FBI’s Little-Known Alliance with U.S. Military in Afghanistan, Iraq Put Agents at Risk

Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the FBI was transformed into a counterterrorism organization, sending its agents to Iraq and Afghanistan for hundreds of raids. The Washington Post reports on a controversial, effective and little-known alliance between the FBI and the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). Some in the bureau questioned…

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Undercover FBI Agent Kept Tabs on Three California Men Accused of Plotting Terrorist Attacks

Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com Three California men charged with plotting terrorist attacks on Americans and military bases overseas were planning to join the Taliban in Afghanistan and eventually fight for al-Qaida, the FBI said, the Associated Press reports. Little did they know, an undercover agent was recording their conversations. “The main lesson learned is: Don’t underestimate…

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Former FBI Agent Indicted on Charges of Trying to Derail a Federal Investigation into Defense Contracts

Steve Neavling ticklethewire.com  A former FBI agent, along with a defense contractor, was indicted Thursday for participating in what authorities say was a multimillion-dollar scheme to win military contracts in Afghanistan, the Associated Press reports. An FBI special agent assigned to counterintelligence work until September 2011, Robert G. Lustyik, 50, is accused of using his…

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NATO Takes Out 2nd-Highest al Qaeda Leader in Afghanistan

Shoshanna Utchenik ticklethewire.com The U.S. led-NATO forces chalked up a major score in Afghanistan. Al Qaeda’s second-highest Afghan leader, Sakhr al-Taifi, was killed by a NATO airstrike in eastern Kunar province on Sunday, reports the AP. Al-Taifi, also known as Mushtaq and Nasim, commanded foreign insurgents in Afghanistan and directed attacks against NATO and Afghan…

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One of Largest Heroin Traffickers in the World Convicted on Drug and Narco-Terrorism Charges

By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com An Afghan national with ties to the Taliban who authorities described as “one of the largest heroin traffickers in the world” was convicted Tuesday in fed court in D.C. on drug and narco-terrrorism charges, the Justice Department said. Haji Bagcho, who hailed from Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, was investigated by the DEA….

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