Source-Debka: Israeli propaganda website
Russian, French warships off Syria, Iran, US drones over Iranian coast
DEBKAfile Special Report January 9, 2012, 10:21 AM (GMT+02:00) Tags: Iran nuclear Strait of Hormuz Syria Russian warships US drone France Britain
Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kutznetsov in Syrian port
US, Russian French and British air and naval forces streamed to the Syrian and Iranian coasts over the weekend on guard for fresh developments at the two Middle East flashpoints.
The Russian carrier Admiral Kuznetsov anchored earlier than planned at Syria's Tartus port on the Mediterranean Sunday, Jan. 8, arriving together with the destroyer Admiral Chabanenko and frigate Yaroslav Mudry.
To counter this movement, France consigned an air defense destroyer Forbin to the waters off Tartus.
DEBKAfile's military sources report a buildup in the last 48 hours of western naval forces opposite Iran in the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea in readiness for Tehran to carry out its threat to close the Strait of Hormuz.
Britain has dispatched the HMS Daring, a Type 45 destroyer armed with new technology for shooting down missiles, to the Sea of Oman, due to arrive at the same time as the French Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.
Our sources report too that Saturday, the giant RQ-4 Global Hawk UAV, took off from the USS Stenning aircraft carrier for surveillance over the coasts of Iran. The Stennis and its strike group are cruising in the Sea of Oman at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz after Tehran announced it would not be allowed to cross through.
This was the first time the US has deployed unmanned aerial vehicles over Iran since its RQ-170 stealth drone was shot down by Iran on Dec. 4. It was also the first time the huge drone was ordered to take off from an aircraft carrier for a Broad Aerial Maritime Surveillance Mission (BAMS).
US military sources reported Monday, Jan. 9 that the Global Hawk's mission is "to monitor sea traffic off the Iranian coast and the Straits of Hormuz." The US Navy was ordered to maintain a watch on this traffic, another first, after Iranian Navy chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari said in a televised broadcast Sunday night that the Strait of Hormuz was under full Iranian control and had been for years.
Also Sunday, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the US Chiefs of Staff, warned in no uncertain terms that Iran has the ability to block the Strait of Hormuz “for a period of time.” He added in a CBS interview: “We’ve invested in capabilities to ensure that if that happens, we can defeat that.” Gen. Dempsey went on to emphasize: "Yes, they can block it. We've described that as an intolerable act and it's not just intolerable for us, it's intolerable to the world. But we would take action and reopen the straits."
Appearing on the same program, US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned of a quick, decisive and very tough American response to any Iranian attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz.
They both spoke a few hours after a spokesman for the Revolutionary Guards said the supreme Iranian leadership had ruled the Strait must be closed in the event of an oil embargo imposed on Iran by the European Union.
DEBKAfile's military sources report the constant escalation of military tension around Iran and Syria in recent days as not just stemming from the rapid advances Iran is making toward production of a nuclear weapon, but from fears in the West and Israel that Tehran and Damascus are in step over their military plans for the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean sectors.
After the Admiral Kuznetsov docked in Tartus Sunday with much fanfare, the Syrian Navy commander Dawoud Rajha was received on the deck by a guard of honor of marines under a flyover of Russian Su-33 and Su-25 fighter-bombers. This was taken as a signal of Moscow's willingness to back the Assad regime up against any Western military intervention as well as a gesture of support for cooperation between Syria and Iran in their operational plans.
Sunday, the Iranian media issued divergent statements about the situation at Iran's underground uranium enrichment plant at Fordo, near Qom: In English, the site as described as going on stream soon, while the Farsi media reported it was already operational.
The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Fereydoun Abbasi Davani declared furthermore," …the Islamic Republic is capable of exporting services related to nuclear energy to other countries."
This statement showed that Tehran has no fear of raising the level of its threats to the West up to the point of offering to hand out its nuclear technology to other countries in a gesture of uncontrolled proliferation.
Russian, French warships off Syria, Iran, US drones over Iranian coast
DEBKAfile Special Report January 9, 2012, 10:21 AM (GMT+02:00) Tags: Iran nuclear Strait of Hormuz Syria Russian warships US drone France Britain
Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kutznetsov in Syrian port
US, Russian French and British air and naval forces streamed to the Syrian and Iranian coasts over the weekend on guard for fresh developments at the two Middle East flashpoints.
The Russian carrier Admiral Kuznetsov anchored earlier than planned at Syria's Tartus port on the Mediterranean Sunday, Jan. 8, arriving together with the destroyer Admiral Chabanenko and frigate Yaroslav Mudry.
To counter this movement, France consigned an air defense destroyer Forbin to the waters off Tartus.
DEBKAfile's military sources report a buildup in the last 48 hours of western naval forces opposite Iran in the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea in readiness for Tehran to carry out its threat to close the Strait of Hormuz.
Britain has dispatched the HMS Daring, a Type 45 destroyer armed with new technology for shooting down missiles, to the Sea of Oman, due to arrive at the same time as the French Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.
Our sources report too that Saturday, the giant RQ-4 Global Hawk UAV, took off from the USS Stenning aircraft carrier for surveillance over the coasts of Iran. The Stennis and its strike group are cruising in the Sea of Oman at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz after Tehran announced it would not be allowed to cross through.
This was the first time the US has deployed unmanned aerial vehicles over Iran since its RQ-170 stealth drone was shot down by Iran on Dec. 4. It was also the first time the huge drone was ordered to take off from an aircraft carrier for a Broad Aerial Maritime Surveillance Mission (BAMS).
US military sources reported Monday, Jan. 9 that the Global Hawk's mission is "to monitor sea traffic off the Iranian coast and the Straits of Hormuz." The US Navy was ordered to maintain a watch on this traffic, another first, after Iranian Navy chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari said in a televised broadcast Sunday night that the Strait of Hormuz was under full Iranian control and had been for years.
Also Sunday, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the US Chiefs of Staff, warned in no uncertain terms that Iran has the ability to block the Strait of Hormuz “for a period of time.” He added in a CBS interview: “We’ve invested in capabilities to ensure that if that happens, we can defeat that.” Gen. Dempsey went on to emphasize: "Yes, they can block it. We've described that as an intolerable act and it's not just intolerable for us, it's intolerable to the world. But we would take action and reopen the straits."
Appearing on the same program, US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned of a quick, decisive and very tough American response to any Iranian attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz.
They both spoke a few hours after a spokesman for the Revolutionary Guards said the supreme Iranian leadership had ruled the Strait must be closed in the event of an oil embargo imposed on Iran by the European Union.
DEBKAfile's military sources report the constant escalation of military tension around Iran and Syria in recent days as not just stemming from the rapid advances Iran is making toward production of a nuclear weapon, but from fears in the West and Israel that Tehran and Damascus are in step over their military plans for the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean sectors.
After the Admiral Kuznetsov docked in Tartus Sunday with much fanfare, the Syrian Navy commander Dawoud Rajha was received on the deck by a guard of honor of marines under a flyover of Russian Su-33 and Su-25 fighter-bombers. This was taken as a signal of Moscow's willingness to back the Assad regime up against any Western military intervention as well as a gesture of support for cooperation between Syria and Iran in their operational plans.
Sunday, the Iranian media issued divergent statements about the situation at Iran's underground uranium enrichment plant at Fordo, near Qom: In English, the site as described as going on stream soon, while the Farsi media reported it was already operational.
The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Fereydoun Abbasi Davani declared furthermore," …the Islamic Republic is capable of exporting services related to nuclear energy to other countries."
This statement showed that Tehran has no fear of raising the level of its threats to the West up to the point of offering to hand out its nuclear technology to other countries in a gesture of uncontrolled proliferation.
Source-Defence Industry daily
Source-UK TELEGRAPH-British Royal Navy sends 1 billion dollar ship to Gulf
The Royal Navy's most formidable warship is being sent to the Gulf for its first mission as tensions rise in the strategically vital region, it can be disclosed.
Iran has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, which served as the conduit for 17 millions barrels of oil every day last year.
Naval commanders believe the deployment of HMS Daring, a Type 45 destroyer, will send a significant message to the Iranians because of the firepower and world-beating technology carried by the warship.
Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, has publicly warned Iran that any blockade of the Strait of Hormuz would be "illegal and unsuccessful".
The Daily Telegraph understands that HMS Daring has been fitted with new technology that will give it the ability to shoot down any missile in Iran's armoury. The £1 billion destroyer, which will leave Portsmouth next Wednesday, also carries the world's most sophisticated naval radar, capable of tracking multiple incoming threats from missiles to fighter jets.
Daring, with its crew of 190, will transit through the Suez Canal and enter the Gulf later this month to replace the Type 23 frigate currently on station.
Iran completed a 10-day naval exercise in the sensitive waters near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, staging manouevres which included firing three anti-ship missiles understood to be the Chinese-made C-802.
Yesterday, Tehran said that another exercise would be held in the same area next month. Admiral Ali Fadavi, commander of the naval branch of the Revolutionary Guard, warned that this would be "different" from the most recent one.
Speaking earlier, Mr Hammond said that "our joint naval presence in the Arabian Gulf" was "key to keeping the Strait of Hormuz open for international trade".
A Navy source has indicated that more British ships could be sent to the Gulf if required. The second Type 45, HMS Dauntless, will also be available to sail at short notice.
Daring's special software upgrades will significantly increase the ability of its Sampson radar and Sea Viper missiles to destroy incoming missiles.
During an intensive "swarm attack", the vessel could simultaneously track, engage and destroy more targets than five of it predecessor Type 42 destoyers.
The Sea Viper is also one of the world's most agile missiles equipped with its own radar that can allow it to hit a target a hundred miles away.
Lord West, the former First Sea Lord, described Daring as a "world beater", adding: "This warship has an unbelievably capable ability to track targets, spot the most dangerous and identify them for its missiles to take out. It's highly, highly capable. I would like to see the Type 45s show their potential in the region."
The 8,000 ton destroyer will carry 48 Sea Vipers that can also be used to shoot down fighters as well as sea skimming missiles. It will also carry a Lynx helicopter capable of carrying Sea Skua anti-ship missiles and is capable of embarking 60 special forces troops.
An MoD spokesman said: "While the newly operational Type 45 destroyer HMS Daring is more capable than earlier ships, her deployment East of Suez has been long planned, is entirely routine and replaces a frigate on station."
The Royal Navy's most formidable warship is being sent to the Gulf for its first mission as tensions rise in the strategically vital region, it can be disclosed.
Iran has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, which served as the conduit for 17 millions barrels of oil every day last year.
Naval commanders believe the deployment of HMS Daring, a Type 45 destroyer, will send a significant message to the Iranians because of the firepower and world-beating technology carried by the warship.
Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, has publicly warned Iran that any blockade of the Strait of Hormuz would be "illegal and unsuccessful".
The Daily Telegraph understands that HMS Daring has been fitted with new technology that will give it the ability to shoot down any missile in Iran's armoury. The £1 billion destroyer, which will leave Portsmouth next Wednesday, also carries the world's most sophisticated naval radar, capable of tracking multiple incoming threats from missiles to fighter jets.
Daring, with its crew of 190, will transit through the Suez Canal and enter the Gulf later this month to replace the Type 23 frigate currently on station.
Iran completed a 10-day naval exercise in the sensitive waters near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, staging manouevres which included firing three anti-ship missiles understood to be the Chinese-made C-802.
Yesterday, Tehran said that another exercise would be held in the same area next month. Admiral Ali Fadavi, commander of the naval branch of the Revolutionary Guard, warned that this would be "different" from the most recent one.
Speaking earlier, Mr Hammond said that "our joint naval presence in the Arabian Gulf" was "key to keeping the Strait of Hormuz open for international trade".
A Navy source has indicated that more British ships could be sent to the Gulf if required. The second Type 45, HMS Dauntless, will also be available to sail at short notice.
Daring's special software upgrades will significantly increase the ability of its Sampson radar and Sea Viper missiles to destroy incoming missiles.
During an intensive "swarm attack", the vessel could simultaneously track, engage and destroy more targets than five of it predecessor Type 42 destoyers.
The Sea Viper is also one of the world's most agile missiles equipped with its own radar that can allow it to hit a target a hundred miles away.
Lord West, the former First Sea Lord, described Daring as a "world beater", adding: "This warship has an unbelievably capable ability to track targets, spot the most dangerous and identify them for its missiles to take out. It's highly, highly capable. I would like to see the Type 45s show their potential in the region."
The 8,000 ton destroyer will carry 48 Sea Vipers that can also be used to shoot down fighters as well as sea skimming missiles. It will also carry a Lynx helicopter capable of carrying Sea Skua anti-ship missiles and is capable of embarking 60 special forces troops.
An MoD spokesman said: "While the newly operational Type 45 destroyer HMS Daring is more capable than earlier ships, her deployment East of Suez has been long planned, is entirely routine and replaces a frigate on station."
Source-Reuters news: Contigency plan now in place for oil to flow to Western Countries during war with Iran
By Peg Mackey and Richard Mably
LONDON (Reuters) - Western powers this week readied a contingency plan to tap a record volume from emergency stockpiles to replace nearly all the Gulf oil that would be lost if Iran blocks the Strait of Hormuz, industry sources and diplomats told Reuters.
They said senior executives of the International Energy Agency (IEA), which advises 28 oil consuming countries, discussed on Thursday an existing plan to release up to 14 million barrels per day (bpd) of government-owned oil stored in the United States, Europe, Japan and other importers.
Action on this scale would be more than five times the size of the biggest release in the agency's history -- made in response to Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
The maximum release, some 10 million bpd of crude and about 4 million bpd of refined products, could be sustained during the first month of any coordinated action, the plan says.
"This would form a necessary and sensible response to a closure of the strait," a European diplomat told Reuters. "It wouldn't take long to put in place if it was required ... and would be unlikely to prove controversial amongst the (IEA) membership."
A spokesman for the IEA confirmed that the Paris-based agency has an existing contingency plan that outlines a maximum stock release capability of 14 million bpd for a month. "We're watching the situation carefully," he said of Iran.
Tehran announced plans on Friday for new military exercises in the world's most important oil shipping lane, through which some 16 million barrels of crude pass each day.
Iranian officials have threatened to block the strait if new sanctions, aimed to discourage Iran's nuclear programme, harm Tehran's oil exports.
Many oil experts believe the threats are rhetoric aimed at pushing up oil prices in a bid to avert sanctions.
"The IEA is monitoring the situation very closely, and is fairly concerned about it," the diplomat said, confirming that senior management discussed Iran at the meeting on Thursday.
Western governments are targeting Iranian oil supplies and the European Union is readying a ban on the country's crude oil exports of about 500,000 bpd with the goal of a final decision by month's end, while Washington has already imposed financial measures to discourage business with Tehran.
Industry sources said the IEA is unlikely to release stocks in the event of an EU embargo on Iran. While Europe will import less Iranian oil, Tehran will seek to sell larger volumes to its biggest customers in Asia.
However, Bob McNally, a former White House energy advisor and now head of consultancy Rapidan Group, says even a more modest disruption -- if Iran were to shut in some of its own production due to sanctions pressure, for instance -- may require action.
"Given low OPEC spare capacity, IEA stock releases may need to be considered if prolonged supply disruptions even smaller than the flow through Hormuz were to take place," he said.
U.S. congressman Edward Markey, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives' Natural Resources Committee, said he would support U.S. releasing its reserves, although he views the emergency stockpiles as only a short term solution to the nation's energy problems.
"America should always be willing to use our strategic oil reserves as a weapon against OPEC dictators, Wall Street speculators and any manipulators of the oil markets, and the recent saber rattling from Iran is no different," Markey told Reuters in a statement.
Also watching closely are oil giants Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq who depend on the strait to move most of their crude.
If the Gulf channel gets blocked, Saudi Arabia, the world's top exporter, can route more crude through the country's East-West pipeline system to the port of Yanbu on the Red Sea.
PIPELINES AVAILABLE
Altogether that network has effective capacity of some 4.5 million bpd and after supplying Saudi domestic refineries in Jeddah, Riyadh, Rabigh and Yanbu - there is about 3 million bpd of export capacity available, said an industry source.
