SPY NEWS: 2022 — Week 36

Summary of the espionage-related news stories for the Week 36 (September 4–10) of 2022.

1. Hamas Authorities Execute 2 for Palestinians as Israeli Spies

As reported this week, “two Palestinians executed in Gaza over espionage on behalf of Israel.” Reuters stated that “Gaza’s ruling Hamas Islamists executed five Palestinians on Sunday, two of them on charges of espionage for Israel that dated back to 2015 and 2009, the Interior Ministry said. The dawn executions, by hanging or firing squad, were the first in the Palestinian territories since 2017. Past cases of capital punishment being carried out in Gaza have drawn criticism from human rights groups. The ministry statement did not provide full names for any of the condemned men. It said three had been convicted of murder. The two convicted spies, aged 44 and 54, had given Israel information that led to the killing of Palestinians, it said.”

2. Webinar: How a Jewish Fighter Pilot from Poland, Became a Pakistani hero?

Khalid Chishti published a 13-minute long video saying that “the Polish who joined the RPAF were led by Squadron Leader Wladyslaw Józef Marian Turowicz, a pilot and engineer. He is considered as one of the chief architects of the Pakistan Air Force and Pakistan’s space program. During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Turowicz flew the American-built F-86 Sabre and defended Lahore from the Indian Air Force. He, along with other Polish pilots, rose to prominence and fame as they helped in successfully defending Lahore and Pakistan. Turowicz, an eminent rocket scientist and an aeronautical engineer, was the leading and central figure in Pakistan’s drive to develop high-tech rocket and missile technology of its own. The classified documents open to public, revealed several attempts to engage Turowicz as a spy, by Polish intelligence agency “Sluzba Bezpieczestwa” (SB), particularly after his engagement with Pakistan’s space and nuclear programs, but all went unsuccessful and “SB” files were stamped as closed. This documentary will preserve and pass on to future generations the pages of our common history and tell them about Polish officers’ cooperation and the generosity and hospitality of Pakistani people.”

3. New Israeli BlueSense ELI-8395 Spy (SIGINT) Patrol Vessel

This week technical details around the BlueSense ELI-8395, developed by the Israeli ELTA Systems, were released. As per its description, “the BlueSense ELI-8395 solution provides mission capabilities that parallel those of much larger vessels at a fraction of the cost. The BlueSense ELI-8395 solution integrates passive sensors achieving a clear and accurate Situational Awareness Picture (SAP) for critical missions in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ); from counter terrorism, smuggling, and piracy through to search and rescue. The solution is composed of specially designed compact C-ESM (Communication- Electronic Support Measures) and R-ESM (Radar — Electronic Support Measures) SIGINT sensors.”

4. Ukrainian SBU Detained FSB Spy from Rocket/Space Industry

On September 10th Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) announced the detainment of a female agent of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB). As per the announcement she worked “at a rocket and space industry enterprise: she transferred defence developments to Russia and adjusted shelling. The traitor passed information to the enemy about the latest Ukrainian developments in the military sphere and the state of implementation of state defence orders of Ukraine. In addition, she adjusted missile strikes on the Dnieper and reported to the enemy about the positions of the armed forces in the city that she knew. The traitor is a 62-year-old local resident. She went to cooperate with Russia because of her pro-Russian views. The woman was waiting for the arrival of “Russian peace” in the Dnipro region, and demonstrated her pro-Russian position in social networks in every possible way. Her contact person was a case officer of the Russian FSB, who used the spy’s pro-Russian views to recruit her.”

5. A Team from the United States NSA Colorado Connects with Local Students through Robotics

Through a formal press release the United States National Security Agency (NSA) announced that “as participants in the National Security Agency’s (NSA) K-12 Engagement Program, a group from National Security Agency Colorado (NSAC) spent the past year working on robotics with students at the Robert F. Smith Science Technology Engineering Art and Math (STEAM) Academy, the newest high school in the Denver Public School system.”

6. United States CIA Director Says Declassification Could Expose New Cyber Threats in the Future

As reported by The Record, “the director of the CIA said Thursday the method of declassifying intelligence used in the run-up to the war in Ukraine could be utilized again in the future to expose other threats, including digital ones, but cautioned the practice would likely not be the norm. “I think when President Biden has decided very carefully, and very selectively, to make public some of our secrets, it’s played a very effective role over the course of the last six months, and I think it can continue to again,” CIA Director William Burns said at the Billington Cybersecurity Summit in Washington, D.C. “It would make it the exception, not the rule,” he added. “Because the surest way — I’ve certainly found in a year-and-a-half now as director of the CIA — to lose access to that intelligence is to be reckless about how you handle it.” The U.S. clandestine community has been lauded by international groups and policymakers for the novel ways it shared information in the months leading up to Russia’s unprovoked invasion in February, neutering the multiple false narratives pushed by the Kremlin.” The CIA officially released the transcript of this talk.

7. Podcast: Spybrary: How to Recruit Agents in the Field with Former Spy Warren Reed

On September 4th Spybrary published a new podcast episode. As per its description, “spy author Bevan G Roberts chats with former Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) and MI6 trained agent handler Warren Reed to find out. Most of us are fascinated by the craft of human intelligence. It’s a trade as old as time, involving betrayal, secrecy, and most of all, danger! Danger to the operative danger, to the agent, danger, to innocent people and to nations. And it’s the human side of this danger that keeps us turning the pages and feeds our desire to learn more. So what better than to interview a real spy to find out more about the business of espionage, a former agent handler that not only practiced the trade, but also a man who experienced the worst aspects of it. With Kingdom of Spies Author Bevan G Roberts and former real-life spy Warren Reed.”

8. Ukrainian SBU Neutralises Russian Agent in Kherson

On Friday Ukraine’s SBU stated that “a Russian agent was neutralised in the Kherson region, he was tasked with locating the positions of the Armed Forces and detonated part of their ammunition. For committing sabotage, the occupiers promised their accomplice a “reward” in the amount of 30,000 Hryvnias. It was established that the traitor turned out to be a recidivist who was repeatedly convicted of serious and very serious crimes, including murder. The man came into the aggressor’s attention because of his pro-Russian views, which he expressed among others, in particular in criminal circles. During the detention, a mobile phone containing the contact information of an established employee of the Russian intelligence services was found in the possession of the perpetrator.”

9. Russian SVR Announces Moscow School №1694 Named After Former Spy Chief

On September 7th Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) announced that Moscow School №1694 “received the name of the legendary head of the Soviet foreign intelligence Pavel Mikhailovich Fitin, who held this post in the most difficult pre-war years and during the Great Patriotic War. The solemn ceremony was attended by employees and veterans of the Russian SVR, the head of the Yasenevo municipal district I.V. Grishina, journalists, students and teachers of the educational institution. The opening of the bust of P.M. was timed to coincide with this significant day. Fitin by sculptor I.N. Novikov and architect A.K. Tikhonov, who also attended the celebration. The tradition of giving the names of prominent people to public buildings, ships, settlements and even cities has centuries-old roots. So contemporaries are trying to perpetuate their memory. But assigning the names of heroes to schools stands apart in this series. Studying at the school named after P.M. Fitin or another outstanding person who left a mark in the history of our country, a child from a very young age sees before him an example of serving the country and a direct role model. This is how, from an early age, the process of patriotic education of the younger generation brings the greatest effect.”

