Overview
Operation Northwoods was a proposed false-flag operation developed in 1962 by the U.S. Department of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The plan called for the CIA and other government agencies to commit acts of terrorism against American civilian and military targets, blame them on the Cuban government under Fidel Castro, and use the fabricated attacks as justification for a U.S. military invasion of Cuba. The proposals were presented to Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara on March 13, 1962, but were rejected by President John F. Kennedy. The documents were declassified in 1997 as part of the JFK Assassination Records Review Board's work.
The Proposals
The Northwoods memorandum, titled "Justification for U.S. Military Intervention in Cuba," contained a range of proposed false-flag scenarios:
- Staged attacks on Guantanamo Bay: Blowing up ammunition inside the base, starting fires, sabotaging aircraft, and lobbing mortar shells within the base perimeter — all designed to appear as Cuban attacks
- Sinking a U.S. Navy ship: "We could blow up a U.S. ship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba." The memo specifically references the USS Maine incident of 1898 as a model
- Terrorist campaign in Miami and Washington, D.C.: "We could develop a Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities, and even in Washington. The terror campaign could be pointed at refugees seeking haven in the United States"
- Hijacking and shooting down aircraft: Chartering a civil airliner, having passengers board under carefully prepared aliases, and swapping it mid-flight with a drone aircraft that would be shot down via remote control while transmitting a "Mayday" signal blaming the Cubans
- Sinking a boatload of Cuban refugees: "We could sink a boatload of Cubans en route to Florida (real or simulated)"
- Attacks on Cuban exile communities: Exploding bombs in carefully chosen spots, arresting Cuban agents, and releasing previously prepared documents substantiating Cuban involvement
Context: The Cuba Problem
Operation Northwoods was developed within the broader context of the Kennedy administration's obsession with removing Fidel Castro from power. The failed Bay of Pigs invasion (April 1961) had been a humiliating defeat. The Joint Chiefs, particularly Chairman General Lyman Lemnitzer, were pushing aggressively for a direct military confrontation with Cuba.
The plan was part of a larger covert action program known as Operation Mongoose, authorized by Kennedy in November 1961 and led by Brigadier General Edward Lansdale. Mongoose encompassed a wide range of activities from sabotage and propaganda to assassination plots against Castro.
Rejection and Aftermath
President Kennedy rejected the Northwoods proposals. Shortly thereafter, in September 1962, Lemnitzer was transferred from his position as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to become Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) at NATO — though it is debated whether this reassignment was directly related to Northwoods.
The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, just months after Northwoods was proposed, brought the U.S. and Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear war and fundamentally altered the calculus of military intervention in Cuba.
Declassification
The Northwoods documents were classified for 35 years. They were uncovered in 1997 by the Assassination Records Review Board, which had been established by the JFK Records Act of 1992 to declassify documents related to the Kennedy assassination. Journalist James Bamford brought them to widespread public attention in his 2001 book Body of Secrets: Anatomy of the Ultra-Secret National Security Agency.
Significance
Operation Northwoods is significant for several reasons:
- Documented false-flag planning: It provides irrefutable documentary evidence that the highest levels of the U.S. military were willing to plan false-flag attacks on American citizens to justify a predetermined policy objective
- Ethical boundaries: The rejection by Kennedy demonstrates that civilian oversight can check military excess, though the fact that such plans reached the presidential level is itself alarming
- Conspiracy theory validation: The confirmed existence of Northwoods is frequently cited by conspiracy theorists as evidence that the U.S. government is capable of orchestrating or allowing attacks on its own citizens — it is a linchpin document in 9/11 conspiracy arguments
- Historical transparency: The eventual declassification demonstrates the value of mandatory declassification schedules and records review processes
The full text of the Northwoods memorandum is available through the National Security Archive at George Washington University.