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☆ C.I.A. Violently Cut Off 9/11 Suspect When He Tried to Talk About Attacks
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Carol Rosenberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

wanted him to discuss Al Qaeda’s future plans, not the attacks that had horrified America a year and a half earlier, Dr. James E. Mitchell, the psychologist, said. So when the prisoner, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, mentioned Sept. 11, they would slam him, naked, into a wall. That month, interrogators would waterboard Mr. Mohammed 183 times at a secret overseas C.I.A. prison in the mistaken belief, Dr. Mitchell said, that a nuclear attack in the United States was imminent. But Mr. Mohammed still was not saying what his captors wanted to hear.

Persons: Al Qaeda’s, James E, Mitchell, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Mr, Mohammed, ” Dr Locations: America, United States

☆ The Spy War: How the C.I.A. Secretly Helps Ukraine Fight Putin
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( Adam Entous | Michael Schwirtz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Nestled in a dense forest, the Ukrainian military base appears abandoned and destroyed, its command center a burned-out husk, a casualty of a Russian missile barrage early in the war. Not far away, a discreet passageway descends to a subterranean bunker where teams of Ukrainian soldiers track Russian spy satellites and eavesdrop on conversations between Russian commanders. On one screen, a red line followed the route of an explosive drone threading through Russian air defenses from a point in central Ukraine to a target in the Russian city of Rostov. The underground bunker, built to replace the destroyed command center in the months after Russia’s invasion, is a secret nerve center of Ukraine’s military. There is also one more secret: The base is almost fully financed, and partly equipped, by the C.I.A.

Locations: Ukrainian, Russian, Ukraine, Rostov

☆ Lost Witnesses and Faded Memories Impede Progress in Sept. 11 Case
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Carol Rosenberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On Wednesday, Dr. James E. Mitchell told a stunned courtroom that episode had not happened. “I didn’t say anything about killing his son,” said Dr. Mitchell, a retired Air Force psychologist who in 2003 waterboarded Mr. Mohammed 183 times for the C.I.A. “He didn’t have sons until later.”Dr. Mitchell later acknowledged he had forgotten his threat. But the episode underscores a new challenge for the military court in the case against four prisoners who are accused of conspiring in the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people on Sept. 11, 2001: the fading memories and unavailability of witnesses whose testimony is central to getting the death-penalty case to trial. Testimony and other evidence often deteriorate over time, which is one reason that criminal defendants and their victims are entitled to a speedy trial.

Persons: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, James E, Mitchell, ”, Mr, Mohammed, ” Dr Organizations: Air Force Locations: U.S

According to Israeli officials, about 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza. Qatar and Egypt have been acting as intermediaries between Israel and Hamas, which do not negotiate directly. The talks had appeared to stall last week, after discussions held in Cairo failed to reach a breakthrough. Mr. Kirby said Mr. McGurk intended to press the Israeli war cabinet for its plans for its military operation in Rafah. Israeli and U.S. officials have argued that an immediate cease-fire would allow Hamas to regroup and fortify in Gaza, and reduce the pressure for making a deal to release hostages held in the territory.

Persons: Biden’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, David Barnea, William Burns, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim, Abbas Kamel, Ismail Haniyeh, Haniyeh, Israel’s, Netanyahu, Benny Gantz, Brett McGurk, Yoav Gallant, “, Brett, ”, John Kirby, McGurk, Mr, ” Mr, Kirby, Gallant, Adam Sella, Cassandra Vinograd Organizations: Qatari, White, Mr, National Security Council, United, Security Locations: U.S, Paris, Gaza, Israel, Thani, Qatar, Egypt, Cairo, Gaza’s, Rafah, Tel Aviv, United States

☆ Secret Service Had to Adjust Tactics to Avoid Bites From Biden’s Dog
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Peter Baker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Secret Service had to “adjust our operational tactics” to protect President Biden because the first family’s dog kept biting agents, including one who required six stitches and another whose blood spilled onto the floor of the White House, according to newly released internal emails posted online. Commander was banished from the White House last fall to an undisclosed location. “The recent dog bites have challenged us to adjust our operational tactics when Commander is present — please give lots of room (staying a terrain feature away if possible),” an assistant special agent in charge of the Presidential Protection Division wrote to the team. and military activities, and posted on his website, called The Black Vault. The Secret Service confirmed the documents were authentic.

