From Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen comes "Surprise, Kill, Vanish," the untold USA Today bestselling story of the CIA's secret paramilitary units. This gripping narrative delves into the clandestine world of the CIA's Special Activities Division (SAD), a highly-classified branch known as the president's guerrilla warfare corps. When diplomacy fails and war is unwise, the president turns to this elite force, renowned as the most effective black operations unit in the world.
SAD conducts risky and ruthless operations, evolving over time to defend America from its enemies. Since World War II, almost every American president has tasked the CIA with sabotage, subversion, and even assassination. Jacobsen, with unprecedented access to forty-two men and women who have worked on CIA covert operations from the Cold War to the present, unveils a complex world filled with killers, connivers, and saboteurs. Her deep historical research and access to declassified documents provide a unique insight into this shadowy realm.
Despite Hollywood's portrayal of off-book operations and secret hires, covert action is just one component of a vast foreign policy machine. Written with the pacing of a thriller, "Surprise, Kill, Vanish" vividly captures the chaos and human resilience that define paramilitary and intelligence work. Jacobsen's exclusive interviews with members of the CIA's Senior Intelligence Service, counterterrorism chiefs, targeting officers, and Ground Branch operators reveal the enormity of this controversial and morally complex terrain.
The book poses a critical question: Is the CIA's paramilitary army America's weaponized strength or a liability to its principled standing in the world? Every operation reported in this book, however unsettling, is legal. Jacobsen's work brings to light the intellectual challenge and the indomitable human spirit that drive those who operate in the shadows, making "Surprise, Kill, Vanish" a compelling read for anyone interested in the intricacies of covert operations.