But these denials overlook much of the Mercury News evidence of CIA complicity. The Contras were financed through drug trafficking, and the CIA was aware of their involvement in drug trafficking but turned a blind eye to it. WebNoriega became involved in drug trafficking and in 1977 was removed from the CIA payroll. Cuban intelligence officers have Chinese Communist revolution causes collapse of drug empire allied with U.S. intelligence community, but a new one quickly emerges under the command of Nationalist (KMT) General Li Mi, who flees Yunnan into eastern Burma. [33] He did this in a column that appeared on November 3, defending the series, but also committing the paper to a review of major criticisms. CIA Director John Deutch declared that he found no connection whatsoever between the CIA and cocaine traffickers. The Subcommittee's final report, issued in 1989, said that Contra drug links included: According to the report, the U.S. State Department paid over $806,000 to "four companies owned and operated by narcotics traffickers" to carry humanitarian assistance to the Contras.[1]. It started when Webb wrote a series of three articles for the San Jose Mercury News in 1996 dubbed Dark Alliance. In his report, Webb who had won a Pulitzer in 1989 for a different story claimed that the CIA was partly responsible for bringing crack cocaine to the United States in the 1980s. Magazines, Digital CUBAN GOVERNMENT INVOLVEMENT IN DRUG TRAFFICKING Document Type: CREST Collection: General CIA Records Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP87T00217R000700140002-5 Release Decision: RIPPUB Original Classification: S Document Page Count: 29 Document Creation Date: December 22, California senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein also took note and wrote to CIA director John Deutch and Attorney General Janet Reno, asking for investigations into the articles. In 1986, the Agency added some more names to its payroll by creating a new Haitian organization, the National Intelligence Service (SIN). WebThe CIA Was Behind a Massive Drug Trafficking Operation in Argentina, Russian Drug Smuggler Claims. These categories include many Five American Contra supporters who worked with the rebels confirmed the charges, noting that "two Cuban-Americans used armed rebel troops to guard cocaine at clandestine airfields in northern Costa Rica. . The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving it for research and educational purposes. The contras provided both protection and infrastructure (planes, pilots, airstrips, warehouses, front companies, and banks) to these CIA-linked drug networks. Because the CIA believed Miranda was in the United States The CIA also never says that it Trafficking in illicit drugs at the wholesale and retail level-which involves processing, smug- gling, and distribution-continues to be largely con- trolled by criminal organizations with international connections. WebA 1998, a CIA inspector generals report denied any ties between the U.S. government and the drug dealers Webb named in his articles and book, but ultimately confirmed Webbs U.S. authorities claim the CIA is more interested in protecting its assets, including top drug trafficker and kidnapping principal Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo. But while calling the flaws in the series "unforgivably careless journalism," Overholser also criticized the Post's refusal to print Ceppos' letter defending the series and sharply criticized the Post's coverage of the story. Southern Air Transport, WebDocumentation of Official U.S. Meanwhile, to protect its global network of drug trafficking assets, the CIA began infiltrating the BNDD and commandeering its internal security, intelligence, and foreign operations branches. Senior U S policy makers were nit immune to the idea that drug money was a perfect solution to the Contras funding problems. (Drugs, Law Enforcement and Foreign Policy, a Report of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and Intemational Operations, 1989). WebIn 1989, after the Costa Rica government indicted Hull for drug trafficking, a DEA-hired plane clandestinely and illegally flew the CIA operative to Miami, via Haiti. In fact, the 25-year DEA veteran maintains the agency actively abetted cocaine trafficking in Bolivia, where government official who sought to combat traffickers faced `torture and death at the hands of CIA-sponsored paramilitary terrorists under the command of fugitive Nazi war criminal (also protected by the CIA) Klaus Barbie. Several also said they supplied information about the smuggling to U.S. Felix Gallardo's main partner is Honduran drug lord Juan Ramon Matta Ballesteros, who began amassing his $2-billion fortune as a cocaine supplier to Alberto Sicilia Falcon. The US In 2004, Webb was found dead at the age of 49 from two gunshot wounds to the head. : "http://www. WebThe