Articles

Scott A. Wirtz poses for a photo with Stewie while deployed in August 2018. (Photo illustration by Alex Gikas, DIA Public Affairs)

July 16, 2019

JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, D.C — Scott A. Wirtz, a Defense Intelligence Agency civilian, was killed during a terrorist attack in Manbij, Syria, Jan. 16. When DIA sent out the press release identifying the former Navy SEAL, the photo that accompanied it wasn’t a run-of-the-mill portrait or a generic grip-and-grin shot. No, it was an image of a 42-year-old badass and his dog.

The Patriots Memorial is a constant reminder of the sacrifices made for DIA's mission. Photo illustration by DIA Public Affairs

July 15, 2019

Remembering the fallen: DIA’s Patriots Memorial

JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, D.C — “This is a stark reminder of the dangerous missions we conduct for the nation and of the threats we work hard to mitigate … As President Lincoln described on the fields at Gettysburg, ‘this officer gave the last full measure of devotion.’”

Left to Right: Air Force Col. Anthony Rizzo, NCMI director; Army LTG Michael Maples, DIA director; James Clapper, undersecretary of defense for intelligence; and Charles Allen, undersecretary for intelligence and analysis, DHS.

July 11, 2019

This Week in DIA History: National Center for Medical Intelligence hits double digits!

Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling — The need for a professional medical intelligence capability was made abundantly clear during the Spanish influenza epidemic in the midst of the First World War.

Mubin Shaikh shared with DIA's Strategic Intelligence Leadership Course his story of being a reformed extremist, who helped dismantel terrorist cells. (Photo by Ally Rogers, OCC)

June 28, 2019

Former jihadist visits DIA Strategic Intelligence Leadership Course

His opening statement captivated the entire classroom. His words hung in the air, nearly visible and reverberating, as every set of eyes widened and focused on Mubin Shaikh. He said it again: “After high school, I became radicalized. I became an extremist. A jihadi.”

President Lyndon B. Johnson consults with advisors on events in the Arab-Israeli Six Day War. Photo courtesy of the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library.

June 27, 2019

This Week in DIA History: DIA assessment on the Six-Day War “A Triumph”

Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling — In early 1967, tension escalated as the possibility of war between Israel and the Arab world grew. By late May, as Israel sought U.S. support, President Lyndon Johnson requested an intelligence assessment on the balance of forces and likely outcome of such a conflict.

The B-17 bomber was modified to perform the Skyhook process, which is a way by which a flying aircraft can "grab" a stationary object sitting on the ground. Robert Fulton was the inventor of the Skyhook system, which was also known as the Surface-To-Air-Recovery System. Photo courtesy of CIA. Intermountain Aviation's B-17 at Point Barrow, May 1962. (Credit: Robert E. Fulton)

June 20, 2019

This Week in DIA History: DIA participates in Operation Coldfeet

Washington, D.C. — Tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States were not limited to Europe and Cuba in 1962.

LTG William Quinn, DIA's first deputy director

June 13, 2019

This week in DIA history: Lt. Gen. William Quinn, DIA's first deputy director

Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling — Lt. Gen. William Quinn was assigned to DIA as deputy director on October 1, 1961. As the deputy, Quinn played an important role in standing up the Agency as well as supporting intelligence efforts during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

MAJ Robert Perry is remembered on DIA's Patriots Memorial at DIA Headquarters

June 6, 2019

This Week in DIA History: Remembering the first DIA employee killed in the line of duty

Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling — On June 10, 1970, Palestinian gunmen murdered Assistant Army Attaché MAJ Robert Perry in Amman, Jordan.

Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Robert P. Ashley Jr. delivers keynote remarks at The Arms Control Landscape event hosted by the Hudson Institute, May 29. (Photo courtesy of the Hudson Institute)

May 31, 2019

Director Ashley discusses adversaries’ nukes at Hudson Institute event

JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, D.C — Speaking Wednesday at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C., Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Robert P. Ashley Jr. emphasized Russia’s and China’s growing nuclear weapons capabilities and recent modernization.

An excerpt from former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Winston Churchill’s draft of the Atlantic Charter. This charter was the first step in establishing the FVEY community.

May 30, 2019

This Week in DIA History: Formation of the FVEY Partnership

JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, D.C. — With war looming for the United States in 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt approved a proposal for U.S. intelligence activities to exchange secret technical information with the United Kingdom. The initial formal agreement, known as the Atlantic Charter, established strategic aims and set the state for closer, formal intelligence cooperation.