The FBI spied on Nelson Mandela when
the legendary South African leader arrived
in the United States in June 1990,
according to newly released files
exclusively obtained by Al Jazeera. A May
30, 1990, FBI memo from the Atlanta field
office to then–FBI Director William
Sessions about the upcoming visit noted
that the bureau had cultivated a new
confidential informant — either directly
within Mandela’s inner circle or closely
affiliated with his entourage — who had
provided logistical information about
Mandela’s travel itinerary.
Mandela arrived in the U.S. four months
after his release from 27 years in prison,
not only as the world’s most celebrated
political prisoner and liberation icon but
also as the leader of a U.S.-designated
“terrorist organization.” The African
National Congress was not removed from
the State Department’s list of such
organizations until 2008. Moreover, it was
widely alleged at the time that the CIA
had provided information to the apartheid
authorities in South Africa that led to
Mandela’s arrest in 1962, in line with a
Cold War approach that treated many
African liberation leaders as threats to
U.S. interests.
No comments:
Post a Comment