Arab Spring Has Created 'Intelligence Disaster,' Warns Former CIA Bin Laden Unit Chief

 

Michael Scheuer, the former CIA bin Laden unit chief and the author of Osama bin Laden, told the British newspaper the Guardian that the Arab Spring has not been a good thing for West intelligence services. He suggests that America bring back the rendition program.

The Arab spring has "delighted al-Qaida" and caused "an intelligence disaster" for the US and Britain, the former head of the CIA unit in charge of pursuing Osama bin Laden has warned.

Speaking at the Edinburgh international book festival, Michael Scheuer said: "The help we were getting from the Egyptian intelligence service, less so from the Tunisians but certainly from the Libyans and Lebanese, has dried up – either because of resentment at our governments stabbing their political leaders in the back, or because those who worked for the services have taken off in fear of being incarcerated or worse.

You can read the rest of the story via the below link:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/aug/28/arab-spring-intelligence-disaster-scheuer

I interviewed Michael Scheuer for Counterterrorism magazine a while back. You can read the piece via the below links:

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Note: The above photo was provided by Michael Scheuer.