CORE SAYS IT WILL SEND 300 TO ANGOLA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-01315R000200310001-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 19, 2004
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: February 11, 1976
• Content Type: NSPR

Approved For Release 2004/11/01 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000
TILE WASHINGTON POST
11 February 1976
Washington Post.Staff Wr,t?r '?s' A1.
NEW YORK, Feb. 10 The only a fraction of the-cost of!
Con ss'on Racial Equality actually putting volunteers on
said today that it will send 300 the battlefield.
-Ifbd blk
comat-traine -.ac.
American medics to Angola in-
' mid-Iblarch to l support the:+
U.S. backed Angolan forces
that have been fighting,-a, ivhorn: -he called' `.'black
las.ngcivilwarthRre.,,; patriots,"" 'and the'.mer-
Roy Innis, CORE national cenaries, of - various
director; said. the volunteers nationalities who are fighting
had :been.-recruited from in Angola.-The latter, Innis
among 1,000? U .S., blacks who said,?'are 'dangerous fellows
`have been intensively, to deal witty-:.:-They are
screened by, the civil rights'j -vicious, corrupt and` want a
organization over the past license- to kill: without any
severalweeks. -:{ ideology- or political com-
Innis claimed `that more { mitment.'?'
..than 3,000 buck. Amenca-s,J -- The U.S volunteers, Innis
most- of- them with Viecaam? said, are' willing to serve
combat experience, have said, without pay; and they w_illbe-
they want-to ga-to-Angola to?i noncombatant paramedics.
oppose-the Soviet-backed1 Their. ideology,; he said, is
Popular Movement for the rooted in "theirdesire, asred-
Liberation of Angola ( iPLA) ? blooded Afrcars, 'to assist the
-
b
lli
?
an a
es
and its Cu
The 300?medics, Thnis said, pnajorityfactioa :, t., ? x
cial- of the U S.
ff
i
will be the-vanguard of a An o
"large" contingent, of U.S. Justice Department, when '
__.'asked what federal laws apply
-?t --
black forces that Will go . to the private recruitment of
Angola "to establish mthtaryl Americans to serve in foreign
wars, repliedthat government
'Irinis,whorecently returned. attorneys were studying two
from Angola, claimed to have ? -...statutes that prohibit private
a commitment from the-U.S.--` _ -citizens from enlisting id or,
supported National Union for' participating: in. military.
;:'=the Total Independence`o?- conflicts, abroad. The lavr
Angola (tJNlTA)topayfarthe'' provides maximum penalities
American- .:volunteers'"trap-?; of $1;000. fine or.3 years in
spartation, as-long-as the prisonorboth is t
struggling faction. hash the ?
money available.?'u:,~_ : ur;;y::f -Without mentioning CORE
However,-! Innis repPatediy by name, the official said the
sidestepped, questions about government was. looking into
how much the'?venturewill= this recruiting business.-.,
cost .- estimated- by travel' There are laws on the books?
:'a we're taking. a look at ..
?
agents to be at least $1,000 per them.
recruit --or when and' how
CORE lvill-receive the funds:' Innis reacted sharply to
He said CORE is financing the- suggestions that CORE is, in
recruiting drive'which will be ;-.'effect, ;recruiting volunteers,.
"for- an. Angolan civil, war
faction- thaw is supported by
South Africa and. reportedly,
is covertly supported by the
U.S. Central Intelligence.
Agency..
- "CORE has not, cannot and
will not deal with the CIA. So
don't, give- us that CIA clap-
trap..'."',-'Innis told one
questioner. ? ? ?
A ~ spokesman at CIA
headquarters in Langley, Va.,
said the government was not
assisting -"in any way"
recruiting efforts for Angola.
Of the allegation that the
CORE recruitment drive is.. `
backed : by' CIA funds, the
spokesman said, "It's a lot of
baloney
said 'he'-'s'aw no
Innis 'said'
ideological conflict in sup-
porting an -Angola. faction
aided by South Africa, and he {
drew a parallel to a black man
being "murdered and mugged.
in an alley"-who suddenly sees
possible help from a "cop who !
As known to be a vicious, racist
pig.
"You don't say,'Hey, I don't =
waulthelp,"' Innis said;
'The, press ;conference- I
erupted in fistfIghts when the
leader of a Harlem group
supporting the Communist-
. backed l1PLA accused Innis
of being a "lackey of fascists,
the CIA and SouthAfricn."
