Covert action
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In the context of international relations, covert action is any of a range of activities, intended to affect the behavior of a target nation or non-national actor, where the fact of the action is known, but the responsibility for the action cannot be proven. Such activities include assassination, guerrilla warfare, information operations, "gray" and "black" psychological warfare, sabotage, and subversion. These may be conducted by units of intelligence agencies or military services, independently or in cooperation with people nominally associated with the target actor. AssassinationThis complex and controversial subject, first, begins with legality. In customary international law, it is considered licit to take a specific action to kill or otherwise neutralize a key member of the enemy's uniformed military. This still may require high-level approval, for a variety of reasons, as with the deliberate interception and shooting down of the aircraft carrying Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. Things become much more complex when a Head of State or government wears military or paramilitary uniform, but is not purely involved with military matters, as with Reinhard Heydrich, Saddam Hussein, or Muammar Khadafi. Contrary to "common knowledge", assassination is not forbidden by U.S. law. It is, however, forbidden by a Presidential Executive Order, originally 11905,[1] which could be revoked by any President. Subsequent Presidents have, in fact, relaxed it. Information operationsSee main article on information operations; this is focused on aspects done as part of covert action. Electronic warfareRather than blowing up a radar, a covert action specialist might suggest placing remotely triggerable electronic deception or jammers near it. Computer network operationsDeceptionOperations securityThis is more of a measure to support covert action, rather than an action in and of itself. It prevents the opponent from identifying what the covert actor intends to do, or has done. Psychological operationsHistorically, many of the military and civilian covert action organizations of the United States came from psychological warfare, rather than existing intelligence operations. In the Second World War, the Office of Strategic Services was spawned from the Office of War Information. United States Army Special Forces were created by the Psychological Operations Division of the Army Staff. Definitions below come from the Operations Coordinating Board (OCB), which, in 1954, was the White House organization that approved or disapproved covert and clandestine activities.[2] Policy-level control has always been under the Department of State. In U.S. doctrine, the term "propaganda", without further qualification, is intended to be descriptive and emotionally neutral:
Of the three general types of propaganda, white, gray and black, white is overt while gray and black are covert.[4] White propagandaWhite is acknowledged as a statement of U.S. Government policy, or emanates from a source associated closely enough with the U.S. Government to reflect an official viewpoint. The information is true and factual. It also includes all output identified as coming from U.S. official sources.
Gray propagandaThe source of gray propaganda is deliberately ambiguous.
Black propagandaThe activity engaged in appears to emanate from a source (government, party, group, organization, person) usually hostile in nature. The interest of the U.S. Government is concealed and the U.S. Government would deny responsibility. The content may be partially or completely fabricated, but that which is fabricated is made to appear credible to the target audience. Black activity is also usually designed to cause embarrassment to the ostensible source or to force the ostensible source to take action against its will.[2] Black propaganda can be considered clandestine, as the source is unknown.
In US doctrine, black propaganda rarely is employed below the strategic level, due to the stringent coordination and security requirements needed to protect its actual source. Further, black propaganda, to be credible, may need to disclose sensitive material, with the damage caused by information disclosure considered to be outweighed by the impact of successful deception. [4] Guerrilla warfareSabotageSubversionReferences
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