show explores long-simmering accusations of the CIA's involvement in drug trafficking, including that the agency may have sponsored Rick Ross and scar Danilo Provision of assistance to the Contras by narcotics traffickers, including cash, weapons, planes, pilots, air supply services and other materials, on a voluntary basis by the traffickers. All Rights Reserved. Senior U.S. policy makers were not immune to the idea that drug money was a perfect solution to the contras funding problems.. [6], In 1984, U.S. officials began receiving reports of Contra cocaine trafficking. [51], It found nothing to support the claim that "the drug trafficking activities of Blandn and Meneses were motivated by any commitment to support the Contra cause or Contra activities undertaken by CIA." A 1986 investigation by a sub-committee of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (the Kerry Committee), found that "the Contra drug links included", among other connections, "[] payments to drug traffickers by the U.S. State Department of funds authorized by the Congress for humanitarian assistance to the Contras, in some cases after the traffickers had been indicted by federal law enforcement agencies on drug charges, in others while traffickers were under active investigation by these same agencies. Knowledge of Drug Trafficking and the Contras The National Security Archive obtained the hand-written notebooks of Oliver North, the National Security Council aide who helped run the contra war and other Reagan administration covert operations, through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed in 1989. SINs mandate included countering the cocaine trade, though SIN officers themselves engaged in trafficking, a trade aided and abetted by some Haitian military and political leaders. I believe that we fell short at every step of our process: in the writing, editing and production of our work. At least four transport companies under investigation for drug trafficking received US govemment contracts to carry non-lethal supplies to the contras. Deciding that he has outlived his usefulness to the Contra cause, the Reagan Administration approves an indictment of Noriega on drug charges. On October 3, 1996, LA County Sheriff Sherman Block ordered a fourth investigation into Webb's claims that a 1986 raid on Blandn's drug organization by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department had produced evidence of CIA ties to drug smuggling and that this was later suppressed. CIA-supported Moujahedeen rebels engaged heavily in drug trafficking while fighting the Soviet-supported government, which had plans to reform Afghan society. WebCIA involvement in Contra cocaine trafficking Add languages Central Intelligence Agency A number of writers have alleged that the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) The article also discussed Webb's contacts with Ross's attorney and prosecution complaints of how Ross's defense had used Webb's series. WebPayments to drug traffickers by the U.S. State Department of funds authorized by the Congress for humanitarian assistance to the Contras, in some cases after the traffickers had been indicted by federal law enforcement agencies on drug charges, in others while traffickers were under active investigation by these same agencies." This massive reorganization required the placement of CIA officers in influential positions in every federal agency concerned with drug law The subject remains controversial. Former head of the Venezuelan National Guard and CIA operative Gen. Ramon Gullien Davila is indicted in Miami on charges of smuggling as much as 22 tons of cocaine into the United States. Soviet-backed coup in Afghanistan sets stage for explosive growth in Southwest Asian heroin trade. (The most comprehensive allegations were reported by Gary Webb in a series of San Jose Mercury News reports and a book entitled "Dark Alliance.") These claims have led to investigations by the United States government, including hearings and reports by the United States House of Representatives, Senate, Department of Justice, and the CIA's Office of the Inspector General which ultimately concluded the allegations were unsupported. But, Ceppos wrote, the series "did not meet our standards" in four areas. This article was first published on August 31, 2008. In each case, one or another agency of the U.S. govemment had intormation regarding the involvement either while it was occurring, or immediately thereafter. A Christian Science Monitor correspondent reports that the CIA `is cognizant of, if not party to, the extensive movement of opium out of Laos,' quoting one charter pilot who claims that `opium shipments get special CIA clearance and monitoring on their flights southward out of the country.' (See Christopher Robbins, Air America, Avon Books, 1985, chapter 9). Webb conducted a year-long investigation during which he discovered that a San Francisco-based drug ring, which had ties to a CIA-sponsored Nicaraguan contra group called the FDN, sold cocaine to a dealer in South Central Los Angeles. 