Top CIA official posted pro-Palestine picture on Facebook two weeks after Hamas’ terror attack on Israel as Biden faces mutiny from within
A growing revolt within the Biden administration over its handling of the war between Israel and Hamas has reached the top ranks of the CIA after a top analytics chief changed her Facebook profile to a Palestinian flag.
More than 400 government employees signed an anonymous letter earlier this month demanding the president impose an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
Another 1,000 employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development echoed the call, but State Department officials have declined to crack down on dissent and are instead holding “listening sessions” with staff as the unrest grows.
Now it has emerged that a CIA deputy director changed her Facebook cover photo to a photo of a man waving a Palestinian flag for analysis, just two weeks after the brutal Hamas attack that claimed 1,200 lives.
The chief responsible for presenting the president’s daily intelligence briefing previously posted a selfie with the motto “Liberate Palestine” over the photo, the Financial Times reported.
President Joe Biden is facing a growing backlash from his own staffers over his support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
![Top CIA official posted pro-Palestine picture on Facebook two weeks after Hamas' terror attack on Israel as Biden faces mutiny from within 2 The uprising appears to have reached the top of the CIA, with a deputy director for analysis posting her support for Palestine.](https://nybreaking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/1701231853_895_Top-CIA-official-posted-pro-Palestine-picture-on-Facebook-two-weeks.jpg)
The uprising appears to have reached the top of the CIA, with a deputy director for analysis posting her support for Palestine.
![Top CIA official posted pro-Palestine picture on Facebook two weeks after Hamas' terror attack on Israel as Biden faces mutiny from within 4 Gaza has fallen silent after weeks of brutal Israeli bombardments, with a fragile ceasefire agreed in exchange for the release of some Hamas hostages](https://nybreaking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/1701231855_980_Top-CIA-official-posted-pro-Palestine-picture-on-Facebook-two-weeks.jpg)
Gaza has fallen silent after weeks of brutal Israeli bombardments, with a fragile ceasefire agreed in exchange for the release of some Hamas hostages
“Publicly releasing a clearly controversial political statement by a senior analytical manager in the middle of a crisis shows strikingly poor judgment,” a former intelligence official told the newspaper.
“Given the CIA’s longstanding incredibly close relationship with the Israelis in a liaison capacity, this would be highly irregular for a senior agency official,” said another.
Biden has repeatedly refused to demand a ceasefire in the conflict, which has now claimed 13,000 Palestinian lives amid brutal Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip.
But calls for a ceasefire have diminished as a series of temporary ceasefires have been agreed in exchange for the release of some of the 240 hostages seized by Hamas and its allies in the October 7 attack.
It was reported on Tuesday evening that the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas could be extended until Sunday morning if Hamas releases all women and children in its captivity.
The hostages are believed to include around 100 women and children, and so far 60 have been released in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons.
CIA Director Bill Burns is currently in Qatar, where hostage negotiations are taking place, and critics have expressed fears that these could be undermined by the revelation of his analysis chief’s sympathies.
“Given the role that director Burns is playing in the ongoing crisis in Israel, the social media activity along these lines by a senior U.S. intelligence officer demonstrates exceptional and surprisingly poor judgment,” said a third former intelligence official.
The chief is one of three people responsible for approving all analysis distributed within the agency, and has also published posts on Facebook taking a stand against anti-Semitism, a colleague said.
“The officer is a career analyst with extensive background in all aspects of the Middle East and this post was not intended to express a position on the conflict,” she added.
But State Department officials are believed to be inundated with protests through the official Dissent Channel system, which was set up in the aftermath of the Vietnam War to give staff a chance to protest official policies.
“I know that for many of you, the suffering caused by this crisis is taking a heavy personal toll,” Secretary of State Anthony Blinken wrote to staff earlier this month.
![Top CIA official posted pro-Palestine picture on Facebook two weeks after Hamas' terror attack on Israel as Biden faces mutiny from within 6 Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has pledged to listen to staff demands for a ceasefire](https://nybreaking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/1701231857_310_Top-CIA-official-posted-pro-Palestine-picture-on-Facebook-two-weeks.jpg)
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has pledged to listen to staff demands for a ceasefire
“The fear associated with seeing the daily images of babies, children, the elderly, women and other citizens suffering from this crisis is heartbreaking. I feel it myself.
“We’ve organized forums in Washington to hear from you, and urged managers and teams to have candid discussions at posts around the world just so we can hear your feedback and ideas.”
An agency spokesperson declined to say whether the analyst would be disciplined, but added: “CIA officers are committed to analytical objectivity, which is at the core of what we do as an agency.
“CIA agents may have personal views, but this does not diminish their or the CIA’s commitment to unbiased analysis.”