CIA memo reveals plot to turn citizens into political assassins

"In January 1954, the CIA issued a classified report revealing that the US intelligence community had selected a target for the Artichoke experiments and was plotting to turn this foreign official into an assassin without their knowledge. While the memo noted the target as a high-ranking politician in the unknown country, it also added that this technique could also be used against American officials 'if necessary.'"

"The file, from a Senior Representative whose name was redacted, stated that agents working on the Artichoke team had visited this country between January 8 and January 15 to answer one sinister question: 'Can an individual of [REDACTED] descent be made to perform an act of attempted assassination involuntarily under the influence of ARTICHOKE?'"

"A handwritten footnote suggested the plan was to drug the would-be assassin 'through the medium of an alcoholic cocktail at a social party.' The scheme, however, remained hidden until 1979, when a citizens' group obtained the documents through the Freedom of Information Act."

Project Artichoke was a top-secret CIA program conducted between 1951 and 1956 focused on influencing human behavior through psychological manipulation. Declassified documents revealed that in January 1954, the CIA targeted a foreign official for experimentation, attempting to turn them into an unwitting assassin. The program also noted the technique could be applied against American officials if necessary. Agents planned to drug the target through alcoholic beverages at social gatherings. The program remained secret until 1979 when citizens obtained documents via the Freedom of Information Act. Artichoke preceded the broader MKUltra program, with many files destroyed in the 1970s, obscuring the full scope of research conducted.

Read at Mail Online