Operation Gladio

Cold Open: We're reading from a 2014 response to a Freedom of Information Act request by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, dated April 18, 2014. This document is a result of a FOIA request submitted to the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2013, reference DIA Case #0137-2013. The release of this document is notable for its connection to Operation Gladio, a clandestine NATO stay-behind operation in Europe during the Cold War. Provenance: The document was released on April 18, 2014, by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request submitted on January 20, 2013. The request was originally submitted to the Defense Intelligence Agency, and was processed under tracking number 2013-05694-F. The document was released to John Greenewald, the requester, and is available on the Air Force FOIA page at http://www.foia.af.mil. The Document: This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act request, dated 20 January 2013, that was originally submitted to the Defense Intelligence Agency, reference DIA Case #0137-2013. During the processing of your request, AFOSI documents were identified and forwarded to our office for processing and direct response to you. We received your request on 20 August 2013 and assigned tracking number 2013-05694-F. Information from AFOSI criminal investigative records are exempt from release under the Privacy Act, Title 5 United States Code Section 552(a)(J)(2). In order to provide you the maximum amount of releasable information, we are processing your request under the FOIA. Since portions of the information requested are also exempt from disclosure under the FOIA, we have inserted the exemptions below in the attached document(s). a. Exemption b 1 protects from disclosure information about "matters specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy" and which has in fact been "properly classified pursuant to such Executive order." The deleted information is exempt from automatic declassification in accordance with Executive Order 13526 Section 1.4 para (c) intelligence activities (including covert action), intelligence sources or methods, or cryptology. b. Exemption b6 permits the withholding of all information about individuals in "personnel and medical files and similar files" when the disclosure of such information "would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy." c. Exemption b7c provides protection for personal information in law enforcement records the disclosure of which "could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy." The authority for the exemptions used can be found in 5 USC § 552 and in Air Force Manual 33-302, which can be accessed via the Air Force FOIA page at http://www.foia.af.mil. Context: The document is a response to a Freedom of Information Act request, and as such, it is a routine administrative document. However, the context of Operation Gladio, a clandestine NATO stay-behind operation in Europe during the Cold War, provides a broader understanding of the significance of this document. Outro: This is what the public record looks like at its most ordinary. The release of this document is a result of a Freedom of Information Act request, and it provides a glimpse into the workings of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations. For more information, please visit the Air Force FOIA page at http://www.foia.af.mil. The document is available at https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/coldwarera/GLADIO-AFOSI.pdf.