Persons: Biden, Camp David, ”, “, Biden “, John Greenewald Organizations: White, Presidential, Service Locations: Delaware, California

☆ What Amazon, the F.T.C. and C.I.A. Won’t Say When You’ve Been Scammed
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Ron Lieber | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When New York magazine’s finance advice columnist dropped an article that went viral on Thursday about falling victim to a $50,000 scam, my heart skipped a beat. My own financial planner had gone to jail years ago, which I’d chronicled in a few columns. What would I have done if someone called and insisted that my children, in particular, were in grave danger? But what would any of those entities do if they thought that any one of us was actually a victim of some kind of identity fraud? What would they say, request and tell us to do?

Persons: I’d, Charlotte Cowles, ” Organizations: New York Times, Federal Trade Commission, Central Intelligence Agency Locations: York

☆ Torture by U.S. Was Key Issue in Bali Bombing Plea Deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Carol Rosenberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Prosecutors told relatives of victims of the 2002 bombings in Bali, Indonesia, that the U.S. government made a plea deal with two Malaysian prisoners to try to disentangle the legacy of torture from the eventual trial of the prisoner they accuse of being the mastermind of the Al Qaeda-linked attacks. The two Malaysians provided secret testimony at the time of their sentencing last month. The legacy of torture has complicated prosecutors’ efforts to hold trials in the better known Sept. 11 and U.S.S. Cole bombing cases at Guantánamo. All of it has been fodder for defense lawyers trying to discredit evidence prosecutors hope to use at the war crimes trials.

Persons: Al, Cole Locations: Bali , Indonesia, Al Qaeda, Indonesian, Bali, C.I.A

☆ Middle East Crisis U.S. Is Reviewing if Gazans Were Harmed by Weapons Supplied to Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Michael Crowley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

In a photo provided by the Egyptian presidency, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, center, meets with the C.I.A. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive negotiations, said the tenor of the talks was positive. Last month, a broad framework for an agreement was sketched out in Paris by representatives of the United States, Israel, Qatar and Egypt. That proposal included a six-week cease-fire and the exchange of hostages in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Israel had been reluctant to participate in the talks in the first place, reflecting Mr. Netanyahu’s ambivalence about continued negotiations with Hamas and its representatives, the first U.S. official said.

Persons: Abdel Fattah al, William J, Burns, Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden, Tuesday’s, Israel Organizations: U.S, Gaza, Hamas Locations: Cairo, Gaza, Israel, Paris, United States, Qatar, Egypt, Rafah

Talks involving lower-level officials will continue for another three days, according to an Egyptian and an American official briefed on the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy. They described the negotiations on Tuesday as promising, but Israel and Hamas were still not close to a deal. A primary obstacle, according to another U.S. official, is a disagreement on how many Palestinians Israel would release from its prisons in exchange for the release of hostages held in Gaza by Hamas and its allies. Officials of Hamas, the armed group fighting Israel, were taking part in the negotiations indirectly, using Qatar and Egypt as intermediaries. Mr. Netanyahu has said that Israel will conduct such an offensive and has ordered the military to draw up plans to evacuate civilians from the city.

Persons: Biden, William J, Burns, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Netanyahu Organizations: American, Hamas, United Nations Locations: Cairo, Gaza, Rafah, Israel, Egypt, Qatar, United States

☆ War in Ukraine Has Weakened Putin, C.I.A. Director Writes
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Julian E. Barnes | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The war in Ukraine has “quietly corroded” the power of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, the C.I.A. director, William J. Burns, wrote in an essay published on Tuesday. While Mr. Putin’s grip on power was unlikely to soon weaken, Mr. Burns wrote in Foreign Affairs, disaffection had “gnawed away at the Russian leadership and the Russian people,” allowing the C.I.A. The agency has made a series videos aimed at recruiting Russian officials. Mr. Burns echoed this sentiment in his article.

Persons: Vladimir V, Putin, William J, Burns, “ Organizations: Foreign Affairs, YouTube Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Russian, U.S

☆ The Man in Room 117
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-28 | by ( Ellen Barry | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Alone with his mother for the first time in almost a year, Andrey Shevelyov had a question: Could he come home? The hotel room had a sour, rancid smell, and clothes lay mounded in a corner. Clean-shaven now, Andrey looked younger than his 31 years, like the gentle, artistic boy he had been before the psychosis took hold. Fearful of being evicted from their apartment, she and her husband, Sam, sought a no-contact order to keep Andrey away. Now they were together in Room 117 in a budget hotel overlooking the interstate.

