Doomscroll News

Tag: Intelligence

  • Project Babylon: An Intelligence Assessment of the Iraqi Supergun Program

    Project Babylon was a confirmed, state-sponsored weapons development program initiated by the government of Iraq and active between 1988 and 1990. The program’s objective was the design, clandestine procurement, and construction of the largest conventional artillery pieces ever conceived. Contrary to some popular misconceptions, the technology was based entirely on established ballistic principles and chemical propellants, not on theoretical electromagnetic or railgun systems. The program was the brainchild and life’s work of the brilliant but controversial Canadian artillery engineer, Dr. Gerald Bull, who found in Iraqi President Saddam Hussein a patron with the ambition and resources to fund his vision.   

    The program’s stated purpose was dual-use: to provide Iraq with a cost-effective, independent capability to launch satellites into low Earth orbit, while also possessing an inherent, undeniable potential for strategic long-range bombardment. This dual nature was a source of significant international concern, as the weapon’s theoretical range placed key regional adversaries, including Israel and Iran, within its reach.   

    Project Babylon successfully produced and test-fired one functional, sub-scale prototype known as “Baby Babylon”. However, the full-scale weapon, “Big Babylon,” was never completed. The program was abruptly and decisively neutralized in the spring of 1990 through a sophisticated, multi-pronged counter-proliferation effort. This effort culminated in two key events: the assassination of Dr. Gerald Bull in Brussels in March 1990, which decapitated the project’s technical leadership, and the subsequent coordinated seizure of critical gun components by customs authorities across Europe in April 1990.   

    Following the 1991 Persian Gulf War, the government of Iraq admitted to the existence of the program. All remaining hardware, including the completed prototype and the unassembled components of the full-scale gun, were located, documented, and systematically destroyed under the supervision of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM). The existence, technical specifications, and ultimate fate of Project Babylon are not matters of speculation or conspiracy theory; they are a thoroughly documented chapter in the history of unconventional weapons proliferation. This report provides a comprehensive assessment of the program, from its conceptual origins to its final dismantlement.  

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  • An Unmitigated Threat: The National Security Case for the Prohibition of TikTok in the United States

    An Unmitigated Threat: The National Security Case for the Prohibition of TikTok in the United States

    David’s Note: This article was substantially revised on October 10, 2025 to incorporate new research and provide a more comprehensive analysis.

    With over 170 million users in the United States, TikTok is more than a social media phenomenon; it is a deeply embedded component of American digital life and commerce.1 This ubiquity, however, masks a critical vulnerability. This report presents a comprehensive analysis of the national security threat posed by the social media application TikTok, operated by its parent company, ByteDance Ltd. It argues that due to ByteDance’s inextricable links to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the application functions as a dual-threat vector for sophisticated data espionage and algorithmic influence operations against the United States.

    Executive Summary

    This report analyzes the national security threat from TikTok, an application operated by ByteDance Ltd. The company’s deep connections to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) allow the app to function as a tool for data espionage and algorithmic influence against the United States.

    This report’s central thesis is that mitigation efforts cannot neutralize this threat. The application’s core architecture, corporate governance, and legal obligations are inextricably linked to the CCP, a designated foreign adversary. Therefore, a complete prohibition on its operation within the United States is the only effective policy solution.

    The report deconstructs ByteDance’s opaque corporate structure. It highlights the CCP’s control mechanisms, such as the “golden share” held by a state-backed entity, which make any claims of operational independence untenable. It also details warnings from top U.S. intelligence officials, including the FBI Director and the Director of National Intelligence, who define TikTok as a tool that a foreign adversary can leverage.

    Furthermore, the report dismisses mitigation efforts like the $1.5 billion “Project Texas” as flawed security theater. Evidence shows this project failed to sever data flows to Beijing or neutralize the threat of algorithmic manipulation. The core issue of adversarial ownership remained unaddressed.

    After refuting key counterarguments—related to the First Amendment, economic impacts, and false equivalencies with U.S. tech firms—the report concludes that partial measures are insufficient. The unique nature of the threat, rooted in ByteDance’s subservience to the CCP, demands a structural solution. The only policy that fully addresses these inherent risks is the swift enforcement of a ban on TikTok and any successor applications, as provided by the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA).

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