Trump team hired spy firm for ‘dirty ops’ on Iran arms deal and the true nature of Republicans

[UberNeuman]

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news...medium=website&utm_content=link&ICID=ref_fark

From The Guardian:

Israeli agency told to find incriminating material on Obama diplomats who negotiated deal with Tehran

Aides to Donald Trump, the US president, hired an Israeli private intelligence agency to orchestrate a “dirty ops” campaign against key individuals from the Obama administration who helped negotiate the Iran nuclear deal, the Observer can reveal.

People in the Trump camp contacted private investigators in May last year to “get dirt” on Ben Rhodes, who had been one of Barack Obama’s top national security advisers, and Colin Kahl, deputy assistant to Obama, as part of an elaborate attempt to discredit the deal.

The extraordinary revelations come days before Trump’s 12 May deadline to either scrap or continue to abide by the international deal limiting Iran’s nuclear programme.

---------

Once again, Republicans attempting to interfer with policies of Democrats.

@1phophet - here's some true nature for you...

 

[JSt0rm]

fake news!

 

[TheVrolok]

Finally doing what's right and investigating the deep state!

 

[Puffnstuff]

Finally doing what's right and investigating the deep state!

I might have some footage of this operation.

 

[TheVrolok]

I might have some footage of this operation.

Proof! Q is right again!

 

[Moonbeam]

The party of moral values is going to turn on Trump any day now just like the church abandoned its geocentric views.

 

[Victorian Gray]

I might have some footage of this operation.

Are they the investigators or are they the 'deep state'?

 

[Puffnstuff]

Are they the investigators or are they the 'deep state'?

Hard to tell with those disguises on.

 

[Victorian Gray]

Hard to tell with those disguises on.

They're probably both.

 

[UberNeuman]

Ah, this be why the sudden concern over John Kerry from the resident righties.

 

[Doc Savage Fan]

Fake news. ROFL.

 

[umbrella39]

Yet another Derp Savage shit and run...

 

[UberNeuman]

Yet another Derp Savage shit and run...

It's part of the true nature of republicans. Also, he's not sane.

 

[Doc Savage Fan]

Spying on Obama Officials: Source Says Israeli Black Cube Hired by Business Entity, Not Trump
Source refutes allegations that Trump associates hired the intelligence agency to snoop on aides who worked on the Iran nuclear deal
https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news...-hired-by-business-entity-not-trump-1.6063162

^ Pay wall. Cached article as follows:
https://webcache.googleusercontent....not-trump-1.6063162+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
Spying on Obama Officials: Source Says Israeli Black Cube Hired by Business Entity, Not Trump
Source refutes allegations that Trump associates hired the intelligence agency to snoop on aides who worked on the Iran nuclear deal

Israeli intelligence company Black Cube was hired to spy on former aides in the Obama administration last year. A source close to the company says that the Israeli intelligence company was acting on behalf of a business entity, however, and not on behalf U.S. President Donald Trump’s aides.

A source close to the company said the purpose of its data collection was to serve the client’s business or legal interests, and had nothing to do with Trump. The source also said correspondence regarding Iranian nuclear issues related to the business interests of the client who hired the spy firm.

He added that neither the Iranian nuclear program nor Barack Obama associates were at the heart of the intelligence gathering operation: Any mention of them was intended purely to buy the trust of the parties, in order to obtain information not connected to Iran.

British newspaper The Observer had reported Sunday that Trump aides hired the firm last summer to “get dirt” on former Obama administration officials who had been involved in crafting the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

However, the source refused to say who hired Black Cube.

Black Cube engages in business espionage and producing evidence for court cases. It does not spy on behalf of governments, the source said.

But the source rejected the accusation that Black Cube spied in connection with the Iranian nuclear agreement. In fact, the entire affair was concerned with a completely different business matter, he noted.

If the identity of the party hiring the agency ever gets revealed, he added, the people now claiming it was about the Iranian deal will have to apologize.

According to the source, Black Cube hasn’t done government work since it worked for a Romanian government body and became embroiled in a fight between law enforcement authorities in Romania.

Black Cube was founded by Dr. Avi Yanus and Dan Zorella in 2010, and has been linked to several scandals in recent years. It was hired by Harvey Weinstein last July, to investigate several women who had accused the Hollywood producer of sexual assault and the journalists working on the stories.

It has also been linked with Cambridge Analytica by Christopher Wylie, a former Cambridge employee-turned-whistleblower who said Black Cube had been hired to hack the personal data of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari prior to his election. Cambridge denied Black Cube was the espionage agency it worked with.

In an official response to the Iran allegations on Sunday, Black Cube denied any involvement.

“It is Black Cube’s policy to never discuss its clients with any third party, and to never confirm or deny any speculation made with regard to the company’s work,” the company said.

“Referencing Black Cube has become an international sport during 2018,” it added. “Black Cube has no relation whatsoever to the Trump administration, to Trump aides, to anyone close to the administration, or to the Iran nuclear deal. Anyone who claims otherwise is misleading their readers and viewers.

“Luckily,” the statement added, “the Mossad and CIA are capable to [sic] deal with the Iran Nuclear deal and other issues of national security without relying on the expertise of Black Cube.”

