A covert operation is a military or political activity performed in secrecy that would break specific laws or compromise policy in another country. Covert operations almost always illegal in the target state and are sometimes in violation of the laws of the enacting country. Politics is the process by which groups make decisions. ...

Covert operations employed in situations where openly operating against a target would be politically or diplomatically risky, or jeopardize the mission's success. In the case of enemies, there may be issues regarding military strength, treaties, laws, moral principles, or aversion to negative media attention. Operations may be directed at allies and friends to secure their support or to influence their policy against an enemy. Covert operations differ from espionage by attempting to influence events in another country rather than gathering information about it. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Espionage (spying) is a practice of obtaining information about an organization or a society that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. ...

The best-known organizations specializing in covert operations today are the Central Intelligence Agency and the U.S. Department of Defense (The Pentagon), but covert operations have been employed by many national and sub-national governments and other organizations for centuries, with or without a formal intelligence agency. They are an established and often controversial component of foreign policy throughout the world. The equivalent Soviet terminology would be "active measures". The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an intelligence agency of the United States Government. ... The United States Department of Defense, abbreviated DoD or DOD and sometimes called the Defense Department, is a civilian Cabinet organization of the United States government. ... The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located at 48 N. Rotary Road, Arlington, Virginia 22211 (Map). ... An intelligence agency is a governmental organization devoted to gathering of information by means of espionage, communication interception, cryptanalysis, cooperation with other institutions, and evaluation of public sources. ... A foreign policy is a set of political goals that seeks to outline how a particular country will interact with the other countries of the world. ... Active Measures (Russian: Активные мероприятия) are a form of political warfare conducted by the Soviet secret police services (Cheka, OGPU, NKVD, KGB, GRU, FSB, and SVR) to influence a course of world events [1], in addition to collecting intelligence. ...

Law enforcement agencies also use covert operations to infiltrate suspected criminal organizations. For the band, see The Police. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Organized crime. ...

Forms of covert operations

Covert action takes many different forms reflecting the diverse circumstances in which it is used. There are paramilitary operations, in which a state trains, supports, or advises a military force in another country. There is political subversion, in which a state supports or advises a political group in another country or directs propaganda at its population. In disinformation operations, a government provides forged documents to another government to turn that government against an enemy. Some of the most controversial covert actions are those directed against individuals, such as kidnappings, assassinations, and coups d'état. A paramilitary organization is a group of civilians trained and organized in a military fashion. ... Subversion is an overturning or uprooting. ... An Australian anti-conscription propaganda poster from World War One Propaganda is a type of message aimed at influencing the opinions or behavior of people. ... Disinformation, in the context of espionage, military intelligence, and propaganda, is the spreading of deliberately false information to mislead an enemy as to ones position or course of action. ... Forgery is the process of making or adapting objects or documents (see false document), with the intention to deceive. ... assassin, see Assassin (disambiguation) Jack Ruby assassinated Lee Harvey Oswald in a very public manner. ... A coup d’état (pronounced ), or simply coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government through unconstitutional means by a part of the state establishment — mostly replacing just the high-level figures. ...

A common tactic in covert operations is to establish a front business or organization through which agents can operate unrecognized. Air America, the CIA-owned airline that supplied Hmong fighters in Laos during the Second Indochina War, is an example of such a front organization. A front organization (or organisation), also known as a front group (if it is structured to look like a voluntary association); a front company, a shell corporation or simply a front (if it is structured to look like a company), is any entity set up by and controlled by another... Air America pilot cap Air America was an American airline secretly controlled by the CIA that supplied and supported covert operations in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. ... The terms Hmong (IPA:) and Mong () both refer to an Asian ethnic group whose homeland is in the mountainous regions of southern China. ... The Vietnam War was a war fought between 1957 and 1975 on the ground in South Vietnam and bordering areas of Cambodia and Laos (See Secret War) and in bombing runs (Rolling Thunder) over North Vietnam. ...

Examples of covert operations

"Studies and Observation Group" (1964-1972)

This campaign against North Vietnam—the largest and most complex covert operation since World War II—was conducted by the Pentagon's Special Operations Group (under the cover name "Studies and Observation Group") between 1964 and 1972. It involved dispatching spies, psychological warfare, manipulation of North Vietnamese POWs, kidnapping, dirty tricks, commando raids, and operations on the Ho Chi Minh trail ^[1]. The Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRVN), or less commonly, Vietnamese Democratic Republic (Vietnamese: Việt Nam Dân Chủ Cá»™ng Hòa), also known as North Vietnam, was proclaimed by Ho Chi Minh in Hanoi, September 2nd1945 and was recognized by the Peoples Republic of China and the... Combatants Allied Powers Axis Powers Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000,000 Total dead: 50,000,000 Military dead: 8,000,000 Civilian dead: 4,000,000 Total dead 12,000,000 World War II (abbreviated WWII), or the Second World War, was a worldwide conflict... Look up pentagon in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Special Operations Group (SOG) is a tactical team composed of Deputy US Marshals for special operations. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... In military science, the term commando can refer to an individual, a military unit or a raiding style of military operation. ... The Ho Chi Minh trail was a logistical system that ran from the Democratic Republic of (North) Vietnam (DRV) to South Vietnam through the neighboring countries of Laos and Cambodia. ...

