The Rest Is Classified

32. Putin’s War: The CIA Warn Zelensky (Ep 2) Mar 26, 2025

How did Ukraine defy the odds against Russia? What role did Western intelligence play in preparing Kyiv for war? And what did Western intelligence know that Russia didn’t?

For months, Western intelligence warned of an imminent Russian attack, but when the invasion finally came, it didn’t go according to Moscow’s script. Poor planning, logistical failures, and underestimating Ukrainian resistance turned what should have been a quick operation into a prolonged and costly war.

Listen as Gordon and David reveal the hidden factors that helped Ukraine survive the opening days of war.

-------------------

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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31. Putin’s War: The Secret Plot to Invade Ukraine (Ep 1) Mar 24, 2025

How did western intelligence services learn of Putin's plan to invade Ukraine?

2021 is drawing to a close and the CIA is becoming increasingly concerned that Putin is going to invade Ukraine. He's made it clear he sees it as part of Russia and so Bill Burns, CIA director, is going to be sent out to Moscow in a desperate attempt to dissuade him.

Listen as Gordon and David break down the run up to the war and CIA attempts to stop it.

-------------------

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30. The Spy Who Betrayed Oppenheimer: Showdown with MI5 (Ep 4) Mar 19, 2025

What happens when the world’s most valuable spy is finally caught? How did British and American intelligence hunt him down? And, was Klaus Fuchs a hero, a villain, or something in between?

Klaus Fuchs' final days as a free man were marked by growing suspicions, clandestine exchanges, and a relentless pursuit by MI5. The secrets he passed had already set the stage for a nuclear-armed Cold War, irreversibly altering the balance of global power. As the truth emerged, so too did the cost of his betrayal - a world reshaped by espionage, ideological conviction, and the stolen intelligence that fuelled an arms race.

Listen as David and Gordon take you inside the mind of the man who stole the bomb - and the world he left in his wake.

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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29. The Spy Who Betrayed Oppenheimer: Deception at Los Alamos (Ep 3) Mar 17, 2025

How did a Russian spy end up at the heart of the Manhattan Project? What happened when Soviet intelligence lost track of their own spy? And how did one man hand Stalin the bomb on a silver platter?

Klaus Fuchs was already one of the most valuable spies in history, feeding atomic secrets to the Soviet Union. But when he disappeared in 1944, his handlers feared the worst. In reality, he was about to get even closer to the ultimate prize: the blueprints for the atomic bomb.

This week, Gordon and David uncover how Fuchs embedded himself in Los Alamos, the most classified site on Earth, and carried out one of the greatest intelligence coups of the 20th century.

-------------------

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28. The Spy Who Betrayed Oppenheimer: The Manhattan Project (Ep 2) Mar 12, 2025

What makes a man betray his closest friends? How did a German refugee help Stalin build the bomb? And why did British intelligence fail to spot the most dangerous spy in the Manhattan Project?

Klaus Fuchs was brilliant, quiet, and unassuming. A physicist at the cutting edge of nuclear science, he worked at the heart of Britain’s secret atomic weapons program before being sent to the United States to join the Manhattan Project. But, all the while, Fuchs was passing the most closely guarded secrets of the West straight to the Soviet Union.

Listen as David and Gordon uncover how Fuchs’ communist beliefs and wartime alliances led him to become one of the most infamous spies of the 20th century.

-------------------

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27. The Spy Who Betrayed Oppenheimer: Fighting the Nazis (Ep 1) Mar 10, 2025

Who was the Russian spy working under Oppenheimer to build the atomic bomb? Why was it so dangerous to be a communist in Nazi Germany? And how did a young science prodigy become one of the most notorious spies in history?

Klaus Fuchs was born into a left-wing family at the beginning of the 20th century. Vehemently opposed to the fascist politics of his German homeland during the 1930s, Fuchs flees Hitler's repressive state and finds himself caught up in the horrors of World War Two. When a group of ambitious communists reach out to save him, his life is changed forever. This is the story of the communist spy who infiltrated the Manhattan Project.

Listen as Gordon and David begin to tell the fascinating tale of Klaus Fuchs, the atomic spy.

