WikiLeaks Twitter followers are wondering about the meaning behind mysterious #Vault7 tweets. (Getty) <\/p>\n
WikiLeaks is known for its cryptic messages, but the latest #Vault7 tweets may be among the most mysterious. WikiLeaks Twitter account just recently started tweeting #Vault7 messages with cryptic photos, and no one is quite sure what WikiLeaks is hinting about. The tweets aresparking all sorts of theories ranging from post-apocalyptic in nature to theories that are more conspiracy-laden. Weve gathered the photos and tweets and are sharing the latest theories and analysis. Once youre done reading this article,take our poll at the end of the storyand let us know which theory you think is most likely true. <\/p>\n
Heres what you need to know. <\/p>\n
(Twitter\/WikiLeaks) <\/p>\n
Starting February 4 and ending early Monday morning, WikiLeaks shared a series of strange tweets about #Vault7. The first is pictured above. <\/p>\n
The tweet featuresa photo of the Svalbard Seed Vault. You can watcha video about it below: <\/p>\n
The seed vault is on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen in a remote Arctic archipelago. The vault was started by Cary Fowler and the Consultative Group on International Agriculture Research to preserve plant seeds and make sure there are always spare copies of seeds around the world, in case of a global or regional crisis. The facilitys managed by the Nordic Genetic Resource Center, but there are no permanent staff at the facility. The permafrost and lack of tectonic activity makethis a good location for a seed vault. <\/p>\n
What you see above the entrance to the vault, in the photo, is an illuminated public artwork. It was made by Dyveke Sanne and is called Perpetual Repercussion. Interestingly, Norwary requires that government-funded works that exceed a certain amount must include artwork. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The second tweet is pictured above. It asked Where is #Vault7? Thephoto in the tweet shows Nazi gold stored in Merkers Salt Mine (its referenced in this Wikipedia article.)The gold at Merkers was discovered when the U.S. Army took Merkers in 1945 during World War II. Two French women had reported that the Kaiseroda salt mine had gold stored by Germans, which was how the U.S. Army first discovered it.According to the National Archives, the minecontained gold bullion, gold Reichsmarks, British gold pounds, French gold francs, American gold pieces, gold and silver coins, additional foreign currency, silver bars, platinum bars, artwork, and more. <\/p>\n
Nazi gold was allegedly transferred by Nazi Germany to overseas banks during World War II, as part of a strategy involving looting victims assets to fund the war. Authorsand conspiracy theorists have long guessed about what happened to the Nazi gold that disappeared. In fact, a group of Holocaust survivorseven brought a civil suit against the Vatican Bank over it, filed in November 1999. The case was dismissed in 2003, but then reinstated in part in 2005.Various parts of the case were dismissed again in 2007-2009. The Nazi gold has been the subject of conspiracy theories for a long time. <\/p>\n
(Twitter\/WikiLeaks) <\/p>\n
The final tweet in the series, as of the time of publication, asked When Is #Vault7? The photo in the tweet was from 2010, takenat Langley Air Force Base in Virginia, while running a test on a Pratt and Whitney F119-PW-100 jet engine. The jet inspections look for any objects that could damage blades inside the engines.The article that the picture is from talks about soundproof hush houses that are used for jet engine testing. These are sometimes called vaults. <\/p>\n
There are quite a few theories circulating about what these #Vault7 tweetscould mean. Some people were getting worried and wondered out loud if WikiLeaks knew something that they didnt. <\/p>\n
Here are some of the theories: <\/p>\n
One theory points outthat the FBI recently released part 6 of 6 fromHillary Clintons email investigation. This theory proposes that the tweets area reference to deleted emails that the FBI will never be able to release. The FBIs Vault releases on Clinton can be viewed here. These deleted emails would have, theoretically, been releasedas Vault 7. Othersbelieve WikiLeaks is hintingabout a new Clinton email batch that they plan to release themselves. <\/p>\n
Others are holding to a theory that this is about an upcoming 9\/11 leak. In the third tweet, the engine was an F119, and these theorists point out that 119 backwards is 911. They also reference Building 7, which has been the source of many 9\/11 conspiracy theories, including a conspiracy theorythat there was a vault of gold beneath the building. (This conspiracy theory is oftenincorrectly ascribed to Building 7, but its actually about Building 6.) It seems like a bit of a stretch, since WikiLeaks has not made any indications of an upcoming 9\/11 leak. A more likely explanation is that the photo was chosen because jet engine was being tested in a room sometimes called a vault. <\/p>\n
Others are taking this even farther and finding any connection they can to the number seven. In several WikiLeaks Reddit discussions, some have said that it might be a reference to the nextmass extinction event following the sixth, whichsome scientists say we are already in the middle of. This theory is connected to the first tweet, which showed the seed vault, and proposes that #Vault7 has something to do with climate change. <\/p>\n
Then theres the shadow government theory connected to the number seven.CNBCreported in October that a newFBI release featuredclaims of a shadow government composed of high-ranking state officials, whom some referred to as The 7th Floor Group. <\/p>\n
Here are some other past references to Vault 7, not connected to WikiLeaks: <\/p>\n
It remains to be seen which of these theories about Vault 7 if any will end up being correct. Theres also a chance that thepictures might not provide any clues at all, and WikiLeaks might simply be showing pictures of well-known vaults to go with its tweets about #Vault7. If WikiLeaks is referencing the 5 Ws (& one H) of journalism (Who, What, Where, When, Why & How), then more mysterious tweets will likelybe coming soon. <\/p>\n
When it comes to #Vault7, which theory do you believe? Let us know in this poll: <\/p>\n
Who was WikiLeaks' and Julian Assange's source for the DNC and Podesta leaks? See top theories here. <\/p>\n
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