The neighboring United Arab Emirates also has export flexibility. It is nearing completion of the Abu Dhabi crude oil pipeline, which will bypass the strait to ship as much as 1.5 million bpd to the Indian Ocean. Industry sources said the pipeline has been tested and the first flow of oil has already been pumped.
"It's now only a matter of switching on a button," one industry source said.
The IEA tapped emergency stocks in June to help supply refiners caught short by supply lost to Libya's civil war. It was a move that angered the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries which felt the consumer group had overstepped its bounds.
Founded in 1974 in the wake of the Arab oil embargo, the IEA has only drawn down reserves on three occasions. Apart from last summer, member countries released oil in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina damaged offshore oil facilities in the Gulf of Mexico and made available 2.5 million bpd in January 1991 after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait disrupted about 4.3 million bpd.
(Additional reporting by Muriel Boselli in Paris, Humeyra Pamuk in Dubai, Dmitry Zhdannikov in London and Joshua Schneyer in New York, editing by Anthony Barker, Marguerita Choy and Bob Burgdorfer)
By Peg Mackey and Richard Mably
LONDON (Reuters) - Western powers this week readied a contingency plan to tap a record volume from emergency stockpiles to replace nearly all the Gulf oil that would be lost if Iran blocks the Strait of Hormuz, industry sources and diplomats told Reuters.
They said senior executives of the International Energy Agency (IEA), which advises 28 oil consuming countries, discussed on Thursday an existing plan to release up to 14 million barrels per day (bpd) of government-owned oil stored in the United States, Europe, Japan and other importers.
Action on this scale would be more than five times the size of the biggest release in the agency's history -- made in response to Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
The maximum release, some 10 million bpd of crude and about 4 million bpd of refined products, could be sustained during the first month of any coordinated action, the plan says.
"This would form a necessary and sensible response to a closure of the strait," a European diplomat told Reuters. "It wouldn't take long to put in place if it was required ... and would be unlikely to prove controversial amongst the (IEA) membership."
A spokesman for the IEA confirmed that the Paris-based agency has an existing contingency plan that outlines a maximum stock release capability of 14 million bpd for a month. "We're watching the situation carefully," he said of Iran.
Tehran announced plans on Friday for new military exercises in the world's most important oil shipping lane, through which some 16 million barrels of crude pass each day.
Iranian officials have threatened to block the strait if new sanctions, aimed to discourage Iran's nuclear programme, harm Tehran's oil exports.
Many oil experts believe the threats are rhetoric aimed at pushing up oil prices in a bid to avert sanctions.
"The IEA is monitoring the situation very closely, and is fairly concerned about it," the diplomat said, confirming that senior management discussed Iran at the meeting on Thursday.
Western governments are targeting Iranian oil supplies and the European Union is readying a ban on the country's crude oil exports of about 500,000 bpd with the goal of a final decision by month's end, while Washington has already imposed financial measures to discourage business with Tehran.
Industry sources said the IEA is unlikely to release stocks in the event of an EU embargo on Iran. While Europe will import less Iranian oil, Tehran will seek to sell larger volumes to its biggest customers in Asia.
However, Bob McNally, a former White House energy advisor and now head of consultancy Rapidan Group, says even a more modest disruption -- if Iran were to shut in some of its own production due to sanctions pressure, for instance -- may require action.
"Given low OPEC spare capacity, IEA stock releases may need to be considered if prolonged supply disruptions even smaller than the flow through Hormuz were to take place," he said.
U.S. congressman Edward Markey, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives' Natural Resources Committee, said he would support U.S. releasing its reserves, although he views the emergency stockpiles as only a short term solution to the nation's energy problems.
"America should always be willing to use our strategic oil reserves as a weapon against OPEC dictators, Wall Street speculators and any manipulators of the oil markets, and the recent saber rattling from Iran is no different," Markey told Reuters in a statement.
Also watching closely are oil giants Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq who depend on the strait to move most of their crude.
If the Gulf channel gets blocked, Saudi Arabia, the world's top exporter, can route more crude through the country's East-West pipeline system to the port of Yanbu on the Red Sea.
PIPELINES AVAILABLE
Altogether that network has effective capacity of some 4.5 million bpd and after supplying Saudi domestic refineries in Jeddah, Riyadh, Rabigh and Yanbu - there is about 3 million bpd of export capacity available, said an industry source.
The neighboring United Arab Emirates also has export flexibility. It is nearing completion of the Abu Dhabi crude oil pipeline, which will bypass the strait to ship as much as 1.5 million bpd to the Indian Ocean. Industry sources said the pipeline has been tested and the first flow of oil has already been pumped.
"It's now only a matter of switching on a button," one industry source said.
The IEA tapped emergency stocks in June to help supply refiners caught short by supply lost to Libya's civil war. It was a move that angered the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries which felt the consumer group had overstepped its bounds.
Founded in 1974 in the wake of the Arab oil embargo, the IEA has only drawn down reserves on three occasions. Apart from last summer, member countries released oil in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina damaged offshore oil facilities in the Gulf of Mexico and made available 2.5 million bpd in January 1991 after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait disrupted about 4.3 million bpd.
(Additional reporting by Muriel Boselli in Paris, Humeyra Pamuk in Dubai, Dmitry Zhdannikov in London and Joshua Schneyer in New York, editing by Anthony Barker, Marguerita Choy and Bob Burgdorfer)
Source-UK GUARDIAN: U.S. Navy Destroyer rescues Iranian fishermen from Somali Pirates
A US navy destroyer has rescued an Iranian fishing boat that had been commandeered by suspected pirates just days after Tehran warned America to keep its warships out of the Gulf.
US forces flying off the guided-missile destroyer USS Kidd responded to a distress call from the Iranian vessel, the Al Molai, which had been held captive for more than 40 days, the US navy said Friday. The Kidd was sailing in the Arabian sea, after leaving the Gulf, when it came to the sailors' aid.
A US navy team boarded the ship Thursday and detained 15 suspected Somali pirates. They had been holding the 13-member Iranian crew hostage and were using the boat as a "mother ship" for pirating operations in the Gulf.
Amid escalating tensions with Tehran, the Obama administration reveled in delivering the news.
"This is an incredible story. This is a great story," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said, explaining that the very same American ships Iran protested against for recently travelling through the Strait of Hormuz were responsible for the Iranian vessel's recovery.
"They were obviously very grateful to be rescued from these pirates," Nuland said.
The episode occurred after a week of hostile rhetoric from Iranian leaders, including a statement by Iran's army chief that American vessels are no longer welcome in the Gulf. Iran also warned it could block the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway that carries to market much of the oil pumped in the Middle East.
The Iranian threats, which were brushed aside by the Obama administration, were in response to strong economic sanctions against Iran over its disputed nuclear enrichment program. Last week, president Barack Obama signed into law new sanctions targeting Iran's central bank and its ability to sell petroleum abroad.
According to the navy, the Kidd was part of the USS John C Stennis Carrier Strike Group, which had recently left the Gulf through the strait and into the northern Arabian sea.
A navy search-and-seizure team was taken by helicopter from the Kidd to the Al Molai and met no resistance from the pirates, who surrendered quickly.
"The Al Molai had been taken over by pirates for roughly the last 40-45 days," said Josh Schminsky, a Navy Criminal Investigative Service agent aboard the Kidd. "They were held hostage, with limited rations, and we believe were forced against their will to assist the pirates with other piracy operations."
Schminsky said the Iranian boat's captain thanked the US for assistance. "He was afraid that without our help, they could have been there for months," Schminsky said in a prepared release.
The US team gave the crew food, water and medical care. Nuland said the crew then returned the Iranians to their fishing vessels "and they went on their way."
The captured pirates remain on the Stennis while the US considers options for prosecution and consults with other nations that have joined forces against piracy.
"Sadly, this is not a new thing," she told reporters, citing more than 1,000 pirates picked up at sea who are under prosecution in some 20 countries. "So this is always a question of where to send them and who will do the prosecution."
Asked if the rescue mission could provide a chance for a thaw in relations with Iran, Nuland declined to comment. She said the navy had made a "humanitarian gesture" to take the Iranians onboard, feed them and ensure they were in good health before setting them off. She said the US and Iranian governments have had no direct contact over the incident.
A US navy destroyer has rescued an Iranian fishing boat that had been commandeered by suspected pirates just days after Tehran warned America to keep its warships out of the Gulf.
