Posted on 06/30/2020 10:42:11 PM PDT by upchuck
Analysts have used other evidence to conclude that the transfers were most likely part of an effort to offer payments to Taliban-linked militants to kill American and coalition troops in Afghanistan.
American officials intercepted electronic data showing large financial transfers from a bank account controlled by Russia’s military intelligence agency to a Taliban-linked account, evidence that supported their conclusion that Russia covertly offered bounties for killing U.S. and coalition troops in Afghanistan, according to three officials familiar with the intelligence.
Though the United States has accused Russia of providing general support to the Taliban before, analysts concluded from other intelligence that the transfers were most likely part of a bounty program that detainees described during interrogations.
Investigators also identified by name numerous Afghans in a network linked to the suspected Russian operation, the officials said — including, two of them added, a man believed to have served as an intermediary for distributing some of the funds and who is now thought to be in Russia.
The intercepts bolstered the findings gleaned from the interrogations, helping reduce an earlier disagreement among intelligence analysts and agencies over the reliability of the detainees. The disclosures further undercut White House officials’ claim that the intelligence was too uncertain to brief President Trump. In fact, the information was provided to him in his daily written brief in late February, two officials have said.
Afghan officials this week described a sequence of events that dovetailed with the account of the intelligence. They said that several businessmen who transfer money through the informal “hawala” system were arrested in Afghanistan over the past six months and were suspected of being part of a ring of middlemen who operated between the Russian intelligence agency, known as the G.R.U., and Taliban-linked militants...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Valid point that you make. But add to it...so the Taliban guys now have a financial guy that handles banking actions? So my question is...who else was sending cash flow to them? If an account exists, there must be various donations of cash flowing in and operating expenses. NYT should tell us the rest of the story.
This from the people that for 3 years peddeled the Russia collusion hoax and many other BS stories.
Strange how on one believes them anymore.
find and arrest the damn leakers. Use polygraphs
Trust no guess-work reporting that employs “most likely”, “believed to have” and conditional phrases. And this article is full of guess=work.
Lots of allegations there to make, for having zero name-able sources.
So, Russia wants Trump to win the election.
Trump in in cahoots with Putin.
Putin put a bounty on American soldiers in Afghanistan.
Trump is aware of it but doesn’t care as long as Putin backs him.
Oh, and more Americans have been killed in Chaz/Chop/Chuba in 2 weeks than in Afghanistan this year.
Got it.
Putin’s investment in Seattle is paying off better than the Afghanistan money. /s
And, the NSA said the assessment was Pure Crap. That is why it was not presented to the President.
Large amounts of cash probably tied to large amounts of opium manufactured in the country.
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