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

The creation of Bangladesh is rated as one of the most successful covert operation in modern times. It was well planned and carried out by India's external intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). A RAW assessment sent to the Prime Minister of India spelt out the need for surgical intervention as the reports that came in gave positive indications that Pakistan was preparing for war. RAW received the green signal. RAW established guerrilla training camps along the border and began to train an illegal army, known as Mukti Bahini. The Bangladesh operation took place in two phases: covert subversion (Indian operatives would get into East Pakistan, arm the local population and capitalise on the frustrations brewing) and military intervention. Phase one was coordinated by R.N Kao, the director of RAW and phase two was carried out under the leadership of Indian Army's Chief General, Manekshaw, both reporting directly to Indira Gandhi, India's then Prime Minister. The mission was a success, with Pakistani Army surrendering to India within four days of intense combat resulting in the formation of Bangladesh. Combatants India Pakistan Commanders Sam Manekshaw J.S. Aurora A. A. K. Niazi # Strength 500,000+ troops[] 400,000+ troops[] Casualties 3,843 killed[1] 9,851 wounded[1] c. ... Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW)[1] is Indias external intelligence agency. ... The Prime Minister of India is, in practice, the most powerful person in the government of India. ... Liberation War commemoration poster Mukti Bahini (Bangla: মুক্তি বাহিনী) (Liberation Army), was a guerrilla force which fought against the Pakistan Army during the Bangladesh War of Independence in 1971. ... East Pakistan was a former province of Pakistan which existed between 1955 and 1971. ... The Indian Army is the largest branch of the Armed Forces of India and has the primary responsibility of conducting land-based military operations. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Pakistan Army Coat of Arms Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistan Military responsible for land based military operations. ...

Operation Wrath of God

Operation Wrath of God was conducted by Mossad and resulted in the assassination of Palestinians who organized the murder of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany. The operation was ordered in response to the massacre of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics. ...   (Hebrew: המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations, often referred to as The Mossad, meaning The Institute) is Israels intelligence agency and is responsible for intelligence collection, counter-terrorism, covert operations such as paramilitary activities, and the facilitation of aliyah where it is banned. ... The operation was ordered in response to the massacre of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics. ... The term Palestinian has other usages, for which see definitions of Palestinian. ... One of the Black September terrorists on the balcony of the Israeli team quarters at the Olympic village The Munich massacre occurred during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany, when members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage by the Palestinian organization Black September, a militant group... Coordinates: Time zone: CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Administration Country: Germany State: Bavaria Administrative region: Upper Bavaria District: Urban district City subdivisions: 25 borroughs Lord Mayor: Christian Ude (SPD) Governing parties: SPD / Greens / Rosa Liste Basic Statistics Area: 310. ...

COINTELPRO (Late 1960s - Mid 1970s)

In Operation COINTELPRO, the FBI infiltrated and disrupted domestic left-leaning political groups during the Cold War. COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program) is a program of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation aimed at investigating and disrupting dissident political organizations within the United States. ... COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program) is a program of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation aimed at investigating and disrupting dissident political organizations within the United States. ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ... For other uses, see Cold War (disambiguation). ...

Iran-Contra Affair (1980s)

The Iran-Contra Affair, also known as Irangate, took place in Nicaragua. Former National Security advisor Robert McFarlane and Admiral John Poindexter helped the National Security Council raise private and foreign funds. The United States sold military arms to the Contras for three main reasons: first, to aid the Contras against the Sandanista government in Nicaragua; second, to use the weapons sale proceeds to fund the exchange of the 66 hostages from the United States embassy in Iran; and third, to hinder the advancement of communism. The Iran-Contra Affair (also called the Iran-Contra Matter and Iran-gate) was one of the largest political scandals in the United States during the 1980s. ... The Iran-Contra Affair (also called the Iran-Contra Matter and Iran-gate) was one of the largest political scandals in the United States during the 1980s. ... In the Iran-Contra Affair, United States President Ronald Reagans administration secretly sold arms to Iran, which was engaged in a bloody war with its neighbor Iraq from 1980 to 1988 (see Iran-Iraq War), and diverted the proceeds to the Contra rebels fighting to overthrow the leftist and...

Notable covert operators

The following persons are known to have participated in covert operations, either by their own admission or by the accounts of others:

• Gary Berntsen, CIA field officer and team leader during Operation Enduring Freedom.
• Eric Haney, former founding member of Delta Force.
• Chuck Pfarrer, former Navy SEAL.
• Mike Spann, CIA field officer and the first Agency operative to be killed in action during Operation Enduring Freedom.
• Gary Schroen, CIA field officer who led the first CIA team into Afghanistan during the opening stages of Operation Enduring Freedom.
• Billy Waugh, CIA covert contractor and former Green Beret.

