World
How Cuban Spy Used Incredible Memory To Betray US
Ana Belén Montes poses for a photo shortly after her release from a 20-year prison sentence. Her brown hair is streaked with grey, and she is approximately 66 years old.
There was little evidence that Montes had spent years as a covert Cuban spy embedded deep within the US government. Or that she was formerly regarded as one of the most dangerous intelligence operators targeting the country.
That, according to experts, is what made her the ideal spy.
Ana Montes was caught on September 21, 2001, and was later found guilty of plotting to spy on the United States.
US Intelligence Searching For Decades
For nearly a decade, US intelligence authorities had been looking for a Cuban mole inside the government, but determining who was sending sensitive information to the Cubans proved to be a herculean effort.
“It truly is a needle in a haystack,” said Pete Lapp, a former FBI agent who, along with his partner, Steve McCoy, was part of the team that proved Montes was a Cuban spy.
Lapp and his team were tasked with finding and eliminating the mole. To complicate matters further, Mr. Lapp claimed that the Cubans also attempted to conceal Montes’ gender by implying that the spy was a man with high-level clearance, thus broadening the pool of prospective targets.
“It would have been a lot easier if we had known we were looking for a woman,” he admitted.
The FBI was looking for a lady and a top US intelligence official in Cuba and Central America.
The Cuban Queen
Cuba played a long game with Montes. Mr. Lapp says that she was asked to spy for them before graduating from graduate school. So, she became an “operative of the Cuban intelligence service” and joined the US Defense Intelligence Agency.
“She did an excellent job of being near-perfect, and everything she accomplished as an analyst simply served to build a wall of security around her,” he explained.
Ana Montes moved up in the US intelligence services. Before becoming a senior intelligence operative studying Cuba, she first worked on a portfolio for El Salvador and Nicaragua. Her expertise earned her the title “Queen of Cuba” within the agencies.
She also sent some of the most sensitive information about the country to a foreign government that was against it for more than 17 years.
On The Run for 17 Years
“One of the reasons I think she never got caught was she primarily memorized the knowledge that she took away,” said Jim Popkin, author of Code Name Blue Wren, which chronicles Montes’ climb through the ranks and eventual capture.
“She had a day job where she sat silently, studiously, and memorized as many sensitive documents as possible. Her nocturnal duty was to go home, type it up on a Toshiba laptop, encrypt it, and send it to her handler.”
Instead of working for money, Montes eventually admitted to investigators that she spied on the US because she opposed her government’s interventionist actions in Central America and Cuba.
Mr. Popkin said, “She was especially dangerous because she told the real names of American spies in Cuba.”
That information alone could have put lives in danger, but Montes also revealed the existence of a multibillion-dollar stealth satellite used by the US to spy on Russia, China, and Iran.
“That’s why intelligence officers call her one of the most damaging spies in American history and, in my opinion, the most damaging female spy we’ve ever had,” Mr. Popkin added. By 2000, intelligence agencies suspected Montes of being a spy, and Mr. Lapp and his team narrowed down on her as a suspect.
An International Spy
“Let’s not focus on catching her in the act of spying,” I insisted. “Let us first ensure that we have the proper individual,” Mr. Rapp stated.
After looking for the mole for years, Lapp and his team finally found him over Memorial Day weekend in 2001. They went to Montes’ house and found a laptop under her bed with secret information from the 1990s.
“I thought, holy [expletive], holy [expletive],” said Mr. Lapp, whose inquiry will be detailed in the upcoming book Queen of Cuba.
Montes receives a National Intelligence Certificate of Distinction from CIA Director George Tenet.
Leading the compartmentalized life of a spy meant lying not just to the nation’s highest intelligence organizations but also those closest to her, including her family.
The Cuban Queen
Her sister, Lucy, was one of four close family members who worked with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The day Montes was caught, the rest of the world discovered she was a spy for the Cuban government.
Mr. Popkin talked to the family for his book, and he said that the family’s anger at her betrayal was mixed with relief when she was sent to prison.
“It did give [Lucy] some solace just to understand a little bit more about her sister and why their once-close connection had deteriorated over the years,” he added.
Ana Montes was released on January 6 after serving most of her 25-year term. Montes said she wishes to live a “quiet and private existence” now that she is out of prison and back in Puerto Rico. However, within hours of her release, Montes stated that she was still thinking about Cuba.
“I encourage anyone who wishes to focus on me to do so on significant subjects, such as the major problems confronting the Puerto Rican people or the United States’ economic embargo on Cuba,” she said in a statement provided to BBC News by her lawyer, Linda Backiel.
“Who has asked the Cuban people in the previous 60 years if they want the United States to enforce a strangling embargo that causes them to suffer?”
