WILLIAM BUCKLEY WASHINGTON POST - 25 NOVEMBER 1986

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00561R000100160006-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 23, 2012
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: December 10, 1986
• Content Type: MEMO

Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
 Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
Captive CIA Agent's Death
Galvanized Hostage Search
Buckley 's Right Became Agency Cru.
B Bob Woodward terrorism, and his kidnaping initi-
Y ated what one CIA official called the
and Cbirieslt."Babcock agency'i "private boktage crisis." At
R ya~~wp? ssberen :... agency rters in Langley,
a For the Reagan administration Buclde3es colleagues ii retched help-
and eepecia8y the Central Intelli- lessly "'their expert on&esrorism
gence Agerly,lran and the Moslem became a victim of terrorism, which
extremists;it,supports in the Middle the CIA believed led from Beirut to
East took eon -urgent new signifi- the revolutionary government in
cance on March 16, 1984, when a Tehran.
man namedJNilliam Buckley-de- For at least a year, the CIA un-
scribed at-the time as a political of- dertook extraordinary measures,
ficer in the U.S.Embassy in Leb- spending what one source called a
anon-was snatched off the streets "small fortune" on informants, in-
of Beirut by a group calling itself Is- tercepting communications and en-
lamic Jihad. hancing satellite photographs in
As In captors have since hopes od determining where Buck-
charged, Bucidey was the chief of ley and other U.S. hostages might
the CIA's Beirut station, U.S. be held.
sources have confirmed. He was . The effort failed. After torture
one of the CIA's leading experts on and a long period of medical WI.P. AS' AW b A-'
WILLIAM BUCKLEY
... was CIA station die[ In Beirut
glect, Buckley died in Beirut, appar-
ently in June 1985. His captors first
declared him dead later in 1985. In
a statement released in Beirut ear-
lier this month, they reiterated that
Buckley had been "executed" after
having "confessed" to working for
the CIA.
See BUCKLEY, A14, Col. 1
Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
 Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
Hunt for Kidnaped Aide
Became Crusade for CIA
The Islamic jihad statement said
the group had "volumes written
wish [Buckley's] own hand and
recorded on videotapes." President
Re,ngan indirectly confirmed that
Buckley is dead in his news confer-
ence last week, when he spoke of
five American hostages in Lebanon;
Buckley would be the sixth.
According to knowledgeable
soarces,-Buckley's death redoubled
administration interest in his fellow
hostages. A personal order from
Reagan led tp intensified efforts to
None of the remaining American
i
hostages has any connections-di-
eiect or indirect-to the CIA or any
other intelligence agency, accord-
i g to authoritative U.S. govern-
Tent sources and colleagues. of the
hostages. Also, wellrplaced sources
4y those hostages have received
getter treatment from their cap-
tprs, including competent medical
gire, since Buckley's death.
Before. Buckley died, the search
fpr him became a crusade for the
IA and a preoccupation of William
I Casey, its director. Agency offi-
als never felt confident that a res-
i0ence that Buckley had been tor-
ency did obtain "irrefutable" ev-
e attempt would succeed. The
information about CIA operations,
one source said. Some senior CIA
(ficials wept when they heard de-
tpils of the torture, which was pro-
1 nged and painful, the source said.
For or Deputy CIA Director Clair E.
rge, who oversees all CIA co-
and free them, the sources
and, after initially resisting,
ly broke down and disclosed
vert operations abroad, the kidnap-
ing was personally anguishing.
George had been station chief in
Beirut in 1976.76, when two U.S.
government officials were abducted
and held hostage for four months
before being released. Then
George went to Athens to take the
place of assassinated station chief
Richard S. Welch.
"This [the Buckley kidnaping]
was like all of Clair's bad dreams
revisited," said one source, "He just
about turned the building :[CIA
headquarters], and our capabilities,
and the limits of our imagination on
end to get [Buckley] back."
Buckley was assigned to Lebanon
in mid-1983 to help the Lebanese
develop methods for thwarting ter-
rorism and to. rebuild the U.S. in-
telligence presence after the bomb-
? ing of the U.S. Embassy a few .
months earlier, the sources said..
Seventeen. Americans died in the
attack,. including Robert C. 'Ames,
the CIq's chief Middle East analyst,
and several other CIA officers.
