How Iran’s Covert Ops Program Works

Jonathan Hackett's Intelligence Career

• 💡 Jonathan Hackett transitioned from signals intelligence (SIGINT), focusing on foreign communications, to human intelligence (HUMINT) within the Marine Corps.
• 🎯 His Iraq deployment involved working with tribal networks and Kurdish forces to encircle ISIS in Mosul, utilizing human-triggered air strikes and a vast network of sub-sources.
• 🧠 He coordinated strikes using advanced tools like Gorgon Stair to track ISIS fighters, notably targeting Abu Omar al-Shishani, ISIS's "Minister of Defense."

Iran's Intelligence Apparatus & Motives

• 🔑 Iran's primary intelligence service, VAJA, was largely subordinated to the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) after the 2009 Green Revolution.
• 📈 The IRGC's main mission is to protect the regime, not the Iranian people, leading to significant wealth accumulation for elites despite sanctions.
• ⚠️ Hackett identifies "sacred talismans" as flawed perceptions of Iran's motives, such as the "Israel vs. Iran" conflict and "exporting the revolution", which often mask political and financial interests.

Covert Operations and Cyber Evolution

• 🎭 Iran extensively uses official diplomatic cover (black passports, Vienna Convention) to move personnel and illicit goods, exploiting reciprocity to avoid expulsions.
• 🚀 Their cyber capabilities rapidly evolved post-Stuxnet, reverse-engineering malware to develop tools like Shimoon for attacks and creating a National Information Network for internal control.
• 🌐 Iran's intelligence targets include dissidents like Masih Alinejad, ethnic separatist groups, and historically, Salafi jihadists, often using proxies and low-level operatives for assassinations.

Sanctions and Unconventional Warfare

• 💸 The regime circumvents sanctions through methods like the Hawala system, exploiting Dubai's banking sector, and engaging in goods-for-cash deals for oil.
• 🛠️ Iran's unconventional warfare is primarily conducted by the IRGC's Kuds Force, specializing in regional "files" (e.g., Africa, South America, Middle East).
• 🌍 The Artesh (Iran's traditional military) rarely deploys outside Iran, highlighting the IRGC's distinct role in projecting power and protecting the regime's interests.