improprieties by Allen, who remains in command of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan pending the outcome of the probe.

And sources close to Kelley have denied speculation that she had any kind of inappropriate relationship with Allen and praised her work at MacDill, which they noted was recognized by authorities there.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Jeff Willhelm / The Charlotte Observer

Paula Broadwell's husband, Scott, drops a grocery bag while unloading their car at their Charlotte home, on Sunday, Nov. 18.

Paula Broadwell, the author believed to have had an affair with then-CIA Director David Petraeus, has returned to her Charlotte, N.C., home a week and a half after news of the scandal prompted Petraeus to resign his post. 

Broadwell, her husband, Scott, and their two young sons were given a warm welcome by dozens of their closest friends and neighbors in the Dilworth neighborhood of Charlotte early Sunday evening, representatives of the family told NBC News.

Scott and Paula Broadwell had been in Washington, D.C., since the revelation of Petraeus' extramarital affair gained national attention. Petraeus stepped down as the director of the CIA, admitting to an affair in his resignation letter.

Paula's focus right now is on her family, the Broadwells' representatives said, adding that she and her family are sticking together in this extremely difficult time. 

Broadwell, who wrote a biography about Petraeus while he was in command in Afghanistan, had previously stated that the two of them had developed a mentoring relationship. A graduate of West Point, she met Petraeus when she was working on a Ph. D. at Harvard. 

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The investigation into the affair began when Jill Kelley, a Tampa socialite and friend of Petraeus, asked another friend, who was an FBI agent, to look into threatening emails she received from an anonymous sender. The FBI traced the emails to Broadwell and uncovered the affair, multiple officials told NBC News.

Jeff Willhelm / The Charlotte Observer

A neighbor welcomes Paula Broadwell's husband, Scott, at their Charlotte home on Sunday, Nov. 18.

FBI agents searched Broadwell's home last week, and with her consent, carried out boxes and computers, which reportedly contained classified documents, officials told NBC News. Shortly after, Broadwell's security clearance with the Pentagon was suspended, officials said. 

Last week, the CIA Inspector General launched an investigation into the conduct of Petraeus. Acting CIA Director Michael Morrell ordered the investigation to ensure there was no wrongdoing and that no agency resources were expended improperly by Petraeus. 

The CIA informed the House and Senate Intelligence Committees of the investigation on Thursday via letters from the inspector general.

"At the CIA we are constantly reviewing our performance,” an agency spokesperson said. “If there are lessons to be learned from this case we'll use them to improve. But we're not getting ahead of ourselves; an investigation is exploratory and doesn't presuppose any particular outcome."

Slideshow: Petraeus case: Cast of characters

ISAF via Reuters file

Meet the people who have been pulled into the scandal that caused Gen. David Petraeus to resign.

Launch slideshow

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Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Thursday ordered the Pentagon to dig into and determine why an alarming number of generals and admirals have been snared by a variety of ethical lapses and misconduct allegations, headlined by the admitted marital infidelity of former four-star general and ex-CIA Director David Petraeus.

According to a statement released by the Department of Defense, Panetta believes that while the "vast majority" of U.S. general officers continue to abide by traditional ethical standards, he has nonetheless become concerned about the spike in alleged misbehavior among a rising number of flag officers spanning the Army, Navy and Marines.

"Over the past several months, the Secretary has spoken with the service secretaries, service chiefs, and combatant commanders about those instances when senior officers have not lived up to the standards expected of them. This has been an ongoing discussion reflecting shared concerns," the DOD release said. "This week, the Secretary directed General Dempsey to work with the other members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to review how to better foster a culture of stewardship among our most senior military officers.  This process is intended to reinforce and strengthen the standards that keep us a well led and disciplined military."

Slideshow: Petraeus case: Cast of characters

ISAF via Reuters file

Meet the people who have been pulled into the scandal that caused Gen. David Petraeus to resign.

Launch slideshow

Panetta was in Thailand Thursday as part of a visit to Asia. Neither Panetta's order nor the DOD statement mentioned Petraeus, who has been under FBI investigation, or Marine Gen. John R. Allen, the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, who is involved in the Petreaus case. Allen has denied any wrongdoing.