10. Freedom House: Italy is Vulnerable to Beijing’s Influence on the Media

As reported by Decode39, ““Chinese government efforts to influence the media intensified during the 2019–21 coverage period,” reads the NGO’s report. But after the pandemic and Draghi’s turnaround, things have changed
Marked “vulnerable.” The latest report by Freedom House, a US-based NGO, found that Italy is exposed to media influence from the People’s Republic of China. Beijing’s efforts to influence Italian media are rated “high” (43/85), slightly lower than national resilience (45/85).”

11. The Greek Watergate

Following the last few week’s revelations in Greece, on September 9th the EU Observer published this story stating that “at the beginning of August, the news broke: a political storm of enormous proportions, kicked off by the wiretapping of the communications of MEP Nikos Androulakis. The Greek politician was under surveillance during the same period he was in the running for the presidency of the third-largest party in Greek politics, Pasok-Kinal, right up until his election. This disturbing news came as another surveillance case developed, that of journalist Thanasis Koukakis, a case that first became public in August 2022. Since then, more evidence of surveillance has come to light, including the infection of the phone of Christos Spirtzis, a high-ranking official of the main opposition party, Syriza-PA, with spyware — alarming news that puts the main opposition party and its leading figures, under the surveillance spotlight. Neither the repeated complaints of the journalist himself, nor the revelations by part of Greek the press that followed (and there was a lot of them, with more than enough evidence to shed light on the ways by which spyware such as Predator made its way to our country) nor the insistence of some of us to keep talking about the issue, managed to break the wall of silence of the Greek media — what the Greek Twitter-sphere has dubbed ‘Enimerosi 108’, owing to the country’s lamentable place in the Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index.”

12. French DGSE Announces European Heritage Days 2022

On September 6th, the French foreign intelligence agency (DGSE) stated that “for the sixth consecutive year, we are joining forces with the Army Museum on the occasion of the European Heritage Days. For two days, placed under the sign of “sustainable heritage”, we will offer visitors a real dive into history! Visitors will be able to discover historical works and rare objects, including several models of Enigma machines (used by the Germans to communicate secretly during the Second World War). In addition, the corridors of the Hôtel National des Invalides host the exhibition “80 years of the BCRA and 40 years of the DGSE, a double anniversary for the French secret service”.”

13. Podcast: State Secrets: The Impact of a JCPOA Deal with Cipher Brief Expert Norm Roule

On September 6th the State Secrets podcast released a new episode. As per its description, in this episode “Suzanne talks with former National Intelligence Manager for Iran (NIM-I) at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) Norm Roule on the impact of a potential deal to restore the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement with Iran.”

14. NGOs Oppose Extension of Swiss Secret Service Powers

Following week 20 (story #54), this week the SWI reported that “the Swiss intelligence service should not be given additional powers to monitor for signs of terrorist activity, say NGOs, trade unions and left-leaning political groups. But political parties from the centre and right have given their backing to a government proposal to better protect national security. In May, the government said the Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) should be given greater access to financial recordsExternal link and more freedom to keep an eye on extremist groups. The consultation period for the proposed law change ended on Friday. A coalition of 15 NGOs, including Public Eye, Amnesty International Switzerland, Democratic Lawyers Switzerland and Operation Libero, said the expansion of surveillance would come at the expense of fundamental rights. FIS has already been criticised and reprimanded for keeping files on left-wing politicians and groupsExternal link without good cause.”

15. US CIA Special Activities Center: The Third Option

Grey Dynamics published this article on September 9th. As per the article, “the third option, it is what you read about in spy novels and see in movies. It is the covert option. When open knowledge of the United States government’s involvement would create a crisis. This is when the CIA’s Special Activities Center is called to action. The SAC was there when the Soviets were slaughtering Afghans in the 1980s. They were the first American fighters in Afghanistan, only 15 days after the World Trade Center fell. The SAC has toppled governments and assassinated enemies of the state. They are America’s third option.”

16. Spy Way of Life: Yat Lok Restaurant in Hong Kong

This week’s selection by Intelligence Online was the Yat Lok restaurant, located in Hong Kong and described as “Chinese spies’ Michelin-starred Hong Kong hangout.” The article says that this is “where security officers meet their local and foreign sources, and devour some of the best glazed geese in the city.”

17. Iran Dismantles Spy Cell Linked to Israel

On September 5th Middle East Monitor reported that “Iranian intelligence agents have announced that they have dismantled a spy cell in the province of Mazandaran linked to Israel’s spy agency, Mossad.” Continuing it says that ““A 12-member cell from the followers of the perverted Bahai’ faith was detained in several cities,” said security agents in the province. “Two leaders of the espionage cell received training at the Zionist Justice House located in [occupied Palestine] and formed the cell among the Baha’is in Mazandaran.”.”

18. Classified NATO Documents Stolen from Portugal, Now Sold on Darkweb

BleepingComputer reported on September 8th that “the Armed Forces General Staff agency of Portugal (EMGFA) has suffered a cyberattack that allegedly allowed the theft of classified NATO documents, which are now sold on the dark web. EMGFA is the government agency responsible for the control, planning, and operations of the armed forces of Portugal. The agency only realized they suffered a cyberattack after hackers posted samples of the stolen material on the dark web, offering to sell the files to interested individuals. American cyber-intelligence agents noticed the sale of stolen documents and alerted the U.S. embassy in Lisbon, which in turn warned the Portuguese government about the data breach. Immediately, a team of experts from the National Security Office (GNS) and Portugal’s national cybersecurity center was dispatched to EMGFA to carry out a complete screening of the body’s entire network. The story came to light by local news organization Diario de Noticias, which claims it has confirmed the validity of the information via unnamed sources close to the ongoing investigations. These sources told the news outlet that the leaked documents are of “extreme gravity,” so their dissemination might cause a crisis with the country’s credibility in the military alliance. “It was a cyberattack prolonged in time and undetectable, through bots programmed to detect this type of documents, which were later removed in several stages,” stated one of DN’s sources. The computers used by EMGFA are air-gapped, but the exfiltration used standard non-secure lines. Hence, the first conclusion of the investigation is that the top military body has broken its operational security rules at some point. As of today, no official statement has been issued by the Portuguese state on the topic, but the pressure for a briefing by the political opposition is rising following DN’s revelations.”

19. Artsakh Citizen Accused of Treason, Espionage and Transfer of Top Secret Information to Azerbaijan

On Thursday Armenian media reported that “a citizen of Artsakh has been charged with treason and transfer of top secret information to Azerbaijan, the Investigative Committee of the Republic reports. As part of the preliminary investigation of the criminal case on treason, initiated by the Investigative Committee of Artsakh on May 28 of this year, it turned out that the citizen of Artsakh A. A. born in 1977, through Facebook established contact with a representative of the intelligence service of Azerbaijan, in 2021 and 2022. At their invitation and at their expense, he went to various foreign cities. There, at meetings with her and her leadership, he agreed, for a specific monthly remuneration, to transfer the information they required to the intelligence of Azerbaijan through an iPhone 11 smartphone provided with a special program installed in it. After that, and until he was discovered, in return for expensive gifts and the monthly remuneration, he handed over to the Azerbaijani intelligence officer the top secret information they demanded.”

