Breaking into the electronic files of the Climatic Research Unit of the University of East Anglia in Britain, hackers this week breached and posted over 1,000 e-mails and 3,000 documents.

The files, documents and e-mails posted by the hackers, comprising nearly a decade-long correspondence of Phil Jones, director of the Climatic Research Unit, have triggered a worldwide debate between global warming researchers and the often-sneered climate skeptics.

As soon as the news of the leak began circulating on Thursday, global warming skeptics seized upon the stolen e-mails and zeroed in on some of the messages that are a confirm the manipulation of data by researchers, who schemed to establish the scientific consensus that climate changes have resulted from human actions.

Noting that researchers have rigged data to suit their convenience, Myron Ebell, director of energy and global warming policy for the Competitive Enterprise Institute, said: "It is clear that some of the 'world's leading climate scientists,' as they are always described, are more dedicated to promoting the alarmist political agenda than in scientific research."

Ebell added: "Some of the e-mails that I have read are blatant displays of personal pettiness, unethical conniving, and twisting the science to support their political position."

Meanwhile, the researchers claim that the hacked correspondence merely reflects a candid exchange of ideas, and has been "taken out of context" by the global warming critics.