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A collection of essays from AFIO members. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in these essays belong solely to the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of AFIO.
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By Brian J. Smith, CPP, CFE
Did the post-9/11 federal reorganization correct the principal institutional failures that contributed to the attacks, or did it simultaneously dismantle highly effective organizations whose core missions were not responsible for those failures?
[Continue]By Derek Owen
The May 21st, 2026 release of Alexandros Giotopoulos—the convicted mastermind behind 17 November, the far-left terrorist group responsible for decades of assassinations and bombings—may be legally permissible under Greek law. But legality alone does not erase broader questions about whether Greece ever fully confronted the moral and institutional failures surrounding 17 November. The deeper issue is about how democracies decay when trust in institutions collapses and societies apply different moral and procedural standards depending on who commits crimes—especially acts of political violence.
[Continue]By Larry Carlson
Collaboration has sometimes been defined as two or more people, entities, or organizations working jointly to complete a task or achieve a goal. And, it has also been defined as traitorous cooperation with an enemy.
[Continue]By Yaacov Apelbaum
Each poem focuses on a different facet of intelligence work—surveillance, CI, sacrifice, and covert operations. [Continue]By Lewis Regenstein
Normally, disputes within the intelligence community (IC) are handled privately, behind closed doors, and are usually conducted in a respectful manner. But now, the controversy over Havana Syndrome is spilling over into public view, characterized by an erosion of trust in top officials, bitter ad hominem attacks, vicious name calling and accusations of dereliction of duty -- and worse.
[Continue]By JR Seeger
As the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks has arrived, there have been no shortage of opinion pieces and reviews of the history. I don't intend to compete with these sophisticated discussions. Rather, I wanted to spend a moment reviewing the US response to the 9/11 attacks from the perspective of an intelligence foot soldier in the post-9/11 battlefield.
[Continue]By Brian J. Smith, CPP, CFE
Did the post-9/11 federal reorganization correct the principal institutional failures that contributed to the attacks, or did it simultaneously dismantle highly effective organizations whose core missions were not responsible for those failures?
[Continue]By Derek Owen
The May 21st, 2026 release of Alexandros Giotopoulos—the convicted mastermind behind 17 November, the far-left terrorist group responsible for decades of assassinations and bombings—may be legally permissible under Greek law. But legality alone does not erase broader questions about whether Greece ever fully confronted the moral and institutional failures surrounding 17 November. The deeper issue is about how democracies decay when trust in institutions collapses and societies apply different moral and procedural standards depending on who commits crimes—especially acts of political violence.
[Continue]By Larry Carlson
Collaboration has sometimes been defined as two or more people, entities, or organizations working jointly to complete a task or achieve a goal. And, it has also been defined as traitorous cooperation with an enemy.
[Continue]By Yaacov Apelbaum
Each poem focuses on a different facet of intelligence work—surveillance, CI, sacrifice, and covert operations. [Continue]By Lewis Regenstein
Normally, disputes within the intelligence community (IC) are handled privately, behind closed doors, and are usually conducted in a respectful manner. But now, the controversy over Havana Syndrome is spilling over into public view, characterized by an erosion of trust in top officials, bitter ad hominem attacks, vicious name calling and accusations of dereliction of duty -- and worse.
[Continue]