We locked the chain back up behind it and returned to base. They also have direct action elements within their battalions, alongside specialists in HUMINT and SIGINT. Few special operations forces are clad in as much secrecy as the Intelligence Support Activity. Operatives must also go unnoticed, being able to blend into crowds and not draw attention. An operation was planned for their rescue, with Seaspray, Delta Force and the ISA all playing a role. Nowadays the ISA focuses on the preparation of the battlespace for military operations across the globe. Like many special operations groups, their active arsenal is not likely a small rigid loadout, it is a range of various weapons that are available to suit the units needs. The ISA initially had only support activity and HUMINT gathering functions. US Army Intelligence Support Activity (USAISA), also known as ISA, The Activity, GREY FOX and, in recent times, the Mission Support Activity (MSA), is a top secret Army intelligence unit. Fort Belvoir, North Virginia, United States. *Lighting a path to truth* Former Navy JAG Worldwide U.S. Military Defense. World conditions in the early 1980s suggested that some capability was required to address the ambiguous conflicts of each Title authority into some form of credible operational capability. 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; That close-holding of his cards was typical of him. How do you guys block?, I dont know how you guys operate. The operation, code-named Great Falcon, made a deal with the Iraqi government for a T-72, in exchange for 175mm cannons. Approval was given for ISA's deployment, and operators flew to Frankfurt, where some stayed in case the airliner, now back in Beirut, flew back to Algiers. Human intelligence (HUMINT) and signals intelligence (SIGINT) are the most common products of their operations. The Chiefs planning element determined that DOD/Army needed to create a Joint Army-CIA force that would both develop quality intelligence abroad, but also provide site support for direct action operations. The ISAs HUMINT collectors gather information from human sources via coercion and interrogation depending on the asset. This was never forthcoming despite the greatest pressure upon the Agency. (Source), Under the operational codename Centra Spike, the Intelligence Support Activity operated alongside CIA and local police elements to track down Escobar. In all cases, the Congressional members voiced support. 2023 The SOFREP Media Group. The SIGINT group of the ISA gathered signal intelligence via aircraft, that was then passed on to NSA analysts. Wickham did transfer authority to the ACSI with predictable and less than beneficial results. Secret Warriors: Inside the Covert Military Operations of the Reagan Era by Steven Emerson Featuring 931 new and updated case-based questions, organized into seven core areas of process design, this Self-Assessment will help you identify areas in which . _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-21361708-1']); The second rescue force was not going to be affected by the same problem, and the FOG was established in July of 1980, under the control of Colonel Jerry King. The raid was cancelled over fears that the French and Italians tipped Karadzic off. Both sides would work together on developing the intel, and then a decision would be made regarding a specific operational tasking to avoid statutory conflict. Its purpose is unlike many other special operations forces of the US military, not dedicated to direct combat, and more towards secretive and clandestine actions necessary to support other military operations. Stationed in the fifth floor of the American embassy, and operating from specially outfitted Beechcraft 300 and 350 aircraft, Centra Spike tracked Escobar around the country. Marpat Camo Test |. This has been more visible in their operations in Afghanistan, Operation Winter Harvest and Operation Queens Hunter. US Army Intelligence Support Activity (USAISA), also known as ISA, The Activity, GREY FOX and, in recent times, the Mission Support Activity (MSA), is a top secret Army intelligence unit. With dramatis personae that include the CIA, Delta Force, DEVGRU, the Intelligence Support Activity, Pakistani Commandos, the Taliban, and spies from Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Agency (ISI), this story has the makings of a future Brad Thor bestseller. Intelligence Support Activity The Army's most obscure special-ops unit is the roughly 300-strong Intelligence Support Activity, formed in 1981, which has gone by various codenames over. The eventual shootout that ended Pablos life may not have directly involved the ISA, however, its efforts certainly aided in the eventual locating and killing of the cartel boss. Under the umbrella group of Joint Special Operations Task Force 20, the Intelligence Support Activity helped track down and locate Saddam Hussein. "In and around Afghanistan, Gray Fox was part of a secret sphere that included the CIA's paramilitary