1 00:00:15,400 --> 00:00:18,740 The only way you can defeat a network like al -Qaeda is you have to get inside 2 00:00:18,740 --> 00:00:22,000 the network, which means you have to get a mole. You have to get someone that's 3 00:00:22,000 --> 00:00:24,440 willing to come out and basically turn against their ideology. 4 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:30,540 Recruiting assets in al -Qaeda is paramount. You desperately need to have 5 00:00:30,540 --> 00:00:32,180 someone next to the leadership. 6 00:00:35,320 --> 00:00:39,660 But if a source is going to risk his or her life... 7 00:00:42,379 --> 00:00:45,480 commit espionage to benefit the United States government. 8 00:00:45,700 --> 00:00:50,420 In exchange for that, we owe them and have a responsibility to protect them. 9 00:00:55,740 --> 00:01:02,600 We try to do what's best for the source, but we also 10 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:05,239 have to factor in what's best for our national security. 11 00:01:07,620 --> 00:01:09,800 And those two things don't always align. 12 00:01:24,840 --> 00:01:29,460 There's an emotional investment in every case, particularly ones that you 13 00:01:29,460 --> 00:01:30,460 recruit. 14 00:01:32,260 --> 00:01:36,780 There's a special bond, and understanding the sacrifice that they're 15 00:01:36,780 --> 00:01:38,180 really part of everything you do. 16 00:01:39,820 --> 00:01:45,960 But in the counterterrorist environment, the majority of these cases have a 17 00:01:45,960 --> 00:01:46,960 shelf life. 18 00:01:49,800 --> 00:01:53,380 In the early 2000s, there was a call to arms. 19 00:01:54,320 --> 00:01:58,880 for case officers to serve in these war zones. That's where the mission was. 20 00:02:00,100 --> 00:02:05,340 9 -11 was fresh in everybody's minds, so there was no shortage of officers that 21 00:02:05,340 --> 00:02:06,420 were raising their hands to go. 22 00:02:07,760 --> 00:02:11,220 And, you know, it's a tremendous sacrifice because you're away from your 23 00:02:11,340 --> 00:02:15,280 you're in a dangerous environment, and when something goes bad, it can often go 24 00:02:15,280 --> 00:02:16,159 really bad. 25 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:17,280 There's real consequences. 26 00:02:18,080 --> 00:02:23,460 There's a chance that I won't come back. But you do that knowing that there's a 27 00:02:23,460 --> 00:02:25,980 need. protecting and saving U .S. lives. 28 00:02:26,420 --> 00:02:27,680 My name is Pat Waninger. 29 00:02:28,260 --> 00:02:31,560 I'm a retired case officer from the Central Intelligence Agency. 30 00:02:31,840 --> 00:02:36,120 I had the opportunity to serve in the agency for almost 21 years. 31 00:02:37,940 --> 00:02:41,580 In 2006, I was assigned to go to a war zone. 32 00:02:41,800 --> 00:02:45,340 You know, it was one of those places where it was in the news. There was a 33 00:02:45,340 --> 00:02:47,400 tremendous amount of strife. 34 00:02:49,580 --> 00:02:54,040 Any CIA officer serving, particularly in the Middle East, went into that 35 00:02:54,040 --> 00:02:59,000 assignment with the goal of, one, collecting intelligence that's going to 36 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:02,800 protect our homeland and to disrupt and degrade the operations and the 37 00:03:02,800 --> 00:03:07,440 activities of al -Qaeda, and two, to get information that would lead to the 38 00:03:07,440 --> 00:03:12,360 demise of al -Qaeda senior leadership and ensure that another 9 -11 doesn't 39 00:03:12,360 --> 00:03:13,360 happen. 40 00:03:13,460 --> 00:03:18,720 So how do you do that? A spot to develop, recruit agents that are going 41 00:03:18,720 --> 00:03:21,700 us access to al -Qaeda leadership plans and intentions. 42 00:03:22,220 --> 00:03:24,520 At that time, al -Qaeda was very active. 43 00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:28,120 When we've conquered France, we'll come to the USA. 44 00:03:28,560 --> 00:03:30,780 We'll come to London and conquer the whole world. 45 00:03:31,260 --> 00:03:34,560 The banner of Mohammed, peacefully upon his head, will be raised from where the 46 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:35,860 sun rises to where it sets. 47 00:03:36,440 --> 00:03:39,440 And there was a lot coming at us at that time, on a daily basis. 48 00:03:39,680 --> 00:03:40,880 There were mortar attack. 49 00:03:42,190 --> 00:03:49,170 Death squads, suicide bombings, attacks against religious 50 00:03:49,170 --> 00:03:50,170 sites. 51 00:03:51,470 --> 00:03:54,970 Extremely normal to hear massive explosions several times a day. 52 00:03:58,230 --> 00:04:01,010 Car bombs going off. I'm trying to restate myself. 53 00:04:01,550 --> 00:04:02,890 Wow, somebody just died. 54 00:04:03,190 --> 00:04:07,930 Everybody to them was a target. Anything that's not them, their belief, their 55 00:04:07,930 --> 00:04:11,090 ideology is a target. My name is Marwan. 56 00:04:11,480 --> 00:04:13,460 I was the lead interpreter with Pat. 57 00:04:13,680 --> 00:04:17,500 The U .S. forces were targets to everybody and anybody. 58 00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:21,660 The people that worked with them were targets to everybody and anybody. 59 00:04:22,100 --> 00:04:23,540 It was a wild, wild west. 60 00:04:23,980 --> 00:04:28,020 They called out for a global jihad, and they had foreign fighters who all wanted 61 00:04:28,020 --> 00:04:29,380 to fight under the al -Qaeda banner. 62 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:33,820 We estimated there would be 300 kidnappings in a given month in Baghdad 63 00:04:34,060 --> 00:04:37,360 So just do the math. Literally, the campaign was terror. 64 00:04:37,660 --> 00:04:40,080 My name is Dan O'Shea. I'm a retired SEAL commander. 65 00:04:40,670 --> 00:04:42,830 and a veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan. 66 00:04:43,290 --> 00:04:47,610 Al -Qaeda not only was targeting U .S. soldiers and coalition partners, but 67 00:04:47,610 --> 00:04:49,990 they did to the locals on the ground was even more catastrophic. 68 00:04:52,290 --> 00:04:56,290 This woman screams for her daughters, victims of one of at least four 69 00:04:56,290 --> 00:05:00,130 explosions. Three of the bombs blew up within minutes of each other. 70 00:05:04,810 --> 00:05:07,610 I was leading a team in the counter -terrorist branch. 71 00:05:07,870 --> 00:05:12,130 Our job was to conduct surveillance operations against potential al -Qaeda 72 00:05:12,130 --> 00:05:17,470 targets. There was a lot of confusion about who all the players were, who were 73 00:05:17,470 --> 00:05:19,070 the decision -makers in the group. 74 00:05:20,450 --> 00:05:21,830 Where are they operating? 75 00:05:22,090 --> 00:05:23,090 Where's their location? 76 00:05:23,330 --> 00:05:27,150 And you're constantly trying to piece that together and follow the 77 00:05:27,230 --> 00:05:28,230 connect the dots. 78 00:05:28,890 --> 00:05:33,790 Not surprisingly, they're using their own level of tradecraft and cover and 79 00:05:33,790 --> 00:05:38,350 security to protect their operations because they know we're looking for 80 00:05:39,730 --> 00:05:42,990 They definitely have the advantage. They speak the language. They understand the 81 00:05:42,990 --> 00:05:46,230 culture. They are made up of people of that country. 82 00:05:47,030 --> 00:05:50,670 Whether it be in a traditional environment or against a CT target, 83 00:05:50,670 --> 00:05:54,090 trying to get into that inner circle where the decision makers are talking. 84 00:05:54,800 --> 00:05:58,800 Building inroads into those networks through recruitment operations was part 85 00:05:58,800 --> 00:05:59,800 that. 86 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:03,880 To be able to have someone telling what they're saying, knowing their plans, 87 00:06:04,080 --> 00:06:07,980 knowing where they're going to hit next, that intelligence is invaluable. 88 00:06:08,660 --> 00:06:12,880 I'm Erin O 'Loughlin. I was employed by the CIA for 10 years. I was a case 89 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:15,160 officer for seven of the 10 years that I was in the agency. 90 00:06:16,300 --> 00:06:20,520 Recruiting assets in a war zone happens in multiple ways. They usually come to 91 00:06:20,520 --> 00:06:22,600 us for a lot of different motivations. 92 00:06:23,210 --> 00:06:25,310 such as ambition or just fear. 93 00:06:25,630 --> 00:06:30,270 We were able to put together some lead information on a potential death. 94 00:06:31,510 --> 00:06:33,750 And that led to an initial contact. 95 00:06:34,750 --> 00:06:35,850 We'll call him Ali. 96 00:06:41,390 --> 00:06:46,930 We had indicators that he was looking to communicate with us. 97 00:06:48,890 --> 00:06:51,170 We weren't 100 % sure why. 98 00:06:51,760 --> 00:06:53,000 We didn't know his motivations. 99 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:57,760 At the time, he was serving as an advisor to senior al -Qaeda leadership. 100 00:06:58,820 --> 00:07:00,720 But there was a clear and present danger. 101 00:07:01,340 --> 00:07:05,900 Al -Qaeda would like nothing more than to kidnap or kill a CIA officer. 102 00:07:06,460 --> 00:07:11,760 Was he setting us up? Was he trying to identify who we are so that we can be a 103 00:07:11,760 --> 00:07:12,760 target? 104 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:17,240 Or did he legitimately want to share information because he has another 105 00:07:17,240 --> 00:07:18,240 motivation? 106 00:07:18,760 --> 00:07:22,660 You try to do as much vetting as you can ahead of time. And we were able to 107 00:07:22,660 --> 00:07:27,700 assess that he did have direct access to the leadership of this al -Qaeda group 108 00:07:27,700 --> 00:07:31,040 that was operating in this area and was reigning terror. 109 00:07:31,680 --> 00:07:37,440 So it was a unique opportunity and somebody worth the risk of doing a 110 00:07:39,580 --> 00:07:43,220 There's a tremendous amount of pre -planning that went into it. How do we 111 00:07:43,220 --> 00:07:45,400 that it's secure before the meeting happens? 112 00:07:45,740 --> 00:07:50,430 If this is a provocation, that we don't know when it's too late, when he's in 113 00:07:50,430 --> 00:07:53,470 proximity to us, where he could harm the team. 114 00:07:54,630 --> 00:08:00,470 Or another, which was in the back of everybody's mind, mine included, that 115 00:08:00,470 --> 00:08:01,470 being followed. 116 00:08:02,190 --> 00:08:05,970 This guy is very, very well trusted. You have all this information. 117 00:08:06,790 --> 00:08:12,190 But the leader could say, hey, why don't you go follow him today, you know, see 118 00:08:12,190 --> 00:08:13,190 what he's up to. 119 00:08:15,320 --> 00:08:19,580 Getting to the location site in a secure manner was the first step. 120 00:08:23,500 --> 00:08:25,860 There were two schools of thought moving around. 121 00:08:26,080 --> 00:08:29,440 At one, you either convoyed up and became a big target, and it would always 122 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:33,980 Ford Expedition SUVs. You'd take two or three, minimum two, and you would load 123 00:08:33,980 --> 00:08:34,980 up. 124 00:08:37,820 --> 00:08:41,740 You'd either go large or you'd go incognito. You would try and go in maybe 125 00:08:41,740 --> 00:08:45,360 local vehicle, put a headscarf on, try and cover up. But if you get caught at a 126 00:08:45,360 --> 00:08:49,500 checkpoint and then they realize that you're not a local, you're asking for a 127 00:08:49,500 --> 00:08:50,500 potential death sentence. 128 00:08:52,940 --> 00:08:58,100 The latter, it is more dangerous because you can't pack as much. You have to 129 00:08:58,100 --> 00:08:59,160 keep a low profile. 130 00:09:01,200 --> 00:09:05,500 Officers in war zones have to wear their Kevlar, their armor, body armor, and 131 00:09:05,500 --> 00:09:07,020 their weapons when they go out anywhere. 132 00:09:07,390 --> 00:09:10,470 There's a danger on a different, almost steroid -like level. 133 00:09:10,750 --> 00:09:14,630 If you left the base, you could be ending your life just by walking outside 134 00:09:14,630 --> 00:09:15,630 gate. 135 00:09:19,470 --> 00:09:23,730 The day of the meeting, it's an early morning. We're looking at timing our 136 00:09:23,730 --> 00:09:27,070 movements so that we could be less obvious. 137 00:09:27,370 --> 00:09:29,730 It's a very bustling, populated city. 138 00:09:31,530 --> 00:09:35,670 We're trying to blend in, not be obvious. 139 00:09:45,740 --> 00:09:50,900 We pick the time and location, which allows us to have more control over the 140 00:09:50,900 --> 00:09:51,900 environment. 141 00:09:52,460 --> 00:09:56,240 There are going to be security gates that this person would have to go 142 00:09:56,240 --> 00:09:59,220 before being exposed to us. 143 00:10:00,980 --> 00:10:06,500 This is a bad guy, so we're going to take all kinds of precautions. You try 144 00:10:06,500 --> 00:10:10,440 make sure that car that he's in is not a car bomb. 145 00:10:10,740 --> 00:10:13,800 You make sure that he's not wearing a vest. 146 00:10:19,280 --> 00:10:23,140 So he enters the room, and he definitely looked the part. 147 00:10:23,340 --> 00:10:27,880 He was a large, burly man, beard, weathered face. 148 00:10:29,680 --> 00:10:33,220 He looked like what you think an al -Qaeda terrorist would look like at that 149 00:10:33,220 --> 00:10:35,940 time. It was a lot of nerve -wracking. 150 00:10:40,500 --> 00:10:46,700 It's not possible to be 100 % on anything when it comes to doing the 151 00:10:46,700 --> 00:10:47,800 things as far as war zones. 