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News you may have missed #0170

November 6, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

US wants to set up spy base in Afghanistan, says Afghan lawmaker. Ataollah Loudin, who chairs the Afghan parliament’s Justice and Judiciary Committee, told journalists that Washington wants to establish a base in Afghanistan “to collect intelligence on and organize espionage operations against Iran, Russia, and China”.
CIA settles DEA agent’s lawsuit for $3 million. The US government has agreed to pay $3 million to a former US Drug Enforcement Administration agent who accused a CIA operative of illegally bugging his home.
UN to help Colombia sort through spy files. Colombia’s government and the UN have reached an agreement that will allow the UN to participate in the cleansing of intelligence files belonging to the soon-to-be-dismantled DAS spy agency. Interestingly, the project will be used as a pilot example for a wider process which may be extended to the Colombian Armed Forces and Police.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Afghanistan, Ataollah Loudin, China, CIA, Colombia, DAS (Colombia), DEA, declassification, government secrecy, Iran, lawsuits, military bases, News, news you may have missed, Russia, United Nations, United States

Israeli commandos seize ship allegedly carrying tons of weapons

November 6, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Israeli commandos

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
A ship apprehended off the coast of Cyprus by Israeli commandos in a predawn raid on Wednesday was carrying hundreds of tons of weapons, according to the Israeli Navy. Israeli military officials told a press conference in Tel Aviv that the ship was loaded with “40 containers filled with 300 tons of weapons each”, hidden under several rows of civilian goods. Israel insisted that the weapons, which include missiles and rockets, originated from Iran and Syria and were bound for Hezbollah, the Shiite Islamic political and paramilitary organization that controls large parts of Lebanon. But the Syrian foreign minister, Walid al-Moallem, called the Israeli commandos “pirates” and said the seized ship was heading from Syria to Iran, carrying only civilian goods. Israel has yet to release evidence of the ship’s contents, or even name. Read more of this post

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Antigua & Barbuda, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Hezbollah, Iran, Israel, Israeli Navy, Lebanon, maritime intelligence, maritime piracy, News, Syria, United States, Walid al-Moallem, weapons smuggling

News you may have missed #0169

November 6, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

An intel officer’s view on Fort Hood shooter. “Delve into Malik Nadal Hasan’s social network and check with intelligence sources to find out if he had ever had contact with [militant] organizations around the world”.
Coup rumors circulating in Paraguay. Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo has ordered the replacement of top military commanders, a day after publicly dismissing rumors circulating about a military coup. Did someone say “Honduras“?
US embassy in Panama looking for spy cameras. Why is the US embassy in Panama City looking for “wireless spy cameras disguised as baseball hats, jackets, pens and handbags”?

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with coup plots, Fernando Lugo, Fort Hood, Killeen (Texas), Malik Nadal Hasan, military bases, News, news you may have missed, Panama, Paraguay, surveillance, United States, US Army, US embassy in Panama

Comment: Why the Italian Convictions of CIA Officers Matter

November 6, 2009 by intelNews 5 Comments

Sabrina De Sousa

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
An Italian court has convicted 22 CIA officers and a US Air Force officer involved in the abduction of a Muslim cleric from Milan in 2003. All but three Americans tried in the case received jail sentences ranging from five to eight years, for kidnapping Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr in broad daylight and for illegally renditioning him to Egypt, where he says he was brutally tortured before being released without charge. As intelNews has previously reported, it is extremely unlikely that the US will agree to extradite the convicted abductors to Italy. Washington has formally invoked the NATO Status of Forces Agreement, arguing that the offenders were operating “in the course of official duty” and fall therefore under US, not Italian, jurisdiction. But the convictions are important nonetheless, for three reasons.

S. Korea arrests two for spying for US defense contractor

November 5, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

NorthropGrumman

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
The government of South Korea announced the arrest on Tuesday of two former South Korean army colonels for allegedly leaking defense secrets to US defense contractor giant Northrop Grumman. South Korean authorities identified the individuals simply as “Hwang” and “Ryu”, and said they both worked for the Security Management Institute, a Seoul-based intelligence think-tank with strong connections to South Korea’s armed forces. Details are still sketchy, but it appears the two former army colonels used their military contacts to gain access to classified information on hardware purchase plans and operations of South Korea’s navy and coast guard. They then allegedly passed on this information to employees of Northrop Grumman, the world’s largest builder of military vessels and fourth largest defense contractor in 2008. Read more of this post

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with espionage, Hwang, Kim, military intelligence, News, Northrop Grumman, Ryu, Saab, Security Management Institute (South Korea), South Korea, South Korean Army, South Korean Coast Guard, Sweden, United States

