He pulled it down. He opened it to page 112.
The censorship failed due to early reviewer copies. Before the DIA bought the inventory, St. Martin's Press distributed advance review copies (ARCs) to journalists and book critics. These early copies were completely unredacted.
The most interesting feature of the unredacted version of Operation Dark Heart
This public link is valid for 7 days and shares a thread, including any personal information you added. This link or copies made by others cannot be deleted. If you share with third parties, their policies apply. Can’t copy the link right now. Try again later. operation dark heart unredacted pdf top
: Sensitive redactions included the true identity of the CIA chief of station in Kabul and physical descriptions of CIA training facilities. ⚖️ Legal and Historical Impact
: The attempt to suppress the book drew massive public attention, turning the memoir into a bestseller and driving the price of surviving unredacted copies to over $2,000 on sites like eBay. 📄 What Was Redacted?
The legal battle continued for years. In a significant ruling in November 2012, a federal judge granted Shaffer standing to sue the Pentagon for censoring his book. Then, in January 2013, the Pentagon made a major reversal. The Department of Defense completed a new security review and declared that (nearly 46%) were properly declassified and could be made public. He pulled it down
Although the Army originally cleared the manuscript, the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) later intervened, claiming the book contained sensitive information that could cause "serious damage to national security".
According to reports from The New York Times and The National Security Archive , the unredacted version included [PerQueryResult 1.2.5]:
, including its nickname "The Fort," were initially redacted. Before the DIA bought the inventory, St
Elias was a "paperhanger"—a rare breed of archivist who dealt in the tangible debris of the intelligence community. He didn't hack servers; he trafficked in ink, glue, and the faint smell of mildew. Two hours ago, a drop-off he wasn't expecting arrived. A panicked courier, a duffel bag, and then the roar of a motorcycle fading into the rainy night.
Before publishing, Shaffer followed standard military protocol. He submitted his manuscript to the Department of the Army for a formal security review. In This review process lasted several months, resulting in authorized clearance for publication.
: Real names of covert officers and CIA contacts were removed for security reasons. Context of the Book
The FAS is the single best source for this history. They maintain a "Secrecy News" archive with the original DIA memos, Shaffer's legal filings, and, most importantly, the PDF side-by-side comparisons of redacted vs. unredacted pages from the book's original printing, including extensive excerpts from a court-filed first-edition copy.