On March 16,1984, Buddey was
seized on a Beirut street and spir-
ited away-the first of what would
become a string of kidnapings of
Americans.
Buckley has been the least known
among the group of Americans held
by Moslem extremists in Lebanon.
He had no wife 'or close family. to
speak for him. One source said
Buckley was picked for the danger-
ous assignment because be did not
have a family. Previously, one
source said, Buckley was in. Cairo,
where he had helped train body-
guards for Egyptian President
Anwar Sadat, later assassinated.
Terrorists might have suspected
Buckley's true identity and targeted
him for kidnaping, the sources imid.
Buckley often carried a walkie-
ie in Beirut and went nearly ev
day to the headquarters building
the Lebanese intelligence service=
and could have been followed, the
sources said.
For more than a year, CIA of
vials, including Casey, held out ho
that Buckley was alive. decii
that reports on his whereabouts ~u
did not support a definitive
sion that Buckley had been killed:''
At one point, the CIA
help from an FBI team trained
cating kidnap victims. The
went to Beirut but failed to
Buckley after a month of caret
and sophisticated detective. work;
according to a senior Reagan' ad-
ministration official. Ojficials : nom
think that Buckley was in L anq *
during the entire period of his cap-,
tivity, most of the time in Bei ut.~
At the time of Buckley's capture,.
the State Department released a
brief' biography, which said he was
from Medford, Mass., and was a
graduate of Boston University. ^ It
said he had worked as a librarian
and ' a's a civilian employe of
Arn)y until joining the State Depart
ment shortly before he was a
signed to Beirut.
Candace Hammond of Farmer,;
N.C., who said she had been a dose
friend of Buckley for 10 years, said in
an interview that he told her before
l
ft f
B
h
i
t th h
e
o
e
ru
e
.ate wasnl t [Cal
thrilled with the assignment.* '.
She said Buckley had called her
from Beirut shortly before he was
kidnaped. "He said there was a lot
of bombing; that it was a madhouse.1
There+.was shattered glass in hid r
apartment. And he hoped he would
be coming home sooner than_ex, pected because it was such astress-
ful situation."
She said she received a Letter
from Buckley the day after he was
kidnaped, thanking her for a box of
valentine gifts she had sent him.
"That just about broke my heart,"
she said.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
 Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
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Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
 Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
WASHINGTON POST
25 November 1986
five American hostages in Lebanon;
Captive CIA Agent's Death Buckley would be the sixth.
Galvanized Hostage Search According to knowledgeable
sources, Buckley's death redoubled
Buckley s plight Became Agency Crusade administration interest in his fellow
hostages. A personal order from
By Bob Woodward Reagan led to intensified efforts to
and Charles R. Babcock tfTrid and free them, the sources
Washington Past Staff Writers said.
t None of the remaining American
For the Reagan administration Hostages has any connections-di-
and especially the Central Intelli- r&t or indirect-to the CIA or any
gence Agency, Iran and the Moslem other intelligence agency, accord-
extremists it supports in the Middle
East took on urgent new signifi- f>~g to authoritative U.S, govern-
cance on March 16, 1984, when a rent sources and colleagues of the
man named William Buckley-de->stages. Also, well-placed sources
scribed at the time as a political of- y those hostages have received
ficer in the U.S. Embassy in Leb- Letter treatment from their cap-
anon-was snatched off the streets tprs, including competent medical
of Beirut by a group calling itself Is- cre, since Buckley's death.
lamic Jihad. 4 Before Buckley died, the search
As his captors have since r him became a crusade for the
charged, Buckley was the chief of 4IA and a preoccupation of William
the CIA's Beirut station, U.S. Jr Casey, its director. Agency offi-
sources have confirmed. He was gals never felt confident that a res-
one of the CIA's leadine experts on c e attempt would succeed. The
terrorism, and his kidnaping initi- agency did obtain "irrefutable" ev-
ated what one CIA official called the iOence that Buckley had been tor-
agency's "private hostage crisis." At tared and, after initially resisting,
agency headquarters in Langley, finally broke down and disclosed
Buckley's colleagues watched help- i iformation about CIA operations,
lessly as their expert on terrorisme source said. Some senior CIA
became a victim of terrorism, which f]fficials wept when they heard de
the CIA believed led from Beirut to
the revolutionary government in toils of the torture, which was pro-
Tehran. IQnged and painful, the source said.
For at least a year, the CIA un- ; For Deputy CIA Director Clair E.
dertook extraordinary measures, george, who oversees all CIA co-
spending what one source called a vert operations abroad, the kidnap-
"small fortune" on informants, in- ing was personally anguishing.
tercepting communications and en- George had been station chief in
hancing satellite photographs in Beirut in 1975-76, when two U.S.
hopes of determining where Buck- government officials were abducted
ley and other U.S. hostages might and held hostage for four months
be held. before being released. Then
The effort failed. After torture George went to Athens to take the
and a long period of medical ne- place of assassinated station chief
glect, Buckley died in Beirut, appar- Richard S. Welch.
ently in June 1985. His captors first "This [the Buckley kidnaping]
declared him dead later in 1985. In was like all of Clair's bad dreams
a statement released in Beirut ear- revisited," said one source. "He just
her this month, they reiterated that about turned the building [CIA
Buckley had been "executed" after headquarters], and our capabilities,
having "confessed" to working for and the limits of our imagination on
the CIA. end to get [Buckley] back."
The Islamic Jihad statement said Buckley was assigned to Lebanon
the group had "volumes written in mid-1983 to help the Lebanese
with [Buckley'sj own hand and develop methods for thwarting ter-
recorded on videotapes." President rorism and to rebuild the U.S. in-
Reagan indirectly confirmed that telligence presence after the bomb-
Buckley is dead in his news confer- ing of the U.S. Embassy a few
ence last week, when he spoke of months earlier, the sources said.
WILLIAM BUCKLEY
... was CIA station chief in Beirut
Seventeen Americans died in the
attack, including Robert C. Ames,
the CIA's chief Middle East analyst,
and several other CIA officers.
On March 16, 1984, Buckley was
seized on a Beirut street and spir-
ited away-the first of what would
become a string of kidnapings of
Americans.
Buckley has been the least known
among the group of Americans held
by Moslem extremists in Lebanon.
Ile had no wife or close family to
speak for him. One source said
Buckley was picked for the danger-
ous assignment because he did not
have a family. Previously, one
source said, Buckley was in Cairo,
where he had helped train body-
guards for Egyptian President
Anwar Sadat, later assassinated.
Terrorists might have suspected
Buckley's true identity and targeted
him for kidnaping, the sources said.
Buckley often carried a walkie-talk-
ie in Beirut and went nearly every
day to the headquarters building of
the Lebanese intelligence service-
and could have been followed, the
sources said.
For more than a year, CIA offi-
cials, including Casey, held out hope
that Buckley was alive, deciding
that reports on his whereabouts and
condition were contradictory and
did not support a definitive conclu-
sion that Buckley had been killed.
Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
 Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8
At one point, the CIA received
help from an FBI team trained in lo-
cating kidnap victims. The team
went to Beirut but failed to locate
Buckley after a month of careful
and sophisticated detective work,
according to a senior Reagan ad-
ministration official. Officials now
think that Buckley was in Lebanon
during the entire period of his cap-
tivity, most of the time in Beirut.
At the time of Buckley's capture,
the State Department released a
brief biography, which said he was
from Medford, Mass., and was a
graduate of Boston University. It
said he had worked as a librarian
and as a civilian employe of the
Army until joining the State Depart-
ment shortly before he was as-
signed to Beirut.
Candace Hammond of Farmer,
N.C., who said she had been a close
friend of Buckley for 10 years, said in
an interview that he told her before
he left for Beirut that "he wasn't real
thrilled with the assignment."
She said Buckley had called her
from Beirut shortly before he was
kidnaped. "He said there was a lot
of bombing, that it was a madhouse.
There was shattered glass in his
apartment. And he hoped he would
be coming home sooner than ex-
pected because it was such a stress-
ful situation."
She said she received a letter
from Buckley the day after he was
kidnaped, thanking her for a box of
valentine gifts she had sent him.
"That just about broke my heart,"
she said.
Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/23: CIA-RDP91-00561 R000100160006-8