[Deadly in a Shadow]

They aren't really working for the UEF and the elders (officially), many of them are Nagari sensitives (including the two Bei's), they are waiting for the end of the war and they know about these apocalypse story mentioned by Emperor Khonsu.

[Pred the Penguin]

Then what are they?  NSA/CIA equivalent?  Stazi?  KGB?  They are obviously a military organization and are affiliated with the UEF.

One thing I do know, they are NOT a fanatical theocratic hegemony born from a desert world with giant worms. 

The only affiliation I see is that they obviously use the same ships. Of course we know next to nothing about the Fedayeen (neither do any of the main WiH characters at this point) so all we can do is speculate.

[Snail]

The Fedayeen might not even exist, that is how cool they are.

[Jellyfish]

Then what are they?  NSA/CIA equivalent?  Stazi?  KGB?  They are obviously a military organization and are affiliated with the UEF.

CIA's Special Activities Division.

[The E]

They aren't really working for the UEF and the elders (officially), many of them are Nagari sensitives (including the two Bei's), they are waiting for the end of the war and they know about these apocalypse story mentioned by Emperor Khonsu.

Baseless speculation in bold. Stuff that is really wrong in italics.

Then what are they?  NSA/CIA equivalent?  Stazi?  KGB?  They are obviously a military organization and are affiliated with the UEF.

One thing I do know, they are NOT a fanatical theocratic hegemony born from a desert world with giant worms. 

None of the above. Wait for R2.

[Commander Zane]

One thing I do know, they are NOT a fanatical theocratic hegemony born from a desert world with giant worms. 

This made me chuckle.

[Buckshee Rounds]

The <REDACTED> might not even exist, that is how cool they are.

Who?

[Deadly in a Shadow]

The ones we speak about.

[Liberator]

One thing I do know, they are NOT a fanatical theocratic hegemony born from a desert world with giant worms. 

This made me chuckle.

FINALLY!!!!

After 10 years I made someone laugh intentionally!  VICTORY!!!

[Ravenholme]

The ones we speak about.

Well, that would fly if they weren't explicitly mentioned in Sunglare. From a member, no less.

[-Norbert-]

Or at least someone claiming to be a member. But can you really trust the word of someone coming out of nowhere and admitting they'd be perfectly content to let the ship's crew die a painfull death, if it wasn't for that one special person they want to recruit?

[Buckshee Rounds]

The ones we speak about.

Well, that would fly if they weren't explicitly mentioned in Sunglare. From a member, no less.

How would you know? Radiowaves must be pretty hard to pick up against the Sun's background noise, anything could've been said out there...

[Ravenholme]

Or at least someone claiming to be a member. But can you really trust the word of someone coming out of nowhere and admitting they'd be perfectly content to let the ship's crew die a painfull death, if it wasn't for that one special person they want to recruit?

A whole ship, the implication was that the crew was Fedayeen. "We are not fleet. We are Fedayeen" and universe meta-knowledge has them pinned as existing, with FS1 Alpha 1 and the Vasudans having disappeared into it/formed it.

I think it's safe to say the Deterrence Flotilla of First Fleet is some euphemism to give some legality to the otherwise paramilitary organisation.

[Qent]

The ones we speak about.

Well, that would fly if they weren't explicitly mentioned in Sunglare. From a member, no less.

How would you know? Radiowaves must be pretty hard to pick up against the Sun's background noise, anything could've been said out there...

That was a science vessel studying solar weather patterns. I don't know what you think you saw pilot, but I suggest you forget all about it.

[-Norbert-]

Coming back to a topic of four pages ago...
I had a though yesterday (probably due to reading the first Ciaphas Cain book again).

I thought that maybe Ken is deliberately trying to provoke a war between the Shivans and Vishnans.
Let's assume for a moment that the conflict in AoA was limited to the other universe and "over here" they are still allies. Now we have the UEF, which is clearly under the influence of the Vishnans and suddenly a "person" that appears much like a Shivan in philosophies and behaviour starts to manipulate what is hinted to be the strongest Nagari presence in the whole star system.
Now that is a pertty clear provocation towards the Vishnans, who might start to blame the Shivans for their conduct, which might lead to a war between the two.

Such a scenario would throw up a few question (or reiterate them in some cases):
Who or what is Ken? Is he a rebel Vishnan or Shivan, Bosch, or a member of another, so far unknown, species?
Whatever he is, what would he have to gain though?
Is he an outcast out for revenge? Or maybe a surviver trying to take revenge on the Shivans for wiping out his race and the Vishnans for just watching?
Is he trying to occupy the attention of the big two, so his own race can go unnotices for a bit longer?
Or is he trying to pave the way for an attack against the big two?
Or is he actually a Brahma poking around and testing the reactions of the Shivans and Vishnans to judge wether they kept their roles and punish them if they didn't?
Or might he be a Shivan from the other universe that sliped somehow made it through to our universe and tries to make the Vishnans pay for what they did in AoA, with or without the Shivans on our side knowing about it?

[Buckshee Rounds]

Makes me wonder if the Vishnans are even really present in our own universe. I think it's hinted in AoA that they're constant in both our universe and the 'apocalypse scenario' universe. Sam states a few times that he's felt their presence in some form or another throughout his life, yet they only contacted him when he went into the AoA universe. Now they're suddenly silent. Does it take a whole glasssed planet for them to show up?

[Androgeos Exeunt]

No, you got it a bit wrong. The Vishnans kept in touch with him during the first eight months of the war (i.e. the first eight months after the end of AoA). WiH begins eighteen months after AoA, and Sam mentioned that he has not heard from the Vishnans for ten months.

[Destiny]

IIRC in the mission Ken, one of the messages was an Elder saying 'no one's heard a whisper from them in <can't remember>, why are they silent?' as well.

[Androgeos Exeunt]

Why are they silent? No one has heard a whisper in more than a year...what does it mean?

This one?

"More than a year" is greater than ten months, though, and Samuel said "ten months" at the end of Sunglare, so is there a continuity issue there?

[-Norbert-]

Since those comments were made by different people I see no continuity breach.
The Elder lost contact more than a year ago, Sam followed suit a few month later.

It could be that the Vishnans kept the contact with Sam up longer than with the Elders deliberately to facilitate whatever plans they have for the UEF.
Or they aren't unwilling to communicate, but rather unable and because Sam has more Nagari presence (or however you want to call it) they were able to keep in touch with him longer than with the Elder.