Operation Condor

Operation Condor was a secret plan used by military governments in South America. These governments were part of the Southern Cone region. They worked together to stop people with different political ideas. This included people called left-wing sympathizers. The leaders wanted to stop what they called Marxism. They saw these people as a threat to their power. This campaign lasted from 1975 until 1983.

The plan worked through many secret and organized steps. Intelligence officers from different countries shared information with each other. They used spies to watch people across borders. They also used coups and kidnappings to reach their goals. Some groups used a tactic called death flights. In this method, people were taken by plane over the sea. This was done to make people disappear without a trace.

The formal start of the operation happened in November 1975. Manuel Contreras was the spy chief for the Chilean leader, Augusto Pinochet. He invited 50 officers to a meeting in Santiago, Chile. The original members were Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Brazil joined the group at a later time. Later, Ecuador and Peru also joined in smaller ways.

Many people were hurt by these actions during this time. Some estimates say at least 60,000 people died because of Condor. In Argentina, about 30,000 people died or disappeared during the Dirty War. This included teachers, students, and even priests. Some famous victims were Orlando Letelier and Ronni Moffitt. They were killed by a car bomb in Washington, D.C.

This period happened during the Cold War. The United States gave money to help these secret operations. Declassified documents show that U.S. intelligence agencies knew what was happening. The operation finally ended after the military government in Argentina fell in 1983. This change helped other dictators in South America lose power too. Today, people remember these events to honor those who were lost.