Special Activities Division and the Pentagon's Joint Special Operations Command. Authors cartoon depicting the mandarins installing the soon-to-be compromised surveillance camera. (Source). [2] Unconventional warfare, special reconnaissance and direct action roles have merged throughout the decades and are typically performed primarily by the same units. If they would have been caught, they were done. SMU operator (on ISA breaking into an Al-Qaeda safehouse), Additionally, HUMINT operatives working deep undercover will sometimes work in male-female teams. ISA agents even managed to obtain Lebanese license plates, which would allow Delta to be parachuted in with their own cars, then 'legitimized' with the plates. He later commanded both the 1/75th Rangers and the 1st Ranger Training Brigade. With it, they had a unit of military spies able to covertly infiltrate a country and provide hands-on, critical intelligence, as well as to raise logistical support for counter-terrorist commandos in case of a crisis. It was agreed that FOG would be a Joint organization and roles and tasks were developed for eachalways mindful of the Title 10/50 issues. find out more Its skills 'perfected during missions over El Salvador,' Centra Spike honed in on Escobar's cellular phone calls and relayed the information back to Colombian police forces. In addition to covert operations, it provides the war on terrorism with the kind of so-called 'close-in' signals monitoring -- including the interception of cell phone conversations -- that helped bring down Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar. The separation did not fit real world requirements which was finally recognized in the aftermath of the failed Iran rescue. "Cowan put together another five-man team, but their deployment was stalled for three weeks. The CIA would talk directly to the warlords while the ISA provided SIGINT support and ground security for them. 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The ISA consistently attaches itself to other units, either as a temporary or more permanent component. However, due to the nature of ISAs mission, its operators are rarely likely to carry weapons into the field. The United States realized that insufficient intelligence gathering was the critical point of failure in our attempt to rescue the American hostages and that there was a gap between the Intelligence and Special Operations communities. In the aftermath, the FOG was hard at work gathering intelligence in Iran in preparation for Operation Credible Sport, the second attempt to rescue the hostages. Political bickering stalled the deployment of the agents, and finally, the operation was approved. "Perhaps the least known, and most classified unit within the realm of US special operations is the Intelligence Support Activity (ISA), a small, highly trained and capable intelligence unit. COL Nightingale is a retired Army Colonel who served two tours in Vietnam with Airborne and Ranger (American and Vietnamese) units. Units in Sarajevo tracked Karadzic electronically, while other agents were on the ground in Pale, Karadzic's home. The mission criteria were pretty simple: we would fail our mission if we missed reporting the generals car, or if we allowed someone to get around our blocking position and into the ambush site. For a Tier 1 group dedicated primarily to intelligence collection and support, the equipment of the ISA cannot be completely verified, nor can any weapons or equipments continued use be verified. Hostages were dispersed around Beirut and those with Jewish sounding names were being isolated. (Source), Additionally, the ISA has acted as a pseudo-security element for the CIA. Additionally, these operative can remotely turn on a cellphone thats been turned off, which allows them to hear everything going on near it. Subsequently, theyre protected by diplomatic immunity if theyre compromised during an espionage operation. The training processes of other military groups however grant general insight into the selection and training of the ISA. After the rescue attempt, then CSA Shy Meyer, convened a small group of people within Army DCSOPS to address future SOF/CT structure in the aftermath of the failure, and while still under a POTUS mandate, to be prepared to conduct an In-Extremis rescue within 10 days. and other specialized capabilities to support Army, joint, unified action partners, and the U.S. intelligence commu-nity. "These commands and white Special Forces like the Green Berets, as well as Air Force combat controllers and commandos of eight different nations report to a mind-boggling array of new command cells and coordination units set up after Sept. This time, the manhunt for Escobar was being led by Col. 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Unless you plan to body-check those cars I would junk up.. Key was the requirement to develop a competent counter resolution force. non-covert action intelligence activityoften a collection programto be of such sensitivity that 1 Oral notifications shall be followed by a written notification. (Source) Gray Fox operators and intelligence specialists operated alongside other special operations units, including Delta Force and DEVGRU, as well as other components of the US Army. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. (Source) This indicates that members of the primary four battalions who are combat specialists will have a wide range of skills, and therefore a high range of weapons they utilize. To this point, the CIA and the DOD followed separate independent paths as defined by statutes contained in Title 10 (DOD authorities) and Title 50 (Intelligence agency authorities). Guerrilla insurgents in Nicaragua composed only one part of the multitude of threats facing the US With cartels all over South America creating chaos for pro-US forces, Pablo Escobar and his cartel were the targets of several US government agencies and departments, including the ISA. Box 378 Red Hook, New York 12571 United States. Additionally, ISA gathers SIGINT primarily by intercepting enemy communications or sending an agent to physically bug a target. Retired Army Col. Paris Davis stood in the White House as President Biden draped the Medal of Honor around his neck, nearly Chief Special Warfare Operator Michael T. Ernst died following a "military freefall training accident" on Feb. 19 in Marana Lt. Col. Collin Charlie Christopherson, the commander of the 1st Special Operations Maintenance Squadron, was arrested How much do you know about the morale machine that's been deploying with U.S. troops since WWII? At last, he came back, and, handing me the tools lamented: I couldnt get that fucker!. "During the 1983 American invasion of Grenada, special forces units were plagued by lack of useful and up-to-date intelligence. The mission support teams help actualize the other major goal of supporting other forces in a battlespace. ISA was asked to form an Algerian-based plan and a Beirut-based one for rescue. In 1989, during Operation Just Cause, the American invasion of Panama, ISA proposed to deploy a team of its intelligence agents to track Manuel Noriega, but the offer was declined. He scurried off to the barricade. Direct action differs from conventional offensive actions in the level of physical and political risk, operational techniques, and the degree of discriminate and precise use of force to achieve specific objectives."[1]. It built a reputation for daring, flexibility and a degree of lawlessness. But, it was also clear that some form of operational melding was essential to effectively address operational requirements. These techniques include intelligence gathering, infiltration and intelligence support. In 2003 the CIA and ISA conducted a joint operation in Somalia. No unit is quite as secretive as the Intelligence Support Activity. (Source). 2e Rgiment tranger de Parachutistes | To operatorsnot so much. If successful, the candidate would then continue training within ISA in such skills as parachuting, survival, weapons and intelligence gathering. This time around, travel through the city was a very dangerous endeavour, with roadblocks everywhere. My team, me and happy-trigger-fingered Kay-Kay, were to position north of the ambush site, report the approach of the Generals car, then pull our car out onto the highway to block traffic for the hot minute it took the assault force to stop Klandanjs car and scoop him up. The trials of the ISA in Queens Hunter were not the only time the team was tested in South America. From 5 miles away and 4,575m above the ground, operatives could target insurgents communications via cellphone. Does the army's intelligence support activity also do direct action? Little is known about the organization or its activities, but it is clear that they serve as a. Though its history is relatively brief and known missions it has undertaken even briefer, it has become one of the most interesting and influential special operations groups at the disposal of JSOC and the US military. Exactly who would execute the direct-action operations, would be determined after the intelligence determine the situational necessities. During the operations training course, candidates are taught infiltration techniques, advanced air operations, offensive and off-road driving, personal defensive measures and communications. The unit's missions range from Latin America, fighting communist guerrillas and drugs barons, to Africa, the Middle East and central Asia, tracking down terrorists. Little is known about the organization or its activities, but it is clear that they serve as a military intelligence unit and have partaken in numerous missions around the globe. To lawyers, this is a distinction with a difference. (amazon.com). This Intelligence Support Activity All-Inclusive Self-Assessment enables You to be that person. During the operation, a rivalry developed between Centra Spike, and a CIA intelligence unit named Majestic Eagle. The Intelligence Support Activity conducts its operations