The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara

Field, Thomas C.; Trenta, Luca

doi:10.1080/02684527.2026.2640398

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The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara

Thomas C. Field

, Luca Trenta

Intelligence and National Security, Pages: 1 - 21

Swansea University Author: Luca Trenta

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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/02684527.2026.2640398

Abstract

This article analyzes the United States role in Bolivia’s 1967 operation to capture and execute Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara. Existing literature is marked by three interpretations. One dismisses claims of CIA involvement as sensationalist and unfounded. Another, based on Bolivian military accounts, frames...

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Published in:	Intelligence and National Security
ISSN:	0268-4527 1743-9019
Published:	Informa UK Limited 2026
Online Access:	Check full text
URI:	https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71523

first_indexed	2026-03-02T22:01:30Z
last_indexed	2026-04-24T04:16:12Z
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spelling	2026-04-22T15:32:23.4786062 v2 71523 2026-03-02 The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara 77a2eaf23b410b1d6a38ea070f14f992 0000-0001-5681-8176 Luca Trenta Luca Trenta true false 2026-03-02 SOSS This article analyzes the United States role in Bolivia’s 1967 operation to capture and execute Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara. Existing literature is marked by three interpretations. One dismisses claims of CIA involvement as sensationalist and unfounded. Another, based on Bolivian military accounts, frames the operation as domestic and sovereign. A third perspective argues for US complicity, ranging from claims that the CIA ‘got away with murder’ to shadow involvement by American officials who ‘washed their hands’ of the affair. Drawing on newly available sources, we offer a fine-grained analysis of US intervention in the manhunt and execution. Journal Article Intelligence and National Security 0 1 21 Informa UK Limited 0268-4527 1743-9019 Intelligence, covert action, Cold War, Bolivia, Cuba, Latin America, CIA 14 3 2026 2026-03-14 10.1080/02684527.2026.2640398 COLLEGE NANME Social Sciences School COLLEGE CODE SOSS Swansea University Not Required This work was partially supported by the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Faculty Research Development Program. 2026-04-22T15:32:23.4786062 2026-03-02T20:50:13.0810526 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences School of Social Sciences - Politics, Philosophy and International Relations Thomas C. Field 0009-0001-2528-0796 1 Luca Trenta 0000-0001-5681-8176 2 71523__36556__9dbc5f807c5d4a79bd402a365484018b.pdf 71523.AAM.pdf 2026-04-22T15:29:36.4864193 Output 386712 application/pdf Accepted Manuscript true Author accepted manuscript document released under the terms of a Creative Commons CC-BY licence using the Swansea University Research Publications Policy (rights retention). true eng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
title	The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara
spellingShingle	The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara Luca Trenta
title_short	The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara
title_full	The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara
title_fullStr	The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara
title_full_unstemmed	The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara
title_sort	The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara
author_id_str_mv	77a2eaf23b410b1d6a38ea070f14f992
author_id_fullname_str_mv	77a2eaf23b410b1d6a38ea070f14f992_***_Luca Trenta
author	Luca Trenta
author2	Thomas C. Field Luca Trenta
format	Journal article
container_title	Intelligence and National Security
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institution	Swansea University
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doi_str_mv	10.1080/02684527.2026.2640398
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description	This article analyzes the United States role in Bolivia’s 1967 operation to capture and execute Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara. Existing literature is marked by three interpretations. One dismisses claims of CIA involvement as sensationalist and unfounded. Another, based on Bolivian military accounts, frames the operation as domestic and sovereign. A third perspective argues for US complicity, ranging from claims that the CIA ‘got away with murder’ to shadow involvement by American officials who ‘washed their hands’ of the affair. Drawing on newly available sources, we offer a fine-grained analysis of US intervention in the manhunt and execution.
published_date	2026-03-14T07:56:15Z
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score	11.10461

The politics of complicity: the CIA and the death of Che Guevara

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