In addition, three other top-rung commanders have recently been punished by the military or remain under investigation for alleged misconduct:

• Army Gen. William Ward, the four-star general who once led the U.S. Africa Command was demoted Tuesday amid accusations that he spent thousands of dollars on lavish travel. He was stripped of one star and will retire. In August, a Defense Department Inspector General’s Report said Ward took an 11-day trip to Washington and Atlanta, costing $129,000 but spending just three days on official business.
• Brig. Gen. Jeffrey A. Sinclair is accused of 26 violations of military law including forcible sodomy, wrongful sexual conduct, possessing pornography while deployed and conduct unbecoming of an officer. According to prosecutors, the alleged sexual assaults happened in Afghanistan, Iraq and Germany, as well as at military bases in the United States. In May, Sinclair was removed from Afghanistan, where he’d served as a deputy commander for support. An initial military hearing has ended, but there has been no decision on whether to proceed to a court martial, The Associated Press reported.
• Navy Cmdr. Joseph E. Darlak and top officers of the San Diego-based Navy frigate USS Vandegrift were relieved of duty on Nov. 2 after a boisterous, drunken port visit to Vladivostok, Russia. Darlak was removed, the Navy said, after an investigation found he had exhibited "poor leadership and failure to ensure the proper conduct of his wardroom officers" during the three-day September stop, the Associated Press reported.

Ward, Sinclair and Darlak have not commented publicly about the charges against them.

Some military observers see the recent spate of high-profile cases of alleged misconduct as a much larger issue affecting the armed forces.

Directing combat operations on the far side of the world has separated many general officers from their families for the better part of a decade while they live in “an alternate-reality universe” – culturally insulated along with other brass – while being increasingly viewed as “untouchable,” said Frank Wuco, a retired U.S. Naval intelligence chief.

That distance and divide can put military commanders at risk of losing their moral compass, said Wuco, who hosts a weekly radio program in Tampa, Fla. In the late stages of Wuco’s intelligence career, he attended multiple meetings with then-Gen. David Petraeus who, at the time, was leading U.S. forces in the Middle East.

Wuco describes the former four-star general as “down to earth,” but he said the social status of many U.S. generals has ballooned to new heights during the two wars (Iraq and Afghanistan), allowing American military leaders to “begin to live in this kind of artificial bubble.”

“With the senior guys and the flag officers, this is like the new royalty. We treat them like kings and princes. These general officers in the military, at a certain point, become untouchable,” Wuco said. “In many cases, they get their own airplanes, their own helicopters. When they walk into a room, everybody comes to attention. In the case of some of them, people are very afraid to speak up or to disagree. Being separated from real life all the time in that way probably leaves them vulnerable (to lapses in moral judgement)."

But Thomas Ricks, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, disagrees with the notion that military leadership is more insulated and that they have had their heads clouded by adulation. To Ricks, the problem is squarely centered on a wholesale loss of accountability across the landscape of the American armed forces.

"It is because the U.S. military has lost hold of the idea of accountability - that is, rewarding success and removing failures. And so people get promoted kind of mindlessly, and aren't punished when they fail repeatedly over the years," said Ricks, who also writes a blog for ForeignPolicy.com called “The Best Defense."

"Ultimately, when their failure becomes public, they may get punished. Bottom line: Today being a general is like being a tenured professor. You can do a lousy job and keep it, but if you embarrass the institution with moral lapses, you will get bounced," Ricks said.

Click here for more military-related coverage from NBC News.

As for the reports of Petraeus’ infidelity – as well as any unreported sexual dalliances involving other military leaders – ex-intelligence chief Wuco contends such behaviors within the highest levels of the military “are nothing new.”

“This type of cheating, while definitely alarming, is not off limits to the military,” Wuco said. “This is classic ‘men of a certain age.’ You’re looking at a guy who’s up there in age. He’s been working his ass off his entire adult life, separated from all of the good times everybody else has been having. I don’t think it’s anything more than: it made him feel good. It was good for his ego. He was holding the attention of a younger woman. It’s a classic story across every center of society.”

In fact, two of America's most venerated generals - Dwight D. Eisenhower and Matthew Ridgway - were known to have had romantic flings during World War II and the Korean War, but their infidelities didn't make news and certainly didn't cost them their commands.

A third World War II hero, Gen. George S. Patton, also had an extramarital affair, according to the book, "Patton," by the late Martin Blumenson.

"We’re in a different time now," said Robert O. Kirkland, a military historian who teaches at the University of Southern California. He called the Eisenhower and Ridgway liaisons with women other than their wives "documented in the historical record."

