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News you may have missed #0204

December 3, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Release of secret US reports to be postponed (again). Millions of secret US government documents are scheduled to be declassified at the end of the year, unless President Barack Obama extends the deadline, like his predecessors have done. The White House is reportedly preparing an executive order that will postpone the declassification, in order to assuage various US intelligence agencies “unwilling to part with their secrets”. Change, Mr. Obama?
Analysis: Why India needs an intelligence revamp. We have written before about the urgent need to restructure Indian intelligence agencies.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Analysis, Barack Obama, declassification, government secrecy, India, intelligence reform, News, news you may have missed, United States

News you may have missed #0203

December 2, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

N. Koreans arrested for revealing Kim Jong-Il’s whereabouts. A number of North Koreans have been arrested and could face execution for leaking to a South Korean Internet newspaper information on the movements of Kim Jong-Il’s February 24 trip to the city of Hoeryong.
Authority to spy on Americans unclear as PATRIOT Act expires. Controversial provisions in the Act, which grant US the government far-reaching domestic surveillance and seizure powers, are due to expire on December 31. These provisions will have to be discussed in Congress, “but only when the Senate isn’t backlogged by health care” according to insiders.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with civil liberties, domestic intelligence, Hoeryong (North Korea), Kim Jong Il, News, news you may have missed, North Korea, United States, US Congress, USA PATRIOT Act

News you may have missed #0202

December 2, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Russia claims intel agents have left Crimea base. Alleged move follows last June’s expulsion by the Ukrainian government of several Russian FSB operatives stationed in the Russian naval base in Sevastopol.
Here’s how US communications providers make money by spying on users. One provider, Cox Communications charges the US government $2,500 to fulfill a pen register/trap-and-trace order for 60 days, and $2,000 for each additional 60-day-interval. It also charges $3,500 for the first 30 days of a wiretap, and $2,500 for each additional 30 days.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with communications interception, Cox Communications, Crimea, diplomatic expulsions, FSB, News, news you may have missed, Russia, Sevastopol (Ukraine), telecommunication service providers, telecommunications, Ukraine, United States

News you may have missed #0201

December 1, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

New book claims historic IRA commander was British spy. John Turi has authored England’s Greatest Spy, a new book, which claims that Éamon de Valera, who founded Irish republican party Fianna Fáil and later became the first President of the Irish Republic, secretly became a British intelligence officer in 1916. Tim Pat Coogan, one of de Valera’s most prominent biographers, reviews the book.
Japan launches spy satellite targetting North Korea. Japan’s H-2A No. 16 rocket, which was launched on Saturday, carries an advanced space satellite that will spy on North Korean military and other sites. The satellite is said to carry the most advanced high-resolution imaging equipment of all of Japan’s intelligence-gathering satellites.
US Secret Service 9/11 text messages disclosed. Hundreds of thousands of lines of transcribed pager messages exchanged between US civilian and military users on 9/11 were anonymously published on the Internet on Wednesday. They include messages exchanged between US Secret Service agents.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with 9/11, Éamon de Valera, book news and reviews, Fianna Fáil, informants, Ireland, Japan, John Turi, News, news you may have missed, North Korea, Provisional IRA, satellite reconnaissance, telecommunications, Tim Pat Coogan, United States, US Secret Service

News you may have missed #0200

November 30, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

New N. Ireland justice minister wants MI5 to share data. David Ford, who appears to be the preferred choice for Northern Ireland’s justice minister, says he will “insist that MI5 share all intelligence on republican dissidents with the Police Service of Northern Ireland”.
Prisoners remain in CIA black site. A US military detention camp in Afghanistan is still holding inmates, sometimes for weeks at a time and without access to the Red Cross, according to human rights researchers and former detainees held at Bagram Air Base.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Afghanistan, Bagram Air Base, CIA, David Ford, domestic intelligence, intelligence sharing, International Red Cross, MI5, News, news you may have missed, Northern Ireland, Police Service of Northern Ireland, secret prisons, UK, United States

News you may have missed #0199

November 30, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Author insists Sir Hollis was Soviet agent. Last month, Professor Christopher Andrew, author of the recently published In Defense of the Realm, an authorized history of MI5, dismissed allegations that Sir Roger Hollis, former head of MI5, had been a KGB agent. But intelligence author Chapman Pincher insists that “Hollis ha[d] been so deeply suspected of being a Soviet spy […] that he had been recalled from retirement for interrogation” in London.
ACLU supports lawsuit against FBI by alleged informant. The American Civil Liberties Union has joined Craig Monteilh, who says he was an undercover FBI informant, in a lawsuit demanding sealed court records identifying him as a spy be made public.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with ACLU, book news and reviews, Chapman Pincher, Christopher Andrew, Cold War, Craig Monteilh, espionage, FBI, history, informants, KGB, lawsuits, MI5, News, news you may have missed, Sir Roger Hollis, UK, United States, USSR