20. Video: FM Radio Surveillance Bugs — They Listen To Your Every Word

Ringway Manchester published a new 6-minute long video on 80s and 90s covert listening devices from the radio frequency (RF) perspective. This is a follow up from the previous video, see week 22 (story #59).

21. Ukrainian SBU Detained Russian Agents Attempting to Launch Pro-Russia Media Centre

On September 9th Ukraine’s SBU announced that they “detained Russian agents who worked on the launch of the pro-Kremlin media centre “Tavria” in the south of Ukraine. Its main task was to spread Kremlin propaganda in the region through Telegram channels, online television applications and radio broadcasts. These resources were to be used to justify Russian aggression and spread disinformation about the situation at the front. It was established that the enemy project was supposed to operate under the guise of the so-called “Tavria Media Centre” and cover the audience of Odessa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro regions and the temporarily occupied Crimea. In the future, the enemy planned to expand the destructive content to Kirovohrad Oblast. According to the investigation, two residents of Kyiv are involved in the organisation of information-subversive activities.”

22. Lebanon Arrests a Syrian Doctor Who Recruited his Brothers on Behalf of the Mossad: Espionage Journey from Sweden to Damascus

The Al-Jadeed TV reported on Saturday that this is the story of how “Israel recruited a Syrian doctor working in Sweden through a “company”, which claimed that it wanted to build water purification network in Syria for free. Dr. Maan Yousef was assigned to obtain maps of the water and sewage networks and security-related collect information. He played the role of intermediary to recruit his father and two brothers, officers in the Syrian Army, to work with him for the Mossad to collect intelligence in exchange for thousands of Euros. The Intelligence Branch of the Internal Security Forces arrested the Syrian doctor, who entered Lebanon through Beirut airport during the month of August, while working for the Israeli Mossad. The doctor was spotted while the Branch’s officer were tracking the digital accounts used by the officers of the Israeli intelligence services through which they communicated with agents arrested earlier. The doctor used to come from Sweden to Beirut and then move overland to Syria.”

23. How Russia’s Security Service Preys on Young Activists to Turn Them into Informants

CNN published this story on September 7th saying that “Mikhail Sokolov knows Russian agents might be watching him. He says he spied on his own colleagues for Moscow for years. Now he says he is seeking asylum in the Netherlands, as he walks warily around the canals of Amsterdam, telling CNN about his recruitment as an informant, his betrayal of the opposition groups he joined, and why he got out. “If we believe their words, they really think that the CIA is trying to facilitate a revolution in Russia and that Navalny is an agent from the CIA,” Sokolov said of the FSB, the service that replaced the KGB when the Soviet Union fell. “They deploy huge amounts of resources and effort not to let the revolution happen in Russia. They are looking for a foreign enemy.” He says the FSB is also “obsessed” with understanding who might succeed Alexey Navalny, poisoned and now imprisoned, as leader of the country’s opposition movement. Sokolov’s revelations are shining a rare light on the inner workings of the Kremlin’s secretive security service and come as part of a string of recent defections from Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. CNN contacted the FSB and the CIA for comment on this story. The FSB did not respond and the CIA declined to comment. CNN has seen no credible evidence or claim of US government involvement in Russia’s opposition movement.”

24. United States: 10 Fascinating CIA Missions

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States published a new story on September 7th summarising the following, now declassified, CIA projects and operations: 1) CAT Airlines/Air America (1950), 2) The U-2 Spy Plane (1954), 3) The Berlin Tunnel (1955), 4) Project CORONA (1957), 5) Project A-12 OXCART (1962), 6) Project COLDFEET (1962), 7) Glomar/AZORIAN (1974), 8) ARGO (1980), 9) Operation JAWBREAKER (2001), and 10) Abbottabad Mission (2011).

25. Austria: Did Ex-Minister Know About Shadow Intelligence?

On September 8th, Tagesschau published an investigative article stating that “in Austria, an alleged network of agents close to the regime in Russia is under investigation. SWR research suggests that former Foreign Minister Kneissl was privy to plans for a shadow news service. The picture went around the world: in August 2018, Karin Kneissl danced at her wedding to Russian President Putin . Until recently, she sat on the board of directors of the Russian energy company Rosneft.The non-party politician, who was Austrian Foreign Minister in the government of the ÖVP with the right-wing populist FPÖ until 2019, has been heavily criticized for being close to Putin. To this day, she regularly appears as an interlocutor in Russia Today. Now there is a suspicion that she could have been directly involved in setting up some kind of shadow secret service.”

26. Al-Qaeda Use of Intelligence Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTP) of Nation-States

On September 7th Grey Dynamics published this article saying that “Al-Qaeda (AQ) uses robust and exhaustive intelligence techniques. Consequently, intelligence officials of major states fear that AQ uses many of the same Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTP) as nation-states. Its training manuals provide extensive guides on collecting open-source intelligence, conducting surveillance, interrogating prisoners, and recruiting assets working in foreign governments. The belief that it is barbaric and operate in a world of religious fervour does not carry weight. Importantly, AQ is adept at intelligence collection and counterintelligence methods. What is less known about AQ is that major states disseminate many of the intelligence TTPs that it uses from long and complicated relationships. In particular, the United States, Russia, Iran and Britain. Mostly, major powers did this unintentionally. Nevertheless, AQ has assimilated these TTPs to suit its needs and survive in the hostile environment in which it chooses to operate. What is clear is that the major powers have shared TTPs with allies and proxies. This has ultimately led to non-state actors, and AQ incorporated them into their TTPs.”

27. Podcast: SpyCast: “The Counterterrorism and Counter WMD Strategist” — with Dexter Ingram.

This week the International Spy Museum’s SpyCast published a new podcast episode featuring Dexter Ingram, “Acting Director in the US State Department’s Office of the Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, Spy Museum Advisory Board member, and collector of intelligence artifacts and all manner of gadgets.”

28. Shami Last Year, Young Arshdeep Now — ISI-backed Fake Narrative Targets Indian Cricketers Again

On September 5th the India Narrative reported that “Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency has gone into overdrive since Sunday night, feeding misinformation and fuelling hate for Indian cricketer Arshdeep Singh through its bunch of operatives on social media.”

29. Iranian Hackers Leak Mossad Chief’s Medical Records

YNetNews reported on September 4th that “a group of Iranian-linked hackers leaked on Sunday images and medical documents purportedly belonging to Mossad Director David (Dedi) Barnea. The hacker group posted to its Telegram channel in the morning hours a photo of the Israeli spy chief that was apparently taken during the 2016 U23 European Judo Championships which took place in Tel Aviv. The image was accompanied by an ominous caption saying, “Dedi, are you ready for the next tip?”, which may indicate that more files with connection to Barnea may be leaked soon.” The news story refers to the group “Open Hands”.

