[news jingle plays]
♪♪♪♪♪
Good evening.
This is ABC’s World News Tonight.
Frank Reynolds is sick tonight. I’m David Brinkley.
In Beirut, Lebanon, today
a pickup truck
loaded with explosives
drove up to the American embassy,
and there was a tremendous explosion
during the lunch hour.
Just after one o’clock, maybe 1:05, I hear "Boom!"
The loudest explosion I’d ever heard in Beirut.
[Peter Jennings] The explosion
at five minutes past 1:00 this afternoon
devastated the embassy.
At this late hour,
we are told that more than 40 people are dead,
between 80 and 100 wounded.
Americans and Lebanese.
[David Ignatius] Run back to the embassy,
and the facade of this beautiful embassy...
I’ve described it as being, like,
looking at a human face
that had had the skin ripped away,
so that you just saw bones and blood.
[Sam Wyman] Oh, it was wipeout time.
It was terrible.
I remember sitting at my desk at headquarters,
and somebody called me and said, "Bob Ames has been killed.
The embassy’s been bombed."
This criminal attack on a diplomatic establishment
will not deter us from our goals
of peace in the region.
We’re pretty vulnerable here.
Nobody was aware of truck bombs in those days, really,
you get right down to it.
No one had really seen suicide before.
In other words,
they’re playing by rules that we aren’t.
This was a new phenomenon.
Who’s doing this?
♪ dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪♪♪
[indistinct chatter]
♪♪♪♪♪
[indistinct chatter]
[taxi driver 1 speaking Arabic]
[speaking Arabic]
[taxi driver 2, in English] Mister?
[speaking Arabic]
[taxi driver 2 speaking Arabic]
[in English] Okay, good.
[taxi driver 2 speaking Arabic]
[in English] What’d you do, swim?
The flight was delayed.
Never connect through Rome.
I’m Steve.
Chet.
Welcome to Beirut, Chet.
[fighter jet whooshing]
[sirens wailing]
What, are we across the Green Line?
Skirted round it.
Did you put your hand up for this shit show?
Yep. I asked to come here.
What, you like civil wars?
[Chet] I was bored out of my fucking mind in Khartoum.
Plus, I knew Ames.
[Steve] True believer, huh?
Good for you.
[crowd chanting in Arabic]
[speaking Arabic]
♪♪♪♪♪
[guard, in English] Open up!
[indistinct radio chatter]
- This is us? - [Steve] Yeah.
Belonged to the Brits. They took pity on us.
[Chet] Jesus.
[Chet sighs]
[Steve] Mind your head.
All right.
Kitchen.
Yeah.
[sighs] I was on leave when it happened.
- You came through Cyprus? - Rome.
Try Cyprus next time.
Thirty minutes and a world away.
This is you.
You think Buckley is gonna read this?
Listen, