</s>104-10391-100001 2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992 SECRET CIA Internal Use Only Access Controlled by DDO HISTORICAL STAFF CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WESTERN HEMISPHERE DIVISION 1946 - 1965 DDO HP 324 by David R. McLeaf Approved: David A. Phillips Chief, Western Hemisphere Division Directorate of Operations December 1973 VOLUME I Copy No. 1: WH Copy No .: 2: 0/DDO SECRET

Summary  
The text details CIA operations in Latin America during the 1960s, focusing on Cuba and other regions. It describes the agency’s efforts to counter perceived subversion by Fidel Castro, including covert actions, intelligence gathering, and economic warfare. Key events include the Bay of Pigs invasion (1961), the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962), and CIA activities related to Lee Harvey Oswald, President John F. Kennedy’s assassin. The document notes that CIA information on Oswald, including a photograph of him at the Soviet Embassy in Mexico, was shared with the FBI but later mishandled, leading to its inclusion in the Warren Commission report. It also outlines the agency’s political operations, such as supporting anti-Castro candidates in Latin America and managing clandestine networks.  

Key People  
- Fidel Castro (Cuban leader)  
- Lee Harvey Oswald (assassin of President John F. Kennedy)  
- James A. Noel (CIA station chief in Havana)  
- Arthur Avignon (deputy CIA station chief in Havana)  
- Frank Belisito and Ralph Seefer (stay-behind officers)  
- Desmond Fitzgerald (CIA officer involved in Cuban operations)  
- Richard Helms (DCI, Director of Central Intelligence)  
- John L. Hart (Deputy Chief, WH Division for Cuba)  
- Lee Harvey Oswald’s mother (subject of FBI communication)  

Key Locations  
- Havana, Cuba  
- Mexico City (CIA station and surveillance operations)  
- Key West, Florida (CIA operations hub)  
- Swan Island (used for CIA propaganda broadcasts)  
- Guantanamo Bay Naval Base (covert CIA agent activities)  

Key Events  
- Bay of Pigs invasion (1961)  
- Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)  
- CIA’s economic warfare against Cuba, including sugar market manipulation  
- Surveillance and intelligence operations on Lee Harvey Oswald in Mexico  
- FBI mishandling of CIA information about Oswald, leading to its inclusion in the Warren Commission report  
- Political operations supporting anti-Castro candidates in Latin America  

Key Organizations  
- Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)  
- Western Hemisphere Division (WH Division)  
- Cuban Freedom Committee (cover for Radio Free Cuba)  
- FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation)  
- Organization of American States (OAS)

JFK Declassified Files

104-10301-10001.pdf

Document Summary

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