FAS | Intelligence | News | 1998 ||||

November 1998 Intelligence News

• SWISS / RUSSIA MAFIA Voice of America 30 November 1998 -- THE ALLEGED LEADER OF A RUSSIAN ORGANIZED CRIME GROUP HAS GONE ON TRIAL IN GENEVA AMID UNPRECEDENTED SECURITY.
• HOUSE OF LORDS RULING ON PINOCHET: 'HISTORIC MILESTONE' USIS Foreign Media Reaction Report -- November 30, 1998 -- Last Wednesday's ruling by Britain's House of Lords that former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was not immune from prosecution on charges of genocide, torture and terrorism committed during his 17-year rule elicited substantial editorial comment overseas. A majority of editorialists in Latin America, Europe and Asia hailed the decision, calling it a "historic milestone in defense of human rights" and a "warning to all satraps--they are no longer immune."
• STATE DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCEMENT ON INDIA USIA 27 November 1998 -- The Al-Umma group, allegedly responsible for the February 1998 bombings in Coimbatore that killed 46, has threatened violent actions in the state of Tamil Nadu on December 6, the anniversary of the 1992 destruction of the Babri Mosque in Uttar Pradesh.
• COHEN / COLOMBIA PREVIEW Voice of America 27 November 1998 -- TOP MILITARY OFFICIALS FROM NEARLY THREE DOZEN NATIONS AND THE UNITED STATES ARE GATHERING IN CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA SUNDAY. DISCUSSIONS WILL FOCUS ON STOPPING DRUG FLOWS, HELPING HURRICANE VICTIMS, AND BOOSTING HUMAN RIGHTS.
• LATAM / TERRORISM Voice of America 26 November 1998 -- THIRTY-FOUR MEMBERS OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES HAVE SIGNED A JOINT SECURITY TREATY AIMED AT COMBATTING TERRORISM IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.
• CHINA / INTERNET TRIAL Voice of America 25 November 1998 -- THE TRIAL OF A MAN IN POLICE CUSTODY WHO IS ACCUSED OF SELLING E-MAIL ADDRESSES TO AN OVERSEAS CHINESE DISSIDENT ORGANIZATION HAS BEEN POSTPONED.
• U-N / LIBYA TRIAL Voice of America 25 November 1998 -- UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN IS CONSIDERING A VISIT TO LIBYA TO RESOLVE A DISPUTE OVER THE TRIAL OF TWO LIBYANS ACCUSED OF BOMBING A PAN AMERICAN AIRLINER OVER SCOTLAND IN 1988.
• PINOCHET / REACT Voice of America 25 November 1998 -- FORMER CHILEAN LEADER AUGUSTO PINOCHET HAS LOST HIS LEGAL BATTLE AS BRITAIN'S HIGHEST COURT HAS RULED THREE TO TWO AGAINST GIVING HIM IMMUNITY FROM EXTRADITION.
• BUREAUCRATIC REFORMS HELP REDUCE CORRUPTION USIA 25 November 1998 -- Bureaucratic reform appears to have played a beneficial role in Poland's conversion from a centrally planned economy to a market-based one, says a scholar on corruption in the former Soviet bloc.
• INVESTIGATIVE MEDIA NEEDED TO FIGHT CORRUPTION USIA 25 November 1998 -- An aggressive and skilled core of investigative journalists is a sharp weapon in the fight against corruption, says a consultant for the Economic Development Institute of the World Bank.
• ACTIVIST GROUP IMPLEMENTS ANTI-CORRUPTION PROGRAM USIA 25 November 1998 -- A leading anti-corruption activist group has devised a strategy to eliminate corruption in narrow market sectors and limited territorial areas.
• BRIBES FOR PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS AT CORE OF CORRUPTION USIA 25 November 1998 -- The former chief procurement officer of the World Bank says contracts for large construction projects present immense opportunities for bribes, kickbacks and other payoffs.
• U.S. AID DIRECTOR VIEWS U.S. ANTI-CORRUPTION PROGRAMS USIA 25 November 1998 -- The director of the U.S. Agency for International Development says the United States is attacking corruption in developing countries with a barrage of programs and policies.
