news you may have missed | intelNews.org

News you may have missed #0219

December 14, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Kennedy considered supporting 1963 coup in S. Vietnam, documents show. New audio recordings and documentation unearthed by George Washington University’s National Security Archive, show that US President John F. Kennedy supported a military coup against the US-backed South Vietnamese regime of Ngo Dinh Diem, even though he recognized the planned coup had no chance of a political success. See previous intelNews coverage for more Vietnam War-related declassified items.
Speak Farsi? Israel’s Shin Bet is interested. Israel’s Shin Bet internal intelligence agency is advertising jobs for speakers of the Iranian language Farsi. Israeli intelligence agencies appear to have similar problems with those faced by their US counterparts.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Cold War, coup plots, declassification, Farsi, history, intelligence recruitment, Iran, Israel, John F. Kennedy, languages, News, news you may have missed, Ngo Dinh Diem, Shin Bet, Vietnam, Vietnam War

News you may have missed #0218

December 13, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

US Pentagon joins CIA drone war in Pakistan (yes, we know). Wired magazine’s Noah Shachtman (Danger Room blog) reports that the US military is gradually joining the CIA’s unmanned drone war in Pakistan –but this is old news, Noah.
Part 4 of CIA defector’s writings now available. Former FBI counterintelligence agent Robert Eringer has published the fourth installment of the writings of Edward Lee Howard, a CIA officer who defected to the USSR in 1985 (see here for previous intelNews coverage). In this part, he advises the reader to “never wear a disguise past police or immigration unless it is a dire emergency”.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with CIA, Cold War, defectors, Edward Lee Howard, history, KGB, News, news you may have missed, Pakistan, Predator drones, United States, US DoD, USSR

News you may have missed #0217

December 12, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Last Russian intel officers leave Crimea. The last Russian Federal Security Service officers stationed with Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in Crimea reportedly left the Ukrainian peninsula on Friday, just two days prior to the Ukrainian government’s deadline of December 13.
Australia to establish national security college. The new institution will become “an elite educational center for Australia’s spies and security experts”.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Australia, Australian National University, Black Sea, Crimea, FSB, intelligence training, News, news you may have missed, Russia, Russian Black Sea Fleet, Sevastopol (Ukraine), Ukraine

News you may have missed #0216

December 11, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

China launches new spy satellite. Beijing says the satellite will be used for “land resources surveys [and] crop yield estimates”, but outside experts say it is likely an electro-optical spy satellite that will be operated by the Chinese military.
Man accused of spying on Israeli military chief may go free. Arab Israeli Rawi Sultani was arrested last August for allegedly spying on Israel’s military chief, Lieutenant-General Gabi Ashkenazi, on behalf of Lebanese group Hezbollah. But he may be released due to a technical oversight by the prosecutors.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with China, Chinese armed forces, espionage, Gabi Ashkenazi, Hezbollah, Israel, News, news you may have missed, Rawi Sultani, satellite reconnaissance

News you may have missed #0215

December 11, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Ex-MI5 officer cannot publish memoirs, court decides. A former MI5 officer, known only as “A.”, cannot publish his memoirs, which consist of a 300-page manuscript, a panel of British judges has decided. Interestingly, “A.” has said he intends to remain anonymous.
Turkey denies Israel use of its airspace to spy on Iran. If Israel were to violate Turkish airspace in order to conduct reconnaissance operations on Iran, Ankara’s reaction would resemble an “earthquake”, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said in an interview.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with aerial reconnaissance, airborne surveillance, book news and reviews, censorship, government secrecy, Iran, Israel, MI5, News, news you may have missed, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey, UK

News you may have missed #0214

December 10, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Cuban Five member’s prison term cut to 30 years. A Miami court has reduced the earlier prison sentence of yet another member of the Cuban Five. Ramon Labanino has had his original sentence of life imprisonment cut to 30 years. The Cuban Five were sentenced in 2001 for spying on US soil for Cuba.
Part 3 of CIA defector’s writings now available. Former FBI counterintelligence agent Robert Eringer has published the third installment of the writings of Edward Lee Howard, a CIA officer who defected to the USSR in 1985 (see here for previous intelNews coverage). Did you know that “KGB officers always preferred Malév (Hungary’s national airline) whenever they crossed to [Western] Europe”?