during and in advance of US military operations. "The ISA's origins are in the Foreign Operating Group (FOG), whose origin in turn is in the 1979 overthrow of Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza. Intelligence Support Activity provides US special forces with intelligence gatherers, man hunters, assassins and deep penetration agents. The forms of intelligence gathered by the Activity include: HUMINT (HUMan INTellgence) He would be given instructions and equipment along the way, and was required to perform certain assignments, for example, setting up a SATCOM system. Bravo troop tackles the extremely difficult target countries like Syria which had a sophisticated counterintelligence network. Featured Book: Special Air Service (SAS) | "Known as the Intelligence Support Activity, or ISA, when it was established in . Had the force been aware of the actual hostage location and situation, the force could have continued past Desert One and probably succeeded. Operatives infiltrated internet cafes in Baghdad and conducted flyover operations in aircraft filled with signal interception gear. Later that same year, Delta Force and ISA operators were sent to Saudi Arabia to help organize and train a Special Purpose Detachment of the Saudi National Guard. Bickering between the CIA and JSOC further complicated matters. He tasked them to install a clandestine video camera (clandcam) framed such that it would record all the license plates of all vehicles turning down a specifically designated road. The mandarins decided they were much too tired and sleepy to unload their car to safekeep all of their sensitive items in the house with them. As the name implies, SIGINT Squadron is responsible for ISAs signals intelligence mission. SIGINT operations extended to areas with overlapping guerrilla operations, such as Nicaragua, which was facing the increased foe of the Contras. Eventually, agents had pinpointed the locations of a number of cartel hideouts and high-value targets, including Pablo. US Army intelligence defines HUMINT as including: The sources of this information can come from enemy combatants, including regular armed forces, and civilian sources. "Apparently, ISA's direct action element was also put on alert during the hijacking of the Italian cruise ship, Achille Lauro. Eliciting information from select sources, The exploitation of documents, media and materials. INSCOM's functional brigades and groups may provide general support, general support reinforcing, or direct sup-port to theaters through intelligence reach, or they may be The FOG was re-named the Intelligence Support Activity (ISA), and given an initial budget of $7 million. (Source). They are known by many names: Task Force Orange; the Intelligence Support Activity; The Activity; the Army of Northern Virginia; the Field Operations Group (FOG); the United States Army Intelligence Support Activity, or just shortened to Intelligence Support Activity (USISA). The ISA technicians were instrumental in the tracking and capture of a number of Red Brigades terrorists, and most probably the location of the kidnapped Dozier himself. This is especially useful in countries where men and women socializing is frowned upon outside of the family. And now somebody SOMEBODY knows that somebody is recording all the cars turning down that specific road. (Source). Gaining entry into the ISA is not easy; candidates already must be part of a special operations forces group. On the ground, these operatives can use a directional antenna programmed to pick up a specific cellphones signal, even if it was turned off, providing Delta Force with a target building to raid. ISA was allegedly co-operating with Task Force Ranger, and was responsible for tracking down Somali warlord Mohammed Farah Adid, through electronic surveillance and Somalian informants. Escobar was shot as he was trying to escape from the roof of his house. Two task forces of JSOC took part in the search and rescue operations, Delta Force and a detachment of the ISA. ISA has gone by many names over the years but its current one is not public knowledge. They must maintain a demeanour of trustworthiness and calmness, so any approached HUMINT sources feel safe and trusted. Intelligence Support Activity The Army's most obscure special-ops unit is the roughly 300-strong Intelligence Support Activity, formed in 1981, which has gone by various codenames over the years. A critical component of clandestine activity is the ability to infiltrate enemy territory ahead of more formal military action. Along with Queens Hunter, ISA was involved in many operations across Central America, in Panama, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador. As an ancillary, but crucial action during this period, LTC Bruce Mauldin and I, with the CSAs concurrence and support, visited the Hill and had several closed-door sessions with appropriate committee Chairs and Ranking Members regarding the unit's establishment, roles and missions, and funding lines. Centra Spike