US forces flying off the guided-missile destroyer USS Kidd responded to a distress call from the Iranian vessel, the Al Molai, which had been held captive for more than 40 days, the US navy said Friday. The Kidd was sailing in the Arabian sea, after leaving the Gulf, when it came to the sailors' aid.
A US navy team boarded the ship Thursday and detained 15 suspected Somali pirates. They had been holding the 13-member Iranian crew hostage and were using the boat as a "mother ship" for pirating operations in the Gulf.
Amid escalating tensions with Tehran, the Obama administration reveled in delivering the news.
"This is an incredible story. This is a great story," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said, explaining that the very same American ships Iran protested against for recently travelling through the Strait of Hormuz were responsible for the Iranian vessel's recovery.
"They were obviously very grateful to be rescued from these pirates," Nuland said.
The episode occurred after a week of hostile rhetoric from Iranian leaders, including a statement by Iran's army chief that American vessels are no longer welcome in the Gulf. Iran also warned it could block the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway that carries to market much of the oil pumped in the Middle East.
The Iranian threats, which were brushed aside by the Obama administration, were in response to strong economic sanctions against Iran over its disputed nuclear enrichment program. Last week, president Barack Obama signed into law new sanctions targeting Iran's central bank and its ability to sell petroleum abroad.
According to the navy, the Kidd was part of the USS John C Stennis Carrier Strike Group, which had recently left the Gulf through the strait and into the northern Arabian sea.
A navy search-and-seizure team was taken by helicopter from the Kidd to the Al Molai and met no resistance from the pirates, who surrendered quickly.
"The Al Molai had been taken over by pirates for roughly the last 40-45 days," said Josh Schminsky, a Navy Criminal Investigative Service agent aboard the Kidd. "They were held hostage, with limited rations, and we believe were forced against their will to assist the pirates with other piracy operations."
Schminsky said the Iranian boat's captain thanked the US for assistance. "He was afraid that without our help, they could have been there for months," Schminsky said in a prepared release.
The US team gave the crew food, water and medical care. Nuland said the crew then returned the Iranians to their fishing vessels "and they went on their way."
The captured pirates remain on the Stennis while the US considers options for prosecution and consults with other nations that have joined forces against piracy.
"Sadly, this is not a new thing," she told reporters, citing more than 1,000 pirates picked up at sea who are under prosecution in some 20 countries. "So this is always a question of where to send them and who will do the prosecution."
Asked if the rescue mission could provide a chance for a thaw in relations with Iran, Nuland declined to comment. She said the navy had made a "humanitarian gesture" to take the Iranians onboard, feed them and ensure they were in good health before setting them off. She said the US and Iranian governments have had no direct contact over the incident.
NCIS Website
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) is the federal law enforcement agency charged with conducting investigations of felony-level offenses affecting the Navy and Marine Corps – that is, crimes punishable by confinement for more than one year. NCIS also performs investigations and operations aimed at identifying and neutralizing foreign intelligence, international terrorist, and cyber threats to the Department of the Navy. In addition, it provides warning of threats and specialized defensive force protection support to U.S. naval forces around the world.
NCIS is comprised of some 2,400 personnel in over 40 countries around the globe. The organization is roughly 90% civilian, and its cadre of federal agents – about half its total personnel – is 98% civilian.
Criminal investigation is at the foundation of virtually all the organization does, but the NCIS mission is broad. Transnational terrorism has been and remains a key focus area for the agency. The al Qaeda threat made clear to NCIS that merely reacting to crime – the traditional law enforcement model – was no longer adequate. After the attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 and the events of 9/11, NCIS adopted a proactive model of law enforcement and a new strategy for engaging the threat. Today, NCIS’ mantra is: “Prevent Terrorism, Protect Secrets, and Reduce Crime.”
NCIS is comprised of some 2,400 personnel in over 40 countries around the globe. The organization is roughly 90% civilian, and its cadre of federal agents – about half its total personnel – is 98% civilian.
Criminal investigation is at the foundation of virtually all the organization does, but the NCIS mission is broad. Transnational terrorism has been and remains a key focus area for the agency. The al Qaeda threat made clear to NCIS that merely reacting to crime – the traditional law enforcement model – was no longer adequate. After the attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 and the events of 9/11, NCIS adopted a proactive model of law enforcement and a new strategy for engaging the threat. Today, NCIS’ mantra is: “Prevent Terrorism, Protect Secrets, and Reduce Crime.”
History of The Naval Criminal Investigative Service
Though staffed almost entirely by civilian personnel, NCIS' history is closely connected to the Navy and Marine Corps it serves.
NAME EVOLUTION
As the mission of NCIS has changed, so has its name. The history of NCIS can be traced to the establishment of the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI). Subsequently, the name changed to the Naval Intelligence Investigative Service (NIIS), the Naval Secret Service (NSS), back to ONI, then the Naval Investigative Service (NIS), the Naval Security and Investigative Command (NSIC), the Naval Investigative Service Command (NISCOM), and finally, in 1992, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS).
1882 - ORIGIN
The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) was established when Secretary of the Navy William H. Hunt signed Navy Department General Order 292 in 1882. ONI was initially tasked with collecting information on the characteristics and weaponry of foreign vessels, charting foreign passages, rivers, or other bodies of water, and touring overseas fortifications, industrial plants, and shipyards.
1915 - ESPIONAGE AND SABOTAGE MISSION
In anticipation of the United States' entry into World War I, ONI's responsibilities expanded to include espionage, sabotage, and all manner of information on the Navy's potential adversaries. This mission expansion is credited to Marine Major John Henry Russell, who went on to become the 16th Commandant of the Marine Corps. He is credited with making investigations part of the NCIS mission.
1916 - FIRST BRANCH OFFICE
In fall of 1916 the first Branch Office (a small undercover unit) was established in New York City under the supervision of ONI. Heavy reliance was placed on both reservists on active duty and civilian operatives, many of the latter serving voluntarily and without pay. The office served as a model for others developed during World War I, and accounted for some impressive successes in the field of counterespionage.
1919 - NAVAL SECRET SERVICE
Following WWI, responsibilities for criminal investigations were placed under naval aides for information, who were assigned to the staffs of each of the 15 naval district commandants, and later placed under the district aide. The counterintelligence units under the aides were collectively designated as the Naval Secret Service with the first investigators known as secret service agents. Eventually, all operatives were known as Special Agents of the Office of Naval Intelligence.
1927 - VOLUNTEER RESERVES
In 1927 special groups of volunteer reserve intelligence officers were organized. The group was assigned to obtain information on persons and activities that might constitute a threat to the naval establishment. They also provided a cadre of trained personnel in the event of a national emergency.
1930 - FIRST CIVILIAN HIRE
By early 1930’s the development of an independent professional investigative capability within the Navy was underway. The first civilian agent was employed in 1936 on a verbal basis and paid by personal check of the Director of Naval Intelligence. By 1937, fourteen civilian agents were brought on board on personal service contracts by the District Intelligence Officers (DIOs). This hiring practice continued until 1969 when agents were converted to the Excepted Civil Service. These agents received no training, although they were used for every type of inquiry. They were deployed nationwide. Their resourcefulness and effectiveness laid the foundation for the modern professional agent corps.
1935 - FIRST ONI MANUAL FOR INVESTIGATIONS
In 1935 LTJG Cecil H. Coggins set the stage for a new generation of counterintelligence experts. While working for the ONI, he uncovered an Axis spy ring which confirmed an intelligence threat to the United States. LT Coggins fought as a guerilla fighter with the “Rice Paddy Navy” in China during WW II and wrote the first ONI manual for investigations. He was later promoted to rear admiral.
1939 - INVESTIGATION MISSION
In June 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt directed that ONI handle investigation of Navy cases relating to sabotage, espionage and subversive activities that pose any kind of threat to the Navy. ONI became a predominately civilian organization after WW II when tasked to conduct criminal investigations, counterintelligence and security background investigations.
1940 - NAVAL INTELLIGENCE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICE
By the fall of 1940, selective call-up of Intelligence reservists for investigative and counterintelligence duties was undertaken on a broad scale. Following entry into World War II, the Navy’s investigative arm was manned almost exclusively by reserve officers. By 1943, more than 97,000 separate investigations were prosecuted by what became known as the “Naval Intelligence Investigative Service” (NIIS). The investigative corps gained respect and a permanent place in the fabric of naval security.
