When the U.S. intelligence caught Osama bin Laden, the first words that came out from the officer in command was “Geronimo EKIA.” Geronimo referred to the legendary Apache Indian who became a hero to Native Americans, and EKIA meant “Enemy killed in Action.”

The U.S. has, historically, used codes that tended to summarize the character of the person, often reflecting how the government viewed the person.

Pope John Paul II was coded “Halo” by the Secret Service and former Alaskan governor Sarah Palin’s husband was dubbed “Driller” for being an oil field operator.

Fidel Castro, the infamous former Cuban President, was named “AMTHUG” during the Cold War period when all code names for Cubans began with “AM.” Che Guevara, the legendary Cuban revolutionary, was coded “AMQUACK,” where “quack” referred to him being a doctor.

A group of Iraqi spies who helped during the 2003 invasion of Iraq where named “DBROCKSTARS” by the CIA. Rafid Ahmed al-Janabi, who lied about Iraq’s possession of WMDs leading to the U.S. invasion of Iraq, was coded “curveball.”

Last but not least, the code name for Osama bin Laden himself was “JACKPOT” which later proved to be true for the U.S., as they successfully managed to get rid of him.

By Yun Suh-young (syun@heraldcorp.com)

Intern Reporter