September 23, 2026 — The CIA Memorial Wall is one of the most recognizable and mysterious memorials in Washington. The Wall has grown from 31 stars in 1974 to 141 in 2026, each representing a CIA officer who died in the line of duty. Yet the history of the Wall itself — and the stories behind its stars — has never been brought together in a single, independent work. The CIA Memorial Wall Compendium is a six-volume series intended to reveal long-overdue stories and correct various misconceptions about this unique Memorial. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“Now, 40 years later, there is a scientific and historical consensus that it was a nuclear test and that it had to be Israeli.”
Avner Cohen
September 22, 2019
U.S. Vela satellite
September 22, 2026 — A CIA-sponsored panel of well-respected scientists concluded that a mysterious flash detected by a U.S. Vela satellite over the South Atlantic on the night of September 22 1979 was likely a nuclear test. Four decades later, this mysterious double flash still matters, and the debate is not over. Where science, espionage, and global intrigue collide, fascination never fades. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“I believe that the morality of espionage is relative. The activity always betrays someone, and some observers will think that it is justified and others not, in every case.”
Ana Montes Private letter to a friend
CIA Director George Tenet (left) awards Ana Montes a Certificate of Distinction, the third highest national-level intelligence award. (1997)
September 21 2026 — Ana Belén Montes (born February 28, 1957) is a former senior analyst at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency and a convicted spy. On September 21, 2001, she was arrested and subsequently charged with conspiracy to commit espionage for the government of Cuba. Montes eventually pleaded guilty to spying and, in October 2002, was sentenced to a 25-year prison term followed by five years’ probation. Montes was incarcerated at FMC Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas. She was released from prison in January 2023 after serving more than 20 years. She now lives in Puerto Rico, where she has returned to private life and has declined requests for media interviews. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“If the defense challenges the provenance and chain of custody of PT/35(b), the fragment of bomb timer circuitry that became a central element in the case against Libya, the prosecution could face a potentially devastating evidentiary problem.”
Intel Today August 20, 2026
Ahmed Khalifa Niasse and French President Nicolas Sarkozy
August 27, 2026 — Just 24 hours before jury selection, the Lockerbie trial was postponed because of evidence previously unknown to the parties. Nearly four decades after the tragedy, this development is baffling. But it may not be as coincidental as it seems. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“Raufer established three new facts, all of them pointing — for the first time — to Libya as the culprit of both Pan Am 103 and UTA 772. These facts are false. (…) If that story gains credibility in the media and becomes the ‘new truth’, we will be forced to revisit our position regarding Libya and Gaddafi.”
French Intelligence (DST) Note to French President Francois Mitterrand (June 1991)
Rescuers stand near the wreckage of the French UTA DC-10 flight 772 in the Tenere desert, on September 22, 1989
September 19 2020 — It has been called the greatest murder investigation in French history. When a suitcase bomb destroyed French Airlines UTA Flight 772, killing all 170 passengers and crew on board, it triggered a decade long search for accountability. At the conclusion of the investigation, the French investigative magistrate judge — Jean Louis Bruguiere — determined that the Libyan State was directly responsible for the bombing of UTA Flight 772. Case closed?
Not everyone is convinced. Pierre Péan, one of the greatest French investigative journalists, came to the conclusion that Thomas Thurman — a Federal Bureau of Investigation explosives expert — fabricated false evidence against Libya in the investigations of Pan Am Flight 103 and UTA Flight 772 . Péan is certainly not alone to suspect foul play. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“If the defense challenges the provenance and chain of custody of PT/35(b), the fragment of bomb timer circuitry that became a central element in the case against Libya, the prosecution could face a potentially devastating evidentiary problem.”
Intel Today August 20, 2026
Ahmed Khalifa Niasse and French President Nicolas Sarkozy
August 27, 2026 — Just 24 hours before jury selection, the Lockerbie trial was postponed because of evidence previously unknown to the parties. Nearly four decades after the tragedy, this development is baffling. But it may not be as coincidental as it seems. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“This is the book America needs right now. . . . This work by Michael Rey and Oriana Zill de Granados is not just a thriller. It is a tour de force of journalism, among the highest examples of what our profession is and can be. (…) The Havana Syndrome should be read by every American who respects or doubts the power and veracity of ‘shoe leather’ journalism.”
Scott Pelley 60 Minutes correspondent
September 14, 2026 — A new book by investigative journalist Michael Rey and Oriana Zill de Granados examines the mysterious illness first reported among U.S. diplomats in Havana and the 10-year investigation into what became known as “Havana Syndrome.” This is an outstanding book and a must-read for all students of intelligence. Drawing on extensive reporting and newly uncovered material, the authors explore the competing explanations, the intelligence implications, and the extraordinary mystery surrounding these cases. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“Also being twice in that great building, I was drawn to the Memorial Wall both times. On Friday [March 27, 2015], I realized that the last two stars were Tyrone and Glen. I would like to end the film with a wide shot of the wall, including the flags on either side, and then cut on a close up of the last two stars, and fade out.”
Michael Bay Email to the CIA (April 1, 2015)
September 12, 2025 — 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (also known simply as 13 Hours) is a 2016 American biographical action-thriller film directed and produced by Michael Bay and written by Chuck Hogan. The script is based on Mitchell Zuckoff’s 2014 book of the same name. The film’s historical accuracy has been disputed. Today, I will not weigh on this issue, but I can ensure you that the ‘powerful end scene’ is DEAD WRONG. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“There was a single primary return received (…) 16 seconds before SSR returns were lost. […] No explanation can be offered for its presence.”
Pan AM 103 AAIBReport
September 10, 2020 — Boeing has delivered more than 1,500 of these jets since 1970. The 747 has been involved in 60 hull losses, resulting in 3,722 fatalities. The destruction in flight of three Boeing-747 remains the subject of intense debates to this day: AIR INDIA 182, PAN AM 103, and TWA 800. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“Even the vice president of the BND assumed that Boris Hagelin Jr. was not the victim of an accident. It was an intelligence murder.”
Erich Schmidt-Eenboom Intelligence Expert
The Hagelin family in 1962. In front: Boris Hagelin, his wife Annie and their daughters. Back, from left to right: Boris Jr., Karl Wilhelm and Carl. Courtesy from Sixten Svensson [Copyright]
September 9, 2021 — Two decades ago, I argued that Crypto AG had rigged the equipment used by diplomats around the world allowing US Intelligence Agencies to decode in real-time their messages. Many years later, Swiss Media Group SRF Rundschau, German public broadcaster ZDF and the Washington Post eventually confirmed many details of the story after gaining access to a classified, comprehensive CIA history of the operation codenamed “Thesaurus” and later “Rubicon”. There are many issues to discuss. I will address them one at the time. In this post, I will review the suspicious circumstances regarding the death of Boris Hagelin Jr. just a few months after the Swiss Company was sold to the CIA. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