But Montes’ release was a setback for Mr. Lapp and the men and women who had worked to bring her to justice for years.
“I knew this day was coming, but that doesn’t make it any less painful,” he added.
SOURCE – (BBC)
Angry protesters pelted Felipe VI of Spain with mud and other objects during a visit to flood-hit Valencia. Spain’s national broadcaster reported that two bodyguards were treated for injuries.
Felipe VI of Spain and Queen Letizia, Spain’s prime minister, and other leaders were met with shouts of “murderer” and “shame” as they traversed the town of Paiporta, which is one of the most severely afflicted in the region.
King Felipe and Queen Letizia were later observed offering comfort to individuals in the throng despite being covered in mud on their faces and clothing.
The floods, which were the most severe in Spain in decades, resulted in the deaths of over 200 individuals. In the hopes of locating survivors and recovering corpses, emergency personnel are still working to search underground car parks and tunnels.
In response to the floods, there has been a wave of resentment toward the authorities for their perceived failure to provide adequate support and warning.
The king was observed walking down a pedestrian street when a sudden surge of demonstrators who hurled insults and screamed, causing his bodyguards and police to be immediately overwhelmed.
Some of the demonstrators threw mud and objects, which made it difficult for them to maintain a protective ring around the monarch.
Angry flood survivors hurl mud and insults at Spain’s King Felipe VI during Valencia visit.
Felipe VI of Spain Greets Mob
Images depicted the king, queen, and entourage, who held canopies over the monarch as they departed, with mud on their faces and clothing.
During the visit, the royal couple was accompanied by Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the president of the Valencian regional government, Carlos Mazón. However, they were promptly evacuated as the crowd became increasingly hostile.
The BBC has verified footage that appears to depict stones being thrown at Sánchez’s vehicle as he was driven away, while Spanish media reports that objects were hurled at him.
The audience chanted, “Where is Sánchez?” after he departed.
“I am only 16,” Pau said, his eyes welling with tears. “We are assisting, but the leaders are not acting.” People are still dying. I am unable to endure this any longer.
Another woman stated, “They abandoned us to our deaths.” We have forfeited everything: our homes, enterprises, and aspirations.
A subsequent observation revealed that the civil guard and mounted officers endeavored to disperse the irate throng.
People clean mud from a shop affected by floods in Valencia, Spain.
Severe Flooding in Valencia province
The royal entourage intended to continue their journey to Chiva, another community in the Valencia province severely affected by the flooding. However, this visit has been postponed.
In a subsequent video on the royal household’s Instagram account, the monarch expressed his comprehension of the protestors’ “angry and frustration.”
Maribel Albalat, the mayor of Paiporta, said that she was astonished by the violence but also acknowledged the “frustration and desperation of the people.”
Juan Bordera, a Valencian parliamentarian, characterized the king’s visit as “an extremely poor decision.”
Mr. Bordera told the BBC authorities “didn’t heed any warnings.”
“It is logical that the people are angry, and it is logical that the people did not comprehend the urgency of this visit,” he continued.
Sánchez directed the deployment of 10,000 additional police officers, civil guards, and soldiers to the region on Saturday.
He stated that the deployment was the highest in Spain’s history during peacetime. However, he also acknowledged that the response was “insufficient” and that there were “severe issues and shortages.”
Spain searches for bodies after unprecedented flooding claims at least 200 lives.
Over 200 Killed in Flooding
The inundation began on Tuesday following a period of heavy rainfall. Floodwaters caused bridges to collapse and cities to be engulfed in a thick layer of mud. Numerous communities lacked water, electricity, food, and other fundamental services.
The mortality toll from the flooding reached 217 on Sunday, and it is believed that many more individuals are still missing.
The Valencia region on the Mediterranean coast has been the site of nearly all of the confirmed fatalities thus far.
Certain regions have been particularly devastated. Today, the royal delegation visited Paiporta, a municipality where authorities have reported a minimum of 62 fatalities.
On Sunday, the Spanish meteorological agency AEMET issued the maximum alert level for certain areas of southern Valencia, including Alzira, Cullera, and Gandia.
The agency warned that the intensity of the cyclones expected to pass through the region will not be comparable to Tuesday’s. It anticipates a total of 90mm (3.45 inches) of precipitation.
Trending News:
At Least 95 People Die In Flash Floods In Spain
Global oil prices are plummeting after Israel launched a retaliatory strike over the weekend that targeted Iranian military locations rather than its energy infrastructure, as had been anticipated.
Crude oil prices rose globally on October 2 after Iran launched roughly 200 missiles into Israel as part of a series of fast-increasing attacks between Israel, Iran, and its Arab allies that threatened to bring the Middle East closer to a regional war.
Iran is the world’s seventh-largest oil producer, but a bigger crisis in the Middle East may have an impact on the region’s largest energy producers.