agents operated all around Colombia, as well as neighbouring countries where the cartels influence extended. The specialists, nicknamed 'knob turners' operated sophisticated electronic eavesdropping equipment located in the back cabin of specially-outfitted Seaspray Beechcraft 100 airplanes. Grey Dynamics is a Private Intelligence firm based out of London with analysts, researchers, and investigators worldwide. Afghanistan: The Fox and The Anaconda. The US military and many of its allies consider DA one of the basic special operations missions. The unit would be immediately deployed to any country where a terrorist act against the United States had taken place, and would start providing critical intelligence, as well as setting up landing zones and infiltration routes for the counter-terrorist force. The US recognized the usefulness of this unit and began surveying embassies across the world. Russia and Ukraine battle daily in the sky. " This was the birth of the Field Operations Group (FOG)-later ISA/Secret Army of Northern Virginia. There was a chain barricade that the Serbian police (MUPs) used to block access to a side road that junctioned with highway M4. Its worth noting that Bravo troop was never compromised while conducting espionage against the Assad regime in Syria. The Intelligence Support Activity, commonly called "The Activity" . (Source). The ISA is perhaps the most major outlier doctrinally from its other, better known, counterparts within JSOC and SOCOM as a whole. Once they arrived they took pictures of the embassy from every angle, recorded the types of locks on all doors, inside and outside, recorded the number of windows and exits, and created a blueprint of the building. Every component of the US military was involved in the Invasion of Afghanistan, including the ISA. Reconnaissance overflights revealed a possible location where POWs, still believed to be held by the Vietnamese early in the year. ISA members conducted extensive interviews with Special Forces members in the country, Lebanese Army and CIA and embassy officials. An investigation by journalist Mark Bowden (author of Blackhawk Down) revealed that in 1989, the Colombian government asked for US help in tracking down Escobar. Small Wars Journal is published by Small Wars Foundation - a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. However, Operation Anaconda is one of few of the ISAs Afghanistan operations known to the public. It was so simple that we didnt even need to create a nursery rhyme to recite to help us remember all the steps. With the expansion, the FOG has renamed the ISA and officially established as a unit on January 29th, 1981. Highly detailed knowledge of an infiltration location is also key. Few special operations forces are clad in as much secrecy as the Intelligence Support Activity. All Rights Reserved. If some elements (especially photos) were originally yours please consider Specwar.info to host for free. Lets just settle on Gray Fox for now, as these operators fill in the gray area between Title 50 intelligence gathering and Title 10 unconventional warfare operations. This intelligence then triangulated the possible location of Dozier. The Intelligence Support Activity (ISA), the 1st Capabilities Integration Group (Airborne), or simply The Activity is a component of the US Army and acts as a dedicated intelligence group for SOCOM. Each of these groups achieves different specialised tasks for their assigned mission. When operatives are in less restrictive environments they can often be seen carrying weapons used by locals, most often in the form of AKs. I delivered the unemotional skinny to the Cantor who neither commented nor looked up from his work. The examples and perspective in this article, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Joint Publication 1-02 Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms", United States Army Special Operations Command, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Direct_action_(military)&oldid=1081847487, This page was last edited on 10 April 2022, at 01:40. Since that time the unit reports to Special Operations Command or SOCOM in Tampa Florida, United States. It is tasked to collect actionable intelligence in advance of missions by other US special operations forces . The capture was to happen as he would be heading south to the city of Vlasenica. Deployed together with a small Delta Force contingent, Centra Spike flew over Colombia in their airplanes and continued to track Escobar. Most ISA trainees are from Army Special Forces, meaning many have skills in CQC, sniping, counter-sniping and general tactical engagements. Some solid intelligence gleaning prompted the community into action to capture PIFWC Serbian General S. Kladanj on his scheduled move out of Serbia proper into the Republic of Serbia. The Department of Defense in 1965 outlined its need to be more involved with collecting intelligence, supported by Robert McNamara.
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