At-Innis' direction, several
of the CORE leader's
bodyguards--dressed in black i
uniforms and wearing black
leather gloves--seized the
protester and dragged him
into the corridor, where a fight
broke out.
Later, in the first-floor lobby
of the building, another fight i.
broke out when. the protester,
who identified himself- as
Drew Anderson of the African
Nationalist Committee,
taunted CORE officials with
shouts of "Fascats "'
A member of Innis' staff
broke through a line! of
policemen' and punched
--Anderson-- -repeatedly,
bloodying his mouth, as other
policemen hustled the CORE
leader outside. Anderson said
later that his group supports-i
the NIPLA and accused Innis
of accepting CIA funds toi
finance the recruiting drive. _
Approved For Release 2004/11/01 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000200310001-1
"The "CORE director at-
tempted to draw a sharp
distinction between the
combat: medic' volunteers,
 THE WASHINGTON STAR (GREEN LINE)
Approved For Release 24Sl /t99r~CP88-01315R0002003
- . .?-,.,,,,a.a s.~?.,.yy*..~ar?xr*c*.'-='3?~^'3t'~+'!s~4h+!~y.. ?.'''r93-~Y'!"y~tr~?..,
Bp Allan Frank
and John C. White
Washington Sts: Staff Writers
For a rendezvous with destiny, how
about joining the fight for Angola?
There's a guerrilla-warfare recruit-
ing headquarters in Mt. Ranier,-Md.,
where they'll be more than happy to.
sign you up if you qualify
The recruiting office is in the resi-
_.dence of. Larry E. -.Mitchell_ a.34-
year-old black Vietnam veteran... He
said his organization already has en
"rolled nearly 200 mercenaries from
ti the-Washington area to fight in Afri-
l
The recrii'iting;`" which 'has beers`
going on here for nearly three
months, has ties to the Congress of
Racial Equality,. a New York-based
group which, according to Mitchell,,
has said, it is recruiting black veter-
ans for the war in Angola.
No one.at CORE could be reached
to confirm Mitchell's claim.
Another, apparently unrelated;
group led by two anti-Communist
Cubans claims to have recruited
nearly 1,000 Spanish-speaking sol-.
diers -from the Miami :area;. but
,newspaper reporters there have,been
unable to verify the:contentian: ;`
moon area. I Vr'ex . req'd.310.
rxF
9.5.
9303
,
.
305.-1 Pt.OY?51ENT
-
SERVICES
VETERANS WAMTED-N at &
teCirticai skirls and witting to travel.
2n-1939.
310 -HELP DO%ESI1C
aAWYSITTE - over 25. Needed-5
MITCHELL"" WHO declined to say
where money for the recruiting drive
comes from, said his group is trying
to hire fighters from..New York,
Philadelphia andLos- Angeles.':;-
Mitchell, a former first'sergeant,-,l
said two CORE-recruited units of I
undisclosed strength already are in
Angola and Zaire. That statement
.Gould not be verified yesterday.
He declined comment when asked
whether his operation and the CORE
drive could be fronting for- covert
CIA involvement in the Angola fight-
in He did say,' however,' that he
"wouldn't be surprised" if the money
for. the American guerrillas were
coming from the CIA.
"Who else could afford something
this large?" he remarked.
To a ?ormer Air Force early warn-
ing radar observer who answered. an
ad in yesterday's newspapers for
."VETERANS WANTED - Medical
.and technical skills- and willing to
travel. 277-1938," a job -interview
with.Mitchell reminded him of the
armed forces induction center at Ft.
. Holabird, Md.
MITCHELL, A nine-year Army
.veteran. of intelligence and special
forces medical work. in-- Vietnam,
spoke with the same even tones used
by military instructors outlining the
begginning of boot camp. -
Disciplne among mercenaries?'.
;Mitchell said any man caught mo- -
Approved For Release 2004/11/01
:will= begin "guerrilla and
Testing African women orl
committing war atrocities
"will think a big Washington
building fell 'on him."
Posing as a potential re-.+
cruit, the Air' Force veter-
11 an, Star reporter .John C.'
White was told by Mitchell,
that the job was fighting in;
Angola. Mitchell said he l
was particularly interested
in interviewing veterans
who had been in :"strike-
units, men with expert-:'
ence in special forces fight-
ing, - z. -
Mitchell said he' and hiis,
.'associates hope to recruit.',
about 500 men in the United
States, train them briefly
here, pay them as' much as
$1,500 monthly -.most-of
which would be deposited in
Swiss bank accounts - and.
