“His exceptionally strong leadership and organizational skills, extensive military experiences, perseverance under harsh conditions, and ability to train others helped him navigate the complicated political environment during his assignments in Southeast Asia.”
Remembering CIA’s African American Heroes CIA website
Earliest known photo of the Book of Honor (33 stars) — The three 1972 stars were anonymous in the original book.
April 28, 2026 — Wilbur M. Greene passed away from complications following a gallbladder operation at Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base on April 28, 1972. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY.
“Several lieutenants assigned to my flight were talented pilots, but my assistant flight commander, 1st Lt Buster E. Edens (called ‘Snede,’ Edens spelled backwards), was a superb fighter pilot.”
Lloyd R. ‘Dick’ Leavitt Lieutenant General, USAF, Retired
April 26, 2026 — Eugene ‘Buster’ Edens was one of the original U-2 pilots. By 1965, Edens was a highly experienced pilot, accumulating over 1,000 flight hours in U-2 aircraft. He died on April 26,1965, when his U-2 spiraled to the ground near Edwards Air Force Base in California. The cause of the crash is unknown. Follow us on Twitter: @Intel_Today
“We gather here today in recognition of Women’s History Month. At this time, it seems only fitting that we remember our own.We honor today four of our women who made that supreme sacrifice: Barbara A. Robbins, Phyllis Nancy Faraci, Monique N. Lewis, and Deborah Marie Hixon.”
Tribute to Women Who Have Died STUDIES IN INTELLIGENCE
The Memorial Wall is a memorial at the Central Intelligence Agency headquarters in Langley, Virginia. It honors CIA employees who died in the line of service. There are 140 stars carved into the white Alabama marble wall. Eleven represent women.
April 18, 2026 — Monique Lewis was just hours into her first day as a CIA officer when a suicide bomber attacked the U.S. Embassy in Beirut in 1983. Her husband, James Lewis, a paramilitary officer there, was also killed. Follow us on Twitter: @Intel_Today
“I will splinter the CIA into a thousand pieces and scatter it to the winds.”
President John F. Kennedy (April 20, 1961)
The CIA coin was created anticipating a victory, but the operation was a “perfect failure.” The Bay of Pigs victory coin features an outline of Cuba with a rebel invader advancing past a fallen member of Castro’s military in the foreground.
April 17 2026 — The Bay of Pigs invasion, launched on April 17, 1961, was a failed CIA-backed attempt by Cuban exiles to overthrow Fidel Castro’s communist government in Cuba. Roughly 1,400 exiles, trained and armed by the United States, landed at Playa Girón on Cuba’s southern coast, expecting to ignite a popular uprising against Castro. But the plan quickly unraveled: Cuban intelligence had anticipated the attack, the invading force was outnumbered and outgunned, and Kennedy-approved U.S. air support was miscoordinated. Within three days, Castro’s forces had crushed the invasion, capturing or killing most of the exile fighters and dealing the U.S. a major Cold War embarrassment. The CIA quickly blamed the lack of air cover for the invasion’s failure, and this explanation has been widely accepted — even by the families of the American volunteers who died during the mission. But this is not the truth. A simple time zone mix-up between Nicaragua (where the CIA-backed forces were launching) and Cuba resulted in U.S. air support arriving too late to effectively assist the invasion forces. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“What’s the cadet motto at West Point? You will not lie, cheat, or steal, or tolerate those who do. I was the CIA director. We lied, we cheated, we stole. It’s – it was like – we had entire training courses. It reminds you of the glory of the American experiment.”
Former CIA Director Mike Pompeo Texas A&M University (April 15, 2019)
Remarks at Texas A&M University – The Impact of Diplomacy on Daily Life
April 15 2026 — On this day two years ago, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo participated in a Q&A discussion at Texas A&M University. Pompeo could not resist telling his audience how proud he is to have served as Director of the CIA. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_Today
“President Ronald Reagan didn’t seek congressional approval when he bombed Libya [April 14 1986] in retaliation for a bombing of a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie, Scotland [December 21 1988].”
Amber Phillips Washington Post (April 7 2017)
April 14 1986 — Reagan Strikes on Tripoli and Benghazi
April 14 2026 — In a piece published by the The Washington Post on April 7, 2017, Amber Phillips wrote that President Ronald Reagan’s April 14, 1986 bombing raid on Tripoli and Benghazi was carried out in retaliation for the December 21, 1988 attack on Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie. The quote quickly went viral, as many readers noticed that the timeline was plainly impossible.
But beyond the humor, this episode offers a useful reminder: the importance of studying, researching, and carefully analyzing the facts. Whatever subject I investigate, I always begin the same way — I build the most accurate timeline I can. This is a theory of mine: no lie, no matter how polished — even a CIA lie — can survive a well-constructed timeline. Yet building a reliable timeline is no simple task. And one can easily attribute the wrong date to a piece of information. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“Alerted by doctrine and success against another local CIA operation, Shanghai’s security apparatus moved cautiously against Redmond’s network, obtaining evidence that made the guilty verdict of 1954 inevitable. To Chinese intelligence practitioners, the case provides an exemplary example of how counter-espionage work against the US should proceed in the 21st century.”
David Ian Chambers Chinese retrospectives on the Hugh Redmond case
The Herald Statesman, Yonkers, N.Y. – November 5, 1962
April 13, 2026 — Hugh Francis Redmond was a CIA officer and former U.S. Army paratrooper who spent nearly 20 years as a prisoner in China after being captured during a CIA mission. The details of his involvement with the CIA remain largely classified to this day, adding to the mystery surrounding his case. Follow us on Twitter: @Intel_Today
“A wise man, therefore, proportions his belief to the evidence.”
David Hume, 1748
April 13, 2026 — People often invert scientific judgment: they dismiss real but counter-intuitive science — like quantum physics — while entertaining speculative or fictional ideas that merely borrow the language of science. The contrast is evident in how cases like Havana Syndrome and, more recently, the alleged CIA “Ghost Murmur” top-secret project have been discussed in the media. Follow us on Twitter: @Intel_Today
“Having stepped onto firm ground,I saw a woman and a girl who were standing near a spotted calfand who were watching me with bewilderment.When they saw me in my space suitand the parachute dragging alongside as I walked,they started to back away in fear. I told them, don’t be afraid, I am a Soviet like you,who has descended from spaceand I must find a telephone to call Moscow!”
Diary Yuri Gagarin April 12, 1961
April 12 2026 — On April 12 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first person to venture in outer space. His spacecraft — Vostok 1 — orbited for 108 minutes before returning to Earth in Kazakhstan. At about 7,000 metres (23,000 ft), Gagarin ejected from the descending capsule and landed using a parachute. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY
“As I told the Prime Minister the last time, he vastly overestimates the competence of the CIA.”
Henri Kissinger (Answer to Zhou Enlai about the US involvement in the bombing of the Kashmir Princess)
April 11, 2025 — On April 11, 1955, the Kashmir Princess — a chartered Lockheed L-749A Constellation aircraft owned by Air India — was damaged mid-air by a bomb explosion. The plane crashed into the South China Sea while en route from Hong Kong to Jakarta, Indonesia. Sixteen of those on board were killed, while three survived. The target of the assassination was none other than Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. Responsibility for the bombing was initially attributed to Indian intelligence agencies, but it was later discovered that the CIA was behind the plot. Follow us on Twitter: @Intel_Today
