“Currently, Iraq is not capable of even rudimentary enforcement of anticorruption laws,” according to a confidential draft assessment prepared by the United States Embassy in Baghdad. As a result, corruption has become “the norm in many [Iraqi government] ministries.” “All indications point to corruption as undermining the support of the population for Iraq’s government.” The […]
Late last year the Attorney General approved revised guidelines for the use of confidential informants by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (pdf). The guidelines require that confidential human sources be subjected to a new validation process to help ensure that their information is reliable. The guidelines also generally require that the FBI and prosecutors inform […]
Effective Monday, September 24, the new mailing address for the Federation of American Scientists (and Secrecy News) will be: Federation of American Scientists 1725 DeSales St NW, 6th floor Washington, DC 20036 Telephone numbers and email addresses will be unchanged.
Recently updated reports of the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “U.S. Strategic Nuclear Forces: Background, Developments, and Issues,” updated September 5, 2007. “U.S.-China Nuclear Cooperation Agreement,” updated September 6, 2007. “Venezuela: Political Conditions and U.S. Policy,” updated September 4, 2007. “Liberia’s Post-War […]
Psychological operations (PSYOP) — military programs that seek to influence the attitudes and shape the behavior of a target audience — have the potential to increase the effectiveness of the armed forces they support while minimizing violent conflict. But the U.S. military is not notably good at conducting such programs. To achieve their objective, PSYOP […]
Attorneys for Khaled El-Masri, who was allegedly subjected to “extraordinary rendition” by the Central Intelligence Agency, asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the dismissal of his lawsuit against the Agency last year on asserted “state secrets” grounds. If the petition (pdf) is granted, the Court’s review has the potential to alter the judiciary’s handling […]
The the Institute for Animal Health has confirmed a positive test for foot-and-mouth in Surrey, just outside London. The latest report that I could find indicated that they had ordered the slaughter of 300 animals in the area of the outbreak and that all cattle movement and exports had been halted. The site of the […]
Critics of the new Protect America Act who wonder if it will be used to conduct warrantless surveillance of Americans have misunderstood the legislation, according to a Department of Justice official, but he also admitted the law may be susceptible to such a misunderstanding. “Contrary to some reports, the new legislation does nothing to change […]
“Legacy of Ashes,” the best-selling new history of the Central Intelligence Agency by Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Tim Weiner, has been almost universally praised by prestigious book reviewers as a ground-breaking, comprehensive, reliable and insightful account of the CIA from its inception to the present. It was favorably cited in Secrecy News too. In a […]
Notable new reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “India-U.S. Economic and Trade Relations,” August 31, 2007. “U.S.-China Military Contacts: Issues for Congress,” updated August 20, 2007. “United States Military Casualty Statistics: Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom,” updated August […]
Unauthorized disclosures of classified information in the press led to the imprisonment of a CIA source and other damaging consequences, said Central Intelligence Agency Director Michael Hayden in a speech last week. “Some say there is no evidence that leaks of classified information have harmed national security. As CIA Director, I’m telling you there is, […]
Two editions of the President’s Daily Brief (PDB) dating from the Johnson Administration may be withheld from disclosure by the CIA, a federal appeals court ruled last week (pdf). The court deferred to a CIA argument that despite their age, the 40 year old records could compromise protected intelligence methods. However, the court rejected a […]