The CIA's Bizarre and Baffling Assassination Attempts

Posted by: sunxin 3 months, 2 weeks ago

On November 22, 1963, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy sent shockwaves around the world. The subsequent investigations pointed the finger at Lee Harvey Oswald, but the circumstances surrounding the incident have fueled conspiracy theories for decades. One of the most prominent theories is that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was involved in the assassination.

The CIA has a long history of being implicated in the assassination of world leaders, from Patrice Lumumba to Fidel Castro. In this article, we will delve into some of the most bizarre and baffling assassination attempts carried out by the CIA.

The CIA's Motivations

The CIA has been labeled as a plausible suspect behind the Kennedy assassination for several reasons. Kennedy had fired the Agency's director, Allen Dulles, after the failed invasion of Cuba in 1961 and had even planned to slash the CIA's budget. There is also the belief that Kennedy was more tolerant of communism, which led extreme anti-Communist CIA agents to orchestrate the president's assassination to prevent the United States from withdrawing from the Vietnam War and maintain Cold War tensions.

The CIA's Methods

The CIA has employed a variety of methods in their assassination attempts, ranging from deploying deadly dental care products and poisoned scuba diving gear to sending out their top assassins. Here are some of the most outrageous examples:

The Air India Flight 300 Incident: In 1955, the CIA attempted to assassinate Zhou Enlai, the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, by planting an explosive on Air India Flight 300. The plane crashed into the South China Sea, killing 16 people, but Zhou Enlai was not on board.
The Attempt on the Life of Iraqi Prime Minister Abdel Karim Qasim: In 1959, the CIA backed an attempt to assassinate Iraqi Prime Minister Abdel Karim Qasim by sending a team of five armed assailants. One of the assassins was Saddam Hussein himself, who would later become the target of a suspected CIA assassination.
The Poisoned Toothpaste Plot: The CIA attempted to assassinate Patrice Lumumba, the first democratically elected Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, by sending a scientist armed with a hypodermic needle loaded with a lethal virus. The plan was later abandoned, but the CIA was also given a tube of poisoned toothpaste to get into Lumumba's mouth.
The Poisoned Scuba Diving Suit: The CIA attempted to assassinate Fidel Castro by creating a contaminated diving suit laced with eumycetoma fungi, which can cause a debilitating disease known as Madura's foot. The suit's breathing apparatus was also said to have been dusted with tuberculosis bacteria.
The Poisoned Cigar Plot: The CIA attempted to assassinate Fidel Castro by treating his favorite cigars with lethal botulism toxin. The cigars were delivered to an 'unidentified person' in 1961, but there is no confirmation that anyone ever attempted to pass them on to El Comandante.
The Poisoned Milkshake Plot: The CIA attempted to assassinate Fidel Castro by getting a stash of cyanide pills into the hands of a restaurant server working in Havana, Cuba. The plan was abandoned when the would-be mob assassin accidentally broke one of the capsules.
The Poisoned Pen Plot: The CIA attempted to assassinate Fidel Castro by having him stabbed with a pen that had been modified to conceal a hypodermic needle inside.
The Star Shell Plot: The CIA attempted to assassinate Fidel Castro by firing star shells up into the sky to convince the people of Cuba that the Second Coming of Christ was imminent and that Jesus didn't like Fidel Castro.

The CIA's Impact

The CIA's assassination attempts have had a lasting impact on the world. They have caused mistrust and suspicion of the Agency, and their actions have often had unintended consequences. For example, the CIA's use of vaccination programs as cover for an assassination plot has made it harder for health workers to administer life-saving vaccines in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Conclusion

The CIA's bizarre and baffling assassination attempts are a testament to the lengths that the Agency will go to in order to achieve its goals. Their actions have had a lasting impact on the world, and they continue to be a source of controversy and speculation.

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