Gary Berntsen is a decorated former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) career officer who spent 23 years with the agency between October 1982 and June 2005. ... Combatants United States Canada United Kingdom Philippines (in the Philippines theatre only) Northern Alliance Taliban al-Qaeda Abu Sayyaf Jemaah Islamiyah Commanders General Tommy Franks Brig. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (1st SFOD-D), commonly referred to as Delta within the U.S. Army or as Delta Force by the general public and officially recognized by the Department of Defense as the Combat Applications Group, is a Special Operations Force (SOF) and an integral... Chuck Pfarrer was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on April 13, 1957, but he considers Biloxi, Mississippi, to be his hometown. ... SEALs in from the water. ... Johnny Micheal Spann Johnny Micheal Spann (March 1, 1969 - November 25, 2001) was the first American killed in combat after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. ... Combatants United States Canada United Kingdom Philippines (in the Philippines theatre only) Northern Alliance Taliban al-Qaeda Abu Sayyaf Jemaah Islamiyah Commanders General Tommy Franks Brig. ... Gary Schroen worked for the CIA for over 20 years, rising from case officer to Deputy Chief, Near East Division, Directorate of Operations in 1999, a post he held through 2001. ... Combatants United States Canada United Kingdom Philippines (in the Philippines theatre only) Northern Alliance Taliban al-Qaeda Abu Sayyaf Jemaah Islamiyah Commanders General Tommy Franks Brig. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Representations of covert operations in popular culture

Covert operations have often been the subject of popular novels, films, TV series, comics, etc.

Literature

See Spy fiction. The genre of spy fiction — sometimes called political thriller or spy thriller or sometimes shortened simply to Spy-fi — arose before World War I at about the same time that the first modern intelligence agencies were formed. ...

Film

See Spy film. The spy film genre deals with the subject of fictional espionage, either in a realistic way or as a basis for fantasy. ...

Television

• Spooks
• I Spy
• Mission: Impossible, 1963-1966, 1988-1990
• 24
• Alias, 2001-2006
• Nikita, 1997-2001

Spooks is a British television drama series, produced by the independent production company Kudos for BBC One. ... The I-SPY books were spotters guides written for British children, and particularly successful in the 1950s and 60s. ... Mission: Impossible is the name of an American television series which aired on the CBS network from September 1966 to September 1973. ... 24 is an Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning American television series created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran, and produced by Imagine Television. ... Alias was an American Spy-fi television series created by J. J. Abrams that aired on ABC from September 30, 2001 to May 22, 2006. ... Nikita (re-titled La Femme Nikita in the United States and other international markets) is a television spy drama based upon the French film directed by Luc Besson (see Nikita). ...

See also

• Military intelligence
• black op
• false flag
• SO10
• TALON - Threat And Local Observation Notice
• CIFA - Counterintelligence Field Activity
• COINTELPRO
• CHAOS
• MKULTRA
• 902nd Military Intelligence Group, Ft. Meade, Maryland
• Covert Warfare (book)
• Task Force Falcon

Military intelligence (abbreviated MI, int. ... The term black op has two related meanings: Black operation which is a type of covert operation. ... False flag operations are covert operations conducted by governments, corporations, or other organizations, which are designed to appear as if they are being carried out by other entities. ... SO10 was the Specialist Operations designation for the Metropolitan Polices Crime Operations Group. ... Counterintelligence Field Activity (CIFA) is a US Department of Defense (DoD) agency whose size and budget are classified. ... COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program) is a program of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation aimed at investigating and disrupting dissident political organizations within the United States. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Covert Warfare: Intelligence, Counterintelligence and Military Deception During the World War II Era is an eighteen volume book edited by John Mendelsohn and published in 1989 by Garland. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

References

1. Shultz, Richard H., Jr. The Secret War against Hanoi: Kennedy's and Johnson's Use of Spies, Saboteurs, and Covert Warriors in North Vietnam. HarperCollins, 1999. ISBN 0-06-019454-5.

External links

• Statutory Procedures Under Which Congress Is To Be Informed of U.S. Intelligence Activities, Including Covert Actions by Alfred Cumming, January 18, 2006 (HTML) - Congressional Research Service via thewall.civiblog.org
• Richard Hersh Statement to House Judiciary Democratic Congressional Briefing, January 20, 2006 (HTML) via thewall.civiblog.org
• Full Transcript, House Judiciary Democratic Membership Briefing "Constitution in Crisis: Domestic Surveillance and Executive Power" January 20, 2006 (HTML) via thewall.civiblog.org
• "Big Brother is Watching You Part 1 - 902 MI Group TALON Project Summary, Spreadsheet, Rep. Wexler response, and News Coverage collection (includes Shane Harris's "TIA Lives On") via thewall.civiblog.org