"Maybe some things in the past were overlooked," Kirkland said. "They’re now enforced."

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Audiotapes of several 911 calls placed by Florida socialite Jill Kelley as the media descended on her Tampa home show she complained about what she considered trespassing on her property and attempted to invoke diplomatic-type privileges.

“I am an honorary consul general, so I have inviolability,” Kelley told a 911 dispatcher. “They should not be able to cross my property. I don’t know if you want to get diplomatic protection involved as well?”

A South Korean official confirmed to NBC News that Kelley is an honorary consul for South Korea, but said she has no diplomatic immunity. He said Kelley assists the consulate based in Atlanta on occasion with things like passports and visas but is not an employee. 

The U.S. State Department said Kelley has no formal affiliation with that U.S. agency.

“I can assure you that she does not work for the State Department and has no formal affiliation with the State Department,” State Department Spokesman Mark Toner said.

In other calls to Tampa police, Kelley said strangers had entered through a gate and were bashing on her door, trying to push it open. In another call, Kelley said at least 10 people were blocking her alley so she couldn’t get into her driveway.

Kelley, 37, became involved in the scandal that led to the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus after complaining to the FBI about anonymous, threatening emails she received.

Her complaint touched off an investigation that uncovered an apparent affair between Petraeus and his biographer, Paula Broadwell.

During the investigation, the FBI traced the allegedly threatening emails to Broadwell.

Kelley and her husband, who is a surgeon, are close friends of the Petraeus family. She has been a volunteer social liaison to the MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, often hosting parties for top brass.

On Wednesday, a Department of Defense official confirmed to NBC News that Kelley’s special access to the base, which she had been granted due to her participation in community outreach events, has been suspended. Now, if she wants to enter the base, she must go in like any other individual and show her ID and get a daily pass. The official said the reason for the suspension is because she is part of an ongoing investigation. 

The investigation also uncovered emails between Kelley and Gen. John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, which a Defense Department official described as "potentially inappropriate."

But another defense official told NBC News on Tuesday that the emails had been misconstrued.

“There was no affair,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. 

It also emerged this week that Petraeus and Allen had intervened in a Washington, D.C., custody battle in September that involved Natalie Khawam, Kelley's twin sister.

As FBI investigated Petraeus, he and Allen intervened in nasty custody battle
 Defense official fires back, denies Afghanistan commander exchanged 'inappropriate' emails

They wrote letters on behalf of Khawam, who was found by a judge to have "severe personal deficits in the areas of honesty and integrity."

In an interview with TODAY, Kelley’s brother, David Khawam, threw his support behind Kelley.

“My sister, number one, is a mother. She has three kids. She’s extremely dedicated to those kids. Number two, she’s a wife. She’s extremely dedicated to her husband. And he to her,” he said. “This is something that’s going to brand her for life.” 

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Florida socialite Jill Kelley has emerged as a central figure in the growing scandal that’s ensnared high-ranking officials at the CIA and the Pentagon.

In the latest twist, U.S. General John Allen, commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, is under investigation for exchanging what officials describe as “inappropriate” emails with Kelley, a Tampa, Fla., wife and a mother of three daughters.

That revelation came days after the resignation of Gen. David Petraeus -- a family friend of Kelley’s -- from his post as director of the CIA over an admitted affair.

"This is something that's going to brand her for life," David Khawam, Kelley's brother, told TODAY. "My sister, number one, is a mother. OK, she has three kids. She's extremely dedicated to those kids. Number two, she's a wife. She's extremely dedicated to her husband. And he to her.”

Officials say Kelley’s complaint to the FBI over anonymous, threatening emails touched off the investigation that led to Petraeus’ resignation after officials uncovered an apparent affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell.

ISAF commander Gen. John Allen under investigation over 'inappropriate' emails

Now, even the FBI agent who first heard Kelley’s complaint is under scrutiny, officials said.

Kelley and her husband, who is a surgeon, are close friends of the Petraeus family. Kelley, 37, was a volunteer social liaison to the MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, where she often hosted parties for top brass. Kelley also has a twin sister, Natalie, who is a lawyer based in Florida.

According to a senior official, the investigation that led to Petraeus' resignation began several months ago when Kelley reported she had received anonymous harassing emails from a person she didn't know.

