The New FBI: Undermining Foreign Governments

Yesterday I mentioned that I’d read an article on Sunday that showed our government was supporting a terrorist organization in Iran that had murdered many civilians. The leading actor in the relationship with the terrorist organization is Thomas McHale, a N.Y./N.J. Port Authority cop, who left there to work for the CIA. After being booted out by them he joined the FBI and for all it appears the Pentagon.

McHale developed a relationship with U.S. based members of a terrorist  group Jundallah –“the soldiers of God” – another Muslim group who has the idea that the way into God’s heart is to murder people. What’s strange about this whole arrangement is Jundallah is not a threat to the United States but to Iran. It is responsible for several terrorist attacks in Iran. Well more than 150 men, women and children have been murdered by it.

In 2009 the United States examined its actions and on November 3, 2010, declared it a terrorist organization. Despite that, the FBI and the Pentagon continued to support McHale. According to the article, in late 2013 McHale was still making trips to Afghanistan to meet with his sources in that terrorist group.

One problem with all this is that the exposure of McHale and his trips by the article undermines much of what the U.S. government has been telling the world. Iran has all along suggested that the attacks by Jundallah were sponsored by America and Israel. In October 2009 at least 31 people were murdered in a mosque. The Speaker of  Iran’s parliament said: “We consider the recent terrorist attack to be the result of US action. This is the sign of America’s animosity against our country, Mr. Obama has said he will extend his hand toward Iran, but with this terrorist action he has burned his hand.”  Can’t particularly blame the Iranians when something like that happened, keep in mind our response to the Marathon Terrorist Attack.

It’s not known if the CIA or FBI knew about this attack. The article indicated one of them knew about a planned 2007 attack on Iranian civilians. Nothing was done to stop it.

Again in December 2010 another attack by Jundallah murdered at least 39 Shiite worshipers and wounded another 50.  It was reported that “Iran’s deputy interior minister, said the “equipment used shows that they are terrorists supported by the intelligence services of the region and the U.S.”

Like with the prior attacks, the U.S. has denied any involvement in it. President Obama condemned the 2010 attack and said “those who carried it out must be held accountable.” The president speaking out like that indicates he was unaware of our involvement in it; or, he knew but was trying to put some distance between the murders and himself. No one in the intelligence community who may have abetted the attack has been held accountable. .

The trouble with all this chicanery is that just the other day Obama sent a letter to  Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei looking for his cooperation in our war with ISIS. One paper called the letter ill conceived because “Anti-Americanism is Khamenei’s bedrock, ingrained in his worldview, and as such it is not susceptible to blandishments . . . “

That’s probably very true. Suppose Iran was supporting a terrorist group in this country blowing up Americans attending church services. What type of reaction would our president have toward a letter from Iran. I’d like to think he would not look too kindly upon it.

In effect, we have our intelligence agencies off on wild adventures like a bunch of cowboys. It would seem they are interfering with the president’s foreign policy. I find it difficult to believe he is authorizing the killing of Iranian citizens and asking its supreme ruler to work with us.

Beyond that, there is a much larger problem here. I hope you noticed it and are scratching your head over it as I am.

Jundallah is a terrorist organization that threatens Iran. It presents no threat to America. Why then is the FBI involved in dealing with it? Isn’t the FBI function to protect the homeland? Aren’t dealings with foreign groups supposed to be left with the CIA?

Although it is not quite clear, the author of the article seemed not to be bothered by the FBI exploits undermining another nation but seemed to inquire whether it felt any responsibility for the terrorist acts of Jundallah. He set out what I assume was the FBI’s explanation. “As an F.B.I. informant, Mr. McHale’s original United States-based source would have been subjected to that scrutiny [to follow FBI rules]. But requirements are less onerous for secondary sources, known as “subsources.” So officials acknowledged that there was little oversight of the people inside Jundallah whom Mr. McHale talked to and met abroad.”

Haven’t we been here before? The FBI is still closing its eyes to the horrors produced through its informants. I’d think someone would want to inquire further into this.