Declassified CIA Documents Reveal Secret Attempt to Locate the Ark of the Covenant Using ‘Remote Viewing’

By: Fern Sidman

In a revelation that bridges the boundaries between ancient legend, national intelligence, and metaphysical experimentation, newly surfaced documents from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) indicate that the agency once attempted to locate one of Judaism’s most sacred relics — the Ark of the Covenant — through an unconventional and highly secretive method known as “remote viewing.” As reported by Israel Hayom on March 27^th, this extraordinary effort was part of a covert CIA project titled “Sun Streak” and took place in 1988, though the relevant documents were only declassified in 2000.

The Ark of the Covenant, according to biblical and rabbinic tradition, was a sacred chest constructed by the Israelites at the command of God following the Exodus from Egypt. Crafted of acacia wood and overlaid with gold, the Ark housed the Tablets of the Covenant — the Ten Commandments — and was said to embody the divine presence of God among the Israelites, as was noted in the report at Israel Hayom. It resided in the Holy of Holies within the First Temple in Jerusalem until it mysteriously disappeared during the Babylonian destruction of the city in 586 BCE.

The Ark’s whereabouts have since become the subject of intense speculation and spiritual longing. While some religious traditions believe it was hidden before the destruction, others assert it was spirited away to foreign lands. As the detailed report at Israel Hayom indicated, one enduring theory places it in a church in Ethiopia, though researchers believe the artifact kept there is likely a later replica.

The CIA’s secretive initiative to locate the Ark formed part of a broader Cold War-era project that explored the utility of psychic phenomena in intelligence gathering. Known as Project Sun Streak, it involved training and deploying individuals with purported “remote viewing” capabilities — the supposed ability to perceive locations and objects at great distances using extrasensory perception, the Israel Hayom report explained.

According to the declassified files reviewed by Israel Hayom, one participant in the program, identified only as Remote Viewer Number 032, was given a set of coordinates and asked to describe what he “saw.” He was not told the nature of the target. Remarkably, the viewer described what strongly resembled the biblical Ark of the Covenant.

The descriptions provided by Viewer 032 were astonishing. “The target is a container. This container has another container inside of it. The target is fashioned of wood, gold, and silver,” the viewer reported. This matches traditional descriptions of the Ark as recorded in Exodus 25 and other biblical texts.

The viewer also described the object as being located “somewhere in the Middle East,” with people nearby speaking Arabic. As per the information in the Israel Hayom report, he added that the location was “underground, dark and wet,” and that the purpose of the object was to “bring a people together.” The object had, according to his vision, spiritual significance related to “ceremony, memory, homage, the resurrection.”

Perhaps the most mystifying part of the report, as highlighted by Israel Hayom, was the assertion that the Ark is “protected by entities” and can only be accessed by those who are authorized. The viewer claimed that any attempt to open it by force would result in the destruction of the intruder by the Ark’s unknown protectors, using a power “unknown to us.”

The documents included cryptic sketches and a list of words evoking intense emotional and spiritual gravity: “death,” “forbidden,” “protected,” “afraid,” “destroyed,” “pain,” and “torment.” Israel Hayom reported that among the sketches were drawings of a domed mosque, possibly the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem; eight mummified figures laid side-by-side; a wheel; and a winged being labeled as a “seraph,” a celestial being from Jewish tradition.

The presence of such imagery suggests that the CIA was not only probing a physical location, but tapping into mythological and religious archetypes in an attempt to unlock secrets buried deep within humanity’s collective past.

Though the use of psychic phenomena by intelligence agencies remains controversial and is often viewed with skepticism, the newly revealed documents underscore the depth of mystery and allure surrounding the Ark of the Covenant. As the report at Israel Hayom indicated, despite the unconventional methodology employed, the CIA’s interest in locating the Ark lends unexpected weight to the question of whether the artifact might still exist — hidden, protected, and waiting to be rediscovered.

For believers, the Ark represents far more than an ancient relic. It is a symbol of divine covenant, national destiny, and the spiritual epicenter of Judaism. For intelligence agencies, it remains a tantalizing historical enigma whose discovery could reshape geopolitical and religious landscapes alike.

As modern archaeology, religious faith, and clandestine operations converge in this strange chapter of history, one truth becomes clear: the Ark of the Covenant continues to captivate the imagination of humanity, from ancient priests to modern spies.