Posted on 03/19/2018 6:47:50 AM PDT by billorites
As director of the CIA, Mike Pompeo reportedly set up small teams of commandos to kill suspected terrorists, according to a report by BuzzFeed.
Pompeo, who has said the agency would become more "aggressive" and "vicious," pushed for such lethal operations after he took over the agency in January 2017. The military and the National Security Council were initially resistant to the plan, according to BuzzFeed, but the proposal was eventually approved.
"They are getting people on targeting lists," one of the sources told BuzzFeed. "Small teams are locating and killing bad guys. That's what we are doing."
"It's a small number where it has been kinetic, but it is happening," another source, a former intelligence official with knowledge of the program, told BuzzFeed.
The two sources also told BuzzFeed that Pompeo "pushed for the capabilities and the authorization to launch lethal ground operations."
The operations are being coordinated by the agency's Special Activities Center, which manages the CIA's paramilitary activities. The current head of the SAC, a former aide to both Pompeo and his predecessor, John Brennan, is a former commando who has pushed for more aggressive operations, including the use of the SAC to kill terrorists.
While the Obama administration halted a CIA effort to start a similar program in 2009, it did expand drone strikes, which the CIA continues to use.
The SAC only has about 100 members, but their ranks have grown under President Donald Trump.
The CIA denied that the agency was running such a program, with a spokesman telling BuzzFeed, "Your story is wrong."
Trump has picked Pompeo to take over the State Department, after former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was abruptly fired. Trump said he plans to select CIA Deputy Director Gina Haspel as Pompeo's successor.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Resume enhancer for me.
Pompeo did not need to organize CIA kill teams. There are several very good organizations in the DoD who regularly (and happily) answer that call. And might I add “with gusto”.
And I can give you coordinates if you are on the right system.
So?
Sounds like a nominee with some excellent work experience
Good news!
That’s a resume-enhancer in today’s world. Our enemies laugh at our empty talk.
Sounds perfect to me. Thanks billorites.
That’s all I need to know.
You’re hired!
Ye, perfect career path to be Secretary of State
buzzfeed? yeah, right. That is where I always turn for accurate news.
If pompo did do this, so what? It is what I expect the CIA to do to our enemies.
“Trump’s pick for secretary of state reportedly set up ‘kill teams’ of commandos at the CIA”
Good!
Or better yet, the news media!
Well that is one positive for him. Hopefully these teams were successful.
Now that’s terrible. Those poor terrorists.
Have to close down the SEALs too.
The tut-tutters at Business Insider seem to think this is a bad thing.
Rexcellent ( sarc )
I wasn’t there, but wow —> “By 1972, Phoenix operatives had “neutralized” 81,740 suspected NLF operatives, informants and supporters, of whom between 26,000 and 41,000 were killed.”
Depends on who the “bad guys” are.
So. Doing his job. Good to know.
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