Details emerge on Israeli bombing of Syrian nuke reactor

November 4, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Ibrahim Othman

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
German newsmagazine Der Spiegel has published a most detailed examination of the background to Operation ORCHARD, the 2007 Israeli air attack on what is thought to have been a Syrian nuclear reactor. The attack was carried out by Israeli fighter jets in the night of September 6, 2007, at Al-Kibar, a site deep in the Syro-Arabian Desert, twenty miles from Deir al-Zour. Neither Syria nor Israel have commented on the attack, which is widely thought to have targeted Syria’s so-called Al-Kibar nuclear reactor. Der Spiegel’s article is based on interviews with nuclear and security experts, as well as “with individuals involved in the operation, [and] have only now agreed to [speak], under conditions of anonymity”, according to the authors. The article claims that the initial tip about Al-Kibar was given to the Israelis in 2004 by the US National Security Agency, which “detected a suspiciously high number of telephone calls between Syria and North Korea”. Read more of this post

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Al-Kibar (Syria), Al-Kibar nuclear reactor (Syria), Chon Chibu, communications interception, computer hacking, Deir al-Zour (Syria), Ibrahim Othman, Israel, Mossad, News, North Korea, North Korean nuclear program, NSA, operation ORCHARD, Syria, Syrian Atomic Energy Commission, Syrian Desert, Syrian nuclear program, Syro-Arabian Desert, UK, United States

News you may have missed #0164

November 3, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Analysis: Is A.W. Karzai the CIA’s man in Kandahar or a gentle benefactor? Since it was (re-)reported last week that Ahmed Wali Karzai has been receiving payments from the CIA, Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s younger brother has turned indignant and says the allegations are part of a smear campaign being waged by political opponents.
Italian court to decide on CIA abduction trial this week. An Italian court is to reach a verdict this week in the landmark trial of 26 US CIA agents involved in the 2003 abduction of a Muslim cleric in Milan.
Iran arrests Azerbaijani laser scientist for ‘spying’. Iranian authorities say the scientist, Rashid Aliyev, who works in Belarus, was involved in international espionage. Iranian media report that “contacts between the security services of Azerbaijan and Israel have been dramatically expanded” in recent years.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with abductions, Afghanistan, Ahmed Wali Karzai, Azerbaijan, Belarus, CIA, espionage, Hamid Karzai, informants, Iran, Israel, Italy, lawsuits, Milan (Italy), News, news you may have missed, Rashid Aliyev, United States

CIA trickery and deception manual revealed in new book

November 3, 2009 by intelNews 1 Comment

CIA manual

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
A CIA manual of surreptitious behavioral and signaling tricks, which was recently discovered by researchers, has been declassified and published in a new book. In The Official CIA Manual of Trickery and Deception, espionage historian H. Keith Melton and Robert Wallace, former director of the CIA’s Office of Technical Services, have reproduced the entire manual, which was supposed to have been destroyed by the Agency. Remarkably, the manual’s main author was John Mulholland, a professional magician and editor for 23 years of The Sphinx, America’s authoritative magazine for magicians. In 1953, Mulholland left the stage and The Sphinx to work full time for the CIA, which he did for several years. Read more of this post

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with book news and reviews, CIA, CIA Office of Technical Services, declassification, espionage, H. Keith Melton, John McLaughlin, John Mulholland, manuals, MKULTRA, Robert Wallace, spycraft, The Sphinx, United States

News you may have missed #0162

November 2, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

South Korean 1967 spy case was “trumped up”, report finds. A national truth commission set up by South Korea’s primary intelligence organization, the National Intelligence Service, has concluded that the so-called Tongbaengnim spy ring case was “grossly trumped up”. The case culminated in a public show-trial of 194 South Korean academics, artists and students, accused of spying for North Korea.
CIA torture sparked rift with FBI. The Associated Press is reporting what intelNews readers have known since July 20; namely that the CIA’s use of “harsh interrogation techniques” against captured terror suspects made FBI interrogators wary of the legality of the methods. As a result, FBI agents were barred from the interrogations.
Analysis: Friendship is no bar to espionage. As relations between Taiwan and China improve, would it be reasonable to expect that China will temper espionage activity against Taiwan, and vice-versa?

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Analysis, China, CIA, Cold War, declassification, espionage, FBI, history, lawsuits, News, news you may have missed, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Tongbaengnim spy ring, torture, turf wars, United States

Obama reestablishes critical intelligence oversight board (finally!)