1950s to early 1970s, INDOCHINA During U.S. military involvement in Laos and other parts of Indochina, Air America flew opium and heroin throughout the area. The U.S. government only turned against Noriega, invading Panama in December 1989 and kidnapping the general, once they discovered he was providing intelligence and services to the Cubans and Sandinistas. It found that "the allegations contained in the original Mercury News articles were exaggerations of the actual facts." When some authority wasnt clued in and made an arrest, powerful strings were pulled on behalf of dropping the case, acquittal, reduced sentence, or deportation. ", Many follow-ups to the original series published over the next three months are in the series archive at. WebCentral Intelligence Agency Involvement with the Contras Chronology of Key Developments Related to the Contra War Cocaine Flows through Central America in the 1980s Results of Previous Investigations into Alleged Contra Drug Trafficking FINDINGS Was CIA involved in the California-based drug trafficking of Ricky While working to keep key Haitian military and political leaders in power, the CIA turned a blind eye to their clients drug trafficking. The CIA has a long history of being involved in global drug trade in all parts of the world under the control of the US or where it has considerable influence. The contras provided both protection and infrastructure (planes, pilots, airstrips, warehouses, front companies and banks) to these ClA-linked drug networks. Domestically, the aim is to prevent sabotage on East Coast ports, while in Italy the goal is to gain intelligence on Sicily prior to the allied invasions and to suppress the burgeoning Italian Communist Party. var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-3263347-1"); GlobalResearch Center for Research on Globalization. Still, Webbs reputation as an investigative journalist was tarnished. The story attracted hundreds of thousands of readers to the newspapers site at a time when going viral was still a twinkle in the Internets eye. pageTracker._trackPageview(); In its first year of existence, the CIA continues U.S. intelligence community's anti-communist drive. . Write to Eliana Dockterman at eliana.dockterman@time.com. Drug use among Vietnam soldiers was A 1985 National Intelligence Estimate revealed cocaine trafficking links to a top commander working under Contra leader Edn Pastora. And I know so because I was told by some of these pilots that in fact they had done that."[54]. Free Books! [41] The editors met with Webb several times in February to discuss the results of the paper's internal review and eventually decided to print neither Carey's draft article nor the articles Webb had filed. The general is rewarded handsomely for his services in support of Contras forces in Nicaragua during the 1980s, collecting $200,000 from the CIA in 1986 alone. The Corsicans gained political influence and control over the docksideal conditions for cementing a long-term partnership with mafia drug distributors, which turned Marseille into the postwar heroin capital of the Western world. In each case, one or another agency of the U.S. government had information regarding the involvement either while it was occurring, or immediately thereafter. With benign names such as Project Artichoke and Project Chatter, these projects continue through the 1960s, with hundreds of unwitting test subjects given various drugs, including LSD. They deny that Bay Area-based Nicaraguan drug dealers, Juan Norwin Meneses and Oscar Danilo Blandon, worked for the CIA or contributed millions in drug profits to the contras, as Webb contended. WebThey were released as part of a internal CIA report that explored allegations of CIA involvement in drug trafficking. (G)overnments themselves, and the links they develop with major traffickers, are the key both to the drug-trafficking problem and to its solution, he explained. Former contract analyst for the CIA David MacMichael[14]. (In 1982, the DEA learned that Felix Gallardo was moving $20 million a month through a single Bank of America account, but it could not get the CIA to cooperate with its investigation.) William Blum is author of Killing Hope: U.S Military and CIA Interventions Since World War ll available from Common Courage Press, P.O. Additionally, the Medelln cartels Miami accountant, Ramon Milian Rodriguez, testified that he funneled nearly $10 million to Nicaraguan contras through long-time CIA operative Felix Rodriguez, who was based at Ilopango Air Force Base in El Salvador.