1945 - CENTRALIZATION
As the war concluded it was recognized that there was a need to maintain a base of professionalism, and provision was made to retain a small group of civilian agents. Wartime experience had demonstrated two points: (1) More specific investigative authority was needed; and (2) A truly effective organization demanded centralized control as well as direction.
1945 - SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS
In 1945 Secretary of the Navy James Vincent Forrestal extended ONI’s charter to major criminal and security investigations, in addition to sabotage and espionage.
1950 - INVESTIGATION BACKLOG
A major buildup of civilian special agents began with the Korean War in 1950 when the agent corps numbered only 156. This growth was also spurred by the increasing requests for background investigations. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s approximately 500 agents conducted criminal investigations, counterintelligence and background investigations for the Navy. However, by 1964 pending cases had grown to 35,000 which translated to a six and one-half month backlog for each agent.
1964 - COMMANDER DESIGNATION
As the result of a Department of Defense study in 1964, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara directed that the commander of the Navy Investigative organization be the commander in fact as well as in name, having no primary responsibility other than managing the investigative organization.
1966 - NAVAL INVESTIGATIVE SERVICE
In February 1966 the name Naval Investigative Service (NIS) was adopted to distinguish the organization from the rest of ONI. Under the Director of Naval Intelligence, the new command consisted of only three functional organizations: the Director NIS and his headquarters staff; Naval Investigative Service Offices, each headed by a military commanding officer, and NIS Resident Agencies which were the basic operating components.
1968 - VIETNAM PRESENCE
In 1968 NIS established an office in Da Nang, Vietnam.
1969 - EXCEPTED CIVIL SERVICE
Since 1969, the mission focus has been criminal investigative and counterintelligence support to the Department of the Navy. Also in 1969, NIS special agents became Excepted Civil Service and were no longer contract employees.
1970 - AGENT AFLOAT
The early 1970s also marked the beginning of the Deployment Afloat program when an NIS special agent was stationed aboard USS Intrepid for six months. This program (today called the NCIS Special Agent Afloat program) provided an NIS presence on all aircraft carriers, deployed or in port.
1972 - DEFENSE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICE
In 1972 background investigations were transferred from NIS to the newly formed Defense Investigative Service (DIS), allowing NIS to give more attention to criminal investigations and counterintelligence. Nearly half of NIS special agents were transferred to DIS.
1975 - DIVERSITY
In 1975 the first female agent was stationed at Naval Air Station Miramar, California.
1981 - FIRST FLAG OFFICER FOR NIS
In October 1981, NIS was upgraded to Echelon II status, with control of its own budget. Echelon II commands report directly to the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO). In 1985, Rear Admiral Cathal L. (“Irish”) Flynn (the first active duty SEAL to attain flag rank), was assigned as the first flag officer to command NIS.
1983 - ANTITERRORIST ALERT CENTER
NIS opened the Antiterrorist Alert Center (ATAC) in response to the October 1983 bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut. ATAC, a 24-hour-a-day operational intelligence center, was organized to issue indications and warnings on terrorist activity to Navy and Marine Corps commands. It was the first coordinated effort to fuse intelligence and law enforcement data with enhanced technologies.
1984 - TRAINING
In 1984, special agents began training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Georgia—the training facility for nearly 90 federal investigative agencies.
1985 - NAVAL SECURITY AND INVESTIGATIVE COMMAND
In late 1985, NIS became the Naval Security and Investigative Command (NSIC). Soon after, the special agent corps increased to more than 1,000 personnel.
1986 - DON CAF
NSIC assumed responsibility for managing the Navy's Law Enforcement and Physical Security Program and the Navy's Information and Personnel Security Program. In 1986, the Department of the Navy Central Adjudication Facility (DON CAF) was established under NSIC, corresponding with the organization's new responsibility of adjudicating security clearances. DON CAF renders approximately 200,000 eligibility determinations annually for the Navy, Marine Corps, the Coast Guard, and for all civilians working within the DON. In early 1994, responsibilities were expanded to include adjudicating eligibility for access to Sensitive Compartmented Information.
1987 - SECURITY PROGRAMS
NSIC also assumed control of the Navy’s Master-at-Arms program and the Military Working Dog Program.
1988 - NAME CHANGE TO NISCOM
In September 1988, RADM John E. Gordon, the agency’s second flag rank commander, directed that NSIC be re-designated as the Naval Investigative Service Command (NISCOM). RADM Gordon, a member of the Navy Judge Advocate General Corps (JAG) was the first of three JAG officers to command the organization.
1992 - FIRST CIVILIAN DIRECTOR
In December 1992, the Secretary of the Navy Sean O’Keefe, abolished the position of the flag rank officer as Commander of NISC, and established a civilian Director, a Senior Executive Service (SES) position. The military leadership was replaced by the first civilian law enforcement director, Special Agent Roy D. Nedrow, formerly of the U.S. Secret Service. NCIS was aligned as an Echelon II Command under the Secretary of the Navy (another civilian), reporting via the General Counsel. Secretary of the Navy O’Keefe also mandated the name change to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) to emphasize its criminal investigative mission.
1995 - COLD CASE DIVISION
In September 1995, NCIS established the Cold Case Homicide Unit. NCIS was the first federal law enforcement agency to fully dedicate a department to cold case investigations, and as of July 2010, had resolved 61 homicides.
1996 - CIVILIAN REORGANIZATION
Director Roy D. Nedrow oversaw the restructuring of NCIS into a Federal law enforcement agency with 14 field offices controlling field operations in 140 locations worldwide. He disestablished all regional offices; designating the sixteen major offices for worldwide operational control of all field activities reporting to NCIS headquarters; reduced the size of the agency by sixteen percent pursuant to Congressional mandates; and emphasized the consistent pursuit of competent, professional, and independent felony criminal investigations. As of early 1996, NCIS had approximately 1,500 employees including 900 special agents in a worldwide network of 165 field offices, resident agencies and ships at sea.
1997 - DIRECTOR BRANT
In May 1997, NCIS Special Agent David L. Brant was appointed Director of NCIS by Secretary of the Navy John Dalton. Director Brant retired in December 2005.
1999 - MARINE CORPS CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIVE DIVISION
In 1999 NCIS and the Marine Corps Criminal Investigative Division (CID) signed a memorandum of understanding calling for the integration of a number of Marine Corps CID agents into NCIS to enhance interoperability.
2000 - ARREST AUTHORITY
In November 2000, the United States Congress passed legislation authorizing the Secretary of the Navy to grant NCIS civilian special agents authority to execute federal warrants and make arrests of civilians.
2000 - CHANGING THREAT ENVIRONMENT
A changing threat environment faced the Department of the Navy in the 21st century with the terrorist bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen, resulting in the deaths of seventeen US Navy sailors. NCIS and FBI agents immediately began an investigation which lasted for several months; their efforts resulted in the indictment and conviction of several terrorists.
2001 - MULTIPLE THREAT ALERT CENTER
The terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, DC on September 11, 2001 led NCIS to transform the Antiterrorist Alert Center (ATAC) into the Multiple Threat Alert Center (MTAC) in 2002.
2002 - INFORMATION SHARING: LInX INITIATIVE
In 2002, NCIS established the Law Enforcement Information Exchange (LInX) in the Pacific Northwest and Hampton Roads, Virginia. LInX is an information sharing initiative that provides participating law enforcement personnel with the ability to electronically search and review the law enforcement records of all other participating agencies in a particular region. Other regions, including Hawaii, New Mexico, South Texas, Southeast Georgia/Northeast Florida, the National Capital Region of Washington, DC, and Southern California have since been added.
2003 - DEPLOYMENT TO IRAQ
In September 2003, NCIS deployed its first agents to Iraq to conduct protective service operations and provide counterterrorism, counterintelligence and criminal investigative support.
2003 - SECURITY TRAINING ASSISTANCE AND ASSESSMENT TEAMS (STAAT)
On February 11, the Director, NCIS signed Executive Decision 03-0038, which merged NCIS Law Enforcement Physical Security Assistance Teams (LEPS) and the NCIS Mobile Training Teams (MTT) to establish STAAT teams to conduct antiterrorism activities, law enforcement and security training.
