Aimen Dean is trapped. He wants out of al-Qaeda and Afghanistan, but no one gets to leave the jihadi training camps without permission. So when a missile strike hands him the perfect excuse to leave he seizes the chance to break free.
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Jun 2025
54. Bin Laden vs the CIA: 9/11 (Ep 4)
On a clear September morning, the American homeland was shattered, revealing a vulnerability unforeseen for nearly two centuries. But, how did Osama bin Laden, soon to become the world's most wanted terrorist, orchestrate the largest mass murder in American history? What was the ... Show More
42m 56s
Mar 2024
Fatal Neutrality: Lumumba, the CIA, and the Cold War
In 1960, the Congo gained independence from Belgium. Patrice Lumumba was elected prime minister and Joseph Kasavubu president. Within a year, Lumumba was deposed and assassinated. This week on Deconstructed, executive editor of Foreign Affairs and author Stuart Reid joins Ryan Gr ... Show More
46m 10s
Oct 7
The 9/11 Files: They Could Have Stopped It | Ep 3
Michael Scheuer, former head of the CIA’s Bin Laden unit, reveals how the Bush and Clinton administrations repeatedly failed to act on Al-Qaeda. Despite multiple clear warnings, they slashed counterterrorism funding and called off numerous chances to take out Bin Laden—decisions ... Show More
23m 18s
Nov 2024
A Deal With the Devil: Ethan Melzer, Pt. 2
<p>In 2022, Ethan Melzer pleaded guilty to plotting to help al Qaeda ambush and kill his entire unit while on a sensitive mission in Turkey. But Melzer's co-conspirators turned out to be a Canadian teenager and a government informant, not members of al Qaeda. And the satanic cult ... Show More
59m 32s