The FBI viewed the matter as a potential case of "cyber-harassment" and it was handled "regionally" with federal prosecutors working with the FBI on the matter, the official said. At first, neither Kelley nor the FBI knew who was sending the harassing emails because they came from accounts that were not immediately identifiable.

Petraeus revelation began as cyber-harassment probe; investigation ended 4 days before election

But the FBI was eventually able to determine they came from Broadwell. Investigators then obtained access to Broadwell’s regular email account, where they uncovered her email exchanges with Petraeus and an apparent relationship between the two of them, the official said.

The FBI agent whom Kelley asked to look into the emails she received was a friend and had no further part in the investigation, a senior law enforcement official said Tuesday.

The agent sent Kelley a photo of himself with no shirt, "as a joke, a gag" at least six months before she began receiving the troubling emails, the official said. There is, the official said, no indication that the relationship between the two was anything more than a friendship. Agents discovered the shirtless photo in her e-mails, resulting in an internal investigation into whether he acted inappropriately.

The FBI has declined to identify the agent.

A statement released late on Sunday on behalf of Kelley and her husband, Scott, read: "We and our family have been friends with General Petraeus and his family for over 5 years. We respect his and his family's privacy and want the same for us and our three children."

Frequently fundraising for the Wounded Warriors Project, the Kelleys socialized with Petreaus and his wife, Holly. In 2010, the Petraeuses watched the Gasparilla parade from a tent on the Kelleys front lawn.

Kelley's brother said he stands by her sister and offers his full support.

"The conversations I had with her were basically, that I love you and and we're here for whatever you need," Khawam told TODAY.

In a 1988 Philadelphia Inquirer feature, the Khawams are described as a Lebanese family that emigrated to Philadelphia in the 1970s. Among other activities, they ran a Middle Eastern restaurant called Sahara.

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The FBI agent who was asked by Jill Kelley to look into disturbing emails she received was a friend of hers and never had a further part in the investigation, a senior law enforcement official said Tuesday.

The official says the FBI agent had met Kelley many months before she complained to him about the threatening emails -- allegedly sent by Paula Broadwell, Gen. David Petraeus’ biographer and a woman with whom he is believed to have had an affair.

The agent sent Kelley a photo of himself with no shirt, "as a joke, a gag" at least six months before she began receiving the troubling emails, the official said. There is, the official said, no indication that the relationship between the two was anything more than a friendship.

But the official says that after Kelley came to the agent with her complaint, he faded from the picture and was not in on the investigation. Then agents discovered the shirtless photo in her e-mails, which was reported to his supervisors, resulting in an internal investigation into whether he acted inappropriately.

He's the same agent who contacted House Republicans in October to complain that the investigation was stalled. But, the official said, the agent was far out of the loop and had no idea all of the investigative activity still under way at that point.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s office called the FBI on Oct. 31 asserting that it had heard from an FBI agent who raised concerns that the matter was being covered up or not being taken seriously.

"I was contacted by an FBI employee concerned that sensitive, classified information may have been compromised and made certain (FBI Director Robert) Mueller was aware of these serious allegations and the potential risk to our national security,” Cantor said in a statement.

Cantor's office was told that the case was being actively investigated by the FBI, and so it would have been wrong for the FBI or Justice Department to inform higher-level officials in the administration about the probe earlier -- because they were unsure at that point what they were dealing with. In the end, according to multiple officials, investigators determined there was no criminal wrongdoing.

The agent provides yet another link to Kelley, who has become a central figure in the scandal that led to the resignation of Petraeus over his affair with Broadwell: Her complaint to the FBI kicked off the investigation, and her emails with another major military figure, Gen. John Allen, have led to an investigation over allegations of “inappropriate” emails between Allen and Kelley. Allen replaced Petraeus as commander in Afghanistan last year.

The emails between Allen and Kelley do not signify the two had an affair, a defense official told NBC News on Tuesday. “There was no affair,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.  The emails in question could be misconstrued, the official said, predicting that the investigation will prove Allen’s innocence.

NBC News justice correspondent Pete Williams contributed to this report.

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Updated 4 p.m. ET: Allegedly “inappropriate” emails between U.S. Gen. John Allen and the woman who sparked the investigation into CIA Director David Petraeus do not signify the two had an affair, a defense official told NBC News on Tuesday.

