Tal Shiar

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The Tal Shiar are a intelligence organization that features in Star Trek.

Contents

History

The Tal Shiar was an Imperial Intelligence agency that operated in the Romulan Star Empire. (TNG: Face of the Enemy)

At some point, the father of Commander Toreth who was an old man and devoted citizen came to be dragged from his home and arrested in the middle of the night by the Tal Shiar for being an idealist that spoke his mind about the Empire. For his actions, he was taken away and never heard from again as a result. (TNG: Face of the Enemy)

The Cardassians counterpart to the Tal Shiar was the Obsidian Order. Prior to the Dominion War, the Tal Shiar and the Obsidian Order secretly worked together to launch a pre-emptive strike on the Founder homeworld. The plan was initiated by retired head of the Obsidian Order Enabran Tain, and was supported by Tal Shiar Colonel Lovok, who was later revealed to be a changeling, as a result the entire fleet was destroyed. Soon after, the Cardassian Union joined the Dominion[3] while the Romulan Star Empire entered a pact of neutrality with them.

Like the Tal Shiar, Federation's Section 31 is a secret intelligence organization, but unlike the Tal Shiar it is not involved in internal Federation matters and does not exist to punish traitors or enforce state policy. Both agencies have had considerable run-ins in the past due to tensions and competition between the two great powers. For instance, Section 31 detected attempts by the Tal Shiar to sway democratic elections on a Federation planet in hopes that the result would favor their interests, and intervened in the electoral process to avert the threat. The Tal Shiar has also been accused of assassinating a high ranking Starfleet admiral, in what operative Luther Sloan declared to be "crossing the line".

The Tal Shiar is currently believed to pose less of a threat to Federation interests since Section 31 successfully infiltrated the organization at its highest levels, recruiting the head of the Tal Shiar, Chairman Koval, as a Federation agent. However, the Romulan tendency towards deviousness make Koval's true loyalties a mystery, or leave open the possibility that he could be a double agent). The status of the Tal Shiar post-Nemesis is unknown.

Overview

Tal Shiar members wield more authority than military commanders of higher rank, even starship captains. The organization has its own fleet of ships and generally works independently from the military, its frequent competitor.

Leadership of the agency was held in a body known as the Continuing Committee with a central figure holding the post of Chairman. (DS9: Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges)

It was said that the Tal Shiar trusted no one with them always expecting deception and thus always found it. (TNG: Face of the Enemy)

Tal Shiar operatives have been known to make the enemies of the Romulan Star Empire simply disappear, and are greatly feared.

The purpose of the agency was to ensure loyalty with any act of defiance inviting imprisonment or death. Officers of the Tal Shiar were expected to be obeyed without question. Only a member of the Tal Shiar would have the authority to alter a ship's mission. (TNG: Face of the Enemy)

There was a Tal Shiar myth that claimed the organization was merely a mask worn by a far older cabal called the Zhat Vash. (PIC: Maps and Legends)

Members

  • Koval :
  • Vreenak :
  • Almak :
  • Lovok :
  • Laris :
  • Narek :
  • Rakal :

Notes

  • The Tal Shiar were first introduced in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
  • According to Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion, the name was a homage to the Tal Shaya, a Vulcan method of execution from the original Star Trek series where the neck is broken with a swift stroke for a quick and merciful death.

Appearances

  • Star Trek: The Next Generation:
  • Star Trek: Deep Space 9:

External Link

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