Persons: Andrey Shevelyov, Andrey, “, ”, Olga Mintonye, Sam Locations: Vancouver

U.S. officials said Israel’s apparent willingness to agree to a cessation of hostilities in return for the release of more hostages being held in Gaza has created a new opening for negotiations. Any new deal would likely include phased releases of hostages, though the White House is hoping that a more ambitious one, possibly leading to the release of all of the remaining hostages, might be possible. The talks were mediated by Qatar, which was negotiating with Hamas, as well as by Egypt. At least some of the officials last met in Warsaw in December, but those discussions stalled over Hamas’s insistence that the remaining hostages be released in exchange for a permanent cease-fire and larger prisoner releases. Israel rejected any permanent cease-fire and was pushing for a shorter pause in fighting.

Persons: William J, Burns, David Barnea, Barnea, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim, Abbas Kamel, Israel Organizations: Qatari, Hamas Locations: Europe, United States, Gaza, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Thani, Warsaw

☆ Families of Israeli Hostages Protest at Border Crossing to Block Aid to Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Julian E. Barnes | Eric Schmitt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Hamas officials say they will only release the remaining hostages in Gaza, believed to number more than 100, as part of a comprehensive cease-fire. Israeli officials have suggested they might consider a permanent cease-fire if Hamas’s Gaza leadership leave the strip and go into exile, the two diplomats said. Hamas officials have rejected that idea. “Hamas and its leaders are on their land in Gaza,” Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official, said in a text message. Mr. Netanyahu has largely ruled out the return of the Palestinian Authority, in its present form, to ruling Gaza.

Persons: William J, Burns, Brett McGurk, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s, Husam, Netanyahu, “, Mahmoud Abbas, Abbas Organizations: Wednesday, Qatari, White, Gaza, Hamas, Biden, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Fatah Locations: Tel Aviv, Gaza, Europe, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Western, U.S, Palestinian

Hamas officials say they will only release the remaining hostages in Gaza, believed to number more than 100, as part of a comprehensive cease-fire. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, said on Sunday that he would not accept any deal for a permanent cease-fire that left Hamas in control of Gaza. Israeli officials have suggested they might consider a permanent cease-fire if Hamas’s Gaza leadership leave the strip and go into exile, the two diplomats said. Hamas officials have rejected that idea. “Hamas and its leaders are on their land in Gaza,” Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official, said in a text message.

Persons: William J, Burns, Brett McGurk, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s, Husam, Netanyahu, “, Mahmoud Abbas, Abbas Organizations: Qatari, White, Gaza, Hamas, Biden, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Fatah Locations: Gaza, Europe, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Western, U.S, Palestinian

☆ 17 Trump Cabinet-Level Appointees Criticizing Trump - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Sarah Longwell | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +13 min

Mr. Trump churned through cabinet-level appointees so fast that at times it seemed like he was still on “The Apprentice” and had to fire one official every week. Not only are they people whom Mr. Trump chose — he claimed he would hire the “best people” — they are people who thought Mr. Trump was worth working for. Judging only by the words of many former high-level appointees, a second Trump term would be catastrophic for the country. BlamedTrump forJan. 6 CriticizedTrump duringhis term CriticizedTrump afterhis term HighlightedTrump’s legalissues Ruled outvoting Trumpin 2024 Moron,” Mr. Tillerson reportedly said of Mr. Trump. He wrote an op-ed published just after the 2020 election claiming that Mr. Trump would “concede gracefully” if he lost.

Persons: them.They, Donald Trump, Trump’s, ’ Said, Donald Trump’s, Trump, didn’t, —, Mr, Richard Nixon, Mark Milley, Milley, ” Richard Spencer, Eddie Gallagher’s, ” H.R, McMaster, ” James Mattis, ” Mark, George Floyd, ” John Kelly White, autocrats, Loyalists Elaine Chao, George W, Bush, ” Alex Azar, Rex Tillerson, “, ” Mr, Tillerson, Dan Coats, ” Betsy DeVos, Mick Mulvaney, ’, William Barr, George H.W, George H.W . Bush, ” John Bolton, Ronald Reagan, …, Mike Pompeo, ” Mike Pence, Mike Pence ”, Pence, ” Organizations: Mr, Republican, Trump, Army, Joint Chiefs, Staff, Jan, Marines, Navy, White House, Defense, Marine, ISIL, ” John Kelly White House, Homeland, Marine Corps, The, Loyalists, Transportation, Labor, Capitol, Health, Human Services, State, ExxonMobil, National Intelligence, Mar, Education, Republican Party of Michigan, Management, ” John Bolton White House, U.S, United Nations, White Locations: Iowa, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Jan, United States, America, Moron, Germany, Mar, South Carolina, George H.W ., Kansas, Indiana