.equip them in Africa with
American-made guns and
equipment.
THE AMERICANS wo ld-
be fighting with UNITA, the
American-backed National
Union for the. Total .Inde
pendence of Angola, which"]
is now being backed to the
,wall by the MPLA, -the-
Soviet- and Cuban-support;,]
ed Popular Movement for t
the Liberation of Angola: -_i
Chacterizing his group as
a "Lincoln Brigades" -.a -~
reference. to American
volunteers. on the -Loyalist`
side in the Spanish Civil' ;
War -- -the 34=year-old
Mitchell said his outfit is
calling itself the "The Afro.
American Technical Assist=-
ance to- Angola'-'-group:-He
said he hopes to have his.:i -
men in Africa by-March-1:?
He also said;he is looking-
-for black Americans ._who are ."not justprofessional- :
mercenaries," : but also
have a commitment to;'
allowing Angolans to make ..j
.L.-:- .....n rhn;raa, nhnut; i
Zaire re a-rdless of
CIA-RDP88-0131'5R000W3aOo t - losses by,.,
UNITA.:: ..=
 25X1
Approved For Release 2004/11/01 : CIA-RDP88-01315R00020
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
t,_ d L, sy i ~e iJr?f`'~ y~ ,ql ~ r~r,~i..F'?+, ;~~w ~~ q ~ P ' d,_F/'
am
t~ n Z.! i1 >t S.
t+ d & re.l ~ d p
By David Anable Mr. Fitzholm estimates that some ) to r.;:0 Mir. Minpas is reported to have retrial kec
S ta`f corrcrpondent of unpaid volunteers will be recuited as "med_ rec~;r'.Iy blab :YLaLF's relations with Gulf werf
The Christian Science Monitor its" at a cost to CORE of from ~1G),,u0 to Si "~'=ry acid." And Gulf is said to have quietly
United Nations, New York million. He categorically denied a Newsday communicated to the State Department it_
The American Government, American busi- (Long Island) report that said that Central concern about U.S. intervention on the other
Hess, and American citizens appear to- be Intelligence Agency sources claimed CORE side.
getting steeply involved in the raging civil war was recruiting for the CIA. Gulf now has a major problem on its hands:
in Angola. ? According to a New York Times story what to do about the next quarterly payment
Ironically, these American elements are published last week, a high-ranking U.S. due at the end of this month? Since the
aiding and bankrolling opposing sides. And the Government official said that the UI;itedi September payment, t e i:s LA has ee dared
tr `? ' " rtes has already sent $25 million in 3=6 gild inderenderce (Nov. I.1) and set itself up as the
administration's ovm reported undercover St, ,
operation is the target of strong criticism from support funds to Angola over t;~e last three official gove_ nment in the r:}rtal, I irdvedtFor 1 11q t,,-wp 1A-RDP88-01315R000200310001-1
Approved For Release 2004/11/01 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000200
adviser to the FNLA is a'
Portuguese colonel, bill I think
they need some black'
colonels."
(At a press conferegce
yesterday. Innis said CORE is
recruiting experienced
combat medics and would
consider sending black: U.S.
Army veterans to serve as
combat ad` isers in Angola.
(Ile denied that these men
would be sent to bolster the
anti-Comrrwrdst forces. Any of
the three Angolan groups.
could request help from
CORE, Inn ;s said. So far,
CORE has contacted onl. one
of the three, INITA, and has
been asked only for medical
supahes, he added.
(Innis said CORE would
form an "objective and
neutral force, a peace
brigade" to stand between- the
'carting f::rtions in ease the
r)rr, i!/.11101; of Airicaii Lnity
managed to arra?=.ge a
cea; . ire.
t "V`c -e rritn?Prcenares,"
lie said. We are Africans
abroad. The Cubans, the
Rust ians. the South Africans,
the Ci:A-- they are the nier-
cenaries.")