30. Greek Spy Marking Military Zones Caught in Turkish Cyprus

Turkish media reported on September 5th that “a Greek Cypriot spy operating in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) was caught after forgetting a radiotelephone in his hotel room, reports said Monday. The suspect who marked military zones on a map and took pictures of the Karpaz peninsula in the TRNC gave it up when he forgot his radiotelephone in his hotel room. Andreas Soutzis, who had previously participated in the Turkish-Greek peace activities, began to be tried in Famagusta on charges of espionage. Soutzis, a power tool repairman in the Greek Cypriot administration, is a well-known name in Turkish-Greek bi-communal peace activities. Soutzis stayed at a hotel in the village of Mehmetçik on the Karpaz peninsula on Aug. 26 and then returned to the Greek Cypriot administration. He began to be sought after when the janitor found a radiotelephone in his room and reported it to the police. The Greek Cypriot was detained while reentering the TRNC last Saturday. During a search of his car, another radiotelephone identical to the one he had left in the hotel, many photographs, USB sticks, voice recorders and nine TRNC maps were found. It was determined that two military zones were marked on one of the maps. Soutzis admitted that he took pictures of military areas he had marked in his initial interrogation. The Greek Cypriot, who was brought before the judge on charges of espionage in Famagusta, was detained for five days for investigation purposes. The maps also include the Geçitkale military airport used by Turkish drones in the strategic Karpaz peninsula of the TRNC.”

31. Algeria Appoints New Director of Foreign Intelligence Service

On September 6th Atalayar reported that “the Algerian Ministry of Defence has appointed Djebbar M’henna as the new director general of Foreign Documentation and Security in a ceremony presided over by the Algerian Chief of General Staff, Saïd Chanegriha. M’henna will replace General Abdelghani Rachedi as head of the foreign intelligence service due to health problems, according to Algerian sources. However, this replacement also reveals the instability within the national intelligence agency, as it is the second change in less than two months. M’henna is also the fourth general to occupy this post since May. Until now, the military officer worked in an agency linked to the intelligence service specialising in the separatist movements of MAK (Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylia) and Rashad, organisations considered by Algiers to be terrorist organisations. This agency, created in the wake of last year’s massive fires that killed hundreds of people and dozens of soldiers, also focuses on targeting activists of the Hirak protest movement. Previously, in 2019, M’henna was sentenced to prison for abuse of power and illicit enrichment during Ahmed Gaid Salah’s tenure as army chief of staff. However, he was released a year later, becoming one of the country’s leading military figures. M’henna took part in a security-focused meeting on the occasion of French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Algeria.”

32. Russian Counter-Intelligence Arrested Person in Moscow for Espionage

According to Media Zone, “the Meshchansky District Court of Moscow arrested Russian citizen Mikhail Baranov in a case of high treason (Article 275 of the Criminal Code). Interfax was told about this in the press service of the court. Baranov will be in custody until November 7. According to investigators, he tried to give a foreign state information constituting a state secret. There are no details of his biography in the court report. The materials of the case are classified.”

33. United States: Mar-a-Lago, A Magnet for Spies, Officials Warn After Nuclear File Reportedly Found

The Guardian reported that “Mar-a-Lago — the Palm Beach resort and residence where Donald Trump reportedly stored nuclear secrets among a trove of highly classified documents for 18 months since leaving the White House — is a magnet for foreign spies, former intelligence officials have warned. The Washington Post reported that a document describing an unspecified foreign government’s defences, including its nuclear capabilities, was one of the many highly secret papers Trump took away from the White House when he left office in January 2021. There were also documents marked SAP, for Special-Access Programmes, which are often about US intelligence operations and whose circulation is severely restricted, even among administration officials with top security clearance. Potentially most disturbing of all, there were papers stamped HCS, Humint Control Systems, involving human intelligence gathered from agents in enemy countries, whose lives would be in danger if their identities were compromised. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is conducting a damage assessment review which is focused on the sensitivity of the documents, but US officials said it is the job of FBI counter-intelligence to assess who may have gained access to them.”

34. Russian GRU Agent Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison in Ukraine

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) issued a press statement that “the court sentenced a Russian military intelligence agent to 12 years in prison. The perpetrator was arrested during a special SBU operation in Cherkasy region in July of last year. He tried to get secret information about one of the ammunition depots of the Ukrainian troops. Based on the collected evidence, the court found him guilty of treason and sentenced him to 12 years in prison. According to the investigation, the traitor is a resident of Uman, who was recruited by a representative of the Russian military intelligence during a trip to Russia in 2018. The main task he received from his handler was to collect intelligence on the location of ammunition depots and their security controls. In case of transfer of relevant information, the handler promised the agent a monetary “reward” in the amount of 2,000 US Dollars. Before carrying out the enemy’s instructions, the traitor tried “in the dark” to involve a Ukrainian serviceman. However, the SBU timely exposed and detained the agent for trying to obtain secret information.”

35. Podcast: Team House: Former China Analyst at the CIA: Gail Helt

This week the Team House released a new podcast episode, featuring Gail Helt who said in her bio that, “I came to King in 2014 after nearly a dozen years at the Central Intelligence Agency, where I worked on issues related to East Asian security, politics, and governance. I had the privilege of traveling the world, and writing for and briefing the senior-most policymakers in the US Government. The opportunities I was given were amazing, and I appreciated every one — but in reality I always wanted to teach, and I was never a city girl, so I was thrilled to have the opportunity to move to northeastern TN and teach at King. I was recruited by the CIA out of a PhD program at the University of Arizona, where I was studying political science/international relations, with an emphasis on China. I have a M.A. in political science from Iowa State University, and a B.S in political science from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. I am the Coordinator of the Security and Intelligence Studies Program here at King, and also serve as the Director of the King Institute of Security and Intelligence Studies. I am also the faculty adviser for KSI–a great group of students interested in global events and security and intelligence-related issues. I teach classes in analysis, which are intended not only to teach higher level critical thinking skills that government agencies expect prospective employees to possess, but also to prepare students to succeed in graduate school. I also teach classes in intelligence ethics, counter-terrorism, and I will be teaching a new class in Chinese history and politics in the Spring 2016 semester. My research interests center around democratization and liberalization, human rights (I know, shocking for a former CIA officer!), and political stability. I also have a strong interest in Chinese history and politics, particularly how Western influence, and particularly Western religion, has impacted the development of China’s politics. In my spare time I enjoy hiking, kayaking, and spending time with friends.”

36. Head of Israel’s Mossad Visits US for Meetings Over Iran

The National News reported on September 5th that “the head of Israel’s spy agency is departing for the US on Monday for talks on the potential revival of the Iran nuclear deal. Mossad director David Barnea’s visit will focus on tightening security and intelligence co-ordination with the US regarding the Iranian nuclear issue, according to a press release posted on the website of the office of the Israeli prime minister. Mr Barnea is expected to also discuss the dispute between Lebanon and his country over shared maritime borders. There were no more details about other issues on the agenda. Amos Hochstein, the US diplomat mediating talks between Lebanon and Israel over the gas-rich disputed area, will be in Beirut at the end of the week, a statement from Lebanon’s presidential palace said on Sunday. The announced visit by the Mossad chief to the US is seen by observers as the latest Israeli push to sway western powers away from a return to the 2015 deal with Tehran. Israel says a deal would enable the funding of Iran-supported militants, while not preventing Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon — a goal Iran has always denied. Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said last month that his country’s “diplomatic fight” against the deal included recent meetings in the US held by its national security adviser and defence minister. He repeated that what was signed in 2015 was “not a good deal” and that the one currently being formulated entailed “greater dangers”.”

