Dirección de Inteligencia Nacional

The Dirección de Inteligencia Nacional (English: National Intelligence Directorate) or DINA was the secret police of Chile during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. The DINA has been referred to as "Pinochet's Gestapo". Established in November 1973 as a Chilean Army intelligence unit headed by Colonel Manuel Contreras and vice-director Raúl Iturriaga, the DINA was then separated from the army and made an independent administrative unit in June 1974 under the auspices of Decree 521. The DINA existed until 1977, after which it was renamed the Central Nacional de Informaciones (English: National Information Center) or CNI.

This article is about the Chilean police agency. For the Mexican bus manufacturer, see DINA S.A.
National Intelligence Directorate
Dirección de Inteligencia Nacional
Seal of the DINA
AbbreviationDINA
Agency overview
FormedNovember 1973
Dissolved1977
Superseding agencyNational Information Center
Jurisdictional structure
General nature
  • Secret police
Operation Condor
Background histories
Events
Government leaders
Targeted militias
  • Montoneros
  • Tupamaros
  • People's Revolutionary Army (ERP)
  • Revolutionary Left Movement (MIR)
Principal operatives
Organizations responsible
Locations
Laws
Archives and reports
Reactions

In 2008, the Chilean Army presented a list of 1,097 DINA agents to Judge Alejandro Solís.

Despite falling under Pinochet's legal authority, American-born DINA operative Michael Townley described Contreras as DINA's actual "intellectual head." Pedro Espinoza served as deputy to Contreras as well.

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