Edward B Johnson: Second CIA officer behind 'Argo' rescue dies at 81

The CIA officer's role in the operation to rescue six US diplomats from Iran long-remained classified.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessWomen at the HelmFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersSecond CIA officer behind 'Argo' rescue dies, aged 81AlamyWhile Ben Affleck's Argo dramatised the rescue of the six diplomats, it would be another decade before Johnson's role was revealedEdward B Johnson, a CIA officer who helped to pull off the daring rescue of six US diplomats left in hiding in Iran after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, has died aged 81.

The operation, which caught the public's imagination after it was dramatised by Ben Affleck's 2012 Oscar-winning film Argo, saw a CIA team enter Iran undercover as Hollywood filmmakers.

Amid growing scrutiny of the CIA and its perceived lack of accountability, the agency encouraged Johnson's partner in the operation, Tony Mendez, to speak openly of the rescue in 1997.

But Johnson's own role remained classified for decades, and he was only identified only as "Julio" in a a book written by Mendez about the rescue.

In the CIA, however, Johnson's role in the plan was acknowledged. At the agency's headquarters in Langley, Virginia, a faceless painting celebrated his role in the operation.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0qejdgkve9o

---