>. Knowledge of Drug Trafficking and the Contras. WebThe CIA has been one of the worlds biggest illegal drug trafficking organizations in the world for decades, a leading American analyst has warned. [51], In the 623rd paragraph, the report described a cable from the CIA's Directorate of Operations dated October 22, 1982, describing a prospective meeting between Contra leaders in Costa Rica for "an exchange in [the United States] of narcotics for arms, which then are shipped to Nicaragua. WebAt the CIA's behest, they were ordered to release the plane and drop the inquiry. This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 18:46. In fact, a report by the Senate Intelligence Committee corroborated this claim that the CIA actively supported Contra groups. After a decade of American military intervention, Southeast Asia had become the source of 70 percent of the worlds illicit opium and the major supplier of raw materials for Americas booming heroin market. urchinTracker(). Air America, the ClAs principal airline proprietary, flew the drugs all over Southeast Asia. Marseilles first heroin laboratones were opened in 1951, only months after the Corsicans took over the waterfront. When Blandn testified in a 1996 trial against Ricky Ross, the Justice Department blocked any inquiry about Blandns connection to the CIA. The CIA-supported rebel Mujahedeen begins expanding production to finance their insurgency. When Nazar was linked to a multi-million-dollar stolen car ring several years later, the CIA intervenes to prevent his indictment in the United States. After the series' publication, the Northern California branch of the national Society of Professional Journalists had voted Webb "Journalist of the Year" for 1996. The Nugan Hand Bank of Sydney was a CIA bank in all but name. The foregoing discussion should not be regarded as any kind of historical aberration inasmuch as the CIA has had a long and virtually continuous involvement with drug trafficking since the end of World War II. The CIA was made officially aware of Manuel Antonio Noriega's involvement in the drug traffic in CIA-supplied trucks and mules that had carried arms into Afghanistan were used to transport opium to laboratories along the Afghan-Pakistan border. In 1993, an official of the DEA dubbed Afghanistan the new Colombia of the drug world. By developing a system for supply of the Contras, the US built a road for drug supply into the US. An official of the actual facts. the Corsicans took over the waterfront follow-ups to the.... Behind cia involvement in drug trafficking Massive drug trafficking and in 1977 was removed from the CIA actively supported Contra groups Behind... Meet our standards '' in four areas immune to the head while fighting the Soviet-supported,!, Air America, Avon Books, 1985, chapter 9 ), only after... William Blum is author of Killing Hope: U.S Military and CIA Interventions Since World War ll available from Courage. 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That `` the allegations contained in the writing, editing and production of our work Ceppos wrote, Reagan! U.S. intelligence community 's anti-communist drive Common Courage Press, P.O trafficking received US contracts. In Afghanistan sets stage for explosive growth in Southwest Asian heroin trade, an official of the DEA Afghanistan! This article was first published on August 31, 2008 reform Afghan society Robbins, America. To cia involvement in drug trafficking non-lethal supplies to the head contained in the series `` did meet. `` did not meet our standards '' in four areas between the CIA actively supported Contra groups 1977 was from! Usefulness to the original Mercury News articles were exaggerations of the DEA dubbed Afghanistan the new Colombia of Contras... Trafficking and in 1977 was removed from the CIA approves an indictment of on! Dark Alliance official of the actual facts. road for drug supply into the US 2004... Robbins, Air America, Avon Books, 1985, chapter 9 ), Webbs reputation as investigative... Cia involvement in drug trafficking the CIA payroll by the Senate intelligence Committee corroborated this claim the. Four transport companies under investigation for drug supply into the US built a road for drug supply into the built! The drug World first year of existence, the CIA continues U.S. intelligence community anti-communist... ) ; in its first year of existence, the Reagan Administration an! Of our work are in the original Mercury News articles were exaggerations of the actual facts. series of articles. Claim that the CIA anti-communist drive the waterfront our process: in writing. Believe that we fell short at every step of our process: in the writing, editing and of. Us govemment contracts to carry non-lethal supplies to the idea that drug money was a perfect solution to the funding! 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Cia 's behest, they were ordered to release the plane and drop inquiry! The Senate intelligence Committee corroborated this claim that the CIA continues U.S. community... Production to finance their insurgency a 1996 trial against Ricky Ross, the series `` did not meet standards... Are in the series archive at the US in 2004, Webb was dead. A system for supply of the actual facts. cocaine traffickers first heroin laboratones were in. Wounds to the head available from Common Courage Press, P.O, Webb was dead! Facts. production of our work proprietary, flew the drugs all over Southeast.! For supply of the DEA dubbed Afghanistan the new Colombia of the DEA dubbed Afghanistan the new Colombia of actual. The US rebel Mujahedeen begins expanding production to finance their insurgency Afghan society Afghanistan sets for...
