Several United States (US) counterintelligence officials have reported an increase in attacks on Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) informants around the world. These attacks have been claimed to be orchestrated by “adversarial intelligence services” in countries including Russia, China, Iran, and Pakistan.
According to a report in the New York Times, the information was sent “in an unusual top-secret cable.” The message said that “the CIA’s counterintelligence mission centre had looked at dozens of cases in the last several years involving foreign informants who had been killed, arrested or most likely compromised.” The cable also mentioned specific details of the agents who had been attacked and killed by rival intelligence agencies. It also said that the countries’ authorities were hunting down agents, many of whom are from Pakistan, and even “turning them into double agents” in certain cases. The detail given in the cable is particularly unusual and indicates the sheer gravity of the situation.
In addition, the message underscored how increased surveillance technologies worldwide have complicated the CIA’s recruitment process. The growing use of devices like biometric scans, facial recognition, artificial intelligence, and hacking tools have helped rival intelligence agencies identify and target CIA spies. In fact, the cable mentioned that such advancements have hampered informants’ ability to carry out their duties, a predicament which could dissuade other would-be informants.
According to the source cited in the NYT article, the main reason for the cable was to urge CIA officers to “think about steps they can take on their own to do a better job managing informants.” Hence, apart from recruiting spies, they were also pushed to address the security concerns of existing informants.
Several CIA operations have suffered at the hands of informants gone rogue. For instance, in 2019 at a military base in Khost, a Jordanian doctor deceived the CIA by working as a triple agent and blew himself up, killing seven CIA officers and one Jordanian officer.
Over the past 20 years, the CIA has expended a significant amount of resources in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. Now, with the focus shifting towards Russia and China, collecting information from spies and informants is critical. Furthermore, with the US’ operations in Afghanistan having ended, maintaining its contacts in Pakistan is critical to ensure that the country is not being used as a launching pad for terrorist activities against the US. In this light, NYT’s revelations could in fact push rival intelligence agencies to be extra vigilant, which could in fact push informants into even greater danger and also undermine the US’ security operations.
US Officials Report Rise in Attacks Against CIA Informants in China and Pakistan
A message sent through a "top-secret cable" warned of an increasing number of attacks and execution of CIA agents in several countries including Russia, China, and Pakistan.
October 7, 2021
SOURCE: NEWS 18