special activities divisionspecial activities division

Paramilitary Operations Officers are also fully trained case officers (i.e. Youngalong with Bill Lair, Vint Lawrence, Tony Poe, Jim Glerum and otherswas a key officer involved in the formation of the guerrilla army of Hhmong (Meo) hill tribesmen and in using that force to mount harassment and interdiction operations against the Communist Pathet Lao forces and their North Vietnamese sponsors. "They can't be denied a role anymore. "CIA Had Plan To Assassinate Qaeda Leaders". It will continue to be a major player on the world stage for years to come. By Gloria Borger, CNN Senior Political Analyst (May 20, 2011). If not, youre not alone. [55] In the late 1960s, the CIA deployed teams of SAD Paramilitary Operations Officers to Bolivia to train the Bolivian army in order to counter the ELN. His senior positions post-Sept. 11 included chief special activities division and director of the National Clandestine Service. It is believed that the SAD has carried out operations in more than 50 countries. His life after that reads like the most badass resume we've ever seen: Five tours with Special Forces "A" teams in Vietnam and Laos where he was wounded multiple times, working for the CIA's Special Activities Division in Libya, preventing the Russians from stealing classified missile secrets on the Kwajalein Atoll, and helping to hunt down the . He spent 18 years overseas and served as chief of the station. Although, some elements continued until the end of the Vietnam War. May 27, 2023. [166] The New York Times said, "Although President Obama has distanced himself from many of the Bush administrations counter-terrorism policies, he has embraced and even expanded the C.I.A.s covert campaign in Pakistan using Predator and Reaper drones". [126], On July 14, 2009, several newspapers reported that DCIA Leon Panetta was briefed on a CIA program that had not been briefed to the oversight committees in Congress. sabotage; personnel and material recovery; kidnapping; bomb damage assessment; hostage resuce; counter terrorism; Special Activities Division - Organization He was also a lawyer and former classmate of FDR at Columbia Law School. "The Truth about John Walker Lindh". They have been involved in many controversial activities, such as assassinations, coups, torture, and spying on American citizens. [58], CIA Paramilitary Operations Officers trained and led Hmong tribesmen in Laos and Vietnam, and their actions of these officers were not known for several years. "Preparing the Battlefield: The Bush Administration steps up its secret moves against Iran". Within SAD there are two separate groups, SAD/SOG for tactical paramilitary operations. [96] According to other press reports, SAD were ineffectual and "Bin Laden and bodyguards walked unmolested out of Tora Bora and disappeared into Pakistan's unregulated tribal area. [76] Some allege that the techniques used to interrogate prisoners in El Salvador foreshadowed those later used in Iraq and Afghanistan. Wayne was awarded the Air Force Commendation Medal, First Oak Leaf Cluster (second award), for his role during Project Urgent Fury, the rescue mission in Grenada. As fully trained intelligence case officers (i.e. Combat Control Technicians (CCT) of U.S. Air Force special tactics squadrons are highly proficient in the following: USAF CCTs typically work alongside other special operations forces and accompany them on missions. This joint team combined in Operation Viking Hammer to defeat Ansar al-Islam, an Islamist group allied to al-Qaeda, which several battle-hardened fighters from Afghanistan had joined after the fall of the Taliban, in a battle for control over the northeast of Iraq a battle that turned out being one of the "most intense battles of Special Forces since Vietnam". [6], SAD provides the President of the United States with an option when overt military and/or diplomatic actions are not viable or politically feasible. [1] Covert intervention in a foreign election is the most significant form of political action. These operations were covered in detail in the 1998 book Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage. [72], In 1979, the U.S.-backed Anastasio Somoza Debayle dictatorship in Nicaragua fell to the socialist Sandinistas. This included nationalizing American-owned businesses in Cuba. Bowden, Mark (May 2006). Five of the last 14CIA employees killed in recent years were part of GRS. Its Special Operations Group (SOG) was supposed to carry out tactical paramilitary operations while the Political. The first option being diplomacy and second option military action. The Farm is the codename for the CIAs training facility. [219] As a result, the SAD/SOG, U.S. Army special forces joint teams, the Kurdish Peshmerga and the 173d Airborne Brigade were the entire northern force against the Iraqi army during the invasion. Jordan Smith. You must become a subscriber or login to view or post comments on this article. [45] Shortly thereafter, the five men were covertly returned to Tibet to assess and organize the resistance and selected another 300 Tibetans for training. The aftermath of the invasion was a disaster. CIA