Author: Ronald Kessler
Publisher: Gallery Books
ISBN: 9781501196478
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
A true tale of espionage retracing the remarkable story of Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko, a KGB spy who defected to the United States and returned to the Soviet Union after the CIA bungled his case. In November 1985, Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko, the most important KGB spy ever to defect to the US, walked out of a trendy Washington restaurant, telling his inexperienced CIA security guard, “I’m going for a walk. If I don’t come back, it’s not your fault.” Two days later, from the Soviet embassy, Yurchenko described his escape to the press and the world, denying ever defecting with an extraordinary tale of CIA kidnapping and mind control. Yurchenko knew so much that the CIA had planned to question him for years. How did the CIA lose such a phenomenal intelligence source, a man who flooded his debriefs with sensitive information? To separate truth from rumors in the strange and complex story of the spy—including the theory that Yurchenko was a double agent sent to the US—Ronald Kessler, winner of sixteen journalism awards, investigates the inner workings and attitudes of the CIA and the Russian soul of the Soviet spy. Kessler superbly portrays the intelligence agency and the torment of a spy who betrayed his country only to be mistreated by his adopted nation, forcing him to choose between two bitter realities. Relentlessly fascinating and endlessly surprising, Escape from the CIA is a classic work from America’s premier writer of espionage nonfiction. “Drawing on deep-throat sources in the intelligence community and interviews with the disaffected principal, Kessler offers a tellingly detailed account of the stranger-than-fiction case… intriguing… fascinating and painstakingly documented.” –Kirkus Reviews
Escape from the CIA
Author: Ronald Kessler
Publisher: Gallery Books
ISBN: 9781501196478
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
A true tale of espionage retracing the remarkable story of Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko, a KGB spy who defected to the United States and returned to the Soviet Union after the CIA bungled his case. In November 1985, Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko, the most important KGB spy ever to defect to the US, walked out of a trendy Washington restaurant, telling his inexperienced CIA security guard, “I’m going for a walk. If I don’t come back, it’s not your fault.” Two days later, from the Soviet embassy, Yurchenko described his escape to the press and the world, denying ever defecting with an extraordinary tale of CIA kidnapping and mind control. Yurchenko knew so much that the CIA had planned to question him for years. How did the CIA lose such a phenomenal intelligence source, a man who flooded his debriefs with sensitive information? To separate truth from rumors in the strange and complex story of the spy—including the theory that Yurchenko was a double agent sent to the US—Ronald Kessler, winner of sixteen journalism awards, investigates the inner workings and attitudes of the CIA and the Russian soul of the Soviet spy. Kessler superbly portrays the intelligence agency and the torment of a spy who betrayed his country only to be mistreated by his adopted nation, forcing him to choose between two bitter realities. Relentlessly fascinating and endlessly surprising, Escape from the CIA is a classic work from America’s premier writer of espionage nonfiction. “Drawing on deep-throat sources in the intelligence community and interviews with the disaffected principal, Kessler offers a tellingly detailed account of the stranger-than-fiction case… intriguing… fascinating and painstakingly documented.” –Kirkus Reviews
Publisher: Gallery Books
ISBN: 9781501196478
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
A true tale of espionage retracing the remarkable story of Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko, a KGB spy who defected to the United States and returned to the Soviet Union after the CIA bungled his case. In November 1985, Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko, the most important KGB spy ever to defect to the US, walked out of a trendy Washington restaurant, telling his inexperienced CIA security guard, “I’m going for a walk. If I don’t come back, it’s not your fault.” Two days later, from the Soviet embassy, Yurchenko described his escape to the press and the world, denying ever defecting with an extraordinary tale of CIA kidnapping and mind control. Yurchenko knew so much that the CIA had planned to question him for years. How did the CIA lose such a phenomenal intelligence source, a man who flooded his debriefs with sensitive information? To separate truth from rumors in the strange and complex story of the spy—including the theory that Yurchenko was a double agent sent to the US—Ronald Kessler, winner of sixteen journalism awards, investigates the inner workings and attitudes of the CIA and the Russian soul of the Soviet spy. Kessler superbly portrays the intelligence agency and the torment of a spy who betrayed his country only to be mistreated by his adopted nation, forcing him to choose between two bitter realities. Relentlessly fascinating and endlessly surprising, Escape from the CIA is a classic work from America’s premier writer of espionage nonfiction. “Drawing on deep-throat sources in the intelligence community and interviews with the disaffected principal, Kessler offers a tellingly detailed account of the stranger-than-fiction case… intriguing… fascinating and painstakingly documented.” –Kirkus Reviews
Escape from the CIA
Author: Ronald Kessler
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780671726652
Category : Current Events
Languages : en
Pages : 332
Book Description
Why did the most important KGB spy ever to defect to the U.S. go back to the Soviet Union? Award-winning journalist Kessler investigated the inner workings of the CIA and interviewed Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko himself to find out in this classic work. Kessler reveals how the CIA missed making the most of the espionage coup of the century.--Houston Chronicle.