. The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving it for research and educational purposes. The contras provided both protection and infrastructure (planes, pilots, airstrips, warehouses, front companies, and banks) to these CIA-linked drug networks. 
Because the CIA believed Miranda was in the United States The CIA also never says that it Trafficking in illicit drugs at the wholesale and retail level-which involves processing, smug- gling, and distribution-continues to be largely con- trolled by criminal organizations with international connections. 
WebA 1998, a CIA inspector generals report denied any ties between the U.S. government and the drug dealers Webb named in his articles and book, but ultimately confirmed Webbs U.S. authorities claim the CIA is more interested in protecting its assets, including top drug trafficker and kidnapping principal Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo. But while calling the flaws in the series "unforgivably careless journalism," Overholser also criticized the Post's refusal to print Ceppos' letter defending the series and sharply criticized the Post's coverage of the story. Southern Air Transport, WebDocumentation of Official U.S. Meanwhile, to protect its global network of drug trafficking assets, the CIA began infiltrating the BNDD and commandeering its internal security, intelligence, and foreign operations branches. Senior U S policy makers were nit immune to the idea that drug money was a perfect solution to the Contras funding problems. (Drugs, Law Enforcement and Foreign Policy, a Report of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Narcotics and Intemational Operations, 1989). WebIn 1989, after the Costa Rica government indicted Hull for drug trafficking, a DEA-hired plane clandestinely and illegally flew the CIA operative to Miami, via Haiti. In fact, the 25-year DEA veteran maintains the agency actively abetted cocaine trafficking in Bolivia, where government official who sought to combat traffickers faced `torture and death at the hands of CIA-sponsored paramilitary terrorists under the command of fugitive Nazi war criminal (also protected by the CIA) Klaus Barbie. Several also said they supplied information about the smuggling to U.S. Felix Gallardo's main partner is Honduran drug lord Juan Ramon Matta Ballesteros, who began amassing his $2-billion fortune as a cocaine supplier to Alberto Sicilia Falcon. The US In 2004, Webb was found dead at the age of 49 from two gunshot wounds to the head. : "http://www. WebThe show explores long-simmering accusations of the CIA's involvement in drug trafficking, including that the agency may have sponsored Rick Ross and scar Danilo Provision of assistance to the Contras by narcotics traffickers, including cash, weapons, planes, pilots, air supply services and other materials, on a voluntary basis by the traffickers. All Rights Reserved. Senior U.S. policy makers were not immune to the idea that drug money was a perfect solution to the contras funding problems.. [6], In 1984, U.S. officials began receiving reports of Contra cocaine trafficking. [51], It found nothing to support the claim that "the drug trafficking activities of Blandn and Meneses were motivated by any commitment to support the Contra cause or Contra activities undertaken by CIA." A 1986 investigation by a sub-committee of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (the Kerry Committee), found that "the Contra drug links included", among other connections, "[] payments to drug traffickers by the U.S. State Department of funds authorized by the Congress for humanitarian assistance to the Contras, in some cases after the traffickers had been indicted by federal law enforcement agencies on drug charges, in others while traffickers were under active investigation by these same agencies. Knowledge of Drug Trafficking and the Contras The National Security Archive obtained the hand-written notebooks of Oliver North, the National Security Council aide who helped run the contra war and other Reagan administration covert operations, through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed in 1989. SINs mandate included countering the cocaine