37. Greek Defense Ministry Denies Report that Greece Possesses Turkish UAV that Fell in Libya

Television reports stated this week that through clandestine means Greece obtained a downed Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drone from Libya in the summer of 2020. However, “Greece’s Defence Ministry rejected on Wednesday a television report claiming that Greece got its hands on a Turkish Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) that fell in Libya in 2020, saying “it lacks seriousness, is false and suspicious.”.” The Greek Defence Ministry “also warned it would take legal action against those “spreading fake news with a negative impact on national defence and security.”.”

38. Somali Spy Chief Mahad Salad is Behind Well Planned Assassinations in Mogadishu

The Somali Times reported on September 7th that “Somali spy chief Mahad Salad is behind well planned assassinations in Mogadishu, murders have taken place in Mogadishu and its outskirts, which have been carried out against soldiers of the Federal Government of Somalia. Groups armed with pistols last night killed Liban Mohamud Warsame in Mogadishu. The murder took place in Bar Ubax neighborhood of Howlwadag District, when the deceased was said to be entering his home. The deceased died on the spot with several bullets hit by the gunman in the upper parts of his body, while the criminals fled the scene before the security forces arrived. The reports say that Liban is now a member of the Armed Forces, and no one has claimed responsibility for his murder. Also, another soldier was killed in the Garabaley area on the outskirts of Mogadishu, especially in the area known as Macani in the area. The soldier who was killed was Dahir Jarer, and he lived in the same Garasbaley area where he was killed today. Until now, there has been no statement from security officials regarding the planned killings that took place in Mogadishu and its suburbs. According to Somalia spy agency senior commander told Somali Times Mahad Salad is behind well planned assassinations in Mogadishu. Our sources add Mahad Salad is member of Al-Shabab terrorist group including Somali president Hassan Sheikh, Minister of Religion murderer child rapist Mukhtar Robow.”

39. United States MACV-SOG: Secret Operations in Vietnam

On September 9th Grey Dynamics published this article saying that “the Military Assistance Command Vietnam, Special Operations Group (MACV-SOG) was an elite US Special Force to conduct clandestine operations in Vietnam. In 1964, owing to the US’ increasing number of military activities within Vietnam, US military structure underwent a marked change. Thus, the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, Studies and Operations Group (MACV-SOG) was established in January 1964. Sometimes simply referred to as the ‘SOG’, the inconspicuously named unit was responsible for all manner of reconnaissance, special operations, and psyops in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The group was comprised of Navy SEALs, Marine Recons, Air Force Special Operations soldiers, and Army Green Berets. The force was above top secret — operatives swore to secrecy for over 20 years. This sadly meant that families of MACV-SOG members were not informed if their loved ones were killed in action.”

40. UK: MI5 Opens Secret Doors for the First Time to Hire Overweight Spies

According to The Express, “MI5 is advertising for mobile surveillance officers to help protect Britain against terrorists and foreign spies. Its advert states candidates will still be accepted if they have a body mass index (BMI) of up to 30, which NHS guidelines classify as “overweight”. The role within the sister agency to MI6 — in which the fictional Bond served on Her Majesty’s Secret Service — is described as “one of MI5’s key investigative resources in protecting against threats to national security from terrorism to espionage”. The advert explains: “The UK has a highly diverse population so it’s vital that we too have a diverse team who can operate in a wide range of environments without attracting attention.” Health service guidelines list BMI’s of below 18.5 as underweight, between 18.5 and 24.9 as healthy, 25 to 29.9 as overweight and between 30 and 39.9 as obese. The NHS states: “The BMI takes into account natural variations in body shape, giving a healthy weight range for a particular height” While overweight spies will be considered, candidates must still pass a “fitness for role” medical and have blood pressure under 140/90. They also need to be under 6ft 2in for a man and under 5ft 9in for a woman, and cannot have any distinguishing features such as tattoos on their face, neck or hands. This is because: “It’s all about blending into the environment naturally wherever you are and being able to observe people and places, either by foot or by vehicle.” “Being able to blend into the background safely is of paramount importance in our investigations.”.”

41. Turkish, Syrian Intelligence Chiefs Meet on Security Issues

The New Arab reported on September 8th that “Turkey’s spy chief, Hakan Fidan and Syria’s head of intelligence, Ali Mamlouk, held a new meeting under Russian mediation, according to Intelligence Online, a French publication. The meeting’s results were “not convincing,” but it gave the space to “Ankara and Damascus to set out their demands,” the publication explained. “Any discussion with the regime would be about joint work against the SDF [Syrian Democratic Forces]. The meeting would also discuss political negotiations between the regime and opposition, in addition to refugees’ issues and security guarantees for their return,” Suhail al-Ghazi, an Italy-based Syria researcher, told The New Arab. The meeting came after Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu sparked controversy by announcing that he had met his Syrian counterpart on the sidelines of a conference in October.”

42. Podcast: SpyScape: Mexican Manoeuvres Part 1: Poncho and Cisco

This week SpyScape’s True Spies series released the first part of a new episode. As per its description, “in Mexico, life can come cheap — but some are worth millions. When ruthless gangs kidnap the loved ones of the wealthy, the ransoms can soar in to seven-figure sums. And when that happens, Nick Brokhausen and Jeff Miller are the men you want on your side of the negotiating table. They are former Special Forces operatives who’ve spent a lifetime solving problems and making money in some of the most dangerous parts of the world. In Part 1, Vanessa Kirby joins Jeff and Nick on the trail of a kidnapping victim in Texcoco — and they’ll use any means necessary to see his safe return.”

43. Ukrainian SBU Detains Russian Agent in Mykolaiv

On September 8th Ukraine’s SBU stated that they “detained another correctional officer who was collecting and transmitting information about the location and movement of the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Mykolaiv. According to the investigation, the traitor turned out to be a 62-year-old local pensioner. He himself took the initiative to help the enemy for ideological reasons. Through messengers and social networks, he transmitted data about: ️The location of servicemen and military formations of the Armed Forces; ️The movement of military equipment and means of destruction on the territory of the Mykolaiv region. He sent the information with references to the coordinates and detailed descriptions. The subject was detained and reported as suspicious. During the search of the perpetrator’s place of residence, law enforcement officers seized: a mobile phone and a laptop with evidence of illegal activity.”

44. Another Greek Opposition Lawmaker Victim of Predator

EUractiv reported on September 9th that “the Greek wiretapping affair involving the “Predator” spy programme is widening as a leftist opposition lawmaker told the prosecutor on Friday (9 September) that his phone was also compromised. Christos Spirtzis, former minister and lawmaker for the main opposition leftist Syriza party, was informed that his phone had been hacked by Predator, and he has now reported it to the chief prosecutor. The list of those targeted by the software also includes socialist leader and MEP Nikos Androulakis and investigative journalists, such as Thanasis Koukakis. Since the scandal erupted, the conservative New Democracy government has said it did not purchase Predator but has admitted that secret services were “legally” spying on the socialist leader. However, the government has so far refused to reveal the reasons behind the surveillance invoking “national security”, while Prime Kyriakos Minister Mitsotakis has said he was unaware of the socialist leader’s surveillance. A parliamentary inquiry committee set up to investigate the scandal has not brought any results considering that the former secret services chief and the prime minister’s secretary general, who both resigned after the scandal, refused to explain the reasons for spying on the Greek opposition leader.”