“There was no affair,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.  The emails in question could be misconstrued, the official said, predicting that the investigation will prove Allen’s innocence.

Allen, the commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, is under investigation over allegations that he exchanged “inappropriate” emails with Jill Kelley, a senior defense official told reporters earlier Tuesday.

A difference of opinion appeared to be brewing at the Pentagon about how to characterize the emails, with another official calling them flirtatious.

Kelley, a Tampa, Fla., woman who has acted as a volunteer “social liaison” with military officials at MacDill Air Force Base,  inadvertently launched the investigation that led to Petraeus’ resignation by complaining to the FBI about anonymous emails she received.  FBI agents traced the allegedly threatening emails to Paula Broadwell, Petraeus' biographer. 

Emails on 'coming and goings' of Petraeus, other military officials escalated FBI concerns

During the investigation, agents discovered emails between Petraeus and Broadwell that were indicative of an extramarital affair between them, according to government and law enforcement officials.

Petraeus, who was appointed 14 months ago to head the Central Intelligence Agency, announced his resignation on Friday, citing an extramarital affair.

Word of the investigation into Gen. Allen’s involvement came early Tuesday, when U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta issued a statement during a flight to Australia for a meeting with defense officials there, saying that  the FBI had referred “a matter involving" Allen to the Department of Defense's Inspector General.

“Today, the secretary directed that the matter be referred to the Inspector General of the Department of Defense for investigation, and it is now in the hands of the Inspector General,” Panetta said.

Panetta’s statement did not include specifics, but a senior defense official traveling with him told reporters that Allen “was under investigation for “inappropriate communications” with Kelley.

The official also said the investigation involved some 20,000 to 30,000 pages of material, mostly emails, which were sent from 2010 to 2012, adding that Allen “disputes that he has engaged in any wrongdoing in this matter.”

Later in the day, however, a defense official at the Pentagon told NBC News that the number of emails between Allen and Kelley was inflated.

"That is a mischaracterization," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. "The communications with General Allen were lumped in with a lot of other email traffic."

The official said that the Allens and Kelleys were "family friends," and the emails were written in that manner. Many of the emails were not personal communications between the general and Jill Kelley, the official added, but included Allen's wife. And many were between Allen's wife and Jill Kelley, with General Allen just copied, the official said.

"What we're dealing with is the possible perception of inappropriateness," the official said, but it will become clear that there was no wrongdoing. "This is not at the level of the director of the CIA."

According to a senior U.S. military official, Pentagon General Counsel Jeh Johnson read "a number" of the emails between Allen and Kelley before he advised Panetta to refer the matter to the Inspector General.

"Leon Panetta didn't make this decision lightly," the official said late Tuesday. The emails were more than just calling one another "sweetheart," characterizing them as flirtatious, the official said.

While the emails may not prove an affair or even be inappropriate, they were unprofessional, the official said.

Allen will meet with investigators over the next few days, but then he is expected to head back to Afghanistan to continue in his role as Commander of ISAF, according to the official.

Panetta’s statement said that Allen would remain commander of ISAF during the investigation and that he was “entitled to due process in this matter.”

But Allen’s nomination to take over as head of U.S. forces in Europe and NATO's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, was put on hold “until the relevant facts are determined,” Panetta said.

Slideshow: Petraeus case: Cast of characters

ISAF via Reuters file

Meet the people who have been pulled into the scandal that caused Gen. David Petraeus to resign.

Launch slideshow

Allen was in Washington, D.C., preparing for his Senate confirmation hearings which were originally scheduled for Thursday, NBC News reported.

Allen had no advance warning about the investigation, a close aide of Allen’s told NBC News. He was alerted to the probe by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey Monday night ET. Allen had a number of meetings scheduled for Tuesday on Capitol Hill, although the aide was unsure if they would take place.

Allen’s connection to the Petraeus investigation also seems to have caught the Defense Department off guard.

“This came as very surprising news, to say the least. No one in the Pentagon is leaping to conclusions just yet,” a senior defense official traveling with Panetta told NBC News.  “It's important to review the materials to determine the facts, and it's too early speculate about where this will lead.  In the meantime, Gen. Allen needs to focus on the war effort, which he's successfully led since last year.”

The ISAF was also unaware of the investigation until late Monday or early Tuesday, and it declined to comment, in a written statement, referring all questions to the Defense Department.

