National Security Archives

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif waits for a group photo with lawmakers of the National Assembly at the end of the last session of the current parliament, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2023. Pakistan's prime minister took a formal step Wednesday toward dissolving parliament, starting a possible countdown to a general election, as his chief political rival fought to overturn a corruption conviction that landed him in a high-security prison over the weekend. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Pakistan Confirms Secret Diplomatic Cable Showing U.S. Pressure to Remove Imran Khan

Ryan Grim, Murtaza Hussain

After initially suggesting the cable published by The Intercept was inauthentic, Pakistani officials now claim it doesn’t reveal a conspiracy.

Children run in the streets of Niamey, Niger, Sunday, Aug. 13, 2023. People marched, biked and drove through downtown Niamey, chanting "down with France" and expressing anger at ECOWAS. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick)

Niger Junta Appoints U.S.-Trained Military Officers to Key Jobs

Nick Turse

- Aug. 16

The Pentagon claims “no correlation” between U.S. training and coups, but research suggests the opposite could be true.

TOPSHOT - Protesters hold a Niger flag during a demonstration on independence day in Niamey on August 3, 2023. Hundreds of people backing the coup in Niger gathered on August 3, 2023 for a mass rally in the capital Niamey with some brandishing giant Russian flags. The demonstrators converged at Concertation Square in the heart of the city, following a call by a coalition of civil society associations on a day marking the country's 1960 independence from France. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

At Least Five Members of Niger Junta Were Trained by U.S.

Nick Turse

- Aug. 10

Washington is halting some aid to Niger even as it eyes greater support for Burkina Faso’s military coup-maker.

UNITED STATES - JULY 26: David Grusch, former National Reconnaissance Office representative on the Defense Department's Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force, testifies during the House Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs hearing titled "Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Implications on National Security, Public Safety, and Government Transparency," in Rayburn Building on Wednesday, July 26, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP Images)

UFO Whistleblower Kept Security Clearance After Psychiatric Detention

Ken Klippenstein

- Aug. 9

The star witness of Congress’s UFO hearings, David Grusch, retained his clearance despite alleged substance abuse issues, FOIA documents reveal.

Imran Khan, Pakistan's former prime minister, during an interview in Lahore, Pakistan, on Friday June 2, 2023. Khan said Pakistan's military establishment wanted to stop his opposition party from winning the next election, paving the way for a weak government as the country seeks to stave off a financial crisis. Photographer: Betsy Joles/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Secret Pakistan Cable Documents U.S. Pressure to Remove Imran Khan

Ryan Grim, Murtaza Hussain

- Aug. 9

“All will be forgiven,” said a U.S. diplomat, if the no-confidence vote against Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan succeeds.

A joint patrol between soldiers from the 1st Platoon, 1-64 Armored Batallion of the US Army, operating under NATO command, walks through Morghan-Khecha village in Daman district, Kandahar province on September 8, 2012. Afghanistan's first vice president on September 8 warned deteriorating security could jeopardize transparent elections in 2014 as Kabul prepares to take over from NATO troops. President Hamid Karzai, who has been the only elected head of state in Afghanistan since the 2001 US-led invasion brought down the Taliban, is due to stand down in 2014. His re-election in 2009 was accompanied by widespread fraud and the international community sees the next vote as one of the last major hurdles before NATO combat troops withdraw at the end of 2014. AFP PHOTO/Tony KARUMBA (Photo by TONY KARUMBA / AFP) (Photo by TONY KARUMBA/AFP via Getty Images)

War Criminal’s Bid to Become Lawyer Faces Obstacle: His Own Troops

Murtaza Hussain

- Aug. 5

Donald Trump pardoned Clint Lorance, a former Army officer convicted of murdering innocent civilians in Afghanistan.

FILE - In this Sept. 14, 2020, file photo, Jeff Clark, then-Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division, speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington. The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol has subpoenaed the former Justice Department lawyer. The panel on Oct. 13, 2021, said it is seeking documents and testimony fromc Clark, who aided President Donald Trump’s efforts to challenge the results of the 2020 election. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, Pool)

All the President’s Crimes

The Man With No Pants Is the Star of Donald Trump’s Latest Indictment

James Risen

- Aug. 2

Jeffrey Clark was an obscure government lawyer when he nearly seized control of the Justice Department to help the ex-president overturn the 2020 election results.

A protester kneels down as tear gas is deployed by Colorado Springs law enforcement during a protest against police brutality on Saturday, May 30, 2020. The demonstration was one of many across the country Saturday prompted by the death of George Floyd, a black man who was killed in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25. (Chancey Bush/The Gazette via AP)

Lawsuit Targets FBI Probe of Racial Justice Activists

Trevor Aaronson

- Aug. 1

The FBI’s secret infiltration of the 2020 protest movement, first revealed by The Intercept and the podcast series “Alphabet Boys,” is being challenged for chilling free speech.

WASHINGTON D.C., UNITED STATES - JULY 3: Federal Bureau of Investigation headquarters building in Washington D.C., United States on July 3, 2023. (Photo by Celal GÃ¼neÅ/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

After His Mother Asked for Help, FBI Terrorism Sting Targets Mentally Ill Teen

Murtaza Hussain

- Jul. 31

She said two FBI informants “groomed” her son. They waited until the day after his 18th birthday to spring their trap.

U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Johnathan Braga, U.S. Army Special Operations commander, meets with Brig. Gen. Moussa Barmou, Niger Special Operations Forces commander, to discuss anti-terrorism policy and tactics throughout Niger, at Air Base 101, Niger, June 12, 2023. U.S. Department of Defense agencies partner with the Nigerien Army and Special Operators to bolster anti-violent extremist organization action throughout Northwest Africa. (US Air Force video by Staff Sgt. Amy Younger)

Niger Coup Leader Joins Long Line of U.S.-Trained Mutineers

Nick Turse

- Jul. 27

Brig. Gen. Moussa Salaou Barmou, who trained at Fort Benning, Georgia, helped oust Niger’s democratically elected president.