By Ivan Oelrich and Ivanka Barzashka Last week, the New York Times and the Financial Times USA ran stories that implied that Iran had been hiding enriched uranium and had been caught red-handed during the most recent International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) physical inventory inspection. While supposedly based on the IAEA report (GOV/2009/8), the articles […]
Smugglers continue to construct tunnels beneath U.S. borders to transport drugs, illegal aliens and other contraband, according to an internal briefing prepared by a U.S. Northern Command Task Force. Dozens of tunnels have been found in recent years, including some of remarkable sophistication, but it is likely that others remain undetected. Overall, between 1990 and […]
A detailed and rather opinionated assessment of French media outlets was prepared last year by the Open Source Center (OSC) of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. “Many of the estimated 37,000 French journalists see themselves more as intellectuals than as reporters. Instead of merely reporting events, they often try to analyze developments […]
A federal court this week ruled that J. William Leonard, the former director of the Information Security Oversight Office, may testify for the defense in the long-running prosecution of two former officials of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) who are charged with illicitly receiving and transmitting classified information that prosecutors say is protected […]
The Open Source Center (OSC) of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence consistently generates a wealth of informative analytic and bibliographic products. But for reasons that are hard to understand, such materials are generally withheld from public disclosure even when they are unclassified and not subject to copyright. The following OSC publications (both […]
The Open Source Center (OSC) of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence recently ranked the individuals whom it considers to be the ten most influential political commentators in the British press and profiled them in an OSC publication (pdf). These commentators — from the BBC, Sky News, the Guardian, and elsewhere — are […]
The shifting legal framework governing the interrogation of detainees held by the U.S. Government was examined in several newly updated reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not previously been made readily available to the public (all pdf). “Interrogation of Detainees: Requirements of the Detainee Treatment Act,” updated January 23, 2009. “U.N. Convention Against […]
“Despite President Obama’s vow to open government more than ever, the Justice Department is defending Bush administration decisions to keep secret many documents about domestic wiretapping, data collection on travelers and U.S. citizens, and interrogation of suspected terrorists,” Michael J. Sniffen reported for the Associated Press. See “Despite Obama Pledge, Justice Defends Bush Secrets,” February […]
Russian SSBN patrols tripled from 2007 to 2008. . By Hans M. Kristensen Russia sent more nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarines on patrol in 2008 than in any other year since 1998, according to information obtained by Federation of American Scientists from U.S. naval intelligence. The information shows that Russian missile submarine conducted ten patrols in […]
In a recent news story about the public availability of Congressional Research Service reports (“Thousands of Congressional Reports Now Available Online” by Brian Krebs, Washingtonpost.com, February 11), I was accurately quoted saying: “While 90 percent of the [CRS] reports are probably mediocre, at their best they are very good.” I wish I had not said […]
“There is no known instance in which classified information was leaked or compromised by Government Accountability Office (GAO) employees,” I wrote on February 9 (“Senate Bill Revisits GAO Oversight of Intelligence”). But that may not be true, according to one former GAO analyst. “Sadly, your assertion of GAO’s record of no loss or compromise of […]
U.S. Marine Corps personnel who are responsible for protecting classified information should consult a variety of sources including Secrecy News in order to maintain their professional awareness, a new Marine Corps newsletter advised (pdf). To begin with, “you should read every security-related regulation/article you can get your hands on,” including the executive order on classification, […]