152 00:10:49,450 --> 00:10:55,270 Again, not knowing who we're dealing with 100 % and what his intentions were, 153 00:10:55,450 --> 00:11:00,970 whether they're real or was it a setup, there's an old saying that when you're 154 00:11:00,970 --> 00:11:05,170 trying to prevent attacks, we have to be right 100 % of the time. 155 00:11:06,290 --> 00:11:09,710 Al -Qaeda, they only have to be right once. 156 00:11:16,430 --> 00:11:19,690 I like a good handshake to get a feel for the person. 157 00:11:20,030 --> 00:11:26,150 Is he really what he says he is? Is he going to blow up when we shake hands? 158 00:11:26,270 --> 00:11:29,630 When your life is threatened, you try to find answers within minutes. 159 00:11:32,490 --> 00:11:38,670 By the definition of terrorism, yes, Ali is a bad guy. But he came 160 00:11:38,670 --> 00:11:43,490 highly recommended with lots of very valuable information. 161 00:11:45,270 --> 00:11:48,950 information that could save hundreds, if not thousands. 162 00:11:50,070 --> 00:11:55,190 Going into a meeting like that, the climate was very hot, temperatures were 163 00:11:55,190 --> 00:12:00,770 high, and of course the stakes were higher and the risks were higher, but 164 00:12:00,770 --> 00:12:03,250 was just, you know, the cost of doing business. 165 00:12:03,830 --> 00:12:06,850 So, you know, we quickly get acquainted with this person. 166 00:12:07,630 --> 00:12:09,970 I asked him, why are you here today? 167 00:12:10,230 --> 00:12:11,350 What can I do for you? 168 00:12:11,930 --> 00:12:17,510 His motivations were tied to the killing of other Muslims. He saw firsthand the 169 00:12:17,510 --> 00:12:19,750 car bombs, children being killed. 170 00:12:20,030 --> 00:12:26,450 So as part of this ongoing sectarian violence that his group was involved in, 171 00:12:26,530 --> 00:12:28,590 that started to have an impact on him. 172 00:12:29,990 --> 00:12:36,790 He also saw that there was holes in what he described as al 173 00:12:36,790 --> 00:12:37,790 -Qaeda's narrative. 174 00:12:38,170 --> 00:12:42,710 For example, when people agreed to join al -Qaeda, perhaps to be a fighter or 175 00:12:42,710 --> 00:12:47,930 maybe a suicide bomber, promises were made that financially their family would 176 00:12:47,930 --> 00:12:52,030 be taken care of. And he saw that that wasn't happening. He recognized that the 177 00:12:52,030 --> 00:12:56,010 longer he stayed in al -Qaeda, the greater risk of him dying. 178 00:12:56,610 --> 00:13:01,750 And he had a young family and children that he was worried about. 179 00:13:02,050 --> 00:13:06,190 So a combination of those factors led him. 180 00:13:06,620 --> 00:13:13,620 to you know want to talk to us but he viewed us through the lens of al 181 00:13:13,620 --> 00:13:18,000 -qaeda you know we were bad and one of the things that at the time president 182 00:13:18,000 --> 00:13:22,260 bush had said is that we're not at war with islam the enemy of america is not 183 00:13:22,260 --> 00:13:27,540 our many muslim friends our enemy is a radical network of terrorists and every 184 00:13:27,540 --> 00:13:33,020 government that supports them there was a difference and he saw that And he saw 185 00:13:33,020 --> 00:13:38,360 over time that the intentions of the United States government to try to bring 186 00:13:38,360 --> 00:13:41,300 stability to that environment was an honorable one. 187 00:13:42,200 --> 00:13:47,300 We spent several hours together during that first meeting and, you know, 188 00:13:47,300 --> 00:13:51,880 definitely got a sense that he was who we said he was, but we were at the front 189 00:13:51,880 --> 00:13:52,880 end of the vetting process. 190 00:13:53,680 --> 00:13:58,260 You should always be vetting. To vet a source, you're always having to kind of 191 00:13:58,260 --> 00:14:00,520 test them. You've got to be able to make sure that they're... 192 00:14:00,960 --> 00:14:03,420 an appropriate person to work with so that they stay safe. 193 00:14:03,840 --> 00:14:06,700 And then you also need to make sure that what they're giving you is solid 194 00:14:06,700 --> 00:14:07,700 intelligence. 195 00:14:08,220 --> 00:14:11,640 So I asked him, tell me who's in the network. 196 00:14:11,860 --> 00:14:14,340 And he was able to validate what we already knew. 197 00:14:15,020 --> 00:14:19,540 Again, a good vetting strategy, but also providing new information that we 198 00:14:19,540 --> 00:14:23,780 didn't know. So, you know, he made an impression on me that this guy could be 199 00:14:23,780 --> 00:14:24,499 the real deal. 200 00:14:24,500 --> 00:14:25,920 And to his credit. 201 00:14:26,640 --> 00:14:30,480 He was willing to assume the risk that came along with choosing this path. 202 00:14:32,120 --> 00:14:35,940 This was a once -in -a -lifetime kind of an opportunity. 203 00:14:36,340 --> 00:14:42,640 He didn't hide anything, of course. He did say a couple weeks ago if he'd seen 204 00:14:42,640 --> 00:14:44,500 me, he would have shot me. 205 00:14:45,680 --> 00:14:52,220 I told him that if we ever learned of him being compromised, 206 00:14:52,300 --> 00:14:55,020 that we would do everything that we could to protect him. 207 00:14:55,550 --> 00:14:56,710 And that meant a lot to him. 208 00:14:57,210 --> 00:15:02,850 We definitely walked away from that meeting feeling better about the 209 00:15:02,850 --> 00:15:03,850 relationship. 210 00:15:12,490 --> 00:15:15,010 We started him with smaller operations. 211 00:15:16,410 --> 00:15:21,550 He was probably expecting that we would put him at the maximum risk immediately. 212 00:15:22,300 --> 00:15:27,100 And we just weren't willing to do that. We have a responsibility to help protect 213 00:15:27,100 --> 00:15:28,100 them. 214 00:15:28,200 --> 00:15:31,080 There's a lot of pressure when you're trying to protect an asset and you're 215 00:15:31,080 --> 00:15:34,680 working with them. You hold their lives in your hands. You're constantly talking 216 00:15:34,680 --> 00:15:37,780 to them about staying safe. You're doing what you can to make sure that the 217 00:15:37,780 --> 00:15:39,980 person you're working with stays alive, their family stays alive. 218 00:15:40,740 --> 00:15:45,060 That can be hard on your psyche because they're killed immediately if they're 219 00:15:45,060 --> 00:15:47,020 even suspected of working with you. 220 00:15:48,060 --> 00:15:51,220 He would always say, don't push me. 221 00:15:51,690 --> 00:15:54,130 Just be patient. I'll get you what you want. 222 00:15:54,430 --> 00:15:55,630 Please be patient. 223 00:15:56,290 --> 00:15:59,470 You're convincing someone to trust you, and it takes a long time. 224 00:15:59,710 --> 00:16:01,050 It's like building any relationship. 225 00:16:01,490 --> 00:16:03,510 It's just this guy happens to be a terrorist. 