The officer who allegedly drugged and raped two Muslim women is also Muslim
The White House is bracing for a backlash from the Muslim world after allegations surfaced that a senior CIA officer in Algeria drugged and raped two local women. “This will be seen as the typical ugly American,” said former CIA officer Bob Baer. But Andrew Warren, the agent at the centre of the accusations, is not just American. He’s Muslim. The 41-year-old is a convert to Islam, and fellow officers describe him as a valuable asset who could blend in among Muslim communities in several countries. “He is exactly the guy we need out in the field,” said one senior official, who had met Warren in Algiers last summer before. “He’s African American. He’s Muslim. He speaks the language. He seemed well put together, sharp and experienced.” Another former CIA official said Warren had “done great works in the mosques” in Afghanistan after the U.S.-led invasion of 2001. “He was able to go into the mosque for Friday prayers, could recite the Koran, and wasn’t afraid to mix it up. It’s so disappointing because he’s someone who had so much potential.”