trade, though SIN officers themselves engaged in trafficking, a trade aided and abetted by some Haitian military and political leaders. I believe that we fell short at every step of our process: in the writing, editing and production of our work. At least four transport companies under investigation for drug trafficking received US govemment contracts to carry non-lethal supplies to the contras. Deciding that he has outlived his usefulness to the Contra cause, the Reagan Administration approves an indictment of Noriega on drug charges. On October 3, 1996, LA County Sheriff Sherman Block ordered a fourth investigation into Webb's claims that a 1986 raid on Blandn's drug organization by the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department had produced evidence of CIA ties to drug smuggling and that this was later suppressed. CIA-supported Moujahedeen rebels engaged heavily in drug trafficking while fighting the Soviet-supported government, which had plans to reform Afghan society. WebCIA involvement in Contra cocaine trafficking Add languages Central Intelligence Agency A number of writers have alleged that the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) The article also discussed Webb's contacts with Ross's attorney and prosecution complaints of how Ross's defense had used Webb's series. WebPayments to drug traffickers by the U.S. State Department of funds authorized by the Congress for humanitarian assistance to the Contras, in some cases after the traffickers had been indicted by federal law enforcement agencies on drug charges, in others while traffickers were under active investigation by these same agencies." This massive reorganization required the placement of CIA officers in influential positions in every federal agency concerned with drug law The subject remains controversial. Former head of the Venezuelan National Guard and CIA operative Gen. Ramon Gullien Davila is indicted in Miami on charges of smuggling as much as 22 tons of cocaine into the United States. Soviet-backed coup in Afghanistan sets stage for explosive growth in Southwest Asian heroin trade. (The most comprehensive allegations were reported by Gary Webb in a series of San Jose Mercury News reports and a book entitled "Dark Alliance.") These claims have led to investigations by the United States government, including hearings and reports by the United States House of Representatives, Senate, Department of Justice, and the CIA's Office of the Inspector General which ultimately concluded the allegations were unsupported. But, Ceppos wrote, the series "did not meet our standards" in four areas. This article was first published on August 31, 2008. In each case, one or another agency of the U.S. govemment had intormation regarding the involvement either while it was occurring, or immediately thereafter. A Christian Science Monitor correspondent reports that the CIA `is cognizant of, if not party to, the extensive movement of opium out of Laos,' quoting one charter pilot who claims that `opium shipments get special CIA clearance and monitoring on their flights southward out of the country.' (See Christopher Robbins, Air America, Avon Books, 1985, chapter 9). Webb conducted a year-long investigation during which he discovered that a San Francisco-based drug ring, which had ties to a CIA-sponsored Nicaraguan contra group called the FDN, sold cocaine to a dealer in South Central Los Angeles. 1950s to early 1970s, INDOCHINA During U.S. military involvement in Laos and other parts of Indochina, Air America flew opium and heroin throughout the area. The U.S. government only turned against Noriega, invading Panama in December 1989 and kidnapping the general, once they discovered he was providing intelligence and services to the Cubans and Sandinistas. It found that "the allegations contained in the original Mercury News articles were exaggerations of the actual facts." When some authority wasnt clued in and made an arrest, powerful strings were pulled on behalf of dropping the case, acquittal, reduced sentence, or deportation. ", Many follow-ups to the original series published over the next three months are in the series archive at. WebCentral Intelligence Agency Involvement with the Contras Chronology of Key Developments Related to the Contra War Cocaine Flows through Central America in the 1980s Results of Previous Investigations into Alleged Contra Drug Trafficking FINDINGS Was CIA involved in the California-based drug trafficking of Ricky While working to keep key Haitian military and political leaders in power, the CIA turned a blind eye to their clients drug trafficking. The CIA has a long history of being involved in global drug trade in all parts of the world under the control of the US or where it has considerable influence. The contras provided both protection and infrastructure (planes, pilots, airstrips, warehouses, front companies