-------------------

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26. The Intelligence War: Trump and the End of American Support for Ukraine Mar 06, 2025

Donald Trump has paused all intelligence sharing with Ukraine. What does this mean? What intelligence was being shared? How dependent are Ukraine on this? And what impact will this have on the war?

Listen as Gordon Corera and David McCloskey discuss the latest developments in Ukraine.

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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25. Trump vs the CIA: The Halloween Massacre (Ep 2) Mar 05, 2025

When the CIA is forced to downsize, who gets cut? What happens to the intelligence left behind? And how does political control change the way spies operate?

In the late 1970s, Jimmy Carter’s CIA director launched a brutal purge, firing hundreds of intelligence officers in what became known as the Halloween Massacre. Now, with Trump taking his own axe to Langley, David and Gordon ask: is history repeating itself? And what happens when America’s spies become the target?

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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24. Trump vs the CIA: Purging the Deep State (Ep 1) Mar 03, 2025

How do politicians control the CIA? What happens when politics affects the way it is run? And how often does the White House clash with Langley?

Trump is trying to bring the CIA more directly under his control. He wants to reduce the size of it and re-order it's priorities. But he's not the first President to try to interfere at Langley. This week on The Rest Is Classified, David and Gordon look at Trump's CIA reforms but also take an eye to history to look at Jimmy Carter's CIA reforms that led to Halloween Massacre...

-------------------

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Producer: Callum Hill

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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23. Why Trump Wants Greenland: The Lost Nuclear Bomb (Ep 2) Feb 26, 2025

Can nuclear missiles really just disappear? Why is Greenland so important to the security of the United States? And will Donald Trump go all the way with his plan to buy this Arctic island?

A plane carrying nuclear weapons crashes in the Arctic and the effects ricochet through history. From seals born with deformities to radioactive permafrost, the presence of nuclear weapons on Greenland is seismic and very controversial. So, with Donald Trump threatening to buy the world’s largest island, David and Gordon are asking: why?

-------------------

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Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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22. Why Trump Wants Greenland: Secret Bases, The Arctic Circle, and Project Iceworm (Ep 1) Feb 24, 2025

Donald Trump has made it clear that he wants Greenland, but why? What is it about this largely barren, ice-covered island that extends well into the Arctic circle that he so desires? And how far back does this interest go?

Filled with rare minerals that are becoming increasingly valuable due to modern technology, critically placed for access to Arctic sea lanes, and home to key US military infrastructure, Greenland is of major security importance. But this importance stretches back into the 20th century. Listen as David and Gordon discuss the secret history of Greenland and all the bizarre events of the 20th century that have led to it being on Donald Trump’s wishlist.

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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21. Death on the Thames: The Poisoned Umbrella (Ep 2) Feb 19, 2025

Was an umbrella too obvious a murder weapon for an assassination in the heart of London? Why were the KGB hesitant to do the Bulgarian government's dirty work? And how do scientists work with spy agencies to identify lethal poisons?

Georgi Markov, the Bulgarian dissident writer, is dead. But, who murdered him? Was it the Bulgarians or the KGB? What about the British? In the aftermath of Markov's poisoning, the Metropolitan Police are struggling to discover the perpetrator behind the umbrella.

Listen as David and Gordon continue the story of the mysterious murder of a Bulgarian BBC broadcaster on Waterloo Bridge, and ask: will the assassin ever be caught?

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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20. Death on the Thames: An Assassin in London (Ep 1) Feb 17, 2025

How do you get away with murder in the heart of London? And which weapon would you choose to avoid arousing suspicion?

Georgi Markov was a Bulgarian dissident writer wanted by the Eastern Bloc for spreading anti-regime messaging across Western Europe. He'd fled to London and begun working for the BBC World Service, the US-funded Radio Free Europe and West Germany's Deutsche Welle. A satirist at heart, he used his platform to criticise the Bulgarian Communist leader, Todor Zhivkov, making fun of the authoritarian president and calling for the liberation of his home country.

