FBI seizes data of retired general related to Qatar lobbying effort

Just the News ^ | 6/8/22 | Sophie Mann

[markomalley]

Retired four-star Marine Gen. John Allen, is on administrative leave from his role as president of the Brookings Institute D.C. think tank after the FBI seized his electronic data on suspicion of lying to investigators and withholding evidence about his role in secretly lobbying for the government of Qatar.

As a general, he commanded all U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan in the Obama administration.

The court records, which were unsealed Tuesday, are the latest public evidence showing the FBI and Justice Department are conducting a large-scale investigation into the stateside influence of wealthy Arab nations including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The investigation has already ensnared Richard Olson, a former UAE and Pakistan ambassador, who pleaded guilty last week to federal charges related to the case, and longtime political donor Imaad Zuberi, who is serving a 12-year prison sentence on corruption charges including violating foreign lobbying, campaign finance and tax laws.

[Bonemaker]

Okay then, an Obama guy who pissed a democrat off.

[markomalley]

Fully reasonable conclusion.

That, or a sacrificial lamb to protect somebody else.

[piasa]

Brookings Institution Partnered With Shanghai Policy Center Under Scrutiny for Spying
8/14/2020, 9:44:51 PM · by MarvinStinson · 6 replies
freebeacon ^ | AUGUST 14, 2020 | Alana Goodman
Shanghai Academy acts as a front for Chinese spy recruitment, according to FBI The Brookings Institution, a prominent Washington, D.C., think tank, partnered with a Shanghai policy center that the FBI has described as a front for China’s intelligence and spy recruitment operations, according to public records and federal court documents. The Brookings Doha Center, the think tank’s hub in Qatar, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences in January 2018, the institution said. The academy is a policy center funded by the Shanghai municipal government that has raised flags within the FBI. The partnership...