U.S. intercepts home, office phones and e-mails of UN delegates in New York

LONDON, March 2 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – Keeping track of its dubious ways to win over a second UN resolution mandating war against Iraq, U.S. is waging a secret "dirty tricks" campaign targeting UN Security Council delegations in New York. 

Details of the aggressive surveillance operation, which involves interception of the home and office telephones and the e-mails of UN delegates in New York, are revealed in a document leaked to The British Weekly newspaper, The Observer.

A top official at the National Security Agency - the U.S. body which intercepts communications around the world - disclosed the plan in a memorandum, circulated to both senior agents in his organization and to a friendly foreign intelligence agency asking for its input.

The memo was sent by Frank Koza, chief of staff in the 'Regional Targets' section of the NSA, which spies on countries that are viewed as strategically important for United States interests.

The leaked memorandum, dated January 31, makes apparent that the campaign targets the delegations from Angola, Cameroon, Chile, Mexico, Guinea and Pakistan at the UN headquarters in New York, the so-called 'Middle Six' delegations, according to the British weekly.

The memo advises senior NSA officials that the agency is 'mounting a surge' aimed at gleaning information not only on how delegations on the Security Council will vote on any second resolution on Iraq, but also 'policies', 'negotiating positions', 'alliances' and 'dependencies'.

The memo also deals with orders to staff at the agency to step up surveillance "particularly directed at... UN Security Council members" to provide up-to-the-minute intelligence on the voting intentions of UN members regarding the issue of Iraq.

Along with Spain and the United States, Britain has sponsored a new UN resolution declaring Iraq in non-compliance with earlier UN demands that it disarm, which would in effect authorize the use of force against the Baghdad regime, the Observer wrote.

Koza also addresses himself to the foreign agency, saying: 'We'd appreciate your support in getting the word to your analysts who might have similar more indirect access to valuable information from accesses in your product lines.''

The paper also wrote that Koza makes clear it is an informal request at this juncture, but adds: 'I suspect that you'll be hearing more along these lines in formal channels.'

Disclosure of the U.S. operation comes in the week that Blix will make what many expect to be his final report to the Security Council.

It also comes amid increasingly threatening noises from the U.S. towards undecided countries on the Security Council who have been warned of the unpleasant economic consequences of standing up to the U.S.

Sources in Washington familiar with the operation said last week that there had been a division among Bush administration officials over whether to pursue such a high-intensity surveillance campaign with some warning of the serious consequences of discovery.

While many diplomats at the UN assume they are being bugged, the memo reveals for the first time the scope and scale of U.S. communications intercepts targeted against the New York-based missions.

The memo comes at a time when diplomats from the countries have been complaining about the outright 'hostility' of U.S. tactics in recent days to persuade them to fall in line, including threats to economic and aid packages.

The surveillance campaign, understood to have been requested by President Bush's National Security Adviser, Condoleezza Rice, is deeply embarrassing to the Americans in the middle of their efforts to win over the undecided delegations.