Operation Cannonball
Encyclopedia
Operation Cannonball is an American
Central Intelligence Agency
operation that was disclosed in 2008. Beginning in 2006, it was intended as part of an effort to capture Osama Bin Laden
and eliminate Al Qaeda forces in Pakistan
. There was reportedly "mounting frustration" among Pentagon
officials due to the ongoing delay and deployment of special forces units, as originally planned in the Cannonball program. The operation was reportedly hampered by conflicts between CIA offices, leading to large delays in the deployment of the program. Partially to blame for the presently failed deployment of the program was conflict among United States intelligence agencies, among with resources having been diverted to the War In Iraq.
The existence of the covert program, and its various internal conflicts, was revealed to the public by the New York Times on June 30, 2008. The New York Times article was said to be "exposing highly classified Pentagon orders".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
operation that was disclosed in 2008. Beginning in 2006, it was intended as part of an effort to capture Osama Bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
and eliminate Al Qaeda forces in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. There was reportedly "mounting frustration" among Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
officials due to the ongoing delay and deployment of special forces units, as originally planned in the Cannonball program. The operation was reportedly hampered by conflicts between CIA offices, leading to large delays in the deployment of the program. Partially to blame for the presently failed deployment of the program was conflict among United States intelligence agencies, among with resources having been diverted to the War In Iraq.
The existence of the covert program, and its various internal conflicts, was revealed to the public by the New York Times on June 30, 2008. The New York Times article was said to be "exposing highly classified Pentagon orders".