226 00:16:05,370 --> 00:16:10,070 One of the areas where we were able to build trust with him was the fact that 227 00:16:10,070 --> 00:16:14,910 were not haphazardly putting him at risk. We were looking out for his 228 00:16:15,030 --> 00:16:19,330 not just ours, and that resonated with him. 229 00:16:20,140 --> 00:16:25,800 Over time, we asked him to do bigger and potentially riskier things. 230 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:28,560 We want to, you know, crawl, walk, run. 231 00:16:30,040 --> 00:16:34,740 And we're teaching him levels of tradecraft along the way also, like not 232 00:16:34,740 --> 00:16:36,700 too aggressive in how he collected the information. 233 00:16:37,600 --> 00:16:39,420 Don't ask to be part of a meeting. 234 00:16:39,720 --> 00:16:40,840 Let them ask you. 235 00:16:41,620 --> 00:16:46,520 Don't be so curious about details. You know, simple things like that. And it 236 00:16:46,520 --> 00:16:47,520 worked. 237 00:16:48,080 --> 00:16:53,260 After a couple of months, we started putting out intelligence reporting based 238 00:16:53,260 --> 00:16:54,239 his information. 239 00:16:54,240 --> 00:17:00,340 He got plans on attacks, car bombs and IEDs, names of leaders. 240 00:17:01,100 --> 00:17:06,599 As he starts becoming more vetted, he starts providing locational data, you 241 00:17:06,599 --> 00:17:10,280 know, where they were doing meetings, where they slept at night, what we call 242 00:17:10,280 --> 00:17:11,280 their bed -down locations. 243 00:17:11,740 --> 00:17:12,880 Locations are... 244 00:17:13,240 --> 00:17:17,540 The most important thing, it's very, very rarely revealed to anybody. 245 00:17:17,740 --> 00:17:22,380 So when you have a source with that kind of information, it's very significant. 246 00:17:28,540 --> 00:17:35,440 Over time, the military started acting on it. I was working very closely with 247 00:17:35,440 --> 00:17:37,320 elite U .S. Special Operations Force. 248 00:17:38,120 --> 00:17:41,680 They knew that I had a source, and I was giving them contact to the reporting. 249 00:17:41,800 --> 00:17:47,340 They were acting on this information and had a series of very successful 250 00:17:47,340 --> 00:17:48,340 operations. 251 00:17:49,540 --> 00:17:50,660 Intelligence is key to everything. 252 00:17:51,180 --> 00:17:54,880 Intelligence drives operations. They drive each other, and good operations 253 00:17:54,880 --> 00:17:57,460 bring in more intelligence because they collect intelligence off every target. 254 00:17:57,600 --> 00:17:58,780 They go hand in hand. 255 00:17:59,900 --> 00:18:03,920 Obviously, working with our partners in the military had a tremendous positive 256 00:18:03,920 --> 00:18:06,180 impact on the war on terror. 257 00:18:06,990 --> 00:18:08,170 I was tremendously proud. 258 00:18:08,910 --> 00:18:12,710 I have the loyalty to the military because I grew up in a military family. 259 00:18:14,010 --> 00:18:16,270 My parents were both immigrants. 260 00:18:16,590 --> 00:18:18,550 My dad was from Peru. 261 00:18:19,190 --> 00:18:25,090 He joined the military when he was 18 and got a citizenship through that and 262 00:18:25,090 --> 00:18:29,090 worked in the special operations community, was a Green Beret, and posted 263 00:18:29,090 --> 00:18:30,110 Fort Bragg, North Carolina. 264 00:18:30,310 --> 00:18:32,610 So my brother and I were born and raised there. 265 00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:37,480 and grew up in this community of service before self. 266 00:18:37,780 --> 00:18:42,380 My dad had served in Vietnam, several tours, had been wounded, received Purple 267 00:18:42,380 --> 00:18:44,160 Hearts. You know, he was that guy. 268 00:18:44,400 --> 00:18:50,260 He was a native Spanish speaker serving in the 7th Special Forces Group. 269 00:18:50,580 --> 00:18:54,780 So if you go back to the 80s, these shadow wars that were happening in El 270 00:18:54,780 --> 00:18:59,160 Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua, and then later Panama. 271 00:19:02,190 --> 00:19:06,770 I mean, he was involved in all of those, spent a lot of time away from us, but 272 00:19:06,770 --> 00:19:13,650 he was working in these faraway locations doing secretive work, which 273 00:19:13,650 --> 00:19:16,450 we fully didn't understand at the time, and I got to appreciate as I got older 274 00:19:16,450 --> 00:19:17,450 in life. 275 00:19:18,450 --> 00:19:20,130 But I got a commission in the military. 276 00:19:20,890 --> 00:19:26,370 I was an intelligence officer for eight years in the U .S. Air Force, and 277 00:19:26,370 --> 00:19:30,250 eventually I had the opportunity to visit Langley, and it really piqued my 278 00:19:30,250 --> 00:19:31,239 interest. 279 00:19:31,240 --> 00:19:37,060 On a whim, decided to apply, thinking I'd never have a chance to get in. And 280 00:19:37,060 --> 00:19:38,060 and behold, got in. 281 00:19:38,600 --> 00:19:42,460 But to make the decision to leave the Air Force wasn't an easy one, just 282 00:19:42,460 --> 00:19:43,880 the military had been really good to me. 283 00:19:44,460 --> 00:19:50,080 So I spoke to a senior officer, a general, and his remark was, well, what 284 00:19:50,080 --> 00:19:52,900 you waiting for? Because you don't have to wear your uniform to serve your 285 00:19:52,900 --> 00:19:53,900 country. 286 00:19:54,660 --> 00:19:56,640 And that was very powerful for me. 287 00:20:02,220 --> 00:20:06,400 We had just gotten ourselves into a very good position with Ali to penetrate 288 00:20:06,400 --> 00:20:07,480 these al -Qaeda networks. 289 00:20:12,220 --> 00:20:13,900 And it worked. 290 00:20:19,360 --> 00:20:24,040 Ali's information led to the removal of many targets off the battlefield. 291 00:20:24,940 --> 00:20:27,180 Coalition forces raided two locations. 292 00:20:27,420 --> 00:20:30,380 One terrorist was killed and two suspects detained in the operation. 293 00:20:32,680 --> 00:20:34,740 He saw the successes firsthand. 294 00:20:35,360 --> 00:20:41,060 Like, he would see that his reporting led to, two nights later, somebody being 295 00:20:41,060 --> 00:20:46,660 captured, and the whole network's talking about it, and he, inside, knows 296 00:20:46,660 --> 00:20:49,280 it was him that was directly responsible for that. 297 00:20:49,600 --> 00:20:54,440 Ali was a treasure trove. It made him the source of that era. 298 00:20:56,080 --> 00:21:00,220 He starts to be empowered by this. You know, that's a good thing. 299 00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:03,940 But it's also, it can be a very dangerous thing. It's a double -edged 300 00:21:04,140 --> 00:21:10,040 where if he becomes too aggressive, then he's potentially exposing himself and 301 00:21:10,040 --> 00:21:11,180 taking unnecessary risks. 