November 2, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Exec. Order 13516

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
On June 19, I alerted intelNews readers to the fact that US President Barack Obama had yet to appoint any members to the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB). First established in 1956 by President Eisenhower, the PIAB, is a critical oversight group tasked with alerting the White House about US intelligence activities that may be illegal or may in any way go beyond Presidential authorization. Now, after months of inexcusable delays, not only has US President Barack Obama restored PIAB, but has also restored its original oversight role, which had been curtailed by the Bush administration since 2008. Specifically, on October 28, the President appointed former Senators David Boren and Chuck Hagel as co-chairs of PIAB, a move that effectively ended the Board’s hiatus. Read more of this post

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Barack Obama, Chuck Hagel, David Boren, Dwight Eisenhower, intelligence oversight, IOB (US), News, Obama Administration, PIAB (US), President’s Intelligence Advisory Board (US), United States, US Intelligence Oversight Board

Jailed US scientist actually gave secret information to Israel

November 2, 2009 by intelNews 2 Comments

S.D. Nozette

By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
On October 22, shortly after the arrest of US nuclear scientist Stuart David Nozette by an FBI counterintelligence agent, I speculated that Nozette “was already working for Israeli intelligence” when he was arrested by the FBI. My assumption appears to have been correct. On Thursday, the case prosecutor informed a US district court that Nozette told the undercover FBI agent, who was posing as an Israeli spy, that “he had passed information to Israel in the past”. As I have explained elsewhere, Nozette was employed for ten years as a technical consultant by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), an Israeli government-owned company that some believe is routinely involved in espionage operations on behalf of Israel. Read more of this post

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Anthony Asuncion, counterintelligence, espionage, FBI, Israel, Israel Aerospace Industries, Israel Aircraft Industries, lawsuits, Mossad, NASA, News, Stewart David Nozette, United States, US Department of Energy, US DoD, US Navy

News you may have missed #0160

November 1, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

South Korean college teacher charged with spying for North. A 37-year-old South Korean college instructor, identified only as Lee, has been charged with spying for North Korea since 1992.
Analysis: The CIA’s Afghan payroll. The revelation by The New York Times Wednesday that Ahmed Wali Karzai, the brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, has long been on the payroll of the CIA is only the tip of a much bigger iceberg, says IPS correspondent Gareth Porter.
US spy budget up $2 billion since 2008. US spy agencies spent $49.8 billion in fiscal year 2009, $2 billion more than in 2008 and the second such multibillion-dollar increase in as many years.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with Afghanistan, Ahmed Wali Karzai, bribing, CIA, espionage, Gareth Porter, Hamid Karzai, informants, intelligence budget, Lee, News, news you may have missed, North Korea, South Korea, United States

New research reveals extent of East German spying in Canada

October 30, 2009 by intelNews 1 Comment

Muller-Enbergs

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
Previously unknown aspects of East German intelligence-gathering operations in Canada will be presented this coming Saturday at the annual conference of the Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies in Ottawa. The new data was unearthed in Berlin by Helmut Müller-Enbergs, a researcher with Germany’s Office of the Federal Commissioner Preserving the Records of the Ministry for State Security of the German Democratic Republic (BStU). His findings show that the Stasi (Hauptverwaltung Aufklärung), the main foreign intelligence department of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was able to gain “deep insights into the domestic and foreign affairs of Canada”. The feat appears impressive when considering that the GDR had no embassy in Canada until 1987. Read more of this post

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with BStU, Canada, Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies, Cold War, espionage, German Democratic Republic, Germany, Hauptverwaltung Aufklärung, Helmut Müller-Enbergs, history, illegal residents, News, Ottawa (Canada), Siegfried, Stasi (GDR), United States

News you may have missed #0159

October 29, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

US Congress wants to change locks in document safes. Some Congress members have revived “a decade-old debate” on replacing security locks on government safes for storing classified documents with new electromechanical locking mechanisms. According to one independent security consultant, existing mechanical locks in classified document safes “can be penetrated surreptitiously within 20 minutes”, and older barlock containers still in use “can be penetrated within seconds”.
A US spy in wartime Ireland. The interesting story of Major Martin S. Quigley, one of three US spies sent by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS, CIA’s forerunner) to Ireland, on a mission to find out whether the country’s government, which was officially neutral in the War, was actually siding with Nazi Germany.

Filed under Expert news and commentary on intelligence, espionage, spies and spying Tagged with CIA, document storage, espionage, Germany, history, intelligence classification, Ireland, lock picking, Martin S. Quigley, News, news you may have missed, OSS, United States, US Congress, World War II

UK spy agencies argue for torture trial behind closed doors

October 29, 2009 by intelNews Leave a comment

Binyam Mohamed

By JOSEPH FITSANAKIS | intelNews.org |
The two primary intelligence agencies in the British Isles have argued that any evidence presented in a lawsuit accusing them of torture should remain secret. The request, which is unprecedented in British legal history, was made on Monday before Britain’s High Court by MI5, MI6, as well as by a number of government ministers. The court case in point centers on a lawsuit filed jointly by seven British citizens or residents, all of whom were held in the Guantánamo Bay Detention Camp and claim they were tortured by the CIA with British complicity. The seven are Moazzam Begg, Bisher Al Rawi, Jamil El Banna, Richard Belmar, Omar Deghayes, Martin Mubanga, and Binyam Mohamed, whose case is perhaps the most well known. Read more of this post