45. Russian Woman Detained for Espionage in Albania Lived in Georgia

Following week 34 (story #88), on September 9th Georgian media reported that “Russian woman Svetlana Timofeeva, who was detained on charges of espionage in Albania, lived in Georgia for a long time. 33-year-old Svetlana Timofeeva, known under the pseudonym Lana Sator, blogs on various sites and posts photos of abandoned Soviet buildings. According to Russian media, she moved to Georgia shortly after the start of the war in Ukraine. “In Georgia, she calmly walked around the villages, took a lot of pictures, met people, studied the area, and no one suspected who she was and what she was doing in Georgia. If not for the failed operation in Albania, it would have continued its activities in Georgia and other places without hindrance,” writes Georgian political scientist Zurab Batiashvili on his Facebook page. On Instagram Timofeeva posted dozens of photos from Georgia. The last publication was made on August 15, that is, less than a week before the Russian woman was detained. From later publications, it is known that in 2017 Timofeeva visited Abkhazia. According to the law on the occupied territories, the entry of foreigners and stateless persons into the breakaway regions of Georgia from Russia is prohibited, except when special permission has been received from the Georgian authorities for such trips.”

46. Webinar: The T.O.C. — Tactical Operations Centre

The S2 Underground released a new 1-hour long webinar covering subjects related to operating a TOC, its intelligence value, and other details.

47. Ukraine: EU Tourist Visas Used by Russians Either for Sabotage or for Espionage

According to the Ukrainian UATV “having a visa, no longer guarantees that Russians can visit European Union countries. This was stated by High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell. It is not planned to cancel the visas already issued to the citizens of Russia yet, but tourists and migrants from Russia can expect a number of other reasons for refusal to visit the EU countries. Experts say, Russians often use tourist visas and travel either to sabotage or to carry out espionage. Accordingly, visas ban or restrictive measure are needed.”

48. Evidence Shows US’ NSA Behind Attack on Email System of Leading Chinese Aviation University

On September 5th the Global Times published an exclusive story saying that “the email system of a university in Northwest China’s Shaanxi Province — well-known for its aviation, aerospace and navigation studies — was found to have been attacked by the US’ National Security Agency (NSA), the Global Times learned from a source on Monday. The Chinese Foreign Ministry responded to the issue at Monday’s press briefing, saying that China has lodged a strong protest to the US over NSA’s attack and demanded an explanation for it. On June 22, Northwestern Polytechnical University announced that hackers from abroad were caught sending phishing emails with Trojan horse programs to teachers and students at the university, attempting to steal their data and personal information. A police statement released by the Beilin Public Security Bureau in Xi’an the next day said that the attack attempted to lure teachers and students into clicking links of phishing emails with Trojan horse programs, with themes involving scientific evaluation, thesis defense and information on foreign travel, so as to obtain their email login details. To probe into the attack, China’s National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center and internet security company 360 jointly formed a technical team to conduct a comprehensive technical analysis of the case. By extracting many trojans samples from internet terminals of Northwestern Polytechnical University, under the support of European and South Asian partners, the technical team initially identified that the cyberattack to the university was conducted by the Tailored Access Operations (TAO) (Code S32) under the Data Reconnaissance Bureau (Code S3) of the Information Department (Code S) of US’ NSA.”

49. Israel Defence Minister’s Cleaner Jailed for Trying to spy for Iran-linked Hackers

BBC reported that “an Israeli court has jailed a former housekeeper for Defence Minister Benny Gantz who attempted to pass information to an Iran-linked hacking group. Omri Goren, 38, was sentenced to three years in prison under a plea deal that saw prosecutors drop espionage charges. The Israeli justice ministry said Goren told Black Shadow hackers he could send information on Mr Gantz and put malware on his computer in exchange for money. But he denied knowingly attempting to spy for Iran, Israel’s arch-enemy. “[He] is not a spy and this isn’t a spying scandal,” his lawyers were quoted by the Times of Israel as saying after Tuesday’s sentencing hearing. “This is about a man who found himself entangled in debt and identified a security breach,” they added. Goren reportedly told investigators that he had planned to trick the hackers into giving him money without handing over any information. The initial indictment released last November alleged that Goren reached out to Black Shadow on Telegram after reading Israeli media reports about its hacking attempts. To prove that he worked for Mr Gantz he sent photographs of items in the minister’s home, including his desk, computer, a safe and tax records, it said. The justice ministry said Goren’s attempt was thwarted by the Shin Bet security service and that no classified material was revealed.”

50. United States: We Need a New “Church Committee” to Curb Massive Intelligence Agency Criminality Ranging From Illegal Surveillance to Torture and Assassination

The Covert Action Magazine published this story on September 6th saying that “the year 1975 was designated “the year of intelligence,” a season of inquiry into America’s spy agencies and their abuses. Senator Frank Church (D-ID) headed a major Senate investigative committee, which exposed massive CIA and FBI criminality — ranging from its surveillance of Americans and efforts to destroy dissenting groups to its involvement in illegal drug testing and assassination. As a consequence of these revelations, new reforms were enacted to try to reign in the so-called “deep state,” though these were relatively mild and gradually reversed. Today, a new Senate investigation modeled after the Church Committee is urgently needed. In the nearly 50 years since the Church Committee hearings were held, the intelligence agencies have grown exceedingly more powerful, and replicated the pattern of abuse prevalent in the immediate post-World War II era. These abuses have included: a) running secret torture sites in the War on Terror; b) coordinating a killer drone program in which even U.S. citizens have been targeted without any judicial process; and c) orchestrating a fake political scandal — Russiagate — based on fraudulent dossiers, which helped condition the public to support a new Cold War with Russia and which was designed to bring down a sitting U.S. president. The CIA and associated intelligence agencies have additionally: a) expanded an unprecedented surveillance apparatus that violates the U.S. Constitution; b) promoted disinformation in support of illegal wars in Libya and Syria among other countries; c) continued to meddle in foreign countries through the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and to support color revolutions designed to facilitate regime change in Eastern Europe and Central Asia; and d) helped coordinate Phoenix-style operations in Ukraine through liaison with the Ukrainian Secret Service (SBU) which routinely kidnaps civilians and executes them without trial.”

51. Inside the Bloody Business of Turkey’s Syrian Mercenaries

On September 5th The National Interest reported that “in April 2019, Gen. Khalifa Haftar, the ruler of east Libya and head of the Libyan National Army (LNA), launched a surprise offensive on the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli. Haftar’s forces presented a significant threat and, in response, the GNA requested Turkish military support. But instead of sending Turkish troops to Libya, Turkish intelligence officials began recruiting from the ranks of Syrian opposition fighters.” The article continues that “years of close work with Ankara paid off when Turkish intelligence (MIT) selected Abu Bakr’s militia to recruit mercenaries for Libya. Now, with Syria rapidly becoming a frozen conflict, Turkey’s mercenary program has helped Abu Bakr and other commanders maintain the revenue streams and power they have grown accustomed to from the bloody civil war.”