302 00:21:11,800 --> 00:21:14,500 And that's when things, you know, become dangerous for him. 303 00:21:19,420 --> 00:21:25,580 As the case progressed, Ali came to me and said, hey, there's a concern that 304 00:21:25,580 --> 00:21:28,640 somebody in the group is talking, and they're looking. 305 00:21:32,390 --> 00:21:38,070 Operation -wise, that was a huge deal. You're concerned if his cover is blown. 306 00:21:39,870 --> 00:21:44,230 The fact that the intel that was coming in was allowing the military to strike 307 00:21:44,230 --> 00:21:45,230 more and more targets. 308 00:21:47,870 --> 00:21:52,070 Al -Qaeda realized, okay, we have a mole. Someone is obviously leaking. 309 00:21:53,050 --> 00:21:56,410 As time went by, it got more and more dangerous. 310 00:21:57,150 --> 00:21:58,490 And the... 311 00:21:59,390 --> 00:22:03,610 terrorist groups, they are very sophisticated with how they identify 312 00:22:03,610 --> 00:22:05,190 were working for the U .S. forces. 313 00:22:06,890 --> 00:22:12,130 From my perspective, we want to be really careful about how we're 314 00:22:13,110 --> 00:22:16,490 But in this case, he was not concerned. 315 00:22:16,770 --> 00:22:18,490 He was like, I'm fine. 316 00:22:18,850 --> 00:22:20,330 You have to trust me on this. 317 00:22:21,430 --> 00:22:24,070 I know these people better than you. And he wasn't wrong. 318 00:22:25,210 --> 00:22:26,410 And I'm like, well... 319 00:22:27,360 --> 00:22:29,080 It's my job to worry about these things. 320 00:22:29,520 --> 00:22:32,840 He didn't necessarily know tradecraft and security. 321 00:22:33,200 --> 00:22:36,320 Maybe he wasn't thinking about some of the things that we were thinking about. 322 00:22:37,460 --> 00:22:41,380 But that's just the reality that sources can bring in a lot of good information, 323 00:22:41,380 --> 00:22:45,560 but the more successful they are at that target, the more risk and more of a 324 00:22:45,560 --> 00:22:47,040 target you put on the head of that source. 325 00:22:49,040 --> 00:22:51,760 So we took measures to protect him. 326 00:22:52,260 --> 00:22:54,220 We were able to do some things. 327 00:22:56,330 --> 00:22:59,290 to mitigate the threat, and he was super appreciative of that. 328 00:23:11,150 --> 00:23:16,130 He just downplayed any scrutiny that could have been associated with him. 329 00:23:18,770 --> 00:23:22,710 And, you know, he was able to maintain his credibility through that time, and 330 00:23:22,710 --> 00:23:24,430 was very appreciative of the steps that we took. 331 00:23:25,450 --> 00:23:27,170 Seemed to settle down for a couple of weeks. 332 00:23:29,810 --> 00:23:36,810 And then three weeks later, we were in contact, and he indicated that 333 00:23:36,810 --> 00:23:42,430 he had been asked to meet with a senior al -Qaeda leader, someone he had not met 334 00:23:42,430 --> 00:23:48,130 before, but he was being asked to meet with them the following day, and that he 335 00:23:48,130 --> 00:23:53,090 viewed this as a very positive step, that his role as an advisor 336 00:23:53,820 --> 00:23:55,780 He was making an impact. He was trusted. 337 00:23:56,080 --> 00:23:57,580 He said, this is a good thing. 338 00:23:59,240 --> 00:24:03,120 My first reaction was, this seems really out of pattern. 339 00:24:03,360 --> 00:24:06,080 He had just been under scrutiny a few weeks earlier. 340 00:24:06,460 --> 00:24:11,900 So suddenly being chosen to go meet a senior al -Qaeda guy, are you sure this 341 00:24:11,900 --> 00:24:12,900 isn't a setup? 342 00:24:13,180 --> 00:24:14,260 And he's like, no. 343 00:24:15,120 --> 00:24:19,460 This is good for us. I'm going to have more access to more senior people. 344 00:24:19,950 --> 00:24:22,370 We're going to be able to do more damage against this network. 345 00:24:22,630 --> 00:24:27,410 And again, I was very concerned about this. It just seemed to pop up out of 346 00:24:27,410 --> 00:24:28,369 nowhere. 347 00:24:28,370 --> 00:24:33,490 Everybody had a lot of bills. But when the high command say to anybody, you're 348 00:24:33,490 --> 00:24:39,890 doing this, you're doing this, it put everything in jeopardy. If anything 349 00:24:39,890 --> 00:24:41,450 happens, you're a goner. 350 00:24:43,310 --> 00:24:47,010 After receiving this information, I advised the special... 351 00:24:47,750 --> 00:24:52,790 operations unit that I was working with, and obviously the station, and asked 352 00:24:52,790 --> 00:24:57,210 for more resources so that we could be better positioned to monitor what was 353 00:24:57,210 --> 00:25:03,610 happening with Ali the following day. If he was indeed having a meeting with a 354 00:25:03,610 --> 00:25:07,730 more senior al -Qaeda leader, we want to be positioned to understand what that 355 00:25:07,730 --> 00:25:08,730 looked like. 356 00:25:12,470 --> 00:25:16,690 The day of the meeting, he was told to be at a certain place at a certain time. 357 00:25:17,160 --> 00:25:18,920 through his network. 358 00:25:20,100 --> 00:25:26,460 Emissaries picked him up at a certain place and started to employ what we know 359 00:25:26,460 --> 00:25:28,580 as Al -Qaeda tradecraft. 360 00:25:31,140 --> 00:25:33,920 Surveillance detection to make sure nobody's following them. 361 00:25:34,140 --> 00:25:38,240 They're doing car swaps, things like that, which we had seen before. 362 00:25:39,780 --> 00:25:44,720 Al -Qaeda does employ tradecraft, and they're very good at it. When it comes 363 00:25:44,720 --> 00:25:45,800 hiding Osama bin Laden, 364 00:25:47,070 --> 00:25:50,790 Pretty top -notch. The art of war, Sun Tzu said it himself, never underestimate 365 00:25:50,790 --> 00:25:51,790 your enemy. 366 00:25:51,930 --> 00:25:53,610 Learn about them, where they're coming from. 367 00:25:54,050 --> 00:25:56,890 Understand they're not dumb at all. They're very strategic. 368 00:25:57,150 --> 00:25:59,470 They're very smart. They know how to stay alive. 369 00:26:02,570 --> 00:26:09,010 So as the day went on, this started to look like he might actually meet someone 370 00:26:09,010 --> 00:26:10,010 more senior. 371 00:26:10,850 --> 00:26:12,090 And suddenly... 372 00:26:19,120 --> 00:26:24,500 He was, at gunpoint, asked to leave his vehicle and 373 00:26:24,500 --> 00:26:27,780 blindfolded and put into the trunk of the second vehicle. 374 00:26:30,060 --> 00:26:35,660 And at that point, I realized they're going to kill him. 375 00:26:45,080 --> 00:26:48,040 That's not something they normally do with trusted. 376 00:26:48,520 --> 00:26:49,520 Al Qaeda members. 377 00:26:51,020 --> 00:26:55,060 Every time you saw someone being put in the trunk of a car, they were being 378 00:26:55,060 --> 00:26:57,280 kidnapped. That was virtually the calling card. 379 00:26:57,680 --> 00:27:01,360 Would generally move them car to car and then ultimately put them in a place 380 00:27:01,360 --> 00:27:02,360 where they were going to be held. 381 00:27:03,740 --> 00:27:08,880 Soon after he was taken to this house in this residential area that we were not 382 00:27:08,880 --> 00:27:13,680 familiar with, I had this feeling like this is not Al Qaeda tradecraft. 