Oil Prices Fall As Reality Of Weak Global Demand Overtakes Risk Of Wider War In Middle East
With many believing that the threat is receding in the short term, the price of benchmark U.S. crude and Brent crude, the worldwide benchmark, fell 6% on Monday. U.S. crude oil plunged well below $70 per barrel.
The Israeli military stated that its aircraft targeted Iranian facilities used to manufacture missiles fired at Israel, as well as surface-to-air missile installations.
Here’s a look at the current status and prospects for oil and gas prices:
The price of U.S. benchmark petroleum fell 6% Monday after Israel’s weekend retaliation strike on Iran targeted military targets rather than oilfields in the world’s seventh largest producer of crude.
This brings the price of a barrel of U.S. crude well below $70 after it rose above $77 earlier this month. Oil and gasoline prices have fallen dramatically since their yearly highs in April. According to energy specialists, more than half of the pumps in the United States sell a gallon of petrol for less than $3.
The focus has shifted back to the fundamentals of global energy markets, which have seen plentiful supply and falling demand this year. Slowing economic growth in China, the world’s largest energy consumer is a major cause.
Beijing announced that China’s economy grew at a 4.6% annual rate in the July-September quarter, down from 4.7% the previous quarter and falling short of the official aim of “about 5%” growth in 2024.
The Middle East war continues to roil energy markets, albeit not as dramatically.
Prices spiked momentarily this month after Iran launched missiles into Israel, but many experts believe Israel’s response over the weekend was moderate, potentially ending a cycle of retaliatory strikes from both sides, at least for now.
The OPEC+ coalition, which includes members of the producer’s cartel as well as ally countries such as Russia, wields less control over world pricing than in the 1970s when an oil embargo following the start of the Yom Kippur War in 1973 doubled crude oil prices.
Since then, the global oil supply has shifted dramatically, with the United States emerging as the world’s top producer. Months of conflict between Israel and two Iranian proxies, Hamas and Hezbollah, did little to raise oil prices for OPEC and its 12 member countries. Only the prospect of a direct conflict between Israel and Iran shifted the needle.
It is the fundamentals.
The long-term expectation is that oil prices will fall rather than rise. This is due to a shift in the supply-demand balance, which normally causes oil prices to fall.
According to the International Energy Agency’s most recent energy market assessment, oil demand in the first half of this year increased by the least amount since 2020. Meanwhile, supplies have continued to rise, and the OPEC+ alliance has announced intentions to release more oil into the market beginning in December.
What’s happening with energy prices this year?
Oil futures soared sharply to start the year, reaching $85 per barrel in April, but it’s been mostly downhill since then, and gas prices have followed suit.
Because oil costs half of a gallon of gasoline in the United States, gas prices are loosely correlated. Between Friday and Monday, when Israel conducted a measured counterstrike against Iran, the price of a barrel of oil fell $4.
OPEC has failed to build a floor for oil prices this year.
Oil Prices Fall As Reality Of Weak Global Demand Overtakes Risk Of Wider War In Middle East
Saudi Arabia and other oil-producing countries extended output cutbacks until June next year, seeking to preserve low oil prices that have yet to recover despite Middle Eastern turbulence and this year’s summer travel season.
At the same time, the United States is pumping an unprecedented amount of petroleum. The United States Energy Information Administration predicts that the average daily crude oil output in the United States will be 13.2 million barrels annually, with production only expected to increase in 2025.
What’s next for oil and gas prices?
Several energy experts believe that oil prices have peaked this year and will continue to fall, implying that motorists will benefit from additional discounts.
“Limited nature of Israeli strikes against Iran should diminish fears of wider war and shave some of the geopolitical premium on crude oil,” said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis at the Oil Price Information Service, in a social media post this weekend. “Today’s U.S. retail gas avg is $3.13/gal with 55% of sites priced at less than $3/gal.”
SOURCE | AP
A recreational substance termed “pink cocaine” is gaining popularity and causing misunderstanding because it does not normally include cocaine.
The pink powder, which is actually a mix of other narcotics tinted pink, has been discovered in drug seizures, forcing law authorities to issue warnings.
Pink cocaine is also known as “tusi,” however both nicknames are based on marketing rather than fact. According to experts, it rarely contains cocaine and is more likely to contain ketamine, which has quite distinct effects.
What Is The Recreational Drug ‘Pink Cocaine’?
Why is it pink?
Pink cocaine gets its pink tint from food coloring or dye, according to Joseph Palamar, a drug trends researcher at NYU Langone Health in New York.
“Sometimes it has cocaine in the mix, but it’s typically more of a ketamine concoction,” says Palamar. Studies have discovered batches containing methamphetamine, MDMA, bath salts, caffeine, and opiates.