2005 - NCIS CHARTER
On December 28, 2005, the Secretary of the Navy issued SECNAVINST 5430.107, revising the NCIS charter and updating the responsibilities, mission and functions of NCIS and its relationships with other DON and law enforcement organizations and activities.
2006 - NCIS DIRECTOR BETRO
In January 2006, NCIS Special Agent Thomas A. Betro was appointed the third civilian Director of NCIS by Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter. Director Betro retired in September 2009.
2009 - DEFENSE LAW ENFORCEMENT DATA EXCHANGE
NCIS collaborated with other Department of Defense federal law enforcement agencies to launch the Defense Law Enforcement Data Exchange (DDEX). Like LInX, the DDEX system provides DoD special agents and analysts in all of the services access to a multitude of law enforcement data in an effort to reduce crime, prevent terrorism, and protect DoD assets.
2010 - NCIS DIRECTOR CLOOKIE
In February 2010, NCIS Special Agent Mark Clookie was appointed the fourth civilian Director of NCIS by Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus.
Though staffed almost entirely by civilian personnel, NCIS' history is closely connected to the Navy and Marine Corps it serves.
NAME EVOLUTION
As the mission of NCIS has changed, so has its name. The history of NCIS can be traced to the establishment of the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI). Subsequently, the name changed to the Naval Intelligence Investigative Service (NIIS), the Naval Secret Service (NSS), back to ONI, then the Naval Investigative Service (NIS), the Naval Security and Investigative Command (NSIC), the Naval Investigative Service Command (NISCOM), and finally, in 1992, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS).
1882 - ORIGIN
The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) was established when Secretary of the Navy William H. Hunt signed Navy Department General Order 292 in 1882. ONI was initially tasked with collecting information on the characteristics and weaponry of foreign vessels, charting foreign passages, rivers, or other bodies of water, and touring overseas fortifications, industrial plants, and shipyards.
1915 - ESPIONAGE AND SABOTAGE MISSION
In anticipation of the United States' entry into World War I, ONI's responsibilities expanded to include espionage, sabotage, and all manner of information on the Navy's potential adversaries. This mission expansion is credited to Marine Major John Henry Russell, who went on to become the 16th Commandant of the Marine Corps. He is credited with making investigations part of the NCIS mission.
1916 - FIRST BRANCH OFFICE
In fall of 1916 the first Branch Office (a small undercover unit) was established in New York City under the supervision of ONI. Heavy reliance was placed on both reservists on active duty and civilian operatives, many of the latter serving voluntarily and without pay. The office served as a model for others developed during World War I, and accounted for some impressive successes in the field of counterespionage.
1919 - NAVAL SECRET SERVICE
Following WWI, responsibilities for criminal investigations were placed under naval aides for information, who were assigned to the staffs of each of the 15 naval district commandants, and later placed under the district aide. The counterintelligence units under the aides were collectively designated as the Naval Secret Service with the first investigators known as secret service agents. Eventually, all operatives were known as Special Agents of the Office of Naval Intelligence.
1927 - VOLUNTEER RESERVES
In 1927 special groups of volunteer reserve intelligence officers were organized. The group was assigned to obtain information on persons and activities that might constitute a threat to the naval establishment. They also provided a cadre of trained personnel in the event of a national emergency.
1930 - FIRST CIVILIAN HIRE
By early 1930’s the development of an independent professional investigative capability within the Navy was underway. The first civilian agent was employed in 1936 on a verbal basis and paid by personal check of the Director of Naval Intelligence. By 1937, fourteen civilian agents were brought on board on personal service contracts by the District Intelligence Officers (DIOs). This hiring practice continued until 1969 when agents were converted to the Excepted Civil Service. These agents received no training, although they were used for every type of inquiry. They were deployed nationwide. Their resourcefulness and effectiveness laid the foundation for the modern professional agent corps.
1935 - FIRST ONI MANUAL FOR INVESTIGATIONS
In 1935 LTJG Cecil H. Coggins set the stage for a new generation of counterintelligence experts. While working for the ONI, he uncovered an Axis spy ring which confirmed an intelligence threat to the United States. LT Coggins fought as a guerilla fighter with the “Rice Paddy Navy” in China during WW II and wrote the first ONI manual for investigations. He was later promoted to rear admiral.
1939 - INVESTIGATION MISSION
In June 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt directed that ONI handle investigation of Navy cases relating to sabotage, espionage and subversive activities that pose any kind of threat to the Navy. ONI became a predominately civilian organization after WW II when tasked to conduct criminal investigations, counterintelligence and security background investigations.
1940 - NAVAL INTELLIGENCE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICE
By the fall of 1940, selective call-up of Intelligence reservists for investigative and counterintelligence duties was undertaken on a broad scale. Following entry into World War II, the Navy’s investigative arm was manned almost exclusively by reserve officers. By 1943, more than 97,000 separate investigations were prosecuted by what became known as the “Naval Intelligence Investigative Service” (NIIS). The investigative corps gained respect and a permanent place in the fabric of naval security.
1945 - CENTRALIZATION
As the war concluded it was recognized that there was a need to maintain a base of professionalism, and provision was made to retain a small group of civilian agents. Wartime experience had demonstrated two points: (1) More specific investigative authority was needed; and (2) A truly effective organization demanded centralized control as well as direction.
1945 - SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS
In 1945 Secretary of the Navy James Vincent Forrestal extended ONI’s charter to major criminal and security investigations, in addition to sabotage and espionage.
1950 - INVESTIGATION BACKLOG
A major buildup of civilian special agents began with the Korean War in 1950 when the agent corps numbered only 156. This growth was also spurred by the increasing requests for background investigations. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s approximately 500 agents conducted criminal investigations, counterintelligence and background investigations for the Navy. However, by 1964 pending cases had grown to 35,000 which translated to a six and one-half month backlog for each agent.
1964 - COMMANDER DESIGNATION
As the result of a Department of Defense study in 1964, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara directed that the commander of the Navy Investigative organization be the commander in fact as well as in name, having no primary responsibility other than managing the investigative organization.
1966 - NAVAL INVESTIGATIVE SERVICE
In February 1966 the name Naval Investigative Service (NIS) was adopted to distinguish the organization from the rest of ONI. Under the Director of Naval Intelligence, the new command consisted of only three functional organizations: the Director NIS and his headquarters staff; Naval Investigative Service Offices, each headed by a military commanding officer, and NIS Resident Agencies which were the basic operating components.
1968 - VIETNAM PRESENCE
In 1968 NIS established an office in Da Nang, Vietnam.
1969 - EXCEPTED CIVIL SERVICE
Since 1969, the mission focus has been criminal investigative and counterintelligence support to the Department of the Navy. Also in 1969, NIS special agents became Excepted Civil Service and were no longer contract employees.
1970 - AGENT AFLOAT
The early 1970s also marked the beginning of the Deployment Afloat program when an NIS special agent was stationed aboard USS Intrepid for six months. This program (today called the NCIS Special Agent Afloat program) provided an NIS presence on all aircraft carriers, deployed or in port.
1972 - DEFENSE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICE
In 1972 background investigations were transferred from NIS to the newly formed Defense Investigative Service (DIS), allowing NIS to give more attention to criminal investigations and counterintelligence. Nearly half of NIS special agents were transferred to DIS.
1975 - DIVERSITY
In 1975 the first female agent was stationed at Naval Air Station Miramar, California.
1981 - FIRST FLAG OFFICER FOR NIS
In October 1981, NIS was upgraded to Echelon II status, with control of its own budget. Echelon II commands report directly to the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO). In 1985, Rear Admiral Cathal L. (“Irish”) Flynn (the first active duty SEAL to attain flag rank), was assigned as the first flag officer to command NIS.
1983 - ANTITERRORIST ALERT CENTER
NIS opened the Antiterrorist Alert Center (ATAC) in response to the October 1983 bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut. ATAC, a 24-hour-a-day operational intelligence center, was organized to issue indications and warnings on terrorist activity to Navy and Marine Corps commands. It was the first coordinated effort to fuse intelligence and law enforcement data with enhanced technologies.