52. A New Cyberespionage Group uses Undocumented Tools, Including Steganographically Extracting Payloads from Image Files

ESET private cyber security and intelligence firm published a technical analysis of a previously unknown cyber espionage actor they dubbed as WOROK, who exhibits common characteristics with Chinese intelligence agencies. ESET researchers “found targeted attacks that used undocumented tools against various high-profile companies and local governments mostly in Asia. These attacks were conducted by a previously unknown espionage group that we have named Worok and that has been active since at least 2020.”

53. Following Espionage Cases, Expelled Iranian Diplomats Burned Documents Before Leaving Albania

Following the recent dismantling of Iranian spy networks in Albania (see week 28 story #71 and week 26 story #22) and the cyber operations (see week 31 story #47) the entire Iranian diplomatic mission was expelled from Albania. Immediately after that, as reported, “according to an eyewitness statement to the agency, “a man was throwing papers into a rusty barrel as flames lit up the three floors of the Iranian embassy” in the early hours of Thursday morning. A few hours after Rama’s statement. A few hours before the Persian officials left the country.” On September 8th it was officially announced that “Albanian counter-terrorism police searched the empty Iranian embassy in Tirana on Thursday, hours after Iranian diplomats burned papers inside the premises following the severing of diplomatic ties.”

54. Erdoğan prevented parliament from investigating ISIS-linked NGOs in Turkey

The Nordic Monitor published an investigative article saying that “the Islamist government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan prevented the Turkish parliament from investigating nongovernmental organizations that were used as fronts to raise funds and recruit jihadists for the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).” The article also highlights that “in an intelligence report published earlier by Nordic Monitor, it was revealed that İlhami Balı, the mastermind behind these deadly attacks, stayed in a hotel under the control of Turkish intelligence agency MIT in Ankara on May 25–27, 2016. His connection to the agency suggested Balı’s actions were directed by MIT, which coordinated clandestine operations within ISIS for political goals to help President Erdoğan in elections. Balı, born in Reyhanlı in the Turkish border province of Hatay on March 17, 1982, was operating in an al-Qaeda cell before joining the al-Nusra Front in the initial years of the conflict in Syria. Al-Nusra was supported by the Erdoğan regime, which was hoping to oust the Bashar al-Assad government in Damascus and replace it with an Islamist puppet regime.”

55. United States: ODNI Releases IARPA SINTRA Recordings

This week the United States Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released the recordings of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) Space Debris Identification and Tracking (SINTRA) program. The recordings released were: 1) Proposers’ Day — IARPA Overview, 2) Proposers’ Day — SINTRA Overview, 3) IARPA SINTRA Proposers’ Day — Lightning Talks, and 4) IARPA SINTRA Proposers’ Day — Contracts and Q&A.

56. Netherlands: Dutch SIGINT Regulator Resigns Over Disagreement with New Legislation that Diminishes Oversight

This week Bert Hubert resigned from his position as regulator of SIGINT oversight committee in the Netherlands. He published this statement saying that “until today I was one of the three members of the board that checks warrants for the Dutch intelligence and security services. This board is called “Toetsingscommissie Inzet Bevoegdheden” or TIB. If either of the civil or the military intelligence and security services of The Netherlands want to use their lawful intercept, SIGINT or hacking (& some other) legal powers, they have to first convince their own jurists, then their ministry and finally the TIB. The TIB then studies if the warrant is legal, and that decision is binding. When I joined the regulatory commission, I was very happy to find that the Dutch intelligence and security services were doing precisely the kinds of things you’d expect such services to do. I also found that our regulatory mechanisms worked as intended — if anything was found to be amiss, the services would actually stop doing that. If the ex-ante regulator (ie, my board) ruled a permission to do something was unlawful, it would indeed not happen. I think it is important to affirm this in public. Over the past two years however there have been several attempts to change or amend the Dutch intelligence law. The most recent attempt has now cleared several legislative hurdles and looks set to be passed by parliament. Under this new law, my specific role (technical risk analysis) would mostly be eliminated. In addition, the Dutch SIGINT (bulk interception) powers would be stripped of a lot of regulatory requirements. Furthermore, there are new powers, like using algorithmic analysis on bulk intercepted data, without a requirement to get external approval. Finally, significant parts of the oversight would move from up front (’ex ante’) to ongoing or afterwards (’ex post’).”

57. United States NGA TEARLINE: The Rise of Turkey’s Baykar Technologies, Part I: Facilities

The US National Geospatial-intelligence Agency (NGA), under Project TEARLINE, published this analysis described as “Baykar Technologies, based in Istanbul, Turkey, is one of the predominant manufacturers of Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAV) today. This report examines the growth, current disposition, and likely future changes to the company’s physical infrastructure at its three principal facilities. The following analysis contains two major themes: the development of Baykar facilities over time and their current capabilities.”

58. New EU Law Amplifies Risks of State Over-reach and Mass Surveillance

The European Digital Rights (EDRi) issued a press release on September 7th “on the proposed Regulation on automated data exchange for police cooperation (“Prüm II”). The European Commission’s Prüm II proposal fails to put in place vital safeguards designed to protect all of us from state overreach and authoritarian mass surveillance practices. In the worst case scenario, we may no longer be able to walk freely on our streets as the new law would treat large parts of the population as a criminal before proven otherwise.”

59. Ukrainian NABU and SBU Identify Parliament Member as Russian GRU Agent, and Find Spy Gadgets in his House

Following week 30 (story #54), according to Ria Novosti, the Ukrainian National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Security Service (SBU) “conducted searches at the home of Andriy Derkach, People’s Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada [Parliament], who is suspected of working for Russian intelligence, they found a “spy” pen with a hidden voice recorder and camera. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced on July 24 that it had exposed the intelligence network of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Federation (known as the GRU, military intelligence). According to the intelligence service, MP Derkach was also included in it. NABU conducted a search in the apartment of People’s Deputy Derkach, where his wife Oksana Terekhova lives. Detectives seized an electronic device there, similar to a pen, complete with a CD, a cable and a charger with a hidden microphone and a video camera.”.”

60. ISIS Opened Office in Turkey to Target Europe, Russia, Caucasus

Following this week’s story #54 Nordic Monitor published a second investigative article indicating how Turkey is protecting ISIS in order to conduct clandestine operations. Quoting the article, “the killing of ISIS leader Amir Muhammad Sa’id Abdal-Rahman al-Salbi on February 3 by US forces took place in the Atmah region, which is effectively controlled by Turkey. It was impossible for Turkish intelligence agency MIT not to have known about al-Salbi since Atmah, located near the Turkish border, is a MIT base for clandestine operations in Syria. Thousands of militants, both Turkish and foreign, have used Turkish territory to cross into Syria with the help of smugglers in order to fight alongside ISIS groups there. MIT has facilitated their travel, with Kilis, a border province in Turkey’s Southeast, one of the main crossing points into ISIS-held territory.”

61. Mandiant Uncovers New Iranian Cyber Espionage Actor

Mandiant private cyber security and intelligence firm published a 21-pages long report for a new cyber espionage actor, dubbed as APT42, who “operates on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Intelligence Organization (IRGC-IO) based on targeting patterns that align with the organization’s operational mandates and priorities.”