But, was Markov walking a dangerous line that could lead to his untimely demise? Find out as David and Gordon tell the mysterious story of the Bulgarian writer and his suspicious death on Waterloo Bridge.

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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19. Attack on Greenpeace: Death in the Pacific (Ep 2) Feb 12, 2025

Did the French secret service commit an act of state terrorism by sinking a Greenpeace ship? Why did the tragedy of the Rainbow Warrior become known as BlunderWatergate? How many millions of dollars did France have to pay Greenpeace in compensation?

The French have bombed the Rainbow Warrior, forcing its environmentalist crew to flee for their lives, but one member of the team is stuck on board. As the story of the attack starts to spread around the world, what ensues is a frantic man-hunt to unmask the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

In this episode, Gordon and David trawl through the murky aftermath of the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior, debating how this disastrous operation informs sabotage missions to this day.

-------------------

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Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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18. Attack on Greenpeace: France’s Nuclear Bomb (Ep 1) Feb 10, 2025

Why were the French exploding nuclear bombs in the Pacific in the 70s and 80s? How did a spy manage to infiltrate Greenpeace? And what on earth are limpet mines?

In the 1960s, the French started testing nuclear weapons in the South Pacific, causing untold ecological destruction and worrying the surrounding island nations. Greenpeace, hot off the back of their successful anti-whaling and anti-sealing campaigns, heard this news and decided that nuclear weapons were their next battleground. Armed with an old English naval ship and some controversial publicity tactics, Greenpeace took on the French to free the Pacific of nuclear weapons.

Join David and Gordon as they dive into the gripping tale of the Rainbow Warrior - Greenpeace’s fearless flagship - sunk in a shocking act of French espionage in 1985.

-------------------

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17. ⁠Crossing the Iron Curtain: Revenge in Russia (Ep 4) Feb 05, 2025

Will Tolkachev fall at the final hurdle and land in the hands of the KGB? How do the CIA go about protecting their assets in the field? And, does it really take a spy to catch a spy?

As we reach the final instalment of the story of Adolf Tolkachev, the plot reaches its dramatic crescendo. Tolkachev has now been working for the CIA for over half a decade and the pressure is clearly taking its toll on both him and the US agents around him. As the two Cold War powers face off on the outskirts of Moscow, which behemoth will come out on top? Listen as David and Gordon conclude their series on the unbelievable story of the Billion Dollar Spy.

-------------------

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16.⁠ ⁠Crossing the Iron Curtain: Escape From the KGB (Ep 3) Feb 03, 2025

How would you disguise a cyanide pill for a CIA spy in Moscow during the Cold War? What risks could Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and The Beatles pose to Adolf Tolkachev’s mission against the Soviet state? And will the CIA’s mole in Moscow be discovered by the KGB?

It’s 1985, and for the past five years, Tolkachev has been providing the CIA with top secret documents detailing the intricacies of Soviet radar technology. He’s risked everything he knows and loves to help orchestrate the demise of the USSR, but is he teetering on the edge of discovery? Listen as David and Gordon share the third instalment of the story of Adolf Tolkachev as his health begins to decline and he realises a suicide pill might be his only way out.

-------------------

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The Seventh Floor (Extract) Feb 01, 2025

To coincide with the release of David's latest novel, The Seventh Floor, we have the book’s first chapter in audiobook form for you to enjoy.

Bouncing between the corridors of Langley and the Kremlin, the thrilling new novel by David McCloskey explores the nature of friendship in a faithless business, and what it means to love a place that does not love you back.

The Seventh Floor by David McCloskey, is OUT NOW in the UK.

Pre-order a signed edition via this link.

-------------------

A Russian arrives in Singapore with a secret to sell. When the Russian is killed and Sam Joseph, the CIA officer dispatched for the meet, goes missing, Artemis Procter is made a scapegoat and run out of the service. Traded back in a spy swap, Sam appears at Procter’s central Florida doorstep months later with an explosive secret: there is a Russian mole hidden deep within the upper reaches of CIA.

