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Loose Lips Sink Ships
Max BootRemember the World War II slogan, "Loose lips sink ships"? Perhaps those posters should be reprinted and spread around the most classified departments of the U.S. government because our soldiers and spooks just can't seem to keep their lips sealed--at least not when they have a triumph to brag about. The first case in point was of course Operation Neptune Spear, which killed Osama bin Laden. Details of how it was done, and of the resulting intelligence cache, were soon spread all over the news, notwithstanding an agreement among senior administration officials to keep the operation secret. More details have been gushing out in recent days--with still more to come--as President Obama uses this Special Operations Command triumph to bolster his reelection chances, never mind the palpable unease in Special Operations circles about the damage being done from the revelation of their "TTPs" (tactics, techniques, and procedures). Now something similar is occurring with all the publicity resulting from an Associated Press leak about the double-agent who blew up the al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula plot to blow up a U.S. airliner with a more sophisticated form of "underwear bomb." No doubt Saudi intelligence officials who ran the double agent and provided information to the CIA are aghast to see the details splashed across front pages. In fairness, there is a case to be made that having al-Qaeda fear penetration by double agents could actually be beneficial. It could lead to terrorist paranoia and fratricide that could prove harmful to its ability to carry out operations. But in general, secrecy is always to be preferred in the covert world of counter-terrorism. Without it, covert techniques are blown and foreign intelligence agencies, whose cooperation is vital to the U.S., become more reluctant to extend cooperation. Yet for some reason, those with top-level TS/SCI security clearances (top secret/sensitive compartmented information) can't resist bragging about their exploits to the news media. One hopes the administration will make every attempt to uncover and prosecute the leakers rather than looking the other way because these leaks are so politically convenient for the president. Posted by: Steve White 2012-05-11 |
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