62. US Sanctions Iran Intelligence Agency Over Albania Cyberattack

Following this week’s story #53, it was reported that “the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Friday imposed sanctions on Iran’s primary intelligence agency and its top official less than two days after Albania cut diplomatic ties with Tehran over an attack on the country’s government websites. Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS), led by Minister of Intelligence Esmaeil Khatib, were accused of sponsoring the July cyberattack against Albania, a NATO member, as well as engaging in malicious cyber activities targeting the U.S. and its allies.”

63. Turkish MIT Assassinates PKK Administrator in Northern Iraq

As reported by Turkish media on September 4th, “Turkish intelligence eliminated an “administrator” of the PKK terrorist group in northern Iraq, security sources said on Sunday. According to information obtained from the sources, Bedirhan Abi, one of the so-called administrators of the PKK, was eliminated in an operation carried out by Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) on Sep. 4 in the Sincar province in northern Iraq. It was determined by Turkish forces that the terrorist Bedirhan Abi, code-named “Darav Gevda,” had participated in attacks in Türkiye where security forces were martyred. Bedirhan Abi, who has Turkish citizenship and was wanted due to the armed actions he participated in Türkiye, was found to be operating as the so-called brigade officer of the PKK terrorist group in Sincar. Meanwhile, with the support of field agents, a point operation was planned to eliminate the terrorist. With this, Abi was eliminated by the operation carried out by MIT.”

64. Argentinian Maldonado’s Domestic Surveillance Case Closed

As it was reported on Friday by local media, “Santiago Maldonado’s brother, Sergio Maldonado, warned this Friday that the closure of the investigation and the dismissal in the case investigating illegal espionage by gendarmes on relatives of the young artisan and other human rights activists is “a way to enable that they can legally spy on you” and denounced that this ruling was reached “without having investigated”. “This is a way to enable them to legally spy on you, as happened with the relatives of the ARA San Juan submarine. They do it with the most relevant causes to enable them to tap the phone, persecute, espionage and everything that is wants and we can’t do anything ,” he said in statements to El Destape radio. On Thursday, Room II of the Buenos Aires Federal Chamber ratified the closure of the investigation and the dismissal ordered by Judge Daniel Rafecas regarding the espionage by gendarmes on relatives of the young artisan Santiago Maldonado and other human rights activists.” The ARA San Juan submarine case was highlighted on week 8 (story #41) and week 28 (story #67).

65. Spanish National Court Admits the Appeal for Alleged Espionage with Pegasus

Europe Press reported on September 9th that “the National Court (AN) has admitted the appeal filed by the former Catalan president Joaquim Torra and the former first vice-president of the Parliamentary Board Josep Costa for the alleged surveillance of their communications through the Pegasus spyware, after the The Supreme Court (TS) referred the matter to the CNI, limiting its possible impact, and has requested information from the Ministry of Defence.”

66. Albania Reports 2nd Cyberattack by Iran on Border Systems

Following this week’s stories #53 and #62, on Saturday it was reported that “Albania’s Interior Ministry said Saturday that one of its border systems was hit by a cyberattack that came from the same Iranian source as an earlier attack that led the country to break diplomatic relations with Iran. It said in a statement that the previous evening an Albanian police transmitting system was found to be “under a cyberattack similar to the one that (government portal) e-Albania suffered in July.”.”

67. Interception Specialists Intellexa and Cleartrail Use Their Signal Capabilities as a Sales Argument

As reported by Intelligence Online on September 8th, “although Whatsapp has long been the main target of the cyber-infiltration specialists, secure communications app Signal is now getting increasing attention from companies in the sector.”

68. Podcast: Combat Story: JSOC Tier 1 Sergeant Major and CIA GRS, Dutch Moyer

The Combat Story published a new podcast episode featuring Chris “Dutch” Moyer. As per the video’s description, “today we hear a Combat Story from the very tip of the spear from “Dutch” Chris Moyer, a long-time special operator who spent 14 years in Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in addition to years at 1/75 Ranger Battalion, and CIA’s Global Response Staff (GRS). Dutch walks us through a very open and honest approach to what it’s like operating in the elite ranks for so long, including the pressure, brotherhood, and chaos. He doesn’t shy away from sharing where he felt he fell short, and how, even after decades of service he still felt like he had more to give. He saw combat in multiple theaters in the pre-and post-9/11 era, fighting at the same time as and friends with many of the former Tier 1 operators we’ve heard on this show.”

69. What Historical Mossad Files Reveal About ‘Israel’s Most Planned War’

Haaretz reported on September 8th that ““It was Israel’s most planned war,” states an official Mossad document. “The preparations had already begun in mid-1981, and they gained momentum towards the end of that year. In January of 1982, Ariel Sharon met the Christian leadership — and said to Pierre Gemayel: ‘We are embarking on a full-scale war and that as a result of it, there ought to be change in Lebanon-Israel relations.’’ This account appears in a document submitted to the High Court of Justice by the Prime Minister’s Office — which is responsible for the activity of the Mossad spy agency — and released for publication this week. The state submitted “passages that have been approved for exposure,” unsigned and undated, in response to a court petition aiming to shed light on the connection between the Mossad and the Christian militias in Lebanon, which led to the massacre at the Sabra and Chatila refugee camps in Beirut in September of 1982. The petition was filed by attorney Eitay Mack. In the document, the Israeli military is described as the body that effectively dictated policy on Lebanon, and not the elected government. “We have the Lebanese to do what we want them to do,” the document states. “That is the asset we have, now tell us what to do with it. Because the state isn’t all that organized in its decision-making, the ones who told us what to do with the asset wasn’t [Prime Minister Menachem] Begin, and the government, but rather the military.” The document describes Israel’s military involvement in Lebanon’s affairs from the 1950s to the preparations for the First Lebanon War at the beginning of the 1980s.”

70. United States: DHS Surveillance Increasingly Targets US Citizens

On September 8th The Nation published a story saying that “the Department of Homeland Security and its component agencies are highly capable of keeping tabs on all of us — and they often do.” The article concludes that “the cost of this surveillance is staggering. Congress allocated $37.7 billion to the DHS in its inaugural year; in fiscal 2022, the DHS had a $52.2 billion budget. Given the department’s broad mandate, that money is used to fund everything from FEMA to Border Patrol checkpoints to DHS fusion centers. Year after year, Democrats and Republicans alike vote to increase DHS funding, even though some have criticized the department for its treatment of migrants, the conditions in its detention centers, and most recently, for allegedly obstructing the congressional investigation of the January 6 riots. It’s unclear what transgression, if any, will convince Congress to roll back DHS’s funding — and its surveillance capabilities.”

71. Chinese Cyber Espionage Targets Government Officials

Private cyber security and intelligence firm Secureworks published a technical analysis for a cyber operator they dubbed as BRONZE PRESIDENT who is likely a Chinese nation-state sponsored group. As per the report, in June and July 2022 Secureworks Counter Threat Unit (CTU) researchers uncovered a “campaign targeting computers belonging to government officials of several countries in Europe, the Middle East, and South America.” The report also notes that “BRONZE PRESIDENT has demonstrated an ability to pivot quickly for new intelligence collection opportunities. Organizations in geographic regions of interest to China should closely monitor this group’s activities, especially organizations associated with or operating as government agencies.”