As Procter and Sam investigate, they arrive at a shortlist of suspects made up of both Procter’s closest friends and fiercest enemies. The hunt soon requires Procter to dredge up her own checkered past in service of CIA, placing her and Sam into the sights of a savvy Russian spymaster who will protect Moscow’s mole in Langley at all costs, even if it means wreaking bloody havoc across the United States.

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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15. Crossing the Iron Curtain: The Cold War’s Most Valuable Spy (Ep 2) Jan 29, 2025

Was it possible to avoid KGB surveillance in Moscow as a CIA agent at the height of the Cold War? What motivates someone to spy on their country for an opposing power? And how did Adolf Tolkachev manage to smuggle out the top secret documents the CIA needed to defeat the USSR?

Adolf Tolkachev has been recruited by the CIA as a mole inside a highly sensitive government department in Moscow. His job: to sneak top secret documents out to offer the US a glimpse of Russia's defence capabilities. Despite his initial success, Tolkachev knew the risks if he was caught by the KGB. But, could he justify those risks? Find out as Gordon and David share the latest instalment of the story of Adolf Tolkachev.

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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14. Crossing the Iron Curtain: The CIA’s Mole In Moscow (Ep 1) Jan 27, 2025

How did the CIA recruit a Russian asset in Moscow during the height of the Cold War? Why would someone be so determined to defect from the Soviet Union and spy for the US? And what would happen if the KGB found out they had a traitor in their midst?

Adolf Tolkachev had a vendetta against the Soviet state and became determined to orchestrate its demise. An expert on Soviet radar, Tolkachev realised his top secret work could help the US fight his communist overlords and potentially topple the entire system. So, how did he do it? Listen as Gordon and David start to tell the story of the man who became the CIA’s most valuable Russian spy.

-------------------

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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13. How China Spies: Trump, TikTok, and Taiwan Jan 22, 2025

Is the Chinese state using TikTok to spy on you? Why did President Biden move to shut TikTok down in the US the day before Trump's inauguration? And where does TikTok fit into China's cognitive warfare strategy?

On Sunday 19 January, TikTok users in the United States opened their apps to receive an error message from the company, explaining that "a law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S.". Op eds were written, influencers took to other social media apps to express their dismay, and politicians scrambled to explain why they were taking drastic action against the Chinese tech company. But, what did the 24-hour ban really mean for national security and data privacy in the US?

Listen as David and Gordon take a deep dive into how China spies in the 21st century.

-------------------

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Get tickets to see David and Gordon in conversation at Waterstones Trafalgar Square on Tuesday 28 January at 19:00 GMT via this link.

-------------------

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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12. The Spy Who Loved Me: A Russian in New York (Ep 2) Jan 21, 2025

The net is closing in around Anna Chapman. She is being watched by the FBI as they suspect her of being a Russian spy. Her moves are being tracked, but it is not as simple as they think. With the US and Russia trying to reset relations and President Medvedev stateside, the FBI are not in a place to be arresting Russians in New York. Especially when they can’t prove what she is. So what will they do?

Listen as David McCloskey and Gordon Corera discuss Anna Chapman and the precarious nature of her life in the USA.

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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11. The Spy Who Loved Me: Undercover in Londongrad (Ep 1) Jan 15, 2025

How did a Russian spy manage to infiltrate the upper echelons of London and New York society? Was Anna Chapman really an old fashioned Russian honeytrap or was she underestimated by the world's press? What was life like for wealthy Russians in "Londongrad" in the early 21st century?

The year is 2001 and the 18-year-old daughter of a Russian oligarch is partying in London. She meets a handsome young man at a warehouse rave and her passport to a new life in Western Europe glistens before her very eyes. What could possibly go wrong? Join David and Gordon as they take us back to the height of Londongrad and what happens when a Russian spy tries to infiltrate high society.

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

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Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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10. North Korea’s CIA: The Billion Dollar Heist (Ep 2) Jan 08, 2025

What happens when an authoritarian state runs its security services like an organised crime syndicate? Why did a group of North Korean cyber criminals gamble away vast sums of stolen money in the casinos of Las Vegas? And did Kim Jong Un's spies get away with their billion dollar heist?