 For ReleaselA'f/01 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000200
12 DECEMBER 1975
We are not ntercenaries,? .ne sa1Ct....ivI rt e~}t~,e
.iy ~~rrlest'V olkniax~ rtS s ~, , yt
, t`ewsduy 31';xtio~.AlCorresponitent are. the South Nine= thugs and Cubans fighting for
Equality! Chairn1s71,Roy':Xntlis tike fuctiun:i. f am so -ashamed - that there-are Portu-
Congress of Racial
charged inNew'York yestei-day.tliatuthe:Ge}rtral In- gueso, south African and Cuban colonels' leading the
. teIligerce Agency is.atteniptin 'g. t1;19 detl`o'C4'tls.=s trout>s in Angt,lu Ihat I would volunteer some Well
gngola v, Ss ti. k.;
In the Newsday 1irlicle, Innis was quoted as cleuy-
:.
v
n ea}lecl a press (~Yt aIforts that the rccruitcnent drive has any connec-
____!__ . . /~f1T?T'i ~c :' ' t~r~Cx. 3r ~Ja~k .SY~s f in4
e
e
:IyTanhata - heaclre ed that denial, and charged that the CIA deliberately
tern in reaction to a a e,A W ? .~ ~Y4~~a had leaked details of the program in order to destroy
port in Newsday yester
t
~'
`
It
~Jt
J -
day that revealed .the a
f,f 31 F~ by k. ? , 1,Z n
NN `e very fact that the CIA has leaked such a eon-
existence of the CORE
recruitment program ~~'k nection to the press is proof that it's fabricated, he
of _
"The CIA has deliberately linked ache efforts
'1he story quoted U.S, said.
}~~ ~A CORE to aid our brothers at coming i ,peaceful set
s:
intelligence sources as "tlesne77t to the clandestine and dirty role of the CIA in
saying that CORE is re-
An ola. The CIA has found that its strongest. weapon
cruitin7 black veterans g
in destroying relationships between Africans and Afri-
Yar service as rn e r c e ? `~
t-Americans is to simply manufacture a link with
varies and that the pro'~'~;~ can
e
e ncy
a
g
h
. mss}
unl is part of an over- ,rs
all CIA effort to bolster
The ources r~ vealinag the existence uof 1 e p oaramlandlre-
, ,?
the sagging rriilltarp for- sou s
same sources said it was linked with
tunes of two anti-Cum' r ;. ported That the
s ss , . ~,~ CIA operations in Angola. A spokesman for'the CIA
has no cgn.~ection what-
Ilcu9t factions war in An- s 7 < }!3c i t 7 "The-agency
said yeserday,
galala's civil hied CORE P g
ever with the CORE ro rarn.., As for Innis' charges
Lines denied that his vf""fi~ o'I a CIA attempt to sabotage the program, the spokes-
proorasll had any link man said "I don't know what he's talkieg about."
with, the. CIA , but p ' to '
. s It was unclear exactly what role Innis wanted the
mittedthat suclla -e re t
recruits to play in Angola He said that the or?
CORE
cruiting wag pregrarn is hell- +c
gruziz~-V hopes to recruit bGL~reen a battalion (500
der way. In a prepared AP Photo ..,.,,,) -4 A moil?nt (2,000 men) to serve on what he
p
"recruiting black broth- a
era with combat experience to assist in whatever way ganization was "only collating names of volunteers
'.. possible the tragic victims of the Angola civil war." with some medical expertise and preferably some miii-
IIe added that CORE has been actively -recruiting ttaryhe ckform of ground whose in 1`o ve e.ntHould belsejadly:
black veterans for two mantl7s. in. ed, there was a poss"oility that the group =~irouhl be
armed.
A S t a to Department spokesman said IieZlfl7eNv
nothing of the. CORE program, but, added~that'-iFtrue,
it: may ruin afoi l of federal laws prohibiting'U.S. citi-
-zeesfrom fighting for foreign powers. Suthi.involve-
Ynent, he -said,.- could lead to loss of citize3nship;:-al-
fbough such decisions are made usually on 'a case-by-
.,case basis.
Innis emphasized yesterday that' the'prdjected
force would be sent to Angola' "only at theinvltation
of the OAT W' the Organization of African UriLy,`it co-
alition of African nations. "If the OAU is unable to
put a peace-keeping force together, we want.the nl lo
know we have this force ready to provide police;fu:7c-
Approved For Release 2004/11/{far,aG~P-tD~B$~O~F3a151A63~00m for
the' OAU Secretariat here said it would not-discuss Li-
nis' comments nor answer any question relating to the
oke non earlier yesterday salct that the or
the program consists of ""'1. CORE s