Colonel [[Rafael Cordova]] was the head of military operations in [[Ayacucho]], [[Peru]]. He was a key figure in the [[Peru|Peruvian]] military's campaign against the [[Shining Path]].[^1] [[Rafael Cordova|Cordova]] met [[Ari Ben-Menashe]] on a flight to [[Ayacucho]] in 1988. [[Ari Ben-Menashe|Ben-Menashe]] informed [[Rafael Cordova|Cordova]] that he was from [[Israel]] and wished to teach at the [[University of San Cristobal]] and write a paper about the [[Shining Path]]. [[Rafael Cordova|Cordova]] was initially suspicious but granted [[Ari Ben-Menashe|Ben-Menashe]] a permit after [[Ari Ben-Menashe|Ben-Menashe]] revealed knowledge of [[Rafael Cordova|Cordova's]] illegal sale of [[Stinger missiles]] to the [[Shining Path]].[^1] [[Rafael Cordova|Cordova]] was known for his brutal tactics against the [[Shining Path]]. After five of his officers were killed in a [[Shining Path]] ambush, he planned to massacre a village in retaliation. [[Ari Ben-Menashe]] attempted to prevent this by having [[Barbara Durr]] broadcast the plan, but the massacre proceeded, resulting in the deaths of dozens of innocent villagers. [[Rafael Cordova|Cordova]] was later implicated in the murder of a judge who was investigating the massacre, and two military helicopters were shot down by [[Stinger missiles]] that [[Rafael Cordova|Cordova]] had sold to the [[Shining Path]].[^1] ### Footnotes [^1]: Ben-Menashe, Ari. *Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network*. TrineDay, 1992. (Hereafter, "Profits of War")