Video alleges Moscow policy of assassinating Chechen expats

March 9, 2009 by 3 Comments

Khadirov

Khadirov

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
Just days after the latest mysterious assassination of a former Chechen commander in Turkey, a video has surfaced on YouTube in which a Chechen man reveals how he was tasked by pro-Moscow authorities in Chechnya with killing a pro-independence Chechen leader in Norway. The two-minute video features Ruslan Khalidov, who claims he is a nephew of Shaa Turlayev, a prominent former bodyguard of the late Chechen separatist leader Aslan Maskhadov. Maskhadov was assassinated by Russian FSB agents in 2005. Khalidov states that he was repeatedly tortured by Chechen authorities operating under the instructions of pro-Moscow Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov. He was then blackmailed into agreeing to perform a series of covert tasks in Norway, including providing Norwegian authorities with disinformation on Chechen expats in Norway, and assassinating Magomed Ocherhadji, a vocal pro-independence Chechen community leader based in the Scandinavian country. Read more of this post

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Russian intelligence suspected in new killing of Chechen in Turkey

March 4, 2009 by 2 Comments

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
Another assassination of a former Chechen insurgent living in Turkey has been reported. This time it was Musa Atayev (also known as Ali Osaev), 48, who was killed in Zeytinburnu, Istanbul, with three shots to the head from a gun equipped with a silencer. Atayev’s assassination was the third such killing in five months. In September of 2008, Gazhi Edilsutanov was also shot in the head in Istanbul’s Başakşehir suburb, while last December Islam Dzhanibekov was shot and killed in front of his home in the Turkish commercial capital’s Ümraniye district. Notably, all three Chechens were reportedly shot from a close range with a single action 7.62 MSP pistol. This type of weapon has been traditionally favored by the KGB and its successor agencies since the early 1970s, mainly due to its small size and relatively silent operation. Read more of this post

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NATO spy convicted by Estonian court

February 27, 2009 by 1 Comment

Herman Simm

Herman Simm

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
Herman Simm, the Estonian spy who handed classified NATO material to Russia, has been convicted to 12.5 years’ imprisonment and ordered to pay $1.6 million for damages he caused while spying for the Russians. Simm, a high-level official at the Estonian defense ministry, who once headed the country’s National Security Authority, was arrested last November along with his wife and charged with spying for Russia for over 10 years. At the time of his arrest, Simm’s spying activities were described by Western counterintelligence officials as perhaps “the most serious case of espionage against NATO since the end of the Cold War”. Read more of this post

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Vienna is world’s largest espionage hub, say experts

February 27, 2009 by Leave a comment

Vienna

Vienna

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
A few months ago, a federal office under Austria’s Interior Ministry published a report on foreign intelligence activity in the country, in which it predicted that “Austria will remain an operational area for foreign intelligence agencies […], which will account for a consistently high number of intelligence agents”. An article in German newspaper Die Welt explains that not only does post-Cold-War Vienna continue to be “a spy hub between East and West”, but the Austrian capital now has “the highest density of [foreign intelligence] agents in the world”. Read more of this post

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Analysis: US issues financial warfare warnings against China, Russia

February 20, 2009 by 1 Comment

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS| intelNews.org |
It turns out that Admiral Dennis Blair wasn’t kidding when he said last week that “the primary near-term security concern of the United States is the global economic crisis and its geopolitical implications”. Barack Obama’s Director of National Intelligence warned during his annual threat assessment that “the longer it takes for the recovery to begin, the greater the likelihood of serious damage to US strategic interests”. The continuing credit vulnerability of the US economy is central to these fears, and it appears to be forcing the rapid rise of microeconomic concerns to the top of the US intelligence community’s threat list. A major aspect of these concerns centers on the hard-to-ignore fact that China currently holds close to $1 trillion-worth of US monetary debt. Trade experts suggest that, should China suddenly decide to offer these securities for sale, “the US dollar would tank”. The chances of this happening are slim -the Chinese economy would also suffer from such a move- but US intelligence agencies are taking no chances. On February 19, the office of the Director of National Intelligence issued a public warning to the Chinese government that it would consider any attempts to sell US Treasury bonds an act of “financial warfare”. Keep reading →

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Russian intelligence notes influx of foreign spies into Siberia

February 10, 2009 by 2 Comments

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
The press office of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has announced a noticeable increase in espionage activity by agents of foreign governments in Siberia. Russian counterintelligence agents have apparently detected increased presence of operatives from Asian-Pacific countries in and around Siberian scientific centers in Novosibirsk, and especially in its suburb of Akademgorodok, nicknamed “science city” by the Russians. The head of FSB’s local directorate in Novosibirsk, Sergey Savchenkov, said that “dozens of foreign spies” had been discovered in the region in 2008″, and that most of them were targeting Russian scientists using “all possible means” to extract confidential information. Siberian academic facilities are noted for their research in the fields of oil and gas geology, nanotechnology, creation of new materials, and biochemistry, among other subjects. This is not the first time in recent months that the FSB has drawn attention to scientific and technical espionage on Russian soil. In December of 2008, Major-General Valeriy Beklenishchev, who heads the FSB’s Saratov branch, said nanotechnology research projects conducted at regional universities, as well as research on “heat and power engineering and electronics” were prime espionage targets of foreign operatives.