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780671726652
Category : Current Events
Languages : en
Pages : 332
Book Description
Why did the most important KGB spy ever to defect to the U.S. go back to the Soviet Union? Award-winning journalist Kessler investigated the inner workings of the CIA and interviewed Colonel Vitaly Yurchenko himself to find out in this classic work. Kessler reveals how the CIA missed making the most of the espionage coup of the century.--Houston Chronicle.
Inside the CIA
Author: Ronald Kessler
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439140774
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 430
Book Description
Ronald Kessler’s explosive bestseller, The FBI, brought down FBI Director William S. Sessions. Now, in this unparalleled work of investigative journalism, Kessler reveals the inner world of the CIA. Based on extensive research and hundreds of interviews, including several with former Directors of Central Intelligence, Inside the CIA is the first in-depth, unbiased account of the Agency’s core operations, its abject failures, and its resounding successes. Kessler reveals how: -CIA analysts botched the job of foreseeing the Soviet economy’s collapse -The Agency spies on every country in the world except Great Britain, Australia, and Canada -The CIA undertakes covert action to influence or overthrow foreign governments or political parties -The Agency trains its officers to break the laws of other countries Inside the CIA is an extraordinary guide to the world’s most successful house of spies.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439140774
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 430
Book Description
Ronald Kessler’s explosive bestseller, The FBI, brought down FBI Director William S. Sessions. Now, in this unparalleled work of investigative journalism, Kessler reveals the inner world of the CIA. Based on extensive research and hundreds of interviews, including several with former Directors of Central Intelligence, Inside the CIA is the first in-depth, unbiased account of the Agency’s core operations, its abject failures, and its resounding successes. Kessler reveals how: -CIA analysts botched the job of foreseeing the Soviet economy’s collapse -The Agency spies on every country in the world except Great Britain, Australia, and Canada -The CIA undertakes covert action to influence or overthrow foreign governments or political parties -The Agency trains its officers to break the laws of other countries Inside the CIA is an extraordinary guide to the world’s most successful house of spies.
Spy Secrets that Can Save Your Life
Author: Jason Hanson
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0399175148
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
"When Jason Hanson joined the CIA in 2003, he never imagined that the same tactics he used as a CIA officer for counter intelligence, surveillance, and protecting agency personnel would prove to be essential in every day civilian life. In addition to escaping handcuffs, picking locks, and spotting when someone is telling a lie, he can improvise a self-defense weapon, pack a perfect emergency kit, and disappear off the grid if necessary. He has also honed his "positive awareness" - a heightened sense of his surroundings that allows him to spot suspicious and potentially dangerous behavior - on the street, in a taxi, at the airport, when dining out, or in any other situation."--Provided by publisher.
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0399175148
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
"When Jason Hanson joined the CIA in 2003, he never imagined that the same tactics he used as a CIA officer for counter intelligence, surveillance, and protecting agency personnel would prove to be essential in every day civilian life. In addition to escaping handcuffs, picking locks, and spotting when someone is telling a lie, he can improvise a self-defense weapon, pack a perfect emergency kit, and disappear off the grid if necessary. He has also honed his "positive awareness" - a heightened sense of his surroundings that allows him to spot suspicious and potentially dangerous behavior - on the street, in a taxi, at the airport, when dining out, or in any other situation."--Provided by publisher.