1984 - TRAINING
In 1984, special agents began training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Georgia—the training facility for nearly 90 federal investigative agencies.
1985 - NAVAL SECURITY AND INVESTIGATIVE COMMAND
In late 1985, NIS became the Naval Security and Investigative Command (NSIC). Soon after, the special agent corps increased to more than 1,000 personnel.
1986 - DON CAF
NSIC assumed responsibility for managing the Navy's Law Enforcement and Physical Security Program and the Navy's Information and Personnel Security Program. In 1986, the Department of the Navy Central Adjudication Facility (DON CAF) was established under NSIC, corresponding with the organization's new responsibility of adjudicating security clearances. DON CAF renders approximately 200,000 eligibility determinations annually for the Navy, Marine Corps, the Coast Guard, and for all civilians working within the DON. In early 1994, responsibilities were expanded to include adjudicating eligibility for access to Sensitive Compartmented Information.
1987 - SECURITY PROGRAMS
NSIC also assumed control of the Navy’s Master-at-Arms program and the Military Working Dog Program.
1988 - NAME CHANGE TO NISCOM
In September 1988, RADM John E. Gordon, the agency’s second flag rank commander, directed that NSIC be re-designated as the Naval Investigative Service Command (NISCOM). RADM Gordon, a member of the Navy Judge Advocate General Corps (JAG) was the first of three JAG officers to command the organization.
1992 - FIRST CIVILIAN DIRECTOR
In December 1992, the Secretary of the Navy Sean O’Keefe, abolished the position of the flag rank officer as Commander of NISC, and established a civilian Director, a Senior Executive Service (SES) position. The military leadership was replaced by the first civilian law enforcement director, Special Agent Roy D. Nedrow, formerly of the U.S. Secret Service. NCIS was aligned as an Echelon II Command under the Secretary of the Navy (another civilian), reporting via the General Counsel. Secretary of the Navy O’Keefe also mandated the name change to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) to emphasize its criminal investigative mission.
1995 - COLD CASE DIVISION
In September 1995, NCIS established the Cold Case Homicide Unit. NCIS was the first federal law enforcement agency to fully dedicate a department to cold case investigations, and as of July 2010, had resolved 61 homicides.
1996 - CIVILIAN REORGANIZATION
Director Roy D. Nedrow oversaw the restructuring of NCIS into a Federal law enforcement agency with 14 field offices controlling field operations in 140 locations worldwide. He disestablished all regional offices; designating the sixteen major offices for worldwide operational control of all field activities reporting to NCIS headquarters; reduced the size of the agency by sixteen percent pursuant to Congressional mandates; and emphasized the consistent pursuit of competent, professional, and independent felony criminal investigations. As of early 1996, NCIS had approximately 1,500 employees including 900 special agents in a worldwide network of 165 field offices, resident agencies and ships at sea.
1997 - DIRECTOR BRANT
In May 1997, NCIS Special Agent David L. Brant was appointed Director of NCIS by Secretary of the Navy John Dalton. Director Brant retired in December 2005.
1999 - MARINE CORPS CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIVE DIVISION
In 1999 NCIS and the Marine Corps Criminal Investigative Division (CID) signed a memorandum of understanding calling for the integration of a number of Marine Corps CID agents into NCIS to enhance interoperability.
2000 - ARREST AUTHORITY
In November 2000, the United States Congress passed legislation authorizing the Secretary of the Navy to grant NCIS civilian special agents authority to execute federal warrants and make arrests of civilians.
2000 - CHANGING THREAT ENVIRONMENT
A changing threat environment faced the Department of the Navy in the 21st century with the terrorist bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen, resulting in the deaths of seventeen US Navy sailors. NCIS and FBI agents immediately began an investigation which lasted for several months; their efforts resulted in the indictment and conviction of several terrorists.
2001 - MULTIPLE THREAT ALERT CENTER
The terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, DC on September 11, 2001 led NCIS to transform the Antiterrorist Alert Center (ATAC) into the Multiple Threat Alert Center (MTAC) in 2002.
2002 - INFORMATION SHARING: LInX INITIATIVE
In 2002, NCIS established the Law Enforcement Information Exchange (LInX) in the Pacific Northwest and Hampton Roads, Virginia. LInX is an information sharing initiative that provides participating law enforcement personnel with the ability to electronically search and review the law enforcement records of all other participating agencies in a particular region. Other regions, including Hawaii, New Mexico, South Texas, Southeast Georgia/Northeast Florida, the National Capital Region of Washington, DC, and Southern California have since been added.
2003 - DEPLOYMENT TO IRAQ
In September 2003, NCIS deployed its first agents to Iraq to conduct protective service operations and provide counterterrorism, counterintelligence and criminal investigative support.
2003 - SECURITY TRAINING ASSISTANCE AND ASSESSMENT TEAMS (STAAT)
On February 11, the Director, NCIS signed Executive Decision 03-0038, which merged NCIS Law Enforcement Physical Security Assistance Teams (LEPS) and the NCIS Mobile Training Teams (MTT) to establish STAAT teams to conduct antiterrorism activities, law enforcement and security training.
2005 - NCIS CHARTER
On December 28, 2005, the Secretary of the Navy issued SECNAVINST 5430.107, revising the NCIS charter and updating the responsibilities, mission and functions of NCIS and its relationships with other DON and law enforcement organizations and activities.
2006 - NCIS DIRECTOR BETRO
In January 2006, NCIS Special Agent Thomas A. Betro was appointed the third civilian Director of NCIS by Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter. Director Betro retired in September 2009.
2009 - DEFENSE LAW ENFORCEMENT DATA EXCHANGE
NCIS collaborated with other Department of Defense federal law enforcement agencies to launch the Defense Law Enforcement Data Exchange (DDEX). Like LInX, the DDEX system provides DoD special agents and analysts in all of the services access to a multitude of law enforcement data in an effort to reduce crime, prevent terrorism, and protect DoD assets.
2010 - NCIS DIRECTOR CLOOKIE
In February 2010, NCIS Special Agent Mark Clookie was appointed the fourth civilian Director of NCIS by Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus.
Source-LATimes.com Investigation of Navy Seals Deaths
Source-What does it mean.com Murder Mystery of Top Gun Pilots???
Source-UK DAILY MAIL-4 DEAD IN CORONADO
Who really was Mathew Saturley???
Matt Saturley's Summary
Seasoned MIT-trained financial leader whose career successes and achievements in investment management, financial modeling, and business analysis have been employed by leading financial firms; a consummate professional who combines financial intelligence, project management experience, and advanced organizational leadership to realize highly profitable and growth oriented operations. Seeking a full-time, executive team opportunity while on the verge of Masters in Financial Analysis.
Specialties
Financial Analysis / Project Management
Risk Management Strategies
Financial Modeling
Variance, Situational, Sensitivity Analysis
Accounting / Forecasting / Pricing
Business Analysis / Investing
Client Management / Investor Relations
Dynamic / Effective Team Leadership
Investment Holding Evaluations
Financial Spreads / Cash Flow Analysis
C-Level Communication / Presentations
Market Trending / Competitive Landscapes
Strategist on Organizational Growth
Innovative Problem Solving
Matt Saturley's Experience
Technical Editor
Freelance
December 2011 – Present (2 months) Greater San Diego Area
Technical Editor for an upcoming textbook on Predictive Analytics: Microsoft Excel 2010.
Business Analyst
FanBox
2011 – 2011 (less than a year) Greater San Diego Area
Investment Manager & Paraplanner
Fogg, Green & Associates
2007 – 2008 (1 year) Greater San Diego Area
Supervisor, Statements & Communications Dept.
LPL Financial
2005 – 2007 (2 years) Greater San Diego Area
Financial Analyst
Nova Analytics
2003 – 2004 (1 year) Woburn, MA
Accountant
Investor's Bank & Trust
2002 – 2002 (less than a year) Greater Boston Area
Financial Analyst
Netegrity
2001 – 2001 (less than a year) Waltham, MA
Matt Saturley's Education
College for Financial Planning
2009 – 2012 (expected)
MIT Sloan School of Management
2009 – 2009
University of Maryland College Park
2003 – 2004
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1998 – 2001
Matt Saturley's Summary
Seasoned MIT-trained financial leader whose career successes and achievements in investment management, financial modeling, and business analysis have been employed by leading financial firms; a consummate professional who combines financial intelligence, project management experience, and advanced organizational leadership to realize highly profitable and growth oriented operations. Seeking a full-time, executive team opportunity while on the verge of Masters in Financial Analysis.
