CIA uses special forces to assassinate terrorsts

On July 13, the New York Times ran a story about the CIA running an assassination squad using U.S military special forces against foreign terrorists without Congressional approval on the orders of former Vice President Dick Cheney. The Times story confirms claims by Seymour Hersh in March 2009 that an assassination squad had been created that reported directly to Cheney using special forces personnel. The covert CIA project was shut down by CIA Director Leon Panetta when he learned of it on June 23. Details of the project were passed on the next day to the U.S. Congress and led to furor over the reports. A statement by seven members of the House Intelligence Committee concerning the CIA misleading Congress was subsequently released. The covert CIA program allegedly began in 2001 soon after the 911 attacks. The unfolding revelations of CIA death squads using U.S. military special forces personnel coincides with the online release of video testimony of a former U.S. Navy SEAL who said he was recruited to perform 18 assassination assignments for the CIA. If true, the SEAL’s testimony reveals that covert assassinations predate the 911 attacks, and also targeted U.S. citizens. Curiously, the assassinations were related to covert projects Dick Cheney was allegedly involved in when he was Secretary of Defense for George H.W. Bush from 1989 to 1993.

Connor O’Ryan was a pseudonym used by Derek Hennessy who claims in video testimony recorded in 1991, that he performed covert missions for the CIA in the 1980s assassinating enemies of the United States. After joining the U.S. Navy in the early 1980s, O’Ryan/Hennessy claims he joined the elite SEALs and was eventually tasked to perform his covert assassination missions. He said that targets of the assassination hits even included U.S. citizens. He described his 18th and final mission as a sergeant for the U.S. Army Green Berets stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Budapest, Hungary.

O’Ryan’s/Hennessy’s extraordinary claims were investigated over a ten year period by a retired Lt Colonel with the U.S. Air Force, Wendelle Stevens. During his investigation, Stevens was able to confirm Hennessy’s military I.D. and that he was assigned to the CIA performing covert missions. Concerned that O’Ryan/Hennessy may have been part of an intelligence operation to discredit him, Stevens did not release the initial results of his investigation until 2001. Video testimony of O’Ryan/Hennessy is included in a set of interviews conducted with Stevens currently being released on the internet. In the interviews, Steven’s discussed documents he had in his possession verifying Hennessy’s covert CIA missions. One document was apparently written on CIA letter head (see above graphic) with instructions for O/Ryan/Hennessy on his last mission. Steven’s read out the document’s contents as follows: “You are to report to the American Embassy in Budapest, Hungary. You will be received by S.A. Greywolf. As a unit you will proceed to terminate an ex S.A. David T. Johnson.”

www.nytimes.com...

www.examiner.com...

[edit on 27-7-2009 by menguard]