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Britain says at least 20 countries spying on it

February 9, 2009 by Leave a comment

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
Britain’s Sunday Telegraph newspaper has revealed a government report, which states that the UK is a “high priority espionage target” for “at least 20 foreign intelligence services”. The report, issued to UK government departments on January 19, 2009, warns against overlooking traditional espionage threats while focusing almost solely on the activities of al-Qaeda and other Islamist groups. Authored by a group of British Army Intelligence Corps officers, the report identifies Chinese and Russian espionage networks as the most active on British soil, and discloses that “[t]he number of Russian intelligence officers in London has not fallen since the Soviet times”. Read more of this post

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Suspicious FSB inquiries preceded Politkovskaya assassination

February 6, 2009 by 2 Comments

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) filed several inquiries about journalist Anna Politkovskaya’s place of residence in the days before she was gunned down in the elevator of her apartment block, a Moscow district court heard yesterday. The allegation, made several days ago by former FSB officer Lt. Col. Pavel Ryaguzov, appeared to corroborate information discovered in an archived written request by the FSB to Russia’s Federal Migration Service, inquiring as to Mrs. Politkovskaya’s residence address in Moscow. The FSB request, dated September 18, 2006, 19 days prior to the journalist’s assassination, sought to clarify an apparent discrepancy between Mrs. Politkovskaya’s registered address and actual residence in the Russian capital. Read more of this post

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Russian naval bases in the Mediterranean “a matter of time”

January 20, 2009 by Leave a comment

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
Last October, when Libyan head of state Muammar al-Gaddafi visited Moscow, observers speculated that the possibility of a Russian naval base in Libya would be high among the subjects for discussion. Now the ITAR-TASS news agency has quoted an “unidentified” Russian military official as saying that the establishment of Russian naval bases in Libya, Syria, and possibly Yemen, is a matter of time. The official suggested that “[t]he political decision [to lease the bases] has been taken” and “this will be done without question”. Responding to a request for comment by The Moscow Times, Deputy Chief of the Russian General Staff, Colonel General Anatoly Nogovitsyn, simply confirmed that Moscow is conducting negotiations “with foreign governments”. Read more of this post

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British diplomat and FSB colonel in strange Moscow accident

December 28, 2008 by Leave a comment

Andrew Sheridan

Andrew Sheridan

British newspaper The Daily Mail has published a brief account of a bizarre accident in Moscow, involving a British diplomat and a senior official of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB). Andrew Sheridan, Deputy Director of the British Council’s office in Moscow, apparently hit an FSB agent while driving a car issued with official diplomatic tags. The Russian agent, who was named by the FSB only as “Alexander T.” trains intelligence recruits “for frontline duties, including securing borders”. He suffered a broken leg and head injuries. The British Council, which is sponsored by the British Foreign Office, is often seen as the educational and cultural extension office of British diplomatic missions around the world. It has long been involved in a diplomatic dispute with the Russian government and security services, in the context of which Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, recently described it as “a nest of spies”. The Daily Mail article reminds that the Council’s branch offices in St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg were recently shut down by the Russian authorities “over alleged tax irregularities”. The British Foreign Office described the incident as “an unfortunate traffic accident [with nothing] more [to be read] into it”. The FSB have yet to officially comment on the subject. [IA]

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Analysis: A good primer on FSB contract killings

December 27, 2008 by Leave a comment

Forbes magazine, whose motto is “the capitalist tool”, is not known for its investigative journalism. However, it has a personal reason for closely following the ongoing trial of the alleged assassins of Russian investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya. Namely, Forbes editors suspect that the same syndicates who killed Politkovskaya in October 2006 were behind the murder of Forbes‘ Russian edition reporter Paul Klebnikov, who was shot to death in 2004. Interestingly, all three of Politkovskaya’s accused assassins were employed by, or have strong links to, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB). Read more of this post

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FSB official discusses foreign spying on Russian research projects

December 18, 2008 by Leave a comment

The chief of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) directorate for the Saratov region of Russia has held a news conference discussing alleged spying by foreign intelligence operatives. Major-General Valeriy Beklenishchev, who heads the Saratov branch of Russia’s foremost domestic intelligence agency, said nanotechnology research projects conducted at the region’s universities are prime espionage targets of foreign operatives. Read more of this post

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Israel pressuring Russia on sale of S-300 missiles to Iran

December 16, 2008 by Leave a comment

Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz reports that Israel’s government is preparing to send Major General Amos Gilad, a senior Defense Ministry official, to Moscow, to pressure the Russians not to sell an advanced antiaircraft system to Iran. Gilad’s visit, which will include meetings with Russian senior defense and intelligence officials, is aimed at preventing the planned sale of Russia’s advanced S-300 surface-to-air missile system to Tehran. Military experts have warned Israel that, by purchasing and installing the S-300 system, Iran will effectively “rule out an Israeli war against Iran” by eliminating the possibility of a surprise Israeli air attack. Read more of this post

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Russian government amends treason and spying definitions

December 16, 2008 by Leave a comment

Last week Russia’s State Duma passed a law abolishing the use of juries in terrorism trials, and replacing them with three-judge panels. This week the government has submitted yet another bill significantly revising legal definitions of spying and treason. Current Russian law defines spying and treason as “hostile” actions threatening “the foreign security of the Russian Federation”. The new bill, if enacted, will revise the definition to “[actions] against the security of the Russian Federation, including its constitutional order, sovereignty, territorial and state integrity”. Read more of this post

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Estonian sleeper agent may have been double spy, say Germans

December 15, 2008 by Leave a comment

Herman Simm

Herman Simm

Last month, Estonian counterintelligence agents arrested Herman Simm, a high-level official at the Estonian defense ministry, on charges that he spied on behalf of Russian intelligence for nearly 30 years. At the time, Western counterintelligence officials said Simm, who was in charge of handling all of Estonia’s “classified and top secret material on NATO”, was at the center of “the most serious case of espionage against NATO since the end of the Cold War”. But the complexity of this espionage affair has now increased, with German weekly magazine Der Spiegel reporting that Simm was also a paid informant of the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND), Germany’s foreign intelligence service. Read more of this post

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