383 00:27:15,120 --> 00:27:16,660 This is not part of the plan. 384 00:27:20,300 --> 00:27:22,480 I thought, there's something wrong. 385 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:33,040 Marwan and I left the station, jumped in a vehicle and went down to the special 386 00:27:33,040 --> 00:27:37,520 operations unit that we were working with and highlighted that, hey, I'm 387 00:27:37,520 --> 00:27:38,540 concerned about this. 388 00:27:39,340 --> 00:27:43,320 And there was a discussion, and I met with the commander, and we talked 389 00:27:43,320 --> 00:27:47,520 this. They thought this was a protocol. 390 00:27:48,110 --> 00:27:50,170 Pat disagreed. He highly disagreed. 391 00:27:50,450 --> 00:27:51,630 So there was that debate. 392 00:27:51,890 --> 00:27:56,150 Is he actually going to a meeting with a senior al -Qaeda guy and let's just let 393 00:27:56,150 --> 00:27:59,350 it play out, or are they going to kill him? And it was a valid debate to say, 394 00:27:59,470 --> 00:28:03,350 maybe this is just all al -Qaeda tradecraft to protect the senior leader. 395 00:28:03,790 --> 00:28:07,690 My gut was that they were going to kill him. I didn't know that conclusively, 396 00:28:07,770 --> 00:28:09,010 but I felt that way. 397 00:28:09,290 --> 00:28:13,870 And the special operations unit commander agreed with me. 398 00:28:15,920 --> 00:28:20,420 To his credit, he suggested, we're going to go save this guy. We'll go get him. 399 00:28:21,920 --> 00:28:26,320 This unit specifically had benefited from his reporting tremendously in the 400 00:28:26,320 --> 00:28:30,380 amount of successful operations they had, that the detail of his reporting 401 00:28:30,380 --> 00:28:35,960 actually provided some level of force protection for the unit acting on that. 402 00:28:36,220 --> 00:28:40,940 And the fact that this unit was willing to take the risk and to try to save him, 403 00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:42,240 that was the game changer. 404 00:28:44,160 --> 00:28:49,620 Very few people have the cojones to say, okay, let's go watch the boys. 405 00:28:50,040 --> 00:28:52,340 But we memorize things like the Ranger Creed. 406 00:28:52,660 --> 00:28:57,920 We all have a stanza in our mottos that others might live, leave no man behind. 407 00:28:58,600 --> 00:29:01,380 And we don't just mean that for our brothers to our left and right. 408 00:29:02,360 --> 00:29:08,400 With this information in hand, they were able to pull out a map, pinpoint the 409 00:29:08,400 --> 00:29:09,400 location, 410 00:29:14,000 --> 00:29:18,380 and operational planned right away and start kitting up to go do it. 411 00:29:22,140 --> 00:29:27,460 I can't speak to the specific TTPs, the tactics, techniques, and procedures of 412 00:29:27,460 --> 00:29:32,760 how this unit does their business, but they're in a very impressive elite unit. 413 00:29:34,300 --> 00:29:38,440 They were getting into the right mindset, getting their game face on to 414 00:29:38,440 --> 00:29:42,040 this really high -risk, dangerous operation in broad daylight. 415 00:29:42,670 --> 00:29:45,310 Against al -Qaeda, where there's a lot of unknown variables. 416 00:29:45,530 --> 00:29:46,530 It's just a matter of minutes. 417 00:29:47,830 --> 00:29:50,610 You're ready to get on the helicopter at a moment's notice because your gear is 418 00:29:50,610 --> 00:29:53,530 always ready. You're already prepped. You have established standard operating 419 00:29:53,530 --> 00:29:58,350 procedures. So the normal military mission planning cycle of 96 hours can 420 00:29:58,350 --> 00:30:02,430 down to nine minutes to certain units that are at that capability. Very few 421 00:30:02,430 --> 00:30:04,750 units around the world are at that level. 422 00:30:04,950 --> 00:30:10,010 It's a very, very elite unit. One of these guys is worth 20. 423 00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:12,240 if not more. 424 00:30:14,180 --> 00:30:19,320 The plan was basically a ground element and a rotary element, one helicopter 425 00:30:19,320 --> 00:30:22,940 simultaneously hitting the objective at the same time. 426 00:30:24,180 --> 00:30:29,200 Now, it was all done under the auspices of a raid. There was legitimate targets 427 00:30:29,200 --> 00:30:33,460 at this house, potentially. We weren't sure who was inside. We just know that 428 00:30:33,460 --> 00:30:39,040 there was two to three al -Qaeda guys outside providing security around the 429 00:30:39,040 --> 00:30:40,040 house. 430 00:30:40,840 --> 00:30:46,900 Prior to their departure, I showed them a picture of Ali, which was the first 431 00:30:46,900 --> 00:30:52,100 time they got to know who the source was, so that if they did enter the 432 00:30:52,240 --> 00:30:56,340 they'd be mindful of who he is and hopefully not accidentally shoot him. 433 00:30:57,480 --> 00:31:02,340 But again, most kidnapping cases, they ended in tragedy. 434 00:31:03,300 --> 00:31:08,060 Hostile rescue missions are inherently dangerous, and they're not always 435 00:31:08,060 --> 00:31:09,060 successful. 436 00:31:11,700 --> 00:31:17,140 This is the middle of the afternoon in a bustling environment, in a location 437 00:31:17,140 --> 00:31:22,540 that previously had not been known to us. So a lot of unknowns, and doing it 438 00:31:22,540 --> 00:31:24,700 broad daylight, you know, the stakes are higher. 439 00:31:24,980 --> 00:31:26,140 Time was of the essence. 440 00:31:27,460 --> 00:31:30,420 I'm also concerned, too, like, hey, we're risking American lives. 441 00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:32,260 That's the last thing that I'd want to see. 442 00:31:33,660 --> 00:31:36,320 This is a risky operation, for sure. 443 00:31:44,040 --> 00:31:49,920 helicopter launches and a ground element launch at the same time. 444 00:31:55,320 --> 00:31:59,780 Listening on the radio, they arrive at the house as planned. 445 00:32:00,800 --> 00:32:06,580 As the helicopter lands on the roof, the operators take out the security element 446 00:32:06,580 --> 00:32:09,260 while the ground element is arriving. 447 00:32:09,660 --> 00:32:12,780 And the combination of that was instantaneous. 448 00:32:14,440 --> 00:32:17,580 So even though it was broad daylight, they had an element of surprise. 449 00:32:18,560 --> 00:32:22,060 And you can't have hesitancy. A hostage rescue mission is a no -fail mission 450 00:32:22,060 --> 00:32:25,160 because the stakes are so high. You either get the hostage back out alive or 451 00:32:25,160 --> 00:32:28,400 don't. And if you fail in bringing the hostage home alive, you've failed the 452 00:32:28,400 --> 00:32:31,120 mission. The ground element entered the house. 