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Michael D’Andrea goes by many names. To those in the CIA, he’s the Undertaker, the Dark Prince, Ayatollah Mike. To Hollywood, he’s the Wolf, immortalized in Zero Dark Thirty, a film about the manhunt for Osama Bin Laden. To the general public, he is nobody, as he is still undercover, a man who has spent 38 years toiling at the CIA, his dutiful service resulting in the deaths of hundreds of people. He is stubbled and gaunt, with a preference for dark suits, his colleagues say, and he has a bad smoking habit and a bad attitude. {..snip..}

Fox video at link. New photos obtained by Fox News challenge Bowe Bergdahl's claim that he abandoned his post in 2009 to draw attention to leadership problems in the Army, according to a former platoon mate who served with the Idaho native in Afghanistan. "That whole story that he walked away to tell on us doesn't make any sense. He was relaxed and there was nothing about leadership problems," former Army Pvt. Joseph Coe said, adding that Bergdahl gave him the photos five days before he walked away from their outpost on June 30, 2009. "Bergdahl was a good friend...

When Republican members of Congress learned in November 2011 that the Obama administration was contemplating a swap -- Taliban terrorists for captured ArmySgt. Bowe Bergdahl -- they wrote to then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton of their fears. Mrs. Clinton wrote back that they had nothing to worry about. The White House would follow the law requiring a 30-day heads-up. "I want to make clear that any transfer from Guantanamo will be undertaken after consultation with Congress and pursuant to all legal requirements for transfers, including those spelled out in the FY2012 [National] Defense Authorization Act," she said of the law...

Full title: Judicial Watch Obtains Previously Classified CIA Inspector General Report Strongly Condemning Agency Handling of Briefings and Interviews with the Entertainment Industry Report specifically criticizes CIA’s briefings ‘in which foreign nationals may have participated’ specifically criticizes CIA interface with ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ filmmakers (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it has received a previously classified December 2012 Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) report from the Office of Inspector General (OIG) strongly condemning the agency’s handling of “briefings, interviews, visits, and other support” given to the entertainment industry. The report specifically criticizes the CIA’s granting of “Secret level” access...

Lawfare Blog: Following an American special forces raid on the compound of Islamic State operative Abu Sayyaf, U.S. interrogators, who are part of the High Value Detainee Interrogation Group, have flown to Iraq in order to question Umm Sayyaf, the wife of Abu Sayyaf, who was taken during the operation. Umm Sayyaf was allegedly involved in the workings of the Islamic State and could possibly have played a role in “the enslavement of women in Iraq and Syria.” U.S. interrogators plan to talk to Umm Sayyaf about U.S. hostages held by the militant group. However, according to the Washington Post,...

The CIA official who led the hunt for Osama Bin Laden is being removed from his post, it has been revealed. The head of the agency's Counter­terrorism Center, who also directed drone campaigns which killed thousands, has been in the position for nine years and is described as a 'true hero'.

Newly declassified documents show that former CIA Director Leon Panetta revealed secret information to "Zero Dark Thirty" scriptwriter Mark Boal, who was allowed to attend Panetta's speech at CIA headquarters marking the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Not only did former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta leak the name of the Navy SEAL group responsible for the killing of Osama Bin Laden in 2011, but the release of the Pentagon Inspector General’s (IG) report revealing the incident, which was ready in July 2012, was delayed until now. In the spring of 2012, GOP members accused Barack Obama’s administration of leaking national security secrets to help Obama get reelected, but the administration denied it. At a CIA awards ceremony on June 24, 2011, Panetta named the SEAL group and its commander. Among those present were 1300 military and...

According to Politico, that’s the conclusion of an Inspector General report. The information on the raid was classified as Secret and Top Secret, and its dissemination to the filmmakers has been a controversial point ever since the film was announced:

You've got to admit that it's awfully precious that there was a huge controversy about "Zero Dark Thirty" because Kathryn Bigelow's film suggested that enhanced interrogation techniques helped intelligence officials find Osama bin Laden but no controversy about the final mission in the movie -- to kill, but not capture, the al-Qaida leader. Some of the film's defenders believe that the controversy robbed "Zero Dark Thirty," Bigelow, actress Jessica Chastain and screenwriter Mark Boal of well-deserved Oscars. Maybe so but maybe not; a number of fine films were up for best picture this year. But it cannot have helped that...

LOS ANGELES — It’s not over yet for “Zero Dark Thirty” — at least, not in the complaints department. As the Oscars approach on Sunday, the film, which is nominated for five awards, including best picture, has drawn new objections from the survivors of Betty Ann Ong, a flight attendant who died in the Sept. 11 attacks. The survivors contend that Ms. Ong’s voice, recorded on a call from American Airlines Flight 11 before it hit the World Trade Center, was improperly used in an opening sequence of “Zero Dark Thirty.” They are demanding an apology at the Academy Awards...