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with CIA, Cold War, Cuba, Cuban Five, defectors, Edward Lee Howard, espionage, history, Hungary, KGB, lawsuits, Malév Hungarian Airlines, Miami (Florida), News, news you may have missed, Robert Eringer, United States, USSR

News you may have missed #0213

December 10, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Pakistan militants target spy agency (again). Pakistani militants appear to be continuing their policy of directly targeting offices of the country’s main intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence.
Thailand angry after Cambodia jails alleged spy. Cambodian authorities have imposed a seven-year jail sentence on Siwarak Chothipong, whom they accuse of spying on the flight itinerary of visiting former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The latter has been living in exile since a 2006 military coup in Thailand.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Cambodia, espionage, ISI, News, news you may have missed, Pakistan, Siwarak Chothipong, suicide bombings, Thailand, Thaksin Shinawatra

News you may have missed #0212

December 9, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Government investigator gets US passports using fake names. A GAO investigator managed to obtain four genuine US passports using fake names and fraudulent documents. He then used one of the fake passports to buy a plane ticket, obtain a boarding pass, and make it through a security checkpoint at a major US airport. The post-9/11 security environment in all its glory.
Documents on Argentina’s Operation MEXICO declassified. Operation MEXICO was the codename for a clandestine Argentine rendition program aimed at abducting and murdering leaders of the Montonero Peronist Movement, a leftwing militant group, living in exile in Mexico City in the late 1970s.
Mistrial declared in the trial of FBI informant Hal Turner. Turner will still face a single count of unlawfully threatening three Chicago-based federal appeals judges, by writing on his blog that they “deserve to be killed” for upholding a gun control ordinance.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Argentina, FBI, forgery, Harold Turner, informants, lawsuits, Mexico, Mexico City (Mexico), Montonero Peronist Movement, News, news you may have missed, Operation MEXICO, travel documentation, United States, US Government Accountability Office

News you may have missed #0211

December 8, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Peru identifies handler of Victor Ariza Mendoza spy ring. Peruvian authorities have identified Victor Vergara Rojas as the Chilean handler of Peruvian Air Force officer Victor Ariza Mendoza, who was arrested in Lima last month on charges of spying for Chile.
Burmese junta tries officials for leaking military secrets. Authorities in Rangoon have put to trial three men who allegedly leaked information on what has come to be known as Burma’s secret tunnel project. The junta reportedly began building the tunnels in 1996, to accommodate battalions of troops in the event of an invasion.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Burma, Burma secret tunnel project, Burmese military, Chile, News, news you may have missed, Peru, Victor Ariza Mendoza, Victor Ariza Mendoza spy ring, Victor Vergara Rojas

News you may have missed #0210

December 8, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Turkey arrests secret service officials over coup allegations. The head of Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization’s (MİT) branch in the city of Erzincan, identified only as Ş.D., and two other regional MİT officials, are under arrest in connection with the ongoing investigation into Ergenekon, a clandestine network charged with plotting to overthrow the Turkish government.
European Union gives CIA access to Europe bank records. Some have condemned the agreement, due to come into force in two months’ time, because it contains no reciprocal arrangement under which European authorities can easily access the bank accounts of US citizens in America.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with CIA, coup plots, databases, economic espionage, Ergenekon, Erzincan (Turkey), EU, MİT (Turkey), News, news you may have missed, Turkey, United States