Paramilitary Operations Officers Grayston Lynch and William "Rip" Robertson led the first assault on the beaches, and supervised the amphibious landings. Because these officers are taken from the most highly trained units in the U.S. military and then provided with extensive additional training to become CIA clandestine intelligence officers, many U.S. security experts assess them as the most elite of the U.S. special missions units. These were the first maritime unconventional warfare units that trained indigenous forces as surrogates. [191] DNA from bin Laden's body, compared with DNA samples on record from his dead sister, confirmed his identity. [224][225], The CIA has always had a Special Activities Division, which secretly carries out special operations mission. Barrett products are used by civilians, sport shooters, law enforcement agencies, the United States military, and more than 75 State Department-approved countries around the world. April 7, 2003. The Book of Honor: Cover Lives and Classified Deaths at the CIA. He has also been awarded Master Aviator Wings, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, and the Combat Crew Badge. These activities included maritime operations behind North Korean lines. New York: Hill and Wang, Bob Woodward (1987) VEIL: The Secret Wars of the CIA 19811987. Other countries have their version of the CIA Special Activities Division. On October 25, 2003, paramilitary officers Christopher Mueller and William "Chief" Carlson were killed while conducting an operation to kill/capture high level. This initiative included inserting South Korean commandos and CIA Paramilitary Operations Officers prior to the two major amphibious assaults on North Korea, including the landing at Inchon. The success of these operations are believed to have caused senior Taliban leaders to significantly alter their operations and cancel key planning meetings. [61][62], MAC-V SOG (Studies and Observations Group) (which was originally named the Special Operations Group, but was changed for cover purposes), was created and active during the Vietnam War. SOG/Air Branch (and Thorsrud) subsequently played a major role in virtually every Agency covert action in the Third World during the cold war and beyond. The program was conceived by Robert Komer, a special assistant to President Lyndon Johnson, and was officially authorized by a presidential directive from Johnson in February 1968. The most successful combination in both the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq has been the linking up of SAD and military special forces to fight along side highly trained indigenous units. Suspected US drone killed up to 10 in Pakistan, Haji Mujtaba, Reuters.com, September 8. Several North Vietnamese officials have made statements about the effectiveness of Phoenix. United States House of Representatives. The CIAs Special Activities Division has been involved in some controversial activities. [33] As such, Paramilitary Operations Officers are trained to operate in a multitude of environments. [63], In 1973, SAD/SOG and the CIA's Directorate of Science and Technology built and deployed the USNS Glomar Explorer (T-AG-193), a large deep-sea salvage ship, on a secret operation. THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING VETERAN JOURNALISM - JOIN SOFREP+ , A Deal for Nuclear-Powered Subs Is Only the Latest Secretive Collaboration Between US, UK, and Australian Forces, PO Box 1077 MURFREESBORO, Tennessee 37133 United States, P.O. The training at The Farm prepares operatives for the challenges they will face in the field. Operation Hotel California: The Clandestine War inside Iraq. The SAD was originally responsible for conducting covert operations during the Cold War. Mazzetti, Mark; Cooper, Helene; Baker, Peter (May 2, 2011). [57] This angered Vietnamese groups. [55] On October 9, 1967, Guevara was executed by Bolivian soldiers on the orders of CIA paramilitary operative Flix Rodrguez shortly after being captured, according to CIA documents. Woodward, Bob (2002) "Bush at War", Simon & Schuster, Inc. Washington Post Editorial, John Lehman former Secretary of the Navy, October 2008, r: The attack on bin Laden and al-Qaeda, Gary Berntsen, Three Rivers Press, Senate Report Explores 2001 Escape by bin Laden From Afghan Mountains", New York Times, November 28, 2009. Young's father, Harold, aided CIA with intelligence gathering trips into Southern China during the late 1940s and 1950s. The proceeds from the arms sales were then used to finance the Contra rebels in Nicaragua. One of these missions is the recruiting, training, and leading of indigenous forces in combat operations. [178] In other joint raids that occurred around the same time, Afghan officials said that the Taliban shadow governors for two provinces in northern Afghanistan had also been detained. After his own retirement, Tsikerdanos returned to CIA as a Contract Case Officer, working with distinction in the Agency's Counterterrorism Center for several years. It was the first known helicopter takedown of suspects in a moving car. All the rest have remained as anonymous in death as they were in life. On the left of the image is a SOG