The New Republic Daily
Report
02/26/11
The Sad Tale of One of the Most Peculiar Anti-Terrorism Efforts of the Past Decade T.A. Frank
“In January 2007, a Californian named Harrison Jack
got a call from a man who introduced himself as Steve Hoffmaster, arms dealer.
Jack was a West Point graduate and Vietnam veteran whose war tours had involved
work with Southeast Asian indigenous groups. He had become frantic about reports
of an extermination campaign in the jungles of Laos. The alleged targets were
the Hmong, a tribe who had teamed up with the CIA during the Vietnam war to wage
a guerilla struggle against the region’s communists. Now, 30 years later, the
communist regime in Laos had decided to wipe out any lingering Hmong resistance.
“There’s a tenet you don’t leave your comrades on the battlefield,” Jack told
me. “That includes the Hmong.”
Jack had been asking around about getting the Hmong guns for self-defense. Hoffmaster was offering to help. In fact, he had a more ambitious proposal: How about arming the Hmong to overthrow the Laotian regime? “No. No. No,” Jack replied. “They’re trying to survive.” But the two men kept in touch. Jack recalled, “He seemed to have an understanding of what was going on.”
Continue reading "The Sad Tale of One of the Most Peculiar Anti-Terrorism Efforts of the Past Decade"
From ‘The King’s Speech’ to ‘The Social Network’ to ‘Black Swan,’ TNR Reviews This Year’s Top Oscar Nominees TNR Staff
How to Deter Qaddafi’s Mercenaries Louis Klarevas
02/26/11
The Sad Tale of One of the Most Peculiar Anti-Terrorism Efforts of the Past Decade T.A. Frank
“In January 2007, a Californian named Harrison Jack
got a call from a man who introduced himself as Steve Hoffmaster, arms dealer.
Jack was a West Point graduate and Vietnam veteran whose war tours had involved
work with Southeast Asian indigenous groups. He had become frantic about reports
of an extermination campaign in the jungles of Laos. The alleged targets were
the Hmong, a tribe who had teamed up with the CIA during the Vietnam war to wage
a guerilla struggle against the region’s communists. Now, 30 years later, the
communist regime in Laos had decided to wipe out any lingering Hmong resistance.
“There’s a tenet you don’t leave your comrades on the battlefield,” Jack told
me. “That includes the Hmong.”Jack had been asking around about getting the Hmong guns for self-defense. Hoffmaster was offering to help. In fact, he had a more ambitious proposal: How about arming the Hmong to overthrow the Laotian regime? “No. No. No,” Jack replied. “They’re trying to survive.” But the two men kept in touch. Jack recalled, “He seemed to have an understanding of what was going on.”
Continue reading "The Sad Tale of One of the Most Peculiar Anti-Terrorism Efforts of the Past Decade"
From ‘The King’s Speech’ to ‘The Social Network’ to ‘Black Swan,’ TNR Reviews This Year’s Top Oscar Nominees TNR Staff
How to Deter Qaddafi’s Mercenaries Louis Klarevas