453 00:32:31,620 --> 00:32:33,020 There was a firefight. 454 00:32:34,540 --> 00:32:38,720 And, you know, hearing things on the radio at this moment, we still didn't 455 00:32:38,720 --> 00:32:40,540 what was happening with Ali. 456 00:32:40,760 --> 00:32:42,860 I mean, we could have showed up and he was already executed. 457 00:32:43,960 --> 00:32:49,460 You never have 100 % intelligence. There's never 100 % accuracy that the 458 00:32:49,460 --> 00:32:52,040 is in the room that you're going after or the hostage is there. 459 00:32:53,840 --> 00:32:56,940 That can mean the difference between life or death for the hostage itself. 460 00:32:57,680 --> 00:33:03,400 As the raid is ongoing and unfolding, we still didn't know what was happening. 461 00:33:04,900 --> 00:33:06,520 It took a few minutes. 462 00:33:12,170 --> 00:33:13,350 They neutralized the threat inside. 463 00:33:15,890 --> 00:33:22,430 And they called jackpot, which meant they had secured Ali and that he was 464 00:33:25,850 --> 00:33:31,010 The fact that no Americans were injured or harmed was a relief. 465 00:33:31,210 --> 00:33:35,170 And then the fact they got Ali obviously was also a big relief. 466 00:33:36,510 --> 00:33:38,970 His story was a miracle. 467 00:33:39,640 --> 00:33:44,760 The commanders made that time -sensitive decision, launched the unit, and they 468 00:33:44,760 --> 00:33:47,680 pulled off an epic hostage rescue. 469 00:33:48,420 --> 00:33:53,200 Four individuals were taken off the objective, but again, this was all under 470 00:33:53,200 --> 00:33:57,780 ruse of a raid, not a rescue operation. 471 00:33:58,440 --> 00:34:02,480 They asked everybody their name. He stated his, so they knew it was him. 472 00:34:03,100 --> 00:34:08,880 Ali was treated as if he was an al -Qaeda member, so the same measures 473 00:34:09,050 --> 00:34:12,469 They used against the other three. They used against him in order to continue to 474 00:34:12,469 --> 00:34:16,070 protect him. We didn't want anyone to know what the nature of his true 475 00:34:16,070 --> 00:34:17,070 relationship was. 476 00:34:17,870 --> 00:34:22,070 I was surprised he made it alive, and that was the ultimate reward. 477 00:34:24,310 --> 00:34:30,810 The four were brought back to a facility for the legal debriefings, and the four 478 00:34:30,810 --> 00:34:36,770 were standing in a hallway, blindfolds on, and I approached Ali. 479 00:34:37,310 --> 00:34:43,530 and forcefully moved him so the others could hear that, to continue that ruse 480 00:34:43,530 --> 00:34:49,530 that he was now going to be debriefed and brought him into a private room 481 00:34:49,530 --> 00:34:52,750 separated from the other three al -Qaeda members and sat him down. 482 00:34:54,350 --> 00:34:57,210 I had the blindfold removed from Ali. 483 00:34:58,090 --> 00:35:01,550 At that moment, he looked at me and he started crying. 484 00:35:04,910 --> 00:35:06,270 He saw... 485 00:35:06,800 --> 00:35:08,120 And he broke down. 486 00:35:09,980 --> 00:35:11,820 It was a pretty emotional moment. 487 00:35:12,060 --> 00:35:16,840 It took a few minutes for him to gather himself to tell us the story. 488 00:35:18,100 --> 00:35:23,300 Turns out that al -Qaeda had suspected him of being the mole, and therefore 489 00:35:23,300 --> 00:35:28,520 had set up this entire day to get him to a location and execute him. 490 00:35:30,160 --> 00:35:32,040 So when he arrived at the location, 491 00:35:34,000 --> 00:35:38,280 He said there was two members that he didn't know that were waiting for him, 492 00:35:38,320 --> 00:35:42,760 both armed with pistols, and they basically started to interrogate him and 493 00:35:42,760 --> 00:35:45,180 accuse him of working with the Americans. 494 00:35:46,080 --> 00:35:49,060 There was no senior al -Qaeda meeting. They were there to kill him. 495 00:35:49,820 --> 00:35:53,220 They were being extremely hostile with him. 496 00:35:53,560 --> 00:35:59,680 They didn't have any specific information to point to that. 497 00:36:00,200 --> 00:36:06,240 compromised him other than you know to threaten him i think hoping that he 498 00:36:06,240 --> 00:36:13,040 admit to it and he wouldn't but either way the group was intent on eliminating 499 00:36:13,040 --> 00:36:17,260 group of people that they suspected as potentially working for the americans 500 00:36:17,260 --> 00:36:21,780 unfortunately this was his day eventually it got to the moment where 501 00:36:21,780 --> 00:36:25,740 done talking and pointed both their pistols to his face 502 00:36:27,120 --> 00:36:30,900 They asked him if there was anything he wanted to say before they executed him, 503 00:36:31,020 --> 00:36:36,740 and he said, I'd like to pray, and they granted him that wish. 504 00:36:37,960 --> 00:36:40,640 As Ollie describes it, there was a prayer rug. 505 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:48,360 He knelt and began praying, and as he was praying, he said that he was praying 506 00:36:48,360 --> 00:36:54,220 for his family, and he had remembered what we had talked about, that if he had 507 00:36:54,220 --> 00:36:55,220 ever gotten in trouble, 508 00:36:55,980 --> 00:37:00,880 that we would do whatever it took to try to forewarn him, protect him, and save 509 00:37:00,880 --> 00:37:01,880 him. 510 00:37:02,640 --> 00:37:07,800 And as he was praying for that, he heard the helicopter land on the roof. 511 00:37:09,100 --> 00:37:13,900 The ground element was coming through the door. And in that moment, it was 512 00:37:13,900 --> 00:37:16,380 enough of a distraction where they didn't pull the trigger. 513 00:37:17,580 --> 00:37:23,040 And to see it turn the other way like that, he felt really, really lucky and 514 00:37:23,040 --> 00:37:28,670 fortunate. And that's why when we removed the blindfold, he just burst out 515 00:37:28,670 --> 00:37:29,670 emotions. 516 00:37:30,610 --> 00:37:34,670 It was a very significant moment. 517 00:37:35,270 --> 00:37:37,330 It was a very, very strong moment. 518 00:37:38,970 --> 00:37:42,050 Yeah, I got a little bit emotional. 519 00:37:42,350 --> 00:37:43,810 I'm sure Pat did too. 520 00:37:44,830 --> 00:37:46,190 It's a very powerful moment. 521 00:37:46,670 --> 00:37:47,790 It's hard to believe. 522 00:37:50,270 --> 00:37:53,270 And he was... 523 00:37:53,530 --> 00:37:55,810 you know, very thankful. 524 00:37:57,670 --> 00:37:59,770 And I kept assuring him, like, it's okay. 525 00:38:00,210 --> 00:38:02,770 Just, it's all right. 526 00:38:02,990 --> 00:38:03,990 You're going to be all right. 527 00:38:04,590 --> 00:38:08,910 But, you know, it was an extremely emotional day, you know, from beginning 528 00:38:08,910 --> 00:38:15,570 end, the highs and lows, the unknowns, the bravery of our American colleagues 529 00:38:15,570 --> 00:38:19,870 the Special Operations Unit to go do this operation in broad daylight. 