Specialties
Financial Analysis / Project Management
Risk Management Strategies
Financial Modeling
Variance, Situational, Sensitivity Analysis
Accounting / Forecasting / Pricing
Business Analysis / Investing
Client Management / Investor Relations
Dynamic / Effective Team Leadership
Investment Holding Evaluations
Financial Spreads / Cash Flow Analysis
C-Level Communication / Presentations
Market Trending / Competitive Landscapes
Strategist on Organizational Growth
Innovative Problem Solving
Matt Saturley's Experience
Technical Editor
Freelance
December 2011 – Present (2 months) Greater San Diego Area
Technical Editor for an upcoming textbook on Predictive Analytics: Microsoft Excel 2010.
Business Analyst
FanBox
2011 – 2011 (less than a year) Greater San Diego Area
Investment Manager & Paraplanner
Fogg, Green & Associates
2007 – 2008 (1 year) Greater San Diego Area
Supervisor, Statements & Communications Dept.
LPL Financial
2005 – 2007 (2 years) Greater San Diego Area
Financial Analyst
Nova Analytics
2003 – 2004 (1 year) Woburn, MA
Accountant
Investor's Bank & Trust
2002 – 2002 (less than a year) Greater Boston Area
Financial Analyst
Netegrity
2001 – 2001 (less than a year) Waltham, MA
Matt Saturley's Education
College for Financial Planning
2009 – 2012 (expected)
MIT Sloan School of Management
2009 – 2009
University of Maryland College Park
2003 – 2004
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1998 – 2001
Source-Google news service
Jealously eyed for possible role in murder-suicide
By JULIE WATSON, Associated Press – 1 day ago
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Investigators trying to determine the motive behind a New Year's Day murder-suicide involving two Navy pilots and two other people were looking Thursday at whether jealousy might have played a role.
Authorities were looking at all aspects of what could have led up to the gunfire at a Coronado condominium, including whether there was a relationship or romantic feelings between the Navy pilot who committed suicide and the sister of the other pilot who died, sheriff's Capt. Duncan Fraser said.
John Robert Reeves shot himself in the head, and the three other people with him, including the sister, were murdered. They included Navy pilot David Reis, Karen Reis and Matthew Saturley.
"We are looking into all aspects, including the possibility there was some type of relationship between Karen Reis and John Reeves but that has not been confirmed yet," Fraser said. "That is one reason why we are still soliciting information from the public who may know about this."
Authorities also were awaiting toxicology results to see if drugs or alcohol might have played a role.
Fraser, however, cautioned that investigators might never determine the motive because there were no eyewitnesses to the 2 a.m. shooting at the condo where David Reis and Reeves lived with another Navy pilot who was out of town at the time.
Reeves and David Reis went out to a nightclub on New Year's Eve with another unnamed friend. At the club, they met Saturley then returned to Coronado.
Reeves went into the condo first followed by Karen Reis and Saturley, Fraser said. David Reis stayed outside to chat with the unnamed friend before the gunfire erupted. Reis rushed inside as the friend called 911.
Reeves, 25, of Prince Frederick, Md., and David Reis, also 25, of Bakersfield, were both training as F/A-18 fighter pilots assigned to the Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 101 of the Third Marine Aircraft Wing at nearby Miramar Air Station.
The two Naval officers were in their final rung of training. Reeves had moved into the condo a few months ago, Fraser said.
The tragedy has rocked the tight-knit community of Naval aviators and the picturesque peninsula of Coronado, an enclave of 24,000 just across San Diego Bay that recorded only one homicide in 2010.
Fraser said there were no outstanding suspects in the case but declined to say if Reeves was the shooter.
"We don't have forensic evidence yet to say that definitively," he said.
Reeves' family members could not be immediately reached for comment.
The Reis siblings were close friends. Karen Reis, 24, graduated from the University of California, San Diego in 2009, and coached volleyball twice a week to children 12 and younger. Saturley was a 31-year-old resident of Chula Vista.
Retired Naval pilot Steve Diamond said the case is shocking because it involves such high achievers.
"The first thing that most people think of even within the Navy community is how could such an enormously tragic thing happen involving people ... who are the cream of the crop, highly trained, highly educated, national assets basically," he said.
It takes years of training to get one's wings as a Navy pilot, and fighter-jet pilots are considered to be among the top in that group.
They undergo a battery of rigorous physical, psychological and background tests before finishing the highly competitive program. Their top-notch skills and mental toughness were featured in the movie "Top Gun" — parts of which were filmed at Miramar.
"I will tell you that Naval aviation will hurt regardless of what anybody finds out about anything because they're all close, because you go through a tough, rigorous kind of a ritual," said Ernie Christensen, a retired rear admiral who commanded the Navy's Top Gun fighter school for a time in the 1980s.
Jealously eyed for possible role in murder-suicide
By JULIE WATSON, Associated Press – 1 day ago
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Investigators trying to determine the motive behind a New Year's Day murder-suicide involving two Navy pilots and two other people were looking Thursday at whether jealousy might have played a role.
Authorities were looking at all aspects of what could have led up to the gunfire at a Coronado condominium, including whether there was a relationship or romantic feelings between the Navy pilot who committed suicide and the sister of the other pilot who died, sheriff's Capt. Duncan Fraser said.
John Robert Reeves shot himself in the head, and the three other people with him, including the sister, were murdered. They included Navy pilot David Reis, Karen Reis and Matthew Saturley.
"We are looking into all aspects, including the possibility there was some type of relationship between Karen Reis and John Reeves but that has not been confirmed yet," Fraser said. "That is one reason why we are still soliciting information from the public who may know about this."
Authorities also were awaiting toxicology results to see if drugs or alcohol might have played a role.
Fraser, however, cautioned that investigators might never determine the motive because there were no eyewitnesses to the 2 a.m. shooting at the condo where David Reis and Reeves lived with another Navy pilot who was out of town at the time.
Reeves and David Reis went out to a nightclub on New Year's Eve with another unnamed friend. At the club, they met Saturley then returned to Coronado.
Reeves went into the condo first followed by Karen Reis and Saturley, Fraser said. David Reis stayed outside to chat with the unnamed friend before the gunfire erupted. Reis rushed inside as the friend called 911.
Reeves, 25, of Prince Frederick, Md., and David Reis, also 25, of Bakersfield, were both training as F/A-18 fighter pilots assigned to the Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 101 of the Third Marine Aircraft Wing at nearby Miramar Air Station.
The two Naval officers were in their final rung of training. Reeves had moved into the condo a few months ago, Fraser said.
The tragedy has rocked the tight-knit community of Naval aviators and the picturesque peninsula of Coronado, an enclave of 24,000 just across San Diego Bay that recorded only one homicide in 2010.
Fraser said there were no outstanding suspects in the case but declined to say if Reeves was the shooter.
"We don't have forensic evidence yet to say that definitively," he said.
Reeves' family members could not be immediately reached for comment.
The Reis siblings were close friends. Karen Reis, 24, graduated from the University of California, San Diego in 2009, and coached volleyball twice a week to children 12 and younger. Saturley was a 31-year-old resident of Chula Vista.
Retired Naval pilot Steve Diamond said the case is shocking because it involves such high achievers.
"The first thing that most people think of even within the Navy community is how could such an enormously tragic thing happen involving people ... who are the cream of the crop, highly trained, highly educated, national assets basically," he said.
It takes years of training to get one's wings as a Navy pilot, and fighter-jet pilots are considered to be among the top in that group.
They undergo a battery of rigorous physical, psychological and background tests before finishing the highly competitive program. Their top-notch skills and mental toughness were featured in the movie "Top Gun" — parts of which were filmed at Miramar.
"I will tell you that Naval aviation will hurt regardless of what anybody finds out about anything because they're all close, because you go through a tough, rigorous kind of a ritual," said Ernie Christensen, a retired rear admiral who commanded the Navy's Top Gun fighter school for a time in the 1980s.
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