☆ Why North Korea Is Offering New Reasons to Worry - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Nicholas Kristof | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The globe is already pockmarked with crises, and here may be another: North Korea is acting in highly unusual ways, leading some veteran analysts to fear it is preparing a surprise attack on South Korea and perhaps on Japan and Guam as well. I’ve seen many false alarms since I began covering and visiting North Korea in the 1980s. But one of those experts is Robert Carlin, who has been analyzing North Korea for 50 years for the C.I.A., State Department and other organizations. Carlin and Hecker published their warning in an essay on the 38 North website, which focuses on North Korea. They raised the possibility that North Korea might use its nuclear warheads to strike the region (it’s not clear if its warheads could reach the United States and survive re-entry into the atmosphere).

Persons: Kim Jong, Robert Carlin, Siegfried Hecker, Carlin, Hecker Organizations: State Department, Stanford, North Locations: North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Guam, Korea, United States

☆ Hit Men Are Easy to Find in the Movies. Real Life Is Another Story.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Jesse Mckinley | More About Jesse Mckinley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“I could not find you a hit man,” he said. Only about half of all murders in the United States are cleared or solved each year, according to the F.B.I., making it difficult to say definitively how many people are killed specifically by hit men. While there are also no handy stats on how many murder-for-hire attempts fail, experts and indictments indicate that many are marred by amateurism and ineptitude. “There isn’t a real efficient, high-quality hit service out there like in the movies,” said Michael C. Farkas, a defense attorney who has worked as a New York City homicide prosecutor. That case chilled Canadian and Indian relations, and has cast suspicion on Narendra Modi, India’s conservative prime minister and a Hindu nationalist.

Persons: Robert Baer, ”, “, ” Dennis Kenney, ” Mr, Kenney, amateurism, Michael C, Farkas, —, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Narendra Modi Organizations: John Jay College of Criminal Locations: United States, New York City, British Columbia

☆ Kissinger: A Player on the World Stage Until the Very End
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( Peter Baker | More About Peter Baker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When China’s leaders wanted to send a message to the Biden administration last summer, they did what came naturally. Mr. Kissinger was 100 years old by then and had left the government 46 years earlier. But for as long as anyone could remember, the Chinese had venerated him as the secretary of state who forged the landmark diplomatic opening to Beijing. And President Xi Jinping told Mr. Kissinger that his initial visits had led to 50 years of mostly stable relations and that he hoped this trip would usher in another 50 years. Mr. Kissinger returned home and dutifully filled in Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken by phone; met with William J. Burns, the C.I.A.

Persons: China’s, Biden, Henry A . Kissinger, Kissinger, Xi Jinping, Xi, Biden’s, Antony J, William J, Burns, Jake Sullivan Locations: Beijing, Washington, United States

☆ Kissinger Left the State Department a Half Century Ago. But He Never Left His Old Job.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( David E. Sanger | More About David E. Sanger | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

When Henry Kissinger turned 100 this year, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken toasted him at one birthday celebration in New York, and the C.I.A. Mr. Kissinger spoke with Mr. Blinken regularly, including as recently as last month, Mr. Blinken said. The Kissinger conversations with secretaries of state and presidents were not only about navigating the downward spiral in relations with Beijing. But the reason his advice was sought out goes to the depth of his experience: When Mr. Kissinger died on Wednesday, Mr. Blinken was headed to Israel in an effort to win a longer pause in a bloody conflict. Mr. Kissinger had flown the same path, in November 1973, exactly 50 years ago, during his famous shuttle diplomacy.

Persons: Henry Kissinger, Antony J, Blinken, William J, Burns, Kissinger, Condoleezza Rice, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Mike Pompeo, Xi Jinping, ”, ‘ Kissinger, ’, Xi, Richard M, Mr, Biden, Nicholas Burns, Eric Schmidt Organizations: Mr, United, U.S . Embassy, Google Locations: New York, Washington, China, United States, Xi’s, San Francisco, Beijing, Russia, Israel

The target in New York was identified by American officials as Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who is general counsel for the New York-based group Sikhs for Justice. Mr. Pannun is an outspoken proponent of independence for the northern Indian state of Punjab, which is home to a large number of Sikhs, a powerful but minority group in the nation. The indictment said that the supposed hit man hired to kill Mr. Pannun was in fact a federal agent. agents warned a number of Sikh leaders around the United States about potential threats against them. Mr. Biden himself raised the issue directly with Prime Minister Narendra Modi when they met at the Group of 20 summit in September.