After over a year of work, the North Korean cyber criminals are inside the Central Bank of Bangladesh and about to escape with their bags of cash, but there's a glitch. The account they plan to send the stolen money to in the Philippines has triggered a security alert with the Federal Reserve in New York. Will they avoid getting caught in the act? Listen as David and Gordon share the dramatic details of how a North Korean spy ring orchestrated one of the biggest bank robberies in history.

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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9. North Korea’s CIA: Inside Kim’s Crime Family (Ep 1) Jan 01, 2025

How did a group of North Korean cyber criminals manage to pull off the biggest bank heist in history? Did Kim Jong Un really orchestrate the murder of his own brother? And what does it take to keep an authoritarian state afloat?

A seemingly innocuous spearfishing email lands in the inbox of an unsuspecting employee at the Central Bank of Bangladesh. Months of patient digital hacking follow, all masterminded by a team of cyber criminals within North Korea’s shadowy spy service. But how did they manage it? Listen as David and Gordon uncover how the North Korean state created one of the world’s most dangerous crime syndicates.

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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8. The Man Who Made MI6 Dec 25, 2024

The daring, gadget-loving, mischievous founder of MI6. Mansfield Cumming, the first C, was a former navy man brought out of retirement to keep tabs on German spies around the outbreak of the First World War. Over the following decade he established MI6 and set it on course to be a central part of the British security apparatus. Known to test the mettle of potential employees by taking a knife out and stabbing his own wooden leg; Mansfield was an eccentric man who's personality has come to shape the institution which he founded.

In this Christmas special, listen as David and Gordon discuss the founding of Britain's Secret Intelligence Service.

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

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Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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7. The Real Godfather: The Assassination that Shook Syria (Ep 2) Dec 19, 2024

Did the assassination of Rafic Hariri lay the foundations for the ultimate downfall of the Assad regime? And was the Syrian dictator always destined for evil, or was evil thrust upon him?

Rafic Hariri is looking over his shoulder, anxious for his future, with Bashar al-Assad hellbent on his removal from power. He steps up his security detail and coordinates convoluted exit strategies, but his efforts are ultimately in vain. So, what was the long-term impact of the assassination of the Lebanese president for the Syrian dictator? Listen as David and Gordon tell the story of the gruesome killing of President Hariri and the parallels between Assad and the ill-fated mafiosi, Michael Corleone.

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Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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6. The Real Godfather: Assad’s Syrian Mafia (Ep 1) Dec 18, 2024

How did Bashar al-Assad become one of the Middle East’s most feared dictators? What role did Hezbollah play in the assassination of the Lebanese Prime Minister in 2005? And how did Assad’s rise to ultimate power mirror the ascent of Michael Corleone in the Godfather?

As the new millennium dawned, Bashar al-Assad prepared to step into his father’s shoes as the next authoritarian president of Syria. While he enjoyed a smooth ascension to the top job, trouble was brewing over the border in Lebanon as the Lebanese Prime Minister sought to escape the debilitating control of its Syrian master. What follows is a story straight out of the Godfather canon with a mafiosi state fighting for ultimate power and a network of spies working to neutralise opposing gangs.

Listen as Gordon Corera and David McCloskey discuss the Syrian plot to assassinate the Lebanese Prime Minister at the turn of the 21st century.

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It’s risk-free with Nord’s 30-day money-back guarantee!

Email: classified@goalhanger.com

Twitter: @triclassified

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Callum Hill

Senior Producer: Dom Johnson

Exec Producer: Tony Pastor

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5. CIA vs the Taliban: Bin Laden's Trojan Horse (Ep 2) Dec 11, 2024

Mazar i-Sharif has fallen without much of a fight. The Taliban's grip on Afghanistan is looking all the more shaky. It seems as if the American policy to work with the warlords is paying dividends. Enemy fighters are surrendering to them. But is it all too rosy? In the centre of Mazar i-Sharif, the Americans take 400 Al-Qaeda captives to Qala-i-Jangi, the Fort of War. They believe they have surrendered. But all is not as it seems...

Listen as David McCloskey and Gordon Corera discuss the first CIA teams in Afghanistan in the days after 9/11.

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