News you may have missed #0198

November 29, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Walesa libel trial over spy claim starts in Poland. A libel trial has started in Poland over allegations that former President Lech Walesa once worked as a communist spy.
Japanese abductee’s son releases correspondence with North Korean ex-spy. The son of Yaeko Taguchi, a Japanese woman abducted thirty years ago by North Korean agents, has released personal letters he exchanged with Kim Hyun-Hee, a North Korean former spy, who told him his mother is still alive.
Israeli police arrest…Mossad spy apprentice. A trainee of Israel’s Mossad intelligence service was arrested by Israeli police during a spying exercise in Tel Aviv, after he was spotted behaving suspiciously. Interestingly, “[t]he Mossad never warns Israel’s uniformed security services in advance of its exercises in a bid to give the training an element of reality”.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with abductions, defectors, Israel, Japan, Kim Hyun-Hee, lawsuits, Lech Walesa, Mossad, News, news you may have missed, North Korea, Poland, Tel Aviv, Yaeko Taguchi

News you may have missed #0197

November 27, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Pakistani spy agencies looking into oil, gas deals. At least two premier Pakistani intelligence agencies, Inter-Services Intelligence and Military Intelligence, have started investigations into multi-million dollar oil and gas transactions involving government-owned Pakistan State Oil.
Intelligence Community plans workforce of the future. Interesting take on future recruiting goals by Dr. Ron Sanders, Chief Human Capital Officer in the US intelligence community.
Update on French ex-spy v. Dubai World Corp. legal saga. Dubai World Corporation and former French intelligence officer Herve Jaubert, who escaped from the United Arab Emirates using his cache of spy tricks, are still at it in court.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Dubai World, energy resources, France, Herve Jaubert, intelligence recruitment, ISI, lawsuits, News, news you may have missed, Pakistan, Pakistan State Oil, Pakistani Military Intelligence, Ron Sanders, United Arab Emirates, United States

News you may have missed #0196

November 25, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Legal problems facing CIA are no laughing matter. They include two criminal investigations by the US Justice Department, persistent inquiries by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, as well as legal challenges from “war on terrorism” detainees.
Aussie computer networks “most certainly” spied on. The Australian federal government’s computer network has “almost certainly” been targeted by cyber-spies from other countries, according to attorney general Robert McClelland. “In some incidents nation states [are responsible]”, he told reporters.
US still considering extraditing Philippine spy. A judge has yet to rule on whether Michael Ray Aquino, a former Philippine National Police intelligence officer who served prison time for passing classified US government documents to the Philippine opposition, will be extradited to face murder charges back home. See here for more on this strange case.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Australia, CIA, cyberespionage, extraditions, intelligence oversight, Michael Ray Aquino, News, news you may have missed, Philippines, Philippines National Police, Robert McClelland, United States, US Department of Justice, US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence

News you may have missed #0195

November 24, 2009 by intelNews 2 Comments

CIA releases massive collection of Soviet military documents. The CIA has released a massive selection of sensitive Soviet journal articles, translated into English, which it acquired by various means from 1961 to 1984. Most are from the restricted Soviet journal Military Thought.
Did the CIA attempt to prevent Gagarin’s lunar flight from happening? Interesting question explored by Peter Pesavento in the latest issue of Space Chronicle, a journal of the London-based British Interplanetary Society.
GCHQ head’s holiday details leaked online. The head of the British government’s ultra-secret listening agency GCHQ is reviewing his security after personal details were put on the internet by a spookbuster. Thankfully, no Speedo photos this time.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Cold War, declassification, GCHQ, history, Iain Robert Lobban, Internet, military intelligence, News, news you may have missed, Soviet space program, UK, United States, USSR, Vostok 1, Vostok 3KA-3, Yuri Gagarin

News you may have missed #0194

November 24, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Ex-Monaco spymaster renews lawsuit on principality. Robert Eringer, who until recently was spymaster to prince Albert II of Monaco, and is now suing him for €360,000 ($542,000) in alleged unpaid income, has filed a new lawsuit against the principality itself, to prevent Albert II from invoking head-of-state immunity.
WWII spy photos declassified after 60 years. A collection of astonishing World War II air surveillance photos from Britain’s Aerial Reconnaissance Archives can now be seen by the public for the first time.
US couple accused of spying for Cuba pleads guilty. As expected, Walter and Gwendolyn Myers, who were arrested by the FBI last summer on charges of spying for Cuba for over 30 years, have pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with investigators.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with aerial reconnaissance, Aerial Reconnaissance Archives (UK), airborne surveillance, Cuba, declassification, espionage, Germany, Gwendolyn Steingraber Myers, history, lawsuits, Monaco, Monaco Intelligence Service, News, news you may have missed, photographic intelligence, Prince Albert II of Monaco, Robert Eringer, UK, United States, Walter Kendall Myers, World War II