“It’s a concoction that anyone can make if they have a couple of drugs and a pink dye,” Palamar told reporters.
According to research released last year by Palamar, the term “tusi” may have been coined to emulate 2C-B, a recreational drug popular on the rave scene in the 1990s and noted for its euphoric effects. The drug analyses that Palamar evaluated revealed that tusi did not often include 2C-B.
According to him, young people nowadays may be unaware of the history of the name tusi and may be confused by the name pink cocaine.
“It’s just some beautiful powder that their pals are using. “They probably have no idea what it is supposed to be,” he explained.
Why is pink cocaine dangerous?
The threat stems from the unknown contents. Users may have undesirable side effects or take more than their previous experience indicates they can handle. Ketamine is a potent anesthetic that has been licensed for surgical usage, but it has also been used recreationally and to treat depression, anxiety, and pain in recent years. It has the potential to produce hallucinations as well as interfere with breathing and cardiac function.
What Is The Recreational Drug ‘Pink Cocaine’?
“Ketamine is not a fun drug to most people,” Palamar stated. “It kind of puts you in your own little world and things tend to feel very alien when you’re on it, especially in large doses.”
Someone who is drunk at a party and believes cocaine may counteract the effects of alcohol will be unpleasantly startled with pink cocaine, which is primarily ketamine, he added.
Where does pink cocaine come from?
In May, the United States Coast Guard reported seizing pink cocaine and other drugs off the shores of Mexico, Central and South America.
“That was the first time that I heard of large batches being imported into the U.S. as tusi,” Palamar told me. It might just as easily be created by drug dealers in the United States who mix their own, he claimed.
SOURCE | AP
Democrats Now Leaderless After Trump Presidential Win
Kamala Concession Speech Trends on Google
A Trump Presidency Spells Disaster for Trudeau
Despite All the Odds Donald Trump Elected 47th President
Trudeau Accused of Sowing Divisions Between Sikhs and Hindus
Police Officer Suspended for Joining Pro-Khalistan Protest
India Slams Trudeau Over Pro-Khalistani Sikhs Attacking Canadian Hindus
US Election Polls Who’s Leading in the Swing States
Felipe VI of Spain Pelted with Mud By Angry Protesters
Subsidies for Electric Vehicles Cut as Consumer Interest Fades
Documents Show OpenAI’s From Nonprofit to $157B Valued Company Long Trip
Experts Are Perplexed By Tesla’s Sporty, Two-Seater Robotaxi Design.
Apple Unveiled A Fresh Glimpse Of Their AI Featuring ChatGPT Integration.
Connection Problems With The App Store Are Stopping Customers From Downloading Apps.
OpenAI Plans To Establish Offices In Paris, Singapore, And Brussels To Facilitate Global Development.
Uber And Lyft Stock Prices Surge After Telsa’s “Toothless” Robotaxi Revelation.
Documents Show OpenAI’s Long Journey From Nonprofit To $157B Valued Company
The Meta Foundation Launches a New Anti-Sextortion Campaign on Instagram.
Meta Cleans Bogus Accounts in Moldova Before The Presidential Contest.
Ozempic-Fueled Slimming Is Blowing Up The Wedding Dress Industry
Pro-Khalistanis Sikhs Attack Hindu Temple in Brampton
Galaxy Gas the News Craze on TiKTok May Have Negative Consequences
Tim Burton’s ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ a Box Office Success Gets 4.5 Stars
Megalopolis Trailer Pulled By Lionsgate Over Fabricated Critics Quotes
Netflix Releases Squid Game Season 2 Teaser
Police Pepper Spray Antisemitic Protesters at McGill University, 15 Arrested
Thousands Descend on New York’s South Bronx for Trump Rally
Singapore Airlines Passenger Killed During Severe Turbulence
Former NDP Leader Mulclair Says Trudeau Should Retire
David Lee Roth Unloads Over Wolfgang Van Halen “This F—in’ Kid”
-
Tech4 weeks agoDocuments Show OpenAI’s From Nonprofit to $157B Valued Company Long Trip
-
Business4 weeks ago
Experts Are Perplexed By Tesla’s Sporty, Two-Seater Robotaxi Design.
-
Tech2 weeks ago
Apple Unveiled A Fresh Glimpse Of Their AI Featuring ChatGPT Integration.
-
Tech3 weeks ago
Connection Problems With The App Store Are Stopping Customers From Downloading Apps.
-
Tech4 weeks ago
OpenAI Plans To Establish Offices In Paris, Singapore, And Brussels To Facilitate Global Development.
-
Business4 weeks ago
Uber And Lyft Stock Prices Surge After Telsa’s “Toothless” Robotaxi Revelation.