Black Cube also said it works strictly in compliance with the law everywhere it operates, and based on legal opinions from the world’s leading law firms.

 

[UberNeuman]

See what I mean?

 

[hal2kilo]

Spying on Obama Officials: Source Says Israeli Black Cube Hired by Business Entity, Not Trump
Source refutes allegations that Trump associates hired the intelligence agency to snoop on aides who worked on the Iran nuclear deal
https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news...-hired-by-business-entity-not-trump-1.6063162

^ Pay wall. Cached article as follows:
https://webcache.googleusercontent....not-trump-1.6063162+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
Spying on Obama Officials: Source Says Israeli Black Cube Hired by Business Entity, Not Trump
Source refutes allegations that Trump associates hired the intelligence agency to snoop on aides who worked on the Iran nuclear deal

Israeli intelligence company Black Cube was hired to spy on former aides in the Obama administration last year. A source close to the company says that the Israeli intelligence company was acting on behalf of a business entity, however, and not on behalf U.S. President Donald Trump’s aides.

A source close to the company said the purpose of its data collection was to serve the client’s business or legal interests, and had nothing to do with Trump. The source also said correspondence regarding Iranian nuclear issues related to the business interests of the client who hired the spy firm.

He added that neither the Iranian nuclear program nor Barack Obama associates were at the heart of the intelligence gathering operation: Any mention of them was intended purely to buy the trust of the parties, in order to obtain information not connected to Iran.

British newspaper The Observer had reported Sunday that Trump aides hired the firm last summer to “get dirt” on former Obama administration officials who had been involved in crafting the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

However, the source refused to say who hired Black Cube.

Black Cube engages in business espionage and producing evidence for court cases. It does not spy on behalf of governments, the source said.

But the source rejected the accusation that Black Cube spied in connection with the Iranian nuclear agreement. In fact, the entire affair was concerned with a completely different business matter, he noted.

If the identity of the party hiring the agency ever gets revealed, he added, the people now claiming it was about the Iranian deal will have to apologize.

According to the source, Black Cube hasn’t done government work since it worked for a Romanian government body and became embroiled in a fight between law enforcement authorities in Romania.

Black Cube was founded by Dr. Avi Yanus and Dan Zorella in 2010, and has been linked to several scandals in recent years. It was hired by Harvey Weinstein last July, to investigate several women who had accused the Hollywood producer of sexual assault and the journalists working on the stories.

It has also been linked with Cambridge Analytica by Christopher Wylie, a former Cambridge employee-turned-whistleblower who said Black Cube had been hired to hack the personal data of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari prior to his election. Cambridge denied Black Cube was the espionage agency it worked with.

In an official response to the Iran allegations on Sunday, Black Cube denied any involvement.

“It is Black Cube’s policy to never discuss its clients with any third party, and to never confirm or deny any speculation made with regard to the company’s work,” the company said.

“Referencing Black Cube has become an international sport during 2018,” it added. “Black Cube has no relation whatsoever to the Trump administration, to Trump aides, to anyone close to the administration, or to the Iran nuclear deal. Anyone who claims otherwise is misleading their readers and viewers.

“Luckily,” the statement added, “the Mossad and CIA are capable to [sic] deal with the Iran Nuclear deal and other issues of national security without relying on the expertise of Black Cube.”

Black Cube also said it works strictly in compliance with the law everywhere it operates, and based on legal opinions from the world’s leading law firms.

It would seem that relying on the hired spy to tell you the truth is problematic.

 

[Doc Savage Fan]

See what I mean?

Exactly what do you mean? That you've fell for fake news and are too embarrassed to admit it??

 

[UberNeuman]

Exactly what do you mean? That you've fell for fake news and are too embarrassed to admit it??

I stand by it.

 

[Doc Savage Fan]

It would seem that relying on the hired spy to tell you the truth is problematic.

F*ck the horse's mouth....I prefer unnamed sources as well. /s

 

[Doc Savage Fan]

I stand by it.

Then you're a moron for doing so.

 

[fskimospy]

Exactly what do you mean? That you've fell for fake news and are too embarrassed to admit it??

Interesting how a single anonymous source is sufficient for you to believe something that helps conservatives but multiple anonymous sources aren’t sufficient for you when it hurts conservatives. Can you explain why?

 

[UberNeuman]

Then you're a moron for doing so.

Of course, dear. Of course.

 

[IronWing]

An anonymous business entity, oh my. Trump has around five hundred of those to choose from.

 

[trenchfoot]

Not saying I doubt that it happened, it's just that I don't understand why the Trump thugs would go through all that trouble when they can simply lie and dream up these wonderful fear mongering conspiracy theories like they do every single day of the week.

That BS works so well on their base and it cost practically nothing but a few moments in time to crank that crapola up and have those fairy tales get spread by Hannity on FOX and the GOP AM radio propaganda apparatchiks.

 

[Doc Savage Fan]

Interesting how a single anonymous source is sufficient for you to believe something that helps conservatives but multiple anonymous sources aren’t sufficient for you when it hurts conservatives. Can you explain why?

WTF are you talking about? Single anonymous source? Black Cube issued a public statement denying the allegation.