• COMMERCE OFFICIAL SAYS COST OF CORRUPTION TOO HIGH USIA 25 November 1998 -- A lawyer for the U.S. Commerce Department says the treaty outlawing bribery of foreign officials has won approval from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development because of a growing realization that the costs of corruption are too high for developing and developed countries.
• U-S / K-G-B Voice of America 24 November 1998 -- U-S DEFENSE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS, AS WELL AS SOME MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, ARE PRESSING RUSSIA FOR ACCESS TO A K-G-B DOCUMENT WHICH MAY SHED LIGHT ON THE FATE OF THOUSANDS OF MISSING AMERICAN SERVICEMEN.
• PAKISTAN KARACHI WEAPONS Voice of America 23 November 1998 -- TWO SOUTH AMERICAN ANTI-TERRORIST EXPERTS ARE IN PAKISTAN TO ASSIST SECURITY FORCES IN DISARMING ALLEGED TERRORISTS IN THE VIOLENCE-TORN CITY OF KARACHI.
• FAA PROPOSES SECURITY MEASURES FOR FOREIGN AIRLINES USIA 23 November 1998 -- The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed requiring foreign air carriers that fly to and from the United States to use the same security measures currently required of U.S. air carriers.
• PAK MILITARY / REACTION Voice of America 21 November 1998 -- HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS AND OPPOSITION PARTIES IN PAKISTAN HAVE REACTED WITH ALARM TO THE GOVERNMENT'S MOVE TO SET UP MILITARY COURTS IN THE CITY OF KARACHI.
• PAKISTAN / M-Q-M Voice of America 21 November 1998 -- POLICE IN PAKISTAN HAVE RAIDED THE OFFICES OF A KEY POLITICAL PARTY IN THE COMMERCIAL CAPITAL, KARACHI AND ARRESTED FIVE PEOPLE, INCLUDING TWO LAWMAKERS.
• PAK KARACHI / MILITARY Voice of America 20 November 1998 -- PAKISTAN'S GOVERNMENT HAS ENLISTED THE COUNTRY'S ARMY IN ITS EFFORT TO QUELL VIOLENCE IN THE SOUTHERN PROVINCE OF SINDH. UNDER THE MOVE MILITARY COURTS WILL BE SET UP TO TRY SUSPECTED TERRORISTS.
• Hacktivists Join Activists by Niall McKay Wired 20.Nov.98 -- The School of the Americas was set up to imbue Latin American officers with American values and ideals. However, according to John Pike, a security analyst with the Federation of American Scientists, the center has been more successful at producing soldiers responsible for committing human-rights abuses.
• FOREIGN BROADCASTS, INTERNET BREAK SERBIAN NEWS BLOCKADE Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 20 November 1998 -- In President Slobodan Milosevic's Serbia, state-controlled broadcast and print media hold most of the cards, leaving independent journalists few avenues for voicing opposition in that country.
• BRITAIN / IRAQ Voice of America 20 November 1998 -- BRITAIN'S FOREIGN OFFICE IS HOSTING A MEETING OF IRAQI OPPOSITION GROUPS TO RE-ENFORCE BRITISH SUPPORT FOR THEIR STRUGGLE TO CHANGE THE GOVERNMENT IN BAGHDAD.
• TEXT: CIA OFFICIAL DISCUSSES BCW THREAT AT HOOVER INSTITUTION USIA 20 November 1998 -- John C. Gannon, Chairman of CIA's National Intelligence Council, in remarks November 16 to the Hoover Institution's Conference on Biological and Chemical Weapons at Stanford University, noted that "America's prestige and high profile as a global power make us the world's biggest and most dispersed target."
• AFOSI receives Organizational Excellence Award (AFPN) 19 Nov 1998 -- The Air Force Office of Special Investigations has earned its seventh Air Force Organizational Excellence Award for exceptionally meritorious service from Oct. 1, 1995, to Sept. 30, 1997.
• US/IRAQI OPPOSITION Voice of America 19 November 1998 -- THE UNITED STATES IS STEPPING UP ITS CONTACTS WITH IRAQI OPPOSITION GROUPS, JUST DAYS AFTER PRESIDENT CLINTON ALL BUT CALLED FOR THE OVERTHROW OF PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSSEIN.
• Using dissidents to oust Iraq leader viewed as difficult John Donnelly KNIGHT RIDDER NEWS SERVICE November 17, 1998 -- CIA has funded two ill-fated Iraqi covert operations in the last eight years, one through the Iraqi National Congress in northern Iraq and the other with a splinter group, the Iraqi National Accord, out of Amman, Jordan. At a combined cost of well over $100 million, both ended in complete failure. Hussein loyalists uncovered both plots and executed nearly 200 people.
• Four nab infowar pact Federal Computer Week, November 16, 1998 -- John Pike, a defense and intelligence analyst with the Federation of American Scientists, said although there may be a classified contract that is bigger, the ETSS contract is one of the most comprehensive IW contracts on the street today.
• LUXOR ANNIVERSARY Voice of America 16 November 1998 -- IT HAS BEEN ONE YEAR SINCE A BAND OF ISLAMIC EXTREMISTS INVADED ONE OF THE ANCIENT TEMPLES IN LUXOR IN SOUTHERN EGYPT AND KILLED MORE THAN 60 PEOPLE, MOST OF THEM FOREIGN TOURISTS.
• OBIT: STOKELY CARMICHAEL Voice of America 16 November 1998 -- KWAME TURE, WHO AS STOKELY CARMICHAEL WAS A LEADING AMERICAN CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST IN THE 1960S, DIED OF PROSTATE CANCER IN THE WEST AFRICAN COUNTRY OF GUINEA. HE WAS 57 YEARS OLD.
• TEXT: US SECRET SERVICE DIRECTOR LEWIS MERLETTI RETIRES USIA 12 November 1998 -- President Clinton has accepted with the deepest regret, the retirement of Lewis Merletti, Director of the United States Secret Service.
• INDIA-TERRORISM Voice of America 12 November 1998 -- PAKISTAN AND INDIA HELD TALKS IN NEW DELHI THURSDAY ON TERRORISM AND DRUG TRAFFICKING, AS PART OF A LARGER DIALOGUE TO EASE TENSIONS.
• Last ground based radar airmen redeploy : 12 Nov 1998 (AFPN) -- The final redeployment of airmen who ran the nation's original counterdrug ground based radar sites in South America until contractors assumed the job was observed quietly at Howard's airfield Nov. 9.
• SECSTATE ALBRIGHT INTERVIEW WITH CHARLIE ROSE THE CHARLIE ROSE SHOW 11 November 1998 -- The issue of Pollard is one that has come up at a variety of times. Prime Minister Rabin used to ask for the release of Pollard; Prime Minister Netanyahu has before. And he did in the course of the Wye discussions
• HOLLYWOOD / ISLAM Voice of America 11 November 1998 - "THE SIEGE," AN AMERICAN FILM ABOUT ISLAMIC TERRORISTS IN NEW YORK, HAS COME UNDER HARSH CRITICISM FROM THE ARAB-AMERICAN AND MUSLIM COMMUNITY IN THE UNITED STATES.
• TEXT: CLINTON STATEMENT ON SIGNING ANTI-BRIBERY ACT 10 November 1998 -- President Clinton has signed the "International Anti-Bribery and Fair Competition Act of 1998" that brings U.S. law into compliance with the "Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions," an international agreement signed by the United States and 32 other nations in December 1997.
• TERRORISTS / RIGHTS Voice of America 10 November 1998 -- A U-S FEDERAL JUDGE (TUESDAY) AGREED TO REVIEW TIGHT SECURITY REGULATIONS IN A NEW YORK PRISON WHERE THREE ALLEGED TERRORISTS ARE BEING HELD IN CONNECTION WITH THE AUGUST BOMBINGS OF THE U-S EMBASSIES IN KENYA AND TANZANIA.
• CRIMINALIZING RUSSIA Voice of America 09 November 1998 -- THE RUSSIAN ECONOMY HAS BEEN CRIMINLIZED. THE RUSSIAN ECONOMY IS NOT ORGANIZED TOWARD PRODUCTIVITY. IT IS ORGANIZED TOWARD THEFT.
• AFGHAN / BIN LADEN Voice of America 09 November 1998 -- IN AFGHANISTAN, THE TALEBAN SUPREME COURT HAS SET NOVEMBER 20TH AS THE DEADLINE FOR RECEIVING ANY EVIDENCE OF TERRORISM BY SAUDI MILITANT OSAMA BIN LADEN.
• U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing , NOVEMBER 9, 1998 -- The Taliban has set a deadline of November 20 for the United States to prove that Bin Laden is a terrorist or else they are going to consider the case resolved or in his favor.
• ISRAEL / CYPRUS SPIES Voice of America 07 November 1998 -- TWO ISRAELI MEN HAVE BEEN ARRESTED IN CYPRUS ON CHARGES OF SPYING.
• KURDS / IRAQ Voice of America 07 November 1998 -- THE LEADER OF ONE THE MAIN KURDISH FACTIONS IN NORTHERN IRAQ SAYS HE IS OPPOSED TO U-S PLANS TO OVERTHROW IRAQI PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSSEIN.
• TEXT: US GRAND JURY INDICTMENT AGAINST USAMA BIN LADEN USIA 05 November 1998 -- A U.S. Federal Grand Jury in New York on Nov. 5 issued an indictment against Usama Bin Laden alleging that he and others engaged in a long-term conspiracy to attack U.S. facilities overseas and to kill American citizens.
• AFGHAN / BIN LADEN Voice of America 05 November 1998 -- AFGHANISTAN'S TALEBAN MOVEMENT IS CRITICIZING A FIVE-MILLION DOLLAR REWARD BY THE U-S GOVERNMENT FOR THE CAPTURE OF SAUDI MILITANT OSAMA BIN LADEN.
• BIN LADEN INDICTED Voice of America 04 November 1998 -- U-S AUTHORITIES IN NEW YORK CHARGED SAUDI MILLIONAIRE OSAMA BIN LADEN -- AND HIS TOP AIDE -- WITH 224 COUNTS OF MURDER IN THE AUGUST BOMBINGS OF THE U-S EMBASSIES IN KENYA AND TANZANIA, AND OFFERED A HUGE REWARD FOR THEIR CAPTURE.
• NRC STATEMENT ON NUCLEAR PLANT OPERATIONAL SAFEGUARDS PROGRAM November 4, 1998 -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has not diminished its security requirements at commercial nuclear power plants around the country. Published reports asserting the NRC has eliminated the only program for testing the ability of nuclear power plants to repel terrorists are misleading.
• REWARD OFFER: OSAMA BIN LADEN AND MOHAMMAD ATEF USIA 04 November 1998 -- The Department of State is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information that leads to the arrest and/or conviction anywhere in the world of Osama Bin Laden and his military commander, Mohammad Atef.
• MARTIN LIBICKI ON GLOBAL INFORMATION SECURITY USIA 04 November 1998 -- Libicki cites law enforcement as a primary area where global information security can be enhanced. He calls for "the harmonization of national laws against computer attack, multinational cooperation in tracing attacks across national lines, international treaties on extradition of attackers, and a readiness to impose sanctions on those who protect attackers.
• BIN LADEN, ATEF INDICTED IN US FEDERAL COURT FOR AFRICAN BOMBINGS By Judy Aita USIA 04 November 1998 -- Usama bin Laden and Muhammad Atef were indicted November 4 in Manhattan federal court for the August 7 bombings of the US embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and for conspiring to kill Americans outside the United States.
• JEFFREY HUNKER ON CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROTECTION USIA 04 November 1998 -- "The full support of the private sector" is vital in protecting U.S. critical infrastructures against cyber attack, says Dr. Jeffrey A. Hunker, Director of the Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office (CIAO). "The threat that we are facing is a threat that's growing over time," he says. "And so we need to respond with a sense of urgency and produce real results very quickly to combat it."
• RUSSIAN DUMA MEMBERS DISCUSS CORRUPTION, CRIME PREVENTION By Rick Marshall USIA 03 November 1998 -- A group of Russian legislators visited Washington recently to learn more about how the United States deals with official corruption, money laundering, and organized crime.
• ROSLYN MAZER ADDRESSES INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY INFORMATION AND CLASSIFICATION MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE NOVEMBER 2, 1998 - Roslyn A. Mazer, Chair of the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel (ISCAP) discussed how ISCAP could generate a more efficient declassification program without compromising the current functioning of the intelligence community or any other aspect of our national security.