The shocking details of the Robert Levinson case cry out for a congressional investigation and the punishment of individuals apparently involved in a rogue spy operation that misled Congress, members of the administration and the American public for years.
Mr. Levinson, an ex-FBI agent who lived in Coral Springs, Fla., with his family, disappeared after leaving his hotel on Kish Island in Iran in March 2007. The cover story claimed Levinson was on a private business trip to investigate cigarette smuggling for clients of his security firm.
Given that the cover story about cigarette smuggling sounded a bit farfetched, U.S. spokesmen went to great pains to declare that Levinson was no spy, and few of the speakers appeared to know the truth. Even in closed hearings, CIA officials told Congress, as well as the FBI, that Levinson did not have a current relationship with the agency and downplayed its ties with him. They claimed he did not go to Iran for the CIA.
That, as it turns out, was not the truth. The real story, reported last week by the Washington Post and The AP, is that he had gone to Iran at the direction of CIA analysts who had no authority to send him there or to run overseas operations of any kind. At some point, the leadership of the CIA became aware of the deception and ultimately “disciplined” 10 employees, including three veteran analysts who were forced out of their jobs.
That is the story thus far, but the public is entitled to know much more.
When did the CIA’s leaders realize they’d been had by their own employees?
When did the CIA’s leadership come clean with Congress? And what was the reaction of the lawmakers? What does “disciplined” mean in regard to CIA employees involved in this misadventure? Does any of this activity merit criminal punishment, or is everyone expected to just forgive and forget?
Editorial, Pages 16 on 12/18/2013