in Iran. Armas had been on the CIA's radar for a few years prior to this. In August 1950, a report discussed an earlier plan, hatched by Armas, to lead an armed revolt against the government. The report even considered his character, noting that he was "a quiet, soft-spoken officer who does not seem to be given to exaggeration." As early as February of that year, CIA Headquarters began generating memos with subject titles such as "Guatemalan Communist Personnel to be disposed of during Military Operations," outlining categories of persons to be neutralized "through Executive Action"—murder—or through imprisonment and exile. Enlisting methods such as paramilitary and psychological actions, the CIA expanded its procedure of removing political leaders beyond that of the coup d’etat in Iran in 1953. The hope of this list was to create an anti-communist coup. Operation PBFortune In April 1952, Nicaraguan President Anastasio Somoza visited the United States and expressed confidence in his ability to overthrow Arbenz. The Nicaraguan dictator mentioned that given the chance to receive arms and supplies, he could orchestrate Arbenz’ overthrow with the help of Guatemalan exile Carlos Castillo Armas. His hubris caught the attention of the US government, who had already been conceiving ideas on how to deal with the possible uprising of communism in Guatemala—America’s own backyard. President Truman contacted Director of Central Intelligence, Walter Bedell Smith to explore options with Armas. Smith ordered an agent codenamed “Seekford” to make contact with Armas about possibilities of moving forward. After a report came back to the CIA from Seekford, Deputy Director Allen Dulles drafted a formal proposal to provide $225,000 worth of arms and ammunition to Armas. It also specified plans to enlist air support from Nicaragua and Honduras. On June 17, Arbenz enacted an Agrarian Reform Law, and distribution of land under it began on August 7. On September 9, 1952, the plan was officially approved and named Operation PBFortune. It was the first official plan proposed by the CIA and approved by the State Department that sought the overthrow of the Arbenz government. A couple months of planning went into creating a list of officials to be targeted for assassination. The plan relied on a 1949 Guatemalan Army list of Communists in tandem with the CIA’s own collected intelligence. Armas also provided his own list of 58 Guatemalans to be terminated through executive action. On September 18, 1952, Seekford received