530 00:38:20,530 --> 00:38:21,530 Pretty harrowing. 531 00:38:28,650 --> 00:38:34,910 I remember I was serving in a war zone, and the commander of the 7th Special 532 00:38:34,910 --> 00:38:36,630 Forces Group came to my location. 533 00:38:36,910 --> 00:38:40,250 He was there because he had teams deployed in that area. 534 00:38:40,490 --> 00:38:42,630 I started telling him, like, well, you know, I'm not from Fayetteville. 535 00:38:42,930 --> 00:38:43,930 And he said, really? 536 00:38:44,230 --> 00:38:47,450 And I was like, yeah, in fact, my dad worked in the 7th Group. He was like, 537 00:38:47,490 --> 00:38:50,710 who's your dad? And I told him. And he was like, oh, my God, that's your dad? 538 00:38:51,370 --> 00:38:55,370 Wow, that guy's a legend. He trained me, you know, when I was a young captain, 539 00:38:55,530 --> 00:38:56,630 your dad. 540 00:38:57,520 --> 00:39:01,500 He was the real deal in those shadow wars in Central America. 541 00:39:02,520 --> 00:39:08,280 Truth be told, my dad wasn't there for many of the milestones when I was 542 00:39:08,280 --> 00:39:10,840 younger. He didn't come to my high school graduation. 543 00:39:11,580 --> 00:39:15,100 When I graduated college, I was commissioned into the military. He 544 00:39:15,100 --> 00:39:16,460 for that because he was deployed. 545 00:39:17,280 --> 00:39:22,040 I remember early on I regretted that, but as I got older and entered into the 546 00:39:22,040 --> 00:39:25,420 military and got into the special operations community myself and then 547 00:39:25,420 --> 00:39:26,420 CIA, 548 00:39:27,220 --> 00:39:29,840 you learn to understand it and appreciate it. 549 00:39:31,080 --> 00:39:37,700 So here I was, far away in the war on terror, and this guy is telling me about 550 00:39:37,700 --> 00:39:38,700 my dad. 551 00:39:39,040 --> 00:39:45,000 And I had a chance to share that with my dad, and he was pretty proud about 552 00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:46,020 that, as was I. 553 00:39:46,860 --> 00:39:51,700 And I think it's through the work that I did at the agency, and I think that 554 00:39:51,700 --> 00:39:52,860 definitely brought us closer together. 555 00:39:54,720 --> 00:39:55,720 So it helped. 556 00:39:55,850 --> 00:40:01,630 put things in perspective about the sacrifices that officers make, that our 557 00:40:01,630 --> 00:40:07,190 military makes, and the sacrifices that our agents make to benefit our country. 558 00:40:08,630 --> 00:40:10,870 Sacrifice is always going to be part of the mission. 559 00:40:13,170 --> 00:40:19,230 Within the CIA, we try to do what's best for the source, but we also have to 560 00:40:19,230 --> 00:40:23,210 factor in what's best for our national security, and those two things don't 561 00:40:23,210 --> 00:40:24,210 always align. 562 00:40:24,520 --> 00:40:27,020 In Ollie's case, he was lucky that they did. 563 00:40:27,960 --> 00:40:32,920 And, you know, this special operations unit was willing to go rescue him. And 564 00:40:32,920 --> 00:40:39,660 fortunately, this one ended in a way where everybody was still 565 00:40:39,660 --> 00:40:40,660 alive. 566 00:40:40,700 --> 00:40:44,640 It rarely is a Hollywood ending. It is a miracle he wasn't executed, to be 567 00:40:44,640 --> 00:40:50,040 honest. There's a lot of amazing stories of resilience, of bravery, of heroics. 568 00:40:50,100 --> 00:40:52,680 It's just a testament to, you know. 569 00:40:53,180 --> 00:40:57,200 That case officer, it takes a special breed, but thank God we still, you know, 570 00:40:57,200 --> 00:40:59,540 raise men and women that are willing to go do those things. 571 00:41:00,400 --> 00:41:05,740 I was very thankful. He was successfully rescued, and three others were taken 572 00:41:05,740 --> 00:41:06,740 off the battlefield. 573 00:41:06,940 --> 00:41:10,020 But the majority of these cases have a shelf life. 574 00:41:10,260 --> 00:41:16,960 I thanked him, you know, for all that he had done, but also recognized that this 575 00:41:16,960 --> 00:41:19,260 was kind of the end of the line for this operation. 576 00:41:19,940 --> 00:41:22,260 The interesting thing about all of it was, 577 00:41:22,970 --> 00:41:23,970 Ali didn't think so. 578 00:41:24,810 --> 00:41:28,490 He still felt like he had utility, but we recognized that he did not. 579 00:41:29,310 --> 00:41:35,390 From my perspective, he had really paid the rent, and he was a courageous, 580 00:41:35,650 --> 00:41:41,930 brave agent that did a lot to protect lives, prevent attacks. 581 00:41:43,790 --> 00:41:48,490 We were able to provide him with the necessary resources so that he could 582 00:41:48,490 --> 00:41:50,490 relocate himself to another place. 583 00:41:50,710 --> 00:41:53,610 That was much safer and better for him and his family. 584 00:41:54,330 --> 00:41:59,890 So it's never easy saying goodbye, but in this case, we knew that he was moving 585 00:41:59,890 --> 00:42:04,830 on to a better situation than the one that he had been in. So there's solace 586 00:42:04,830 --> 00:42:05,830 that. 587 00:42:06,730 --> 00:42:11,250 These people who do work with us are desperate for a return to... 588 00:42:12,080 --> 00:42:17,220 in our country to peace, stability, and that's why they're doing what they're 589 00:42:17,220 --> 00:42:18,760 doing. That's something you just can't duplicate. 590 00:42:19,340 --> 00:42:24,400 I have a mentor who says we don't leave agents on the corner. That means when it 591 00:42:24,400 --> 00:42:28,040 gets difficult for them, if there's a problem, we go help them, right? 592 00:42:28,260 --> 00:42:32,360 That's part of our credo, and that's instilled in our DNA from day one. 593 00:42:33,290 --> 00:42:37,270 The CIA is dedicated to their assets, their well -being, their safety. 594 00:42:37,510 --> 00:42:41,730 They'll do everything and anything that can be done. 595 00:42:42,590 --> 00:42:48,450 Because the alternative was losing an agent, but he felt it was worth the 596 00:42:50,390 --> 00:42:52,710 Every step taken is a risk. 597 00:42:53,190 --> 00:42:58,510 But you are part of that risk knowing that the reward is some guy in his 30s 598 00:42:58,510 --> 00:43:03,810 with a couple of children just coming home from work, providing for his 599 00:43:04,430 --> 00:43:05,430 It's saved. 600 00:43:05,630 --> 00:43:09,790 Some U .S. soldiers from the Dakota, a private. 601 00:43:10,510 --> 00:43:11,510 It's saved. 602 00:43:12,110 --> 00:43:14,410 Some diplomat. It's saved. 603 00:43:15,230 --> 00:43:20,850 Only God knows how many lives we have saved. That's a very, very big deal. 604 00:43:21,930 --> 00:43:28,370 It's a challenge on all fronts, but that's what we do. We value what our 605 00:43:28,370 --> 00:43:29,370 are doing for us. 606 00:43:29,610 --> 00:43:33,870 And, you know, I'm forever grateful to them. And that's never lost on us.