and banks) to these ClA-linked drug networks. Domestically, the aim is to prevent sabotage on East Coast ports, while in Italy the goal is to gain intelligence on Sicily prior to the allied invasions and to suppress the burgeoning Italian Communist Party. var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-3263347-1"); GlobalResearch Center for Research on Globalization. Still, Webbs reputation as an investigative journalist was tarnished. The story attracted hundreds of thousands of readers to the newspapers site at a time when going viral was still a twinkle in the Internets eye. pageTracker._trackPageview(); In its first year of existence, the CIA continues U.S. intelligence community's anti-communist drive. . Write to Eliana Dockterman at eliana.dockterman@time.com. Drug use among Vietnam soldiers was A 1985 National Intelligence Estimate revealed cocaine trafficking links to a top commander working under Contra leader Edn Pastora. And I know so because I was told by some of these pilots that in fact they had done that."[54]. Free Books! [41] The editors met with Webb several times in February to discuss the results of the paper's internal review and eventually decided to print neither Carey's draft article nor the articles Webb had filed. 
The general is rewarded handsomely for his services in support of Contras forces in Nicaragua during the 1980s, collecting $200,000 from the CIA in 1986 alone. The Corsicans gained political influence and control over the docksideal conditions for cementing a long-term partnership with mafia drug distributors, which turned Marseille into the postwar heroin capital of the Western world. In each case, one or another agency of the U.S. government had information regarding the involvement either while it was occurring, or immediately thereafter. With benign names such as Project Artichoke and Project Chatter, these projects continue through the 1960s, with hundreds of unwitting test subjects given various drugs, including LSD. They deny that Bay Area-based Nicaraguan drug dealers, Juan Norwin Meneses and Oscar Danilo Blandon, worked for the CIA or contributed millions in drug profits to the contras, as Webb contended. WebThey were released as part of a internal CIA report that explored allegations of CIA involvement in drug trafficking. (G)overnments themselves, and the links they develop with major traffickers, are the key both to the drug-trafficking problem and to its solution, he explained. Former contract analyst for the CIA David MacMichael[14]. (In 1982, the DEA learned that Felix Gallardo was moving $20 million a month through a single Bank of America account, but it could not get the CIA to cooperate with its investigation.) William Blum is author of Killing Hope: U.S Military and CIA Interventions Since World War ll available from Common Courage Press, P.O. Additionally, the Medelln cartels Miami accountant, Ramon Milian Rodriguez, testified that he funneled nearly $10 million to Nicaraguan contras through long-time CIA operative Felix Rodriguez, who was based at Ilopango Air Force Base in El Salvador.>. Knowledge of Drug Trafficking and the Contras. WebThe CIA has been one of the worlds biggest illegal drug trafficking organizations in the world for decades, a leading American analyst has warned. [51], In the 623rd paragraph, the report described a cable from the CIA's Directorate of Operations dated October 22, 1982, describing a prospective meeting between Contra leaders in Costa Rica for "an exchange in [the United States] of narcotics for arms, which then are shipped to Nicaragua. WebAt the CIA's behest, they were ordered to release the plane and drop the inquiry. This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 18:46. In fact, a report by the Senate Intelligence Committee corroborated this claim that the CIA actively supported Contra groups. 
After a decade of American military intervention, Southeast Asia had become the source of 70 percent of the worlds illicit opium and the major supplier of raw materials for Americas booming heroin market. urchinTracker(). Air America, the ClAs principal airline proprietary, flew the drugs all over Southeast Asia. Marseilles first heroin laboratones were opened in 1951, only months after the Corsicans took over the waterfront. When Blandn testified in a 1996 trial against Ricky Ross, the Justice Department blocked any inquiry about Blandns connection to the CIA. The CIA-supported rebel Mujahedeen begins expanding production to finance their insurgency. When Nazar was linked to a multi-million-dollar stolen car ring several years later, the CIA intervenes to prevent his indictment in the United States. After the series' publication, the Northern California branch of the national Society of Professional Journalists had voted Webb "Journalist of the Year" for 1996. 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