News you may have missed #0209

December 7, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Court documents strengthen case of alleged FBI informant. Unsealed court records that Craig Monteilh said would prove he was an informant for the FBI, tasked with spying on California mosques, show that he provided “very, very valuable” information to the FBI.
Britain’s ITV to air documentary on MI5. Until a few years ago, the UK government wouldn’t acknowledge MI5’s existence. Now the quasi-governmental ITV television station is preparing to broadcast a documentary on the agency’s 100-year history.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with American Muslims, Craig Monteilh, domestic intelligence, FBI, government secrecy, informants, lawsuits, MI5, News, news you may have missed, UK

News you may have missed #0208

December 7, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Georgia denies entry to Russian ‘spies’. Georgia has denied entry to a delegation of Russian scholars from the Russian State Archive and the Center for Caucasian Research at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. It’s the second time this year that the Georgians have accused Russian researchers of being spies.
US monitors China’s hiring of foreign journalists. A report by the Open Source Center of the US Directorate of National Intelligence notes that China has been hiring a growing number of foreign reporters to serve as overseas correspondents.
Audio interview with NSA’s information assurance director. Dickie George, technical director of information assurance at the US National Security Agency, has given a rare audio interview to GovInfo Security. The first part of the interview is available here. The second part will be posted in a few days.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with academic freedom, Center for Caucasian Research at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, China, Dickie George, espionage, Georgia, information security, Moscow State Institute of International Relations, News, news you may have missed, NSA, Russia, Russian State Archive, US DNI Open Source Center

News you may have missed #0207

December 6, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Congo court upholds death sentences for Norwegian ‘spies’. A Congolese court has upheld death sentences for Tjostolv Moland and Joshua French, two Norwegians arrested last May in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on spying charges.
Judge unseals records of man claiming to be FBI spy. A Superior Court judge on Thursday lifted a seal on court records and transcripts that Craig Monteilh says will prove he was an informant for the FBI, tasked with spying on area mosques.
Is this a classified CIA drone? A new photo of what appears to be a classified US drone aircraft has been published on a blog belonging to the French newspaper Libération. But some say that the photo might be a deliberate disinformation effort aimed to confuse black ops spotters.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with American Muslims, CIA, Craig Monteilh, Democratic Republic of the Congo, espionage, FBI, informants, Joshua French, lawsuits, News, news you may have missed, Norway, Predator drones, Tjostolv Moland, United States

News you may have missed #0206

December 5, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

UK sets up counter-hacking unit. Britain’s Office of Cyber Security has formed Computer Emergency Response Teams to deal with “more than 300 cyber attacks a year”. It will operate out of the Government Communications Headquarters in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. Australia may be moving in the same direction.
Czech artist denies having spied on US diplomats. Joska Skalnik a famous Czech artist and anti-communist dissident, has denied allegations he spied on US diplomats in Prague on behalf of StB, the country’s communist secret service during the Cold War.
Ex-Shin Bet chief hints Israel won’t strike Iran without US consent. Avi Dichter, former head of Israel’s domestic spy service, the Shin Bet, told an Australian audience that it is “up to the US to take the lead in international efforts to confront Iran on the nuclear issue. This should be a role for superpowers and Israel is not a superpower”, he said.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Australia, Avi Dichter, Cold War, cyberespionage, cybersecurity, Czech Republic, Czechoslovakia, GCHQ, Iran, Israel, Joska Skalnik, News, news you may have missed, Office of Cyber Security (UK), Office of Cyber Security Computer Emergency Response Teams (UK), Shin Bet, StB (Czechoslovakia), UK, United States, US embassy in Czechoslovakia

News you may have missed #0205

December 3, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Iran plans to charge five British yachtsmen as spies. Iran’s espionage trials against Westerners are becoming as predictable as the stupidity of said Westerners who keep entering Iranian territory without the necessary travel documentation.
CIA recruiting in Guam (of all places). The Agency tells University of Guam students that they should attend its recruitment information session if they are “interested in foreign affairs, […] enjoy foreign travel and have an aptitude to learn foreign languages”.