The 21st century has been very good to the world’s spies. Since the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, secret intelligence agencies have increased their power and influence in countries as diverse as the United States, Russia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. What these spy services have in common is secrecy, techniques, and elaborate emblems...
Category: Covert Action
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The Undercover Mission of the New International Spy Museum
The new International Spy Museum in Washington D.C. is, not surprisingly, an institution in disguise, an undercover operation executed in plain sight. The museum’s beveled glassy front is more stylish than its neighbors–the bland façade of the Post Office to the west, the neo-expressionist face of the General Services Administration to the north. Yet the...
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Inside R&AW’s Covert Operations
India’s secret intelligence service, known as the Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW) is less well-known than the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), India’s premier investigative agency. But R&AW is gaining a great public profile. Like CIA and Mossad, it’s espionage exploits are depicted in a premium cable show. With Prime Minister Naendra Modi’s more aggressive stance toward...
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The Egyptian Spy Who Worked for Mossad
Heba Salim was an Egyptian woman who said she spied in service of peace. Her story is the basis a famous Egyptian movie, Al sood ila al haweyah. (Climbing to the Abyss) I never knew her story until I read it in Egyptian Streets. At a time when Egyptian President Sadat was planning his next...
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An Afghan Peace Problem: CIA-Funded Militias
President Trump wants to pull out of Afghanistan. A majority of Congress wants to end the 19 year long war. Peace talks are underway. The women of Afghanistan are bracing for a loss of freedoms possible while under American occupation. An agreement between the United States and the Taliban is in sight. But then there...