Allen, a highly decorated officer, took over as ISAF commander in July 2011, and was nominated on Oct. 10 to take over as NATO commander, the same time that his successor at the ISAF was named as Gen. Joseph Dunford.

The confirmation of Dunford, currently assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, is now expected to be fast tracked.

“The secretary has respectfully requested that the Senate act promptly on that nomination," Panetta’s statement said.

NBC News' Courtney Kube, Jeff Black, Ian Johnston and Rachel Elbaum contributed to this report.

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Updated at 12:17 a.m. ET: As more details about General David Petreaus’ alleged relationship with his biographer emerge, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed frustration, asking when the affair was discovered and who in Washington was told about it.

“We received no advance notice; it was like a lightning bolt,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said on “Fox News Sunday.” Feinstein chairs the Intelligence Committee. “We should have been told. There is a way to do it.”

Petraeus, who was appointed 14 months ago to head the Central Intelligence Agency, announced his resignation on Friday, citing an extramarital affair. Multiple government officials tell NBC News that he had a relationship with Paula Broadwell, 40, who wrote about the general’s education in her bestselling book, “All In.”

Steven Boylan, who worked for the former CIA director, told NBC News that he had spoken with Petraeus over the weekend and that he said his relationship with Broadwell lasted nine or 10 months and ended four months ago.

Of Petraeus’ wife, Holly, Boylan said that to suggest that she’s furious is an “understatement.”

On CNN, Peter King, R-N.Y., chair of the Homeland Security committee said: “It seems this has been going on for several months, but now it appears that they’re saying the FBI didn’t realize until Election Day that General Petraeus was involved. It just doesn’t add up.”

Officials tell NBC News that the affair was revealed because Broadwell sent anonymous, threatening emails to Jill Kelley, 37, described as a close friend of the Petraeus family. Kelley, who lives in the Tampa, Fla. area, was a volunteer social liaison to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa.

Investigating who sent the emails to Kelley, the FBI discovered the connection between Petraeus and Broadwell, officials say.

Petraeus was interviewed in late October, officials told NBC News. But it wasn’t until Thursday that he met with President Barack Obama, who accepted his resignation on Friday.

Lawmakers question the timing not just because the news was delivered so soon after the elections, but because Petraeus was scheduled to testify Thursday about the attacks on the Benghazi, Libya consulate that resulted in the deaths of Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.

Those lawmakers argue that Petraeus is the key to receiving answers about the attacks.

A senior law enforcement official tells NBC News that the investigation was “overseen carefully.”

"The investigation had to take a certain path, step by step. Things needed to be explored, and there were sensitivities to observe,” the official said.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., however, said that he was earlier told about the situation by an FBI employee.

"I was contacted by an FBI employee concerned that sensitive, classified information may have been compromised and made certain (FBI Director Robert) Mueller was aware of these serious allegations and the potential risk to our national security,” Cantor said in a statement.

“A senior law enforcement official says a call to a congressional staffer came from an agent who was initially involved in the investigation but who was later removed from the case because he knew an associate of one of the people being investigated.  The agent knew someone on the Hill and called that person, a Republican staffer, according to the official. But that phone call had no effect on either the course of the investigation, the involvement of FBI Director Robert Mueller -- who was following it closely long before Cantor called him -- or the decision to notify Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, the official says.”

Meanwhile, Boylan told NBC News in an interview on Saturday that he was “very surprised and shocked” at the news.

"He's not perfect, he's made a mistake," Boylan said. “I don’t know if ‘let down’ would be right word … my first reaction was disbelief and then wondering if there wasn't somebody out there was spinning something to try to do some kind of harm 'cause that's happened in the past.”

Petraeus: Battlefield 'hero' and savvy Washington insider

Boylan said he interacted with Broadwell during the early stages of research for her book. He said he didn’t recall Petraeus ever commenting to him about Broadwell.

“Based on my initial contact with her on email, telephone, she sounded driven, she seemed smart on the topic,” he said. “Anyone probably doing their dissertation knows the rigors of research and is going to have to be dedicated in that direction.”

NBC News has been unable to reach Petraeus, Broadwell or Kelley for comment.

Kristen Welker is NBC News’ White House correspondent. Pete Williams is NBC News' justice correspondent. This story includes reporting from NBC's Andrea Mitchell and The Associated Press.

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