The country of Pakistan has a growing population. And to protect the best interest of this growing
nation, the best of the best when it comes to the military, is needed. Welcome back to FTD Facts. My
name is Leroy Kenton, and this episode's all about bringing you 10 surprising and interesting
facts about the "ISI." So, let's just jump into the facts. 1st thing you got to know about the
"Inter-Service Intelligence Agency" or, the ISI, as it's commonly known as, was formed on January 1, 1948,
and it consists primarily of serving military officers, drawn from the three service
branches of the Pakistan Armed Forces - the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy. And hence, the name
Inter-Service Intelligence Agency - because they operate inter-service. I don't think I have to
that again. However, this agency also recruits many civilians. Now, did you know that it
is the largest Intelligence Agency in the world? Apparently, they have over 10,000 agents in the
field worldwide. However, it is one of the least funded agencies in the world. It is above all
laws in its home country of Pakistan, and it's often referred to as a state within a state,
because its policies are made outside of all other institutions, with the exception of the army. Now,
its personnel have never been caught on camera, which allows them to keep their identities secret,
and the agents can safely carry out their jobs. It's also been listed as the best intelligence
agency. The "American Crime News," declared Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Agency to be the
world's best and strongest intelligence agency. And this was back in the year 2011. The ISI has
its headquarters in Islamabad, Pakistan. And its main aim is to maintain and protect Pakistan's
national interests, to look into matters of political and social interest to Pakistan, as
well as to advise the military as to what are the best steps to take. Over the years, they have stopped
many attacks before they could even take place, and have saved thousands of lives. Also, a huge
accomplishment is that no ISI agents to this date have ever been caught or have been turned. Although
it has never been verified though, the Pakistani government has not yet taken responsibility for
alleged undercover agent that was caught on foreign soil. There are stories of officials
like Squadron Leader, "Khalid Khawaja," that were arrested on Pakistani soil for conspiracy
against the state. But, it seems that the ISI have been particularly good at insulating themselves
from any direct involvement, in any of the covert operations that they have supposedly orchestrated.
Now, if this is true, that's very impressive. Now, let's talk more about their thousands of agents
that they have. Now, there doesn't seem to be any verified count of the number of agents
that work in relation with the ISI, both directly or indirectly. Now, what is known, is that the ISI
does recruit from Pakistani military force as well as civilians. And, they go through rigorous training.
The training seems to be so secretive, that there's very little information and details about it. What
you can tell for certain, is that the agents are trained in covert intelligence gathering and
counterintelligence, that they actually receive from all around the world, including the United
States. For their headquarters, that's located in Pakistan's capital of Islamabad and now, their
complex consists of various low-rise buildings, separated by lawns and fountains. "Declan Walsh," of
"The Guardian Newspaper," he said that the entrance is subtly discreet; no sign. Just a plainclothed
officer holding a pistol. As well as, they have soldiers that have sniffer dogs. And "Walsh" also
said that, the complex resembles a well-funded, private, university. And that, the buildings are
neatly tended, and the lawns are smooth, and the fountains are tinkling. And he described
the central building, which, houses the Director General's office on the top floor, as a modern
structure with a round echoing Lobby. Those were his exact words that I quoted there. Now, let's talk
about "Operation Tupac" next. And it has nothing to do with the rapper by the way. But, operation Tupac was
the name of a 3-part operation that was designed to secretly support the militants of Kashmir. Now,
it was partly started by the president, "Zia Ul Haq," in the year 1988. And the name comes from "Tupac Amaru II"
the 18th-century prince who led the of liberation in Peru, against the Spanish
rule. The ISI is currently engaged in covertly supporting the Kashmir militants in their fight
against the Indian authorities in Kashmir, and the militants in Kashmir are fighting to be
independent from India, and become part of Pakistan. Another notable event in the ISI history is the
"Kargil War." The Kargil War of 1999, is nothing short of a Hollywood war film. Like seriously,
the line of control between India and Pakistan is one of the most inhospitable places on the planet.
Not only because of the political tensions that sometimes comes up between these two countries,
but also because it gets unbearably cold in the wintertime. There is an unwritten agreement that
during the winters, neither force will occupy the borders post. The ISI, however, broke this
agreement in winter of 1998-1999, which led to the Kargil War in the following summer. Although,
it's reported that Pakistan did lose the war, it is considered a victory for the ISI, as it caught
the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), which is the Indian counterpart agency, completely off-guard. India had
no clue about the infiltration until a shepherd informed them about unknown strangers occupying
Indian posts. This is, of course, all reported from the perspective of Pakistan. Now, let's talk about the
interest in Hindus as spies. India and Pakistan were divided based on religious grounds in the
year of 1947, where India had a Hindu majority, and Pakistan had a Muslim majority. So, it only
made sense that Pakistani ISI would use Indian Muslims as spies, since they looked exactly alike
and they spoke the language very well. That way they could blend in easily in India and
they would be able to gather information. But, in recent years, however, the ISI has turned to high
caste Hindus, and those are the real attraction for them, since India has become wise with their
tactics. And, finally, the last thing I wanna share, is about their nuclear tests. Although it
has never been proven for sure, there is a rumor that the Indian Research and Analysis Wing, as well
as the Israeli "Mossad," flew over Pakistan's nuclear test facilities in order to gather information.
But, they were unable to do so because, the ISI planned to keep its nuclear facilities secret, and even changed
the location of its test sites multiple times, just so that nobody would know exactly where
it is. Now, they finally settled on the Pakistani city of, "Chagi," and ensured the security of their
nuclear equipment, by guarding the transport plane with six F-16 fighter Jets. Alright guys, so that was
your brief look into the ISI. Thank you so much for joining me here on another episode
of FTD Facts. Definitely, you can tell that the ISI has achieved a lot since they were formed. Now, if
you guys are still here and you want to check out some more FTD Facts, there's another episode right
by my head. Also, my social media links are below in the video description section, so go ahead follow
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