By: Hasan Belgaumi, a HISTOYOUTH writer
Countries around the world have intelligence agencies that conduct covert operations outside of their borders. India has the RAW, Russia has the FSB, Pakistan has the ISI, and China has its MSS. But by far the most prolific intelligence organization is the CIA. The CIA, or Central Intelligence Agency, is the United States' government agency that gathers foreign intelligence for the federal government. Since its creation in 1947, the agency has engaged in various operations across the globe and, at times, used what can only be described as bizarre methods to achieve its goals.
Since the Spanish-American War at the end of the 19th century, the United States has been vigorously involved in its own—and other countries'—foreign affairs. From imperialism to attempting to establish global peace to containing the spread of communism, the United States has asserted itself on the world stage as a global "police'' power. While often justified and oftentimes not, the US has meddled in the affairs of foreign countries to achieve its vision of the world, often under the banner of democracy. But throughout its history, the CIA has used unorthodox strategies around the globe.
The Trial and Error of Feline Spies
In the 1960s, during the heart of the Cold War, the CIA attempted to employ cats as spies. Operation Acoustic Kitty was a project developed involving the creation of an almost-cyber cat. The aim was to exploit a cat’s sense of curiosity to allow them to listen in on conversations between foreign diplomats and officials, especially Soviet ones. A microphone was implanted in a cat's ear, a radio at the base of its skull, and an antenna woven into the fur, all done by professional surgeons. However, complications began to arise. Soon after its creation, developers realized implanting the cat with technology was one thing, but training it was another. They had hoped to use audio cues to train the cat, but they proved ineffective. On its first test trip out to the park, the first "Acoustic Kitty" was tasked with recording the conversation of two men on a bench. Unfortunately, before being able to reach its target, the cat ran into oncoming traffic and was hit and killed by a taxi. Soon after, in 1967, the project was scrapped. Although the CIA has since engaged in employing other animals as spies, such as insects, Operation Acoustic Kitty remains one of its more odd and disastrous attempts at espionage.
The Creation of "Demon Dolls" in Pakistan
Following the 9/11 attacks, the CIA was heavily involved in Afghanistan and neighboring countries. In Pakistan, the CIA deployed drones, spies, and various tracking devices in order to curb the influence of Al-Qaeda and hunt down the man responsible for the attacks. The CIA desperately searched for Osama bin Laden in the region to achieve justice for the thousands killed. The agency turned to psychological warfare and developed an Osama bin Laden doll. The action figures, codenamed "Devil Eyes", looked identical to the leader; however, his face was painted with a material that would dissolve and reveal a horrifying red skin and green eyes underneath. The hope was for children and their parents to be alarmed by the devilish doll and ultimately disassociate with Bin Laden. The CIA employed Hasbro executive Donald Levine to develop the dolls and covertly manufacture them in China. However, the project was soon scrapped, and few dolls were ever made. The CIA claims only three prototypes were produced, while others claim a pre-production test batch of hundreds was created and shipped to Karachi, Pakistan, in 2006. Of the three confirmed dolls, one is in the possession of the CIA, and two are in the possession of the Levine family. Both dolls were auctioned off by the Levine family for thousands of dollars. The creation of the dolls was a rare instance where the CIA traded in its drones and weapons for action figures.
The Sex Doll Spies and the Russian KGB
In the 1970s, American spies in Moscow desperately needed a way to meet with agents whose identities needed to be kept secret. It was a common practice for American spies to drive in pairs. When a car with KGB spies, the Soviet spy agency, followed behind, the passenger would quickly jump out of the car as they rounded a corner. However, KGB spies would soon notice that there was now only one person in the car and attempt to track down the missing passenger. The CIA had the brilliant idea to deceive KGB spies by using a sex doll. The goal was to have the doll replace the passenger as he left the car and trick the KGB spies, at least for a short period of time. The CIA developed a male sex doll, implanted with an airbag and wearing clothes. A system was added where the doll could be inflated with the push of a button. The dolls became known as JIBs, or "Jack-in-the-Box,", and were deployed in the field in Moscow in the early 80s. The dolls were used for quite some time, but as surveillance and tracking technologies improved, the dolls and more primitive methods of deception became obsolete.