commando with an M249 Squad Automatic Weapon with a metal skeleton stock, wearing ABA soft armor under a tactical vest. [236], In 2002, the George W. Bush Administration prepared a list of "terrorist leaders" the CIA is authorized to kill in a targeted killing, if capture is impractical and civilian casualties can be kept to an acceptable number. Direct military aid by the United States was eventually forbidden by the Boland Amendment of the Defense Appropriations Act of 1983. [188][189][190] The body of bin Laden was flown to Afghanistan to be identified and then out to the USS Carl Vinson for a burial at sea. The Qala-i-Janghai Prisoner Revolution was a revolt by Taliban prisoners at a prison in Afghanistan in November 2001. HALO and HAHO (High Altitude-High Opening) are also known as Military Free Fall (MFF). The team gathered evidence of advanced research on acoustical systems to detect under-ice US submarines and efforts to develop Arctic anti-submarine warfare techniques. Serious health problems beset him during his final years and he died by his own hand on April 1, 2011. Roberts, John B; Elizabeth A. Roberts (2009). [159][160], These covert attacks have increased significantly under President Obama, with as many at 50 al-Qaeda militants being killed in the month of May 2009 alone. The sea-borne invasion force landed on April 17, and fighting lasted until April 19, 1961. Tucker, Mike and Faddis, Charles. SAD/SOG operatives also account for the majority of the names displayed on the Memorial Wall at CIA headquarters indicating that the agent died while on active duty. Bangkok Post. Riesenfeld, Stefan A. SOG is generally considered the most secretive special operations force in the United States. [143][146], On October 26, 2008, SAD/SOG and JSOC conducted an operation in Syria targeting the "foreign fighter logistics network" bringing al-Qaeda operatives into Iraq (See 2008 Abu Kamal raid). [34], SAD, like most of the CIA, requires a bachelor's degree to be considered for employment. Commander In Afghanistan To Be Tested", http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104561441, "US choppers attack Syrian village near Iraq border", http://web.archive.org/web/20081029044500/http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/10/26/africa/26syria-fw.php, "Syria: U.S. The scandal came to light in 1986 and resulted in the formal accusation of several Reagan administration officials, including Oliver North. The Special Activities Division (SAD) is a division of the United States Central Intelligence Agency 's (CIA) National Clandestine Service (NCS) responsible for covert operations, black operations and other "special activities." These include covert political action and paramilitary special operations. The Special Activities Division (SAD) is a division of the United States Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) National Clandestine Service (NCS) responsible for covert operations, black operations and other "special activities". He was responsible for their operations outside of the Afghanistan-Pakistan region and formed part of the senior leadership. Air America and The Ravens- by Chris Robbins Both are the history of CIA/IAD's war in Laos, providing biographies and details on such CIA Paramilitary Officers as Wil Green, Tony Poe, Jerry Daniels, Howie Freeman, Bill Lair, and the pilots, ground crew and support personnel managed by IAD/SOG/AIR BRANCH under the proprietaries Bird Air, Southern Air Transport, China Air Transport and Air America-- and the U.S. Air Force forward air controllers (RAVENS) who were brought in under CIA/IAD command and control as "civilians" to support secret combat ops in Laos. The division is overseen by the United States Secretary of State. Although the initial air strike against Hussein was unsuccessful in killing the dictator, it was successful in effectively ending his ability to command and control his forces. These were just three of the over 50 caught by SAD/SOG just between 1983 and 1995. Roles of Air Branch include: In the United States, the NSA and the CIA have created a common agency named theSpecial Collection Service (SCS), whose activities are highly secret and whose role is to give to Americans, in a very clandestine manner,information on new means to overcome the difficulties encountered by interception operations caused by progress in encryption for protection of world communications. This is so they can operate effectively in any country in the world. The Phoenix Program relied on military and intelligence personnel, as well as Vietnamese informants, to target the leadership of the Viet Cong insurgency for capture or assassination. His mission was completely voluntary, as it required entry into a very hostile area without any support. Lloyd C. "Pat" Landry. 2001. [141][142] Special operations troops probably numbered around 40. Political and Influence covert operations are used to support U.S. foreign policy. Mohammed Amjad. [102], In December 2001, SAD/SOG and the Army's Delta Force tracked down Osama bin Ladin in the rugged mountains near the Khyber Pass in Afghanistan. [84], In 2009, U.S. Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) reported that al-Qaeda had been training terrorists in Somalia for years. They are not simply medics, and they are anything but unarmed. Articles with dead external links from November 2014, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2014, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DevGru), United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan, the wartime OSS functions generally went into CIA, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam-Studies and Observations Group, Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage, National Intelligence and Security Agency, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group, United States Assistant Secretary of Defense, Extraordinary rendition by the United States, United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group, http://www.globalsecurity.org/org/news/2002/021027-cia1.htm, "Secret CIA Units Playing Central Combat Role", http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/CIA18.html, http://ftp.fas.org/sgp/crs/intel/RS22017.pdf, https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/kent-csi/vol36no3/html/v36i3a05p_0001.htm, "Joint Publication 1-02, Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms", http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/jel/new_pubs/jp1_02.pdf, https://archive.is/20130205122641/www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1004145-1,00.html, http://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/2010/04/15/u-s-aggressiveness-towards-iran/, http://books.google.com/books?id=TLu2K11cXSMC&pg=PA20&lpg=PA20&dq=Special+activities+division+most+elite&source=bl&ots=USD9Znu89N&sig=aZxMxKAMi4r0iAtgn6xdDK_-o5U&hl=en&ei=gvaFSp61JJWEtge77tXnDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9#v=onepage&q=&f=false, "Testimony of Michael G. Vickers on SOCOM's Mission and Roles to the House Armed Services Committee's Subcommittee on Terrorism, Unconventional Threats, and Capabilities", http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/congress/2006_hr/060629-vickers.pdf, "Osama bin Laden killed in CIA operation", http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/osama_bin_laden_killed_in_cia_operation/2011/05/01/AFLiqoVF_gallery.html?wprss=rss_national-security, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A168-2005Feb4.htm, "CIA led U.S. special forces mission against Osama bin Laden", http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-osama-bin-laden-cia-20110502,0,6466214.story?track=rss, "CIA Special Operations Group , Special Activities Division", http://books.google.com/books?id=TLu2K11cXSMC&pg=PA24&dq=special+ops:+america%27s+elite+forces+delta+the+best+period&lr=#v=onepage&q=&f=false, https://www.cia.gov/about-cia/faqs/index.html, "The CIA Is Dclass By Edward N. Luttwak Slate Magazine", "globalsecurity.org: U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF): Background and Issues for Congress", http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/crs/rs21048-3.pdf, "The Dallas Morning News October27,2002", Paramilitary Operations Officer/Specialized Skills Officer Central Intelligence Agency, Chef Julia Child, others part of World War II spy network, http://books.google.com/books?id=BSb-a72RyQMC&lpg=PA43&dq=Camp%20Hale%20tibet%20CIA&pg=PA43#v=onepage&q=Camp%20Hale%20tibet%20CIA&f=false, http://books.google.com/books?id=bVMn6TwcMZ4C&lpg=PA315&dq=Camp%20Hale%20tibet%20CIA&pg=PA315#v=onepage&q=Camp%20Hale%20tibet%20CIA&f=false, http://intelligencenews.wordpress.com/2009/03/14/01-100, "Korean War: CIA-Sponsored Secret Naval Raids", http://www.historynet.com/korean-war-cia-sponsored-secret-naval-raids.htm, http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB5/index.html#declass, The History Place - Vietnam War 1945-1960, US Army Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth Public Home Page, http://books.google.com/?id=uXCpB-D0LLEC&pg=PA47&lpg=PA47&dq=cia+el+salvador, http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB122/, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4209595.stm, "Lawrence N. Freedman, Sergeant Major, United States Army", http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/lnfreedman.htm, http://www.somaliawatch.org/archivejuly/000927601.htm, http://www.mail-archive.com/ctrl@listserv.aol.com/msg66395.html, "NewsHour Extra: U.S. [104] The task force also requested munitions to block the avenues of egress of bin Laden, but that request was also denied. Whitlock, Craig; Miller, Greg (September 23, 2010). [247] Project COLDFEET was a very successful mission in 1962 in which two military officers parachuted into a remote abandoned Soviet site in the Arctic. While CIA was just one part of MAC-V SOG, it did have operational control of some of the programs. [47] These paramilitary teams were responsible for numerous maritime raids and ambushes behind North Korean lines, as well as prisoner of war rescue operations. An award bestowing either of these citations represents the highest honors awarded within the CIA organization in recognition of distinguished valor and excellence in the line of duty. [1], Special Operations Group (SOG) A former Army Special Forces Sergeant