News you may have missed #0193

November 23, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Colombian rebels say US spying on Venezuela from bases. Colombia’s National Liberation Army, the smaller of the country’s two main guerrilla groups, has echoed Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez’s recent claims that the new US bases in Colombia will be used for “electronic spying” against Caracas.
Hawaii resident accused of spying for China to stand trial. Noshir Gowadia is not insane and is legally able to stand trial, a US federal prosecutor asserted on Friday.
British communications spy agency to recruit via Xbox Live. The General Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), Britain’s version of the US National Security Agency, says it is trying to attract 18- to 34-year-olds to its ranks. It’s not the first time it has resorted to gaming.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with China, Colombia, ELN (Colombia), gaming, GCHQ, Hawaii, Hugo Chávez, intelligence recruitment, military bases, National Liberation Army of Colombia, News, news you may have missed, Noshir Gowadia, UK, United States, Venezuela, Xbox, Xbox Live

News you may have missed #0192

November 23, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Ex-agent reveals botched CIA operation in Siberia. Former CIA operative Mike Ramsdell has described a botched post-Cold War CIA operation in Siberia, which almost cost him his life. Another, apparently unrelated, botched CIA operation in Siberia was revealed last August.
How secret Operation WEDGE ended Czechoslovak communism. “There are dozens of conspiracy theories about the Eastern European revolutions of 1989: that it was all the work of the CIA, the KGB, or a cabal of Western banks with mafia connections. Most are hokum. But in Czechoslovakia there really was a conspiracy behind the theory”.
Secret US-Japanese nuclear deal comes to light. IntelNews has previously discussed this secret arrangement, which reportedly allows US military vessels and aircraft carrying nuclear weapons to enter Japanese territorial waters, as long as Japan is protected by the US nuclear umbrella.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with CIA, Cold War, Czechoslovakia, espionage, history, Japan, KGB, Mike Ramsdell, News, news you may have missed, nuclear proliferation, Operation WEDGE, Russia, Siberia, United States

News you may have missed #0191

November 19, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Peru-Chile spy dispute deepens. Not only was senior Peruvian Air Force officer Victor Ariza Mendoza, who was arrested in Lima last Saturday, a spy for Chile, but there were six other individuals involved in the ring, according to Peruvian authorities. Peru has even asked Interpol to get involved in the affair.
UN-Iran in secret nuclear negotiations, says paper. The London Times has alleged that the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency is secretly negotiating a deal to persuade world powers to lift sanctions against Iran and allow Tehran to retain the bulk of its nuclear energy program, in return for co-operation with UN inspectors.
Analysis: The real spy war between CIA and DNI. For months, the CIA and the office of the Director of National Intelligence fought an intense and acrimonious turf battle over covert action oversight and access to White House officials. Now new details are emerging about deeper and more sensitive conflicts between the two agencies, including which agency is responsible for oversight of the CIA’s controversial and classified Predator drone program.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Analysis, assassinations, Chile, CIA, DNI, espionage, IAEA, Interpol, Iran, Iranian nuclear program, News, news you may have missed, Peru, Predator drones, secret meetings, turf wars, United Nations, United States, Victor Ariza Mendoza, Victor Ariza Mendoza spy ring

News you may have missed #0190

November 19, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Indicted Liberian leader continues to allege CIA complicity. Former Liberian President, Charles Taylor, who is being tried at The Hague for war crimes, said his rebel group, the National Patriotic Front of Liberia, exchanged information with the CIA, and continued to do so into his presidency. Talylor has made similar allegations before, but the US media is ignoring it.
Debate on who should protect US computer networks continues. Cyber experts and intelligence officials continue to debate about whether the National Security Agency is the best-suited US agency for protecting the country’s critical computer networks from cyberattacks.
Case of Pakistani ‘spy’ arrested in India gets thicker. A Pakistani man arrested in India just as he was set to board a flight to Saudi Arabia, using a fake passport, “was a leader of some bigger ring spread across central and western Uttar Pradesh”, according to Indian officials. Meanwhile, the Delhi Police has arrested two more individuals in connection with the case.