From: RT
A man crosses the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) logo in the lobby of CIA Headquarters in Langley, Virginia (AFP Photo)
The woman who signed off on the destruction of
evidence proving the CIA’s implementation of torture has been promoted
within the agency. The undercover officer is now in charge of the CIA’s
clandestine service – at least, temporarily.
After former National Clandestine Service Director John Bennett
retired on Feb. 28, the new official took over as the acting
director and is widely viewed as a frontrunner for the position.
Some have applauded the fact that a female faces the prospect of
becoming the new head of the clandestine service for the first time
in the agency’s history – but this woman’s past makes her a
controversial choice. In 2005, she oversaw the destruction of more
than 90 videotapes showing the harsh interrogation methods the CIA
used against suspected terrorists. The footage was recorded at a
secret prison in Thailand, where the agency brutally interrogated
its subjects.
The acting director, who is allegedly in her 50s and speaks
multiple languages, is thought to have served as chief of staff of
the former head of the clandestine service, Jose Rodriguez.
According to former officials who spoke to the Washington Post,
Rodriguez and the woman repeatedly asked for permission to have the
videotapes destroyed and were always denied. In 2005, they went
ahead with the destruction anyway, ordering their staff to get rid
of the evidence.
Despite this questionable decision, the woman now heads the
clandestine service herself and may keep the position permanently
if the agency decides to overlook her history. The position is
crucial to the CIA’s operations, since it is in charge of sending
American spies overseas. The clandestine service also runs the
agency’s drone campaign.
She “is highly experienced, smart and capable,” and
giving her the job permanently “would be a home run from a
diversity standpoint,” a former senior U.S. intelligence
official told the Post. “But she was also heavily involved in
the interrogation program at the beginning and for the first couple
of years.”
Due to an internal investigation regarding her involvement in
the destruction of evidence, it is unclear whether the new director
will remain in the position. Recently-appointed CIA head John
Brennan, who was sworn into office this month, announced that he is
evaluating several candidates for this position with the help of
three former agency officers.
“The director of the clandestine service has never been
picked that way,” a former intelligence official told the Post.
Some have begun to question whether Brennan may have discussed the
open position quietly because of his own involvement
in interrogation programs during the Bush-era. By announcing that
he has hired former CIA officials to evaluate and review the
qualifications of the candidates – including the acting director –
he may be taking careful steps to avoid further scrutiny by those
who have already accused him of being too involved in the CIA’s
implementation of torture. Brennan himself faced tough questions by
the Senate Intelligence Committee regarding the extent of his
knowledge about the CIA’s controversial use of torture, including
waterboarding and other painful interrogation techniques.
“Given the importance of the position of the director of the
National Clandestine Service, Director Brennan has asked a few
highly respected former senior agency officers to review the
candidates he’s considering for the job,” Preston Golson, a CIA
spokesman, told the Post. MORE
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