from a small rural town in South Carolina, African-American Will Green went to Laos as a CIA Paramilitary Case Officer in the 1960s and served with distinction. Schmitt, Eric; Shanker, Thom (October 27, 2008). Flix Ismael Rodrguez Mendigutia (born 31 May 1941) is a Cuban American former Central Intelligence Agency Paramilitary Operations Officer in the Special Activities Division, known for his involvement in the Bay of Pigs Invasion and the execution of communist revolutionary Che Guevara as well as his ties to George H. W. Bush during the Iran-Con. All of. The Central Intelligence Agencys Special Activities Center, then known as the Special Activities Division, quickly stood up a team of seven operatives from its paramilitary unit, known as the Special Operations Group. The command center was relocated from Vientiane to Udorn Air Base in northern Thailand. Theodore Draper. Special Activities Division - Role sabotage personnel and material recovery kidnapping bomb damage assessment hostage resuce counter terrorism CIA Pakistan Campaign is Working Director Say, Airstrikes Kill Dozens of Insurgents, Joby Warrick, Washington Post, June 24, 2009. Young's strident objections to this new US strategy resulted in the unfortunate termination of his employment. Son Bill followed in his father's footsteps by joining CIA following a hitch in the US Army in the early 1960s. According to Gary Schroen, the CIA paramilitary officer who led JAWBREAKER, in his book First In, the covert unit was equipped with AK-style rifles. Patman, R.G. Honourable Men: My Life in the CIA. However, SAD/SOG has far fewer members than most of the other special missions units, such as the U.S. Army's 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (Delta Force) or Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DevGru) . Tactical units within SAD are also capable of carrying out covert political action while deployed in hostile and austere environments. The mission of training and leading guerrillas generally stayed in the United States Army Special Forces, but those missions required to remain covert were folded into the paramilitary arm of the CIA. [175], On February 5, 2010, the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and CIA's SAD/SOG conducted a joint raid and apprehended Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. The prison, which was known as the Qala-i-Janghai fortress, was located in the village of Qala-i-Janghai in the province of Herat. The History of Special Activities Division Lumumba was tortured and then executed. The program was often criticized for its use of torture and extrajudicial killings. Daugherty, William J. The Special Activities Division, sometimes referred to as the 'Special Operations Group', is made up of Paramilitary Operations Officers. [153][154] The CIA Director authorized the continuation of these operations and on January 23, SAD/SOG performed non-judicial killings of 20 individuals in northwestern Pakistan that they claim were terrorists. The CIAs Special Activities Division is a secretive and controversial organization. Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage (paperback reprint ed.) It took place in April 1961 and was carried out by a group of Cuban exiles called Brigade 2506. CIA Had Plan To Assassinate Qaeda Leaders, CIA Plan Envisioned Hit Teams Killing al Qaeda Leaders, Siobahn Gorman, Wall Street Journal, July 14, 2009, A3, Ihttps://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol52no2/iac/seven-days-in-the-arctic.htmlnsert footnote text here, Ihttp://www.specialoperations.com/Stories/MAG_BILLY_WAUGH.pdf. The Cold War & the 1950s. The direct descendant of the OSS' Special Operations is the CIA's Special Activities Division. [77] In fact, when a similar counter-insurgency program was proposed in Iraq, it was referred to as "the Salvador Option". The operation eventually included around 600 soldiers from the 1st Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division. Air Branch is the aviation wing of the CIAs Special Activities Division (SAD). [14], Propaganda includes leaflets, newspapers, magazines, books, radio, and television, all of which are geared to convey the U.S. message appropriate to the region. For the past eight years, al-Qaeda had depended on Mehsud for protection after Mullah Mohammed Omar fled Afghanistan in late 2001. All Necessary Means: Employing CIA operatives in a Warfighting Role Alongside Special Operations Forces, United States Army War College (USAWC). Types of OTC Training The Special Activities Division has carried out deniable covert operations on foreign soil throughout their history. At the Center of the Storm: My Life at the CIA. The Central Intelligence Agency's Special Activities Center, then known as the Special Activities Division, quickly stood up a team of seven operatives from its paramilitary unit, known as. It is known only that this new federal agency brings together CIA and NSA teams expertise in decryption of transmissions, especiallythoseprotected against any intrusion tocome from the outside. Ive decided to take an in-depth look at the Special Activities Division of the CIA and some of its most notable missions.