On the eve of Sunday's Academy Awards presentation, former George W. Bush CIA Director Michael Hayden has made a strong statement about the hunt for Osama bin Laden film "Zero Dark Thirty." In an interview to be aired on CNN's Fareed Zakaria GPS Sunday, Hayden said, "If you look at the movie, it was artistically true, not factually true. Artistically, it portrayed the CIA interrogation program, but factually it was overwrought and inaccurate" (video follows with transcript and commentary): Bush CIA Director: 'Zero Dark Thirty' Portrayal of Interrogations 'Not Factually True' FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST: Did enhanced interrogation techniques, specifically waterboarding,...

I SAW “Argo” with Jerry Rafshoon, who was a top aide to President Carter during the Iranian hostage crisis, when six Americans escaped and were given sanctuary for three months by courageous Canadian diplomats. We were watching a scene where a C.I.A. guy can’t get through to Hamilton Jordan, Carter’s chief of staff, to sign off on plane tickets for the escaping hostages, so he pretends to be calling from the school where Jordan’s kids go. “Hamilton wasn’t married then and didn’t have any kids,” Jerry whispered, inflaming my pet peeve about filmmakers who make up facts in stories about...

The Navy SEAL who claims he shot and killed Osama bin Laden in the famous raid which captured America's most wanted terrorist has spoken for the first time about the moment he shot the al Qaeda three times in the head and watched him take his last breath. The Team Six member - who is referred to as 'The Shooter' for the safety of his family - described in unforgettable detail the days leading up to the kill, the moment he shot bin Laden three times and the fallout from the raid. Once they were given their mission, the woman...

"Zero Dark Thirty," the film about the hunt for and killing of Osama bin Laden, got a fresh infusion of buzz over the weekend when outgoing Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta confirmed again that enhanced interrogation techniques aided the effort to find bin Laden. "Some of it came from ... interrogation tactics that were used," he said. "But the fact is we put together most of that intelligence without having to resort to that. I think we could have gotten bin Laden without that." In other words, the movie exaggerates the role played by enhanced interrogation techniques -- torture to...

In "Zero Dark Thirty," the movie about the killing of Osama bin Laden, one of the first scenes shows a terrorist being waterboarded, where useful information gets extracted. The movie thus asserts the controversial practice leads to actionable intelligence. Not only was former President George W. Bush criticized for "authorizing torture," his critics argued that "torture doesn't work." During the 2008 presidential campaign, then-Sen. Barack Obama said: "Torture is how you get bad information, not good intelligence. ... No more secret authorization of methods like simulated drowning. When I am President, America will once again be the country that stands...

Defense Secretary Panetta admits that CIA used the information from waterboarding to capture Osama Bin Laden • Controversial film Zero Dark Thirty has graphic waterboarding scene • Director Kathryn Bigelow says all information in the film was based on 'first hand accounts' of what happened but now Senator disputes theory Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said that some of the information that was used to locate and kill Osama bin Laden was attained using torture. The admission comes after months of speculation about the role that waterboarding plays in CIA interrogations following its graphic depiction in the Oscar-nominated film Zero Dark...

Zero Dark Thirty is too important to be boycotted by anyone but activists. Zero Dark Thirty, screenwriter Mark Boal and director Kathryn Bigelow’s new film about the hunt for Osama bin Laden, is weathering a storm of criticism. Critics overwhelmingly give the film positive reviews, but activists claim that it approves of and even glorifies the use of torture against suspected al-Qaida terrorists held in secret CIA prisons and “black” sites. The accusation is ludicrous. Nothing in Zero Dark Thirty suggests that either Boal or Bigelow approves of torture. So many have accused Bigelow of torture advocacy that she took...

HOLLYWOOD (CBSLA.com) — The critics agree “Zero Dark Thirty” — a film depicting the decade-long hunt for Osama bin Laden — is gritty and moving. The movie is also filled with scenes of disturbing and graphic torture and has many people upset. But not about the images and what they depict — what the images suggest. The film has garnered five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. But it’s also beset with controversy and criticism. CBS2 and KCAL9 Political Reporter Dave Bryan went to a theater in Hollywood Friday evening and spoke to a group of people who say the movie...

The nominees for the 2013 Academy Awards have been revealed in Los Angeles. Find out who is in the running for the main prizes below. This page will be updated shortly with a full list of nominees. Best film Amour Argo Beasts Of The Southern Wild Django Unchained Les Miserables Lincoln Life Of Pi Silver Linings Playbook Zero Dark Thirty Best actress Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook Emmanuelle Riva - Amour Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild Naomi Watts - The Impossible