A Fake Sci-Fi Movie to Save Iranian Hostages
In 1979, at the height of the Iranian Revolution, followers of religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini stormed the American embassy in the capital, Tehran. American diplomats and embassy employees were held hostage for over a year in the country. Iranians harbored a long-held resentment toward the United States after the CIA overthrew their democratically elected leader, Mosaddegh, and instated a monarchy under Shah Pahlavi, who ruled with an iron fist. The exiled Shah was now receiving treatment in the United States for cancer, and revolutionaries in Iran called for his return to Iran. However, in the chaos of the takeover, six American diplomats were able to escape. Iranians began to look for Americans throughout the capital, prompting the escapees to seek refuge in two Canadian diplomats' residences. However, it was clear that the Americans couldn’t stay in Iran for much longer. House staff at both houses grew suspicious of the supposed houseguests, who, as "tourists", never left the house. American spy Antonio Mendez began to develop a plan to get them out of Iran. The CIA approved Mendez’s plan for a fake sci-fi movie to get the Americans out. With the help of Hollywood, the movie was announced in various ads, and even a launch party was held. The cover story said the Americans were part of a film crew scouting out exotic Middle Eastern locations to film in Iran.
Mendez needed to rely on the six diplomats to assume and embody their roles to trick the Iranians into believing their story. He flew into Tehran on Friday, January 25th, 1980, planning to leave with the diplomats the following Monday. In the end, the plan was successful, and the six Americans were rescued. In 1997, records of the operation were declassified. In 2012, Ben Affleck’s film Argo, based on Mendez's story, was released, and the story of the operation has since become well known. Most CIA operations rely on obscurity, but the story of the fake sci-fi movie was different, and as flamboyant as it was, it hid in plain sight.
The history of espionage is packed with stories of unjustified violence and brutality. The deposition of democratically elected leaders and the unprovoked murder of innocent civilians. But there is also a light-hearted side to history and politics, and these bizarre tactics piloted by the CIA represent that.
Works Cited
Eschner, Kat. “The CIA Experimented On Animals in the 1960s Too. Just Ask ‘Acoustic Kitty.’” Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Aug. 2017, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/cia-experimented-animals-1960s-too-just-ask-acoustic-kitty-180964313/. Accessed 13 May 2023.
Getlen, Larry. “How a Fake Science-Fiction Film Helped Save Six Americans from Being Held Hostage in Iran.” New York Post, 2 Sept. 2012, https://nypost.com/2012/09/02/how-a-fake-science-fiction-film-helped-save-six-americans-from-being-held-hostage-in-iran/. Accessed 13 May 2023.
Goldman, Adam. “CIA Hatched Plan to Make Demon Toy of Bin Laden.” The Washington Post, 19 June 2014, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/cia-hatched-plan-to-make-demon-toy-to-counter-bin-laden-influence/2014/06/19/cb3d571c-f0d0-11e3-914c-1fbd0614e2d4_story.html. Accessed 13 May 2023.
imkadmin. “How the CIA Turned Sex Dolls into Secret Agents.” IMK - InfoMedia Kosova, 5 Feb. 2022, https://www.imalbania.com/kosova/how-the-cia-turned-sex-dolls-into-secret-agents/. Accessed 13 May 2023.
Little, Becky. “When the CIA Learned Cats Make Bad Spies.” HISTORY.Com, 1 Sept. 2018, https://www.history.com/news/cia-spy-cat-espionage-fail. Accessed 13 May 2023.
Sotomayor, Marianna. “‘Demon’ Bin Laden Action Figure Goes to Auction.” CNN, 7 Nov. 2014, https://edition.cnn.com/2014/11/07/politics/bin-laden-doll-auction/index.html. Accessed 13 May 2023.
Stein, Jeff. “How the CIA Turned a Sex Doll Into a Spy Trick.” Newsweek, 24 July 2015, https://www.newsweek.com/2015/08/21/cia-sex-doll-russia-356997.html. Accessed 13 May 2023.
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