Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founder of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), served as president of Pakistan in the 1970s. By 1977, opposition against Bhutto and the PPP had grown due to incidents of repression, corruption, and alleged election fraud. Violence escalated across Pakistan, and Bhutto was overthrown by his army chief, General Zia-ul-Haq. Bhutto was put on… Read More "“Two Men, One Grave” — The Execution of Pakistan’s Ali Bhutto"
The Somalis will do Without the Slobber, Mr. Ambassador
When traveling abroad, it’s always good to remember local customs and cultural aversions. It also doesn’t hurt to remember that not all people love your dog as much as you do. This excerpt is taken from Stephen Keat’s oral history. Read More "The Somalis will do Without the Slobber, Mr. Ambassador"
An American in Solzhenitsyn’s “Gulag Archipelago”
He was a victim of cruel fate, a young American living in the USSR forced to endure unimaginable torture and brutal beatings, who would later be one of the many sources for Gulag Archipelago. In 1933 Alexander Dolgun’s father went to the Soviet Union to work as an automotive technician; however, when his short-term contract… Read More "An American in Solzhenitsyn’s “Gulag Archipelago”"
House for Rent in the War-torn Congo–Three Baths, no Squatters
Housing for FSOs was not always provided on assignments abroad. Francis Terry McNamara had to find housing for himself and his family in many different places, some under unconventional situations. McNamara tells about his house-hunting in Elizabethville (now Lubumbashi), Congo in 1962 after the city had been ravaged by an attempted insurrection and continued unrest… Read More "House for Rent in the War-torn Congo–Three Baths, no Squatters"
FSO Ends Up in an Irish Stew Over His Christmas Letter
We’ve all wanted to blow off steam about our boss, co-workers, or those troglodytes in Human Resources. Robin Berrington, who served as Public Affairs Officer in Dublin from 1978 through 1981, was no different. He talked about his frustrations with his job and with Ireland in general in what was supposed to be a private… Read More "FSO Ends Up in an Irish Stew Over His Christmas Letter"
When Visa Officers Went Bad
Consular officers are often the face of the U.S. government overseas. They are the ones interviewing visa applicants, dealing with prospective adoptive parents, helping U.S. citizens who have had their passports stolen or gotten in a scrape with the law. It can often be a demanding job, with weekend calls as duty officer or the… Read More "When Visa Officers Went Bad"
Japanese Fishermen and the Bikini Atoll H-bomb Blast
On March 1st, 1954, the U.S. conducted its largest hydrogen bomb test ever near the Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. An unexpected blast of 15 megatons — 1,000 times stronger than the Hiroshima bomb — affected Australia, India and Japan with widespread radioactive fallout. The Fortunate Dragon (Daigo Fukuryū Maru), a Japanese fishing boat,… Read More "Japanese Fishermen and the Bikini Atoll H-bomb Blast"
The Day Stalin’s Daughter Asked for Asylum in the U.S.
On March 9th, 1967, Svetlana Alliluyeva — Joseph Stalin’s only daughter — walked into the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi and requested political asylum. No one knew she was even in India. (She had traveled there in 1966 in order to place the ashes of her boyfriend, an Indian Communist she had met in Moscow,… Read More "The Day Stalin’s Daughter Asked for Asylum in the U.S."
The Red Scare Hits the Foreign Service Institute
The Foreign Service Institute plays a central role in the training of American diplomats and other professionals in the U.S. foreign affairs community. Decades of experience and its hundreds of course offerings–from language and area to studies to management and technical training–have made FSI uniquely qualified in this regard. Despite its importance, the Institute’s existence… Read More "The Red Scare Hits the Foreign Service Institute"
The Terrorist Attack on the Saudi Embassy — Khartoum, 1973
Less than a year after its members murdered 11 Israeli athletes and one German police guard during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, the infamous Palestinian terrorist group Black September Organization (BSO) on March 1, 1973 launched a brazen raid on the Saudi Arabian embassy in Khartoum, Sudan, kidnapping U.S. Ambassador Cleo Noel and Deputy Chief… Read More "The Terrorist Attack on the Saudi Embassy — Khartoum, 1973"