Surprise, Kill, Vanish
Author: Annie Jacobsen
Publisher: Little, Brown
ISBN: 0316441406
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 586
Book Description
From Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen, the untold USA Today bestselling story of the CIA's secret paramilitary units. Surprise . . . your target. Kill . . . your enemy. Vanish . . . without a trace. When diplomacy fails, and war is unwise, the president calls on the CIA's Special Activities Division, a highly-classified branch of the CIA and the most effective, black operations force in the world. Originally known as the president's guerrilla warfare corps, SAD conducts risky and ruthless operations that have evolved over time to defend America from its enemies. Almost every American president since World War II has asked the CIA to conduct sabotage, subversion and, yes, assassination. With unprecedented access to forty-two men and women who proudly and secretly worked on CIA covert operations from the dawn of the Cold War to the present day, along with declassified documents and deep historical research, Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen unveils -- like never before -- a complex world of individuals working in treacherous environments populated with killers, connivers, and saboteurs. Despite Hollywood notions of off-book operations and external secret hires, covert action is actually one piece in a colossal foreign policy machine. Written with the pacing of a thriller, Surprise, Kill, Vanish brings to vivid life the sheer pandemonium and chaos, as well as the unforgettable human will to survive and the intellectual challenge of not giving up hope that define paramilitary and intelligence work. Jacobsen's exclusive interviews -- with members of the CIA's Senior Intelligence Service (equivalent to the Pentagon's generals), its counterterrorism chiefs, targeting officers, and Special Activities Division's Ground Branch operators who conduct today's close-quarters killing operations around the world -- reveal, for the first time, the enormity of this shocking, controversial, and morally complex terrain. Is the CIA's paramilitary army America's weaponized strength, or a liability to its principled standing in the world? Every operation reported in this book, however unsettling, is legal.
Publisher: Little, Brown
ISBN: 0316441406
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 586
Book Description
From Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen, the untold USA Today bestselling story of the CIA's secret paramilitary units. Surprise . . . your target. Kill . . . your enemy. Vanish . . . without a trace. When diplomacy fails, and war is unwise, the president calls on the CIA's Special Activities Division, a highly-classified branch of the CIA and the most effective, black operations force in the world. Originally known as the president's guerrilla warfare corps, SAD conducts risky and ruthless operations that have evolved over time to defend America from its enemies. Almost every American president since World War II has asked the CIA to conduct sabotage, subversion and, yes, assassination. With unprecedented access to forty-two men and women who proudly and secretly worked on CIA covert operations from the dawn of the Cold War to the present day, along with declassified documents and deep historical research, Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen unveils -- like never before -- a complex world of individuals working in treacherous environments populated with killers, connivers, and saboteurs. Despite Hollywood notions of off-book operations and external secret hires, covert action is actually one piece in a colossal foreign policy machine. Written with the pacing of a thriller, Surprise, Kill, Vanish brings to vivid life the sheer pandemonium and chaos, as well as the unforgettable human will to survive and the intellectual challenge of not giving up hope that define paramilitary and intelligence work. Jacobsen's exclusive interviews -- with members of the CIA's Senior Intelligence Service (equivalent to the Pentagon's generals), its counterterrorism chiefs, targeting officers, and Special Activities Division's Ground Branch operators who conduct today's close-quarters killing operations around the world -- reveal, for the first time, the enormity of this shocking, controversial, and morally complex terrain. Is the CIA's paramilitary army America's weaponized strength, or a liability to its principled standing in the world? Every operation reported in this book, however unsettling, is legal.
The Official CIA Manual of Trickery and Deception
Author: H. Keith Melton
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061725897
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 275
Book Description
Magic or spycraft? In 1953, against the backdrop of the Cold War, the CIA initiated a top-secret program, code-named MKULTRA, to counter Soviet mind-control and interrogation techniques. Realizing that clandestine officers might need to covertly deploy newly developed pills, potions, and powders against the adversary, the CIA hired America's most famous magician, John Mulholland, to write two manuals on sleight of hand and undercover communication techniques. In 1973, virtually all documents related to MKULTRA were destroyed. Mulholland's manuals were thought to be among them—until a single surviving copy of each, complete with illustrations, was recently discovered in the agency's archives. The manuals reprinted in this work represent the only known complete copy of Mulholland's instructions for CIA officers on the magician's art of deception and secret communications.
