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CIA’s declassified files reveal Cold War-era plans involving condoms, mind control, fake sex tapes and psychic experiments
Key Excerpts from Article on Website of MSN News
Posted: May 9th, 2025
https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/world/cia-s-declassified-file...
Recently declassified CIA documents revealed a strange and disturbing history of covert operations that veered into the surreal. One of the most unusual plans, dating back to the 1950s, involved airdropping extra-large condoms labelled “small” or “medium” over Soviet territories to intimidate enemy soldiers and lower morale. In another covert attempt at psychological warfare, the CIA in 2005 commissioned GI Joe creator Donald Levine to design an Osama Bin Laden action figure with a face that would peel off in sunlight to reveal a demonic visage. Only three prototypes were ever made. Among the most notorious CIA initiatives was Project MKUltra, launched in 1953, which aimed to explore mind control through 149 secret experiments. Some of these were conducted without subjects' consent. In one extreme case, a Kentucky patient was allegedly given LSD for 179 consecutive days. Another experiment involved hypnotising women to commit acts of violence, with no memory of the events afterwards. Most MKUltra files were destroyed in 1973, but the surviving records paint a grim picture of unethical and at times criminal behaviour. One of the CIA’s most controversial programmes was Operation Paperclip, launched after World War II. It brought over 1,600 former Nazi scientists — including SS officers — into the United States. Figures like Wernher von Braun and Kurt Debus were instrumental in the US space programme, despite their Nazi affiliations.
Note: Learn more about the MKUltra Program in our comprehensive Military-Intelligence Corruption Information Center. For more, read our concise summaries of news articles on intelligence agency corruption.
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