Persons: Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, Pannun, Adrienne Watson, Biden, Gupta, ”, ” Ms, Watson, William J, Burns, Narendra Modi Organizations: New, National Security Council, ”, Group Locations: New York, Punjab, Vancouver, F.B.I, United States, India

☆ The C.I.A. director heads to Qatar for talks on hostage releases.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Julian E. Barnes | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

director, was scheduled to arrive in Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday for a new round of negotiations aimed at freeing more hostages held in Gaza, according to U.S. officials. Mr. Burns and David Barnea, the head of the Mossad, Israel’s spy service, are scheduled to meet with Qatari officials. Qatar, which hosts Hamas’s political leadership in Doha, has been a mediator in the talks between Israel and Hamas. One U.S. official said Mr. Burns’s talks in Qatar would be meant to build on that agreement. Mr. Burns traveled to Doha on Nov. 9 as he and Mr. Barnea held talks with Qatari officials who have been working on the issue.

Persons: William J, Burns, David Barnea, Israel, Burns’s, Barnea Organizations: Qatari, Hamas, Qatar, One U.S Locations: Doha, Qatar, Gaza, Israel, One

Thirty Palestinian women and minors were released from Israeli prisons on Tuesday as part of the agreement, according to an official list. It was the fifth exchange of hostages and prisoners since Friday. Since Friday, when a cease-fire deal covering hostages, Palestinian prisoners and aid for Gaza went into effect, Hamas has released more than 60 hostages seized in its Oct. 7 raid in Israel that set off the war. Egypt, Israel and the United States dispatched their top intelligence officials to Qatar to negotiate further exchanges. director, joined David Barnea, the head of the Mossad, Israel’s spy service, and Abbas Kamel, Egypt’s spy chief, for meetings with Qatari officials, including the prime minister.

Persons: Israel, William J, Burns, David Barnea, Abbas Kamel, Egypt’s Organizations: Hamas, United Locations: Gaza, United States, Israel, Egypt, Qatar

In public, the company has announced its staggering growth with a steady cadence of news releases. But in classified American intelligence channels, there have been more concerning reports about the company. and other American spy agencies have issued warnings about G42’s work with large Chinese companies that U.S. officials consider security threats, including Huawei, the telecommunications giant that is under U.S. sanctions. U.S. officials fear G42 could be a conduit by which advanced American technology is siphoned to Chinese companies or the government. The intelligence reports have also warned that G42’s dealings with Chinese firms could be a pipeline to get the genetic data of millions of Americans and others into the hands of the Chinese government, according to two officials familiar with the reports.

Persons: Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, Jake Sullivan Organizations: United Arab, White House, AstraZeneca, OpenAI, Huawei Locations: United Arab Emirates, China, Silicon, U.S

☆ Political Pressures on Biden Helped Drive ‘Secret Cell’ of Aides in Hostage Talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Michael D. Shear | More About Michael D. Shear | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Israeli officials did not think Hamas was serious about the offer and refused to delay the ground offensive. At the White House, Mr. Biden and his foreign policy team kept pressing. It took several days for the talks to resume, following a call from Mr. Biden to the emir of Qatar. It is important that all aspects of this deal be fully implemented.”But even with the deal in place, Mr. Biden faces challenges ahead. For Mr. Biden, it could not happen soon enough.

Persons: Biden, “, ”, Mr, Netanyahu, Israel, Biden’s Organizations: Washington Post, Hamas, White House, White, Shifa, Administration, Mr Locations: Washington, Gaza, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, United States, Al, Nantucket

☆ U.S. Offers Tapes From Bugged Guantánamo Prison Yard as Evidence in 9/11 Case
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Carol Rosenberg | More About Carol Rosenberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The move comes as prosecutors have considered new ways to counter claims by defense lawyers that torture by the C.I.A. interrogations of Mr. Mohammed and his accused accomplices to produce confessions the government considers its most important trial evidence. It also shed light on an eavesdropping operation whose existence has until now never been formally acknowledged. vouched for a transcript of Mr. Mohammed describing how he learned when the hijackers would strike. Under a classified prison program, more than a dozen suspected terrorists, who had been subjected to years of solitary confinement and tortured by the C.I.A., were granted an hour of recreation time in earshot of another isolated prisoner.

Persons: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Mohammed Locations: Iraqi American, Guantánamo, earshot

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