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061725897
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 275
Book Description
Magic or spycraft? In 1953, against the backdrop of the Cold War, the CIA initiated a top-secret program, code-named MKULTRA, to counter Soviet mind-control and interrogation techniques. Realizing that clandestine officers might need to covertly deploy newly developed pills, potions, and powders against the adversary, the CIA hired America's most famous magician, John Mulholland, to write two manuals on sleight of hand and undercover communication techniques. In 1973, virtually all documents related to MKULTRA were destroyed. Mulholland's manuals were thought to be among them—until a single surviving copy of each, complete with illustrations, was recently discovered in the agency's archives. The manuals reprinted in this work represent the only known complete copy of Mulholland's instructions for CIA officers on the magician's art of deception and secret communications.
The Book of Honor
Author: Ted Gup
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0385495412
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
A national bestseller, this extraordinary work of investigative reporting uncovers the identities, and the remarkable stories, of the CIA secret agents who died anonymously in the service of their country. In the entrance of the CIA headquarters looms a huge marble wall into which seventy-one stars are carved-each representing an agent who has died in the line of duty. Official CIA records only name thirty-five of them, however. Undeterred by claims that revealing the identities of these "nameless stars" might compromise national security, Ted Gup sorted through thousands of documents and interviewed over 400 CIA officers in his attempt to bring their long-hidden stories to light. The result of this extraordinary work of investigation is a surprising glimpse at the real lives of secret agents, and an unprecedented history of the most compelling—and controversial—department of the US government.
Publisher: Anchor
ISBN: 0385495412
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
A national bestseller, this extraordinary work of investigative reporting uncovers the identities, and the remarkable stories, of the CIA secret agents who died anonymously in the service of their country. In the entrance of the CIA headquarters looms a huge marble wall into which seventy-one stars are carved-each representing an agent who has died in the line of duty. Official CIA records only name thirty-five of them, however. Undeterred by claims that revealing the identities of these "nameless stars" might compromise national security, Ted Gup sorted through thousands of documents and interviewed over 400 CIA officers in his attempt to bring their long-hidden stories to light. The result of this extraordinary work of investigation is a surprising glimpse at the real lives of secret agents, and an unprecedented history of the most compelling—and controversial—department of the US government.
Argo
Author: Antonio Mendez
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0147509734
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 321
Book Description
The true account of a daring rescue that inspired the film ARGO, winner of the 2012 Academy Award for Best Picture On November 4, 1979, Iranian militants stormed the American embassy in Tehran and captured dozens of American hostages, sparking a 444-day ordeal and a quake in global politics still reverberating today. But there is a little-known drama connected to the crisis: six Americans escaped. And a top-level CIA officer named Antonio Mendez devised an ingenious yet incredibly risky plan to rescue them before they were detected. Disguising himself as a Hollywood producer, and supported by a cast of expert forgers, deep cover CIA operatives, foreign agents, and Hollywood special effects artists, Mendez traveled to Tehran under the guise of scouting locations for a fake science fiction film called Argo. While pretending to find the perfect film backdrops, Mendez and a colleague succeeded in contacting the escapees, and smuggling them out of Iran. Antonio Mendez finally details the extraordinarily complex and dangerous operation he led more than three decades ago. A riveting story of secret identities and international intrigue, Argo is the gripping account of the history-making collusion between Hollywood and high-stakes espionage.
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0147509734
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 321
Book Description
The true account of a daring rescue that inspired the film ARGO, winner of the 2012 Academy Award for Best Picture On November 4, 1979, Iranian militants stormed the American embassy in Tehran and captured dozens of American hostages, sparking a 444-day ordeal and a quake in global politics still reverberating today. But there is a little-known drama connected to the crisis: six Americans escaped. And a top-level CIA officer named Antonio Mendez devised an ingenious yet incredibly risky plan to rescue them before they were detected. Disguising himself as a Hollywood producer, and supported by a cast of expert forgers, deep cover CIA operatives, foreign agents, and Hollywood special effects artists, Mendez traveled to Tehran under the guise of scouting locations for a fake science fiction film called Argo. While pretending to find the perfect film backdrops, Mendez and a colleague succeeded in contacting the escapees, and smuggling them out of Iran. Antonio Mendez finally details the extraordinarily complex and dangerous operation he led more than three decades ago. A riveting story of secret identities and international intrigue, Argo is the gripping account of the history-making collusion between Hollywood and high-stakes espionage.
Analysis and Assessment of Gateway Process
Author: The Us Army
Publisher: Cosimo Reports
ISBN: 9781646794997
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 36
Book Description
"You are not thinking, you are merely being logical." -Niels Bohr, Danish physicist and Nobel Laureate Analysis and Assessment of Gateway Process is a document prepared in 1983 by the US Army. This document was declassified by the CIA in 2003. This brief report focuses on the so-called "Gateway Experience," a training program originally designed by the Monroe Institute, a Virginia-based institute for the study of human consciousness. The Gateway experience uses sound tapes to manipulate brainwaves with a goal of creating an altered state of consciousness, which includes out-of-body experiences, energy healing, remote viewing, and time travel. The report concluded that the Gateway Experience is 'plausible' in terms of physical science, and that while more research was needed, it could have practical uses in US intelligence. Students of US intelligence, and anyone interested in the cross-roads between consciousness and reality will find this report fascinating reading.
Publisher: Cosimo Reports
ISBN: 9781646794997
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 36
Book Description
"You are not thinking, you are merely being logical." -Niels Bohr, Danish physicist and Nobel Laureate Analysis and Assessment of Gateway Process is a document prepared in 1983 by the US Army. This document was declassified by the CIA in 2003. This brief report focuses on the so-called "Gateway Experience," a training program originally designed by the Monroe Institute, a Virginia-based institute for the study of human consciousness. The Gateway experience uses sound tapes to manipulate brainwaves with a goal of creating an altered state of consciousness, which includes out-of-body experiences, energy healing, remote viewing, and time travel. The report concluded that the Gateway Experience is 'plausible' in terms of physical science, and that while more research was needed, it could have practical uses in US intelligence. Students of US intelligence, and anyone interested in the cross-roads between consciousness and reality will find this report fascinating reading.
Survive Like a Spy
Author: Jason Hanson
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0143131605
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 257
Book Description
Follow-up to the New York Times bestseller Spy Secrets That Can Save Your Life--revealing high-stakes techniques and survival secrets from real intelligence officers in life-or-death situations around the world Everyone loves a good spy story, but most of the ones we hear are fictional. That's because the most dangerous and important spycraft is done in secret, often hidden in plain sight. In this powerful new book, bestselling author and former CIA officer Jason Hanson takes the reader deep inside the world of espionage, revealing true stories and expert tactics from real agents engaged in life-threatening missions around the world. With breathtaking accounts of spy missions in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and elsewhere, the book reveals how to: * Achieve mental sharpness to be ready for anything * Escape if taken hostage * Set up a perfect safe site * Assume a fake identity * Master the "Weapons of Mass Influence" to recruit others, build rapport, and make allies when you need them most With real-life spy drama that reads like a novel paired with expert practical techniques, Survive Like a Spy will keep you on the edge of your seat – and help you stay safe when you need it most.
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0143131605
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 257
Book Description
Follow-up to the New York Times bestseller Spy Secrets That Can Save Your Life--revealing high-stakes techniques and survival secrets from real intelligence officers in life-or-death situations around the world Everyone loves a good spy story, but most of the ones we hear are fictional. That's because the most dangerous and important spycraft is done in secret, often hidden in plain sight. In this powerful new book, bestselling author and former CIA officer Jason Hanson takes the reader deep inside the world of espionage, revealing true stories and expert tactics from real agents engaged in life-threatening missions around the world. With breathtaking accounts of spy missions in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and elsewhere, the book reveals how to: * Achieve mental sharpness to be ready for anything * Escape if taken hostage * Set up a perfect safe site * Assume a fake identity * Master the "Weapons of Mass Influence" to recruit others, build rapport, and make allies when you need them most With real-life spy drama that reads like a novel paired with expert practical techniques, Survive Like a Spy will keep you on the edge of your seat – and help you stay safe when you need it most.