Coffee Shops and Espionage
Café de Flore, 172 boulevard Saint-Germain (Paris, 6e). Photo: Celette. CC BY-SA 4.0. The habits and language of clandestinity can intoxicate even its own practitioners.” — William Colby Coffee shops…
The Arizona Rangers: From Frontier Justice to Modern Law Enforcement
Arizona Ranger William K. Foster on right with Winchester Model 1895 rifle. Foster enlisted in the Rangers in 1903. Deputy Sheriff C. H. Farrnsworth is on left with Marlin rifle…
The US Military Liaison Mission: A Cold War Intelligence Legacy
Two USMLM personnel prepare for a tour in East Germany in 1964. Photo: US Department of Defense. The United States Military Liaison Mission (USMLM) was one of the three allied…
The Five Eyes Intelligence Alliance: Enhancing Global Security and Cooperation
Headquarters of the National Security Agency (NSA) at Fort Mead, Maryland. Photo: National Security Agency. The Five Eyes (FVEY) intelligence alliance is a partnership between five English-speaking countries: the United…
Bruce Dowding: The Aussie Hero of the French Resistance
An American officer and a French partisan in 1944. Photo: National Archives. “Throughout France, the Resistance had been of inestimable value in the campaign. Without their great assistance, the liberation…
Operation JAWBREAKER: How the CIA Laid the Groundwork for the War on Terror
Northern Alliance troops under General Dostum’s command in Mazar-e Sharif, December 2001. Photo SSGT Cecilo Ricardo, US Air Force Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but…
The Westminster Munitions Unit: How Parliament Hid a Secret WW2 Weapons Factory
UK Parliament lit up for Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th Birthday, 2016. Photo Attribution: Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0 Victory at all costs, victory in spite…
Argo: The CIA’s Secret Mission to Rescue Six Americans in Iran
CIA technical specialists created a fake movie-production company to rescue six American diplomats in Tehran, Iran. Photo: Central Intelligence Agency. Every intelligence agency is ultimately judged on its ability to…
The Auxiliary Units: Britain’s Secret WW2 Resistance Fighters
Auxiliary Unit Operational Base reconstruction at Parham Airfield Museum, Suffolk. Photo: Galius Comelius. CC BY-SA 4.0. If you will not fight for right when you can easily win without bloodshed;…
Project AZORIAN: The CIA’s Secret Mission to Raise a Soviet Submarine
USNS Hughes Glomar Explorer A wise man knows his limitations.’ And a bold one seizes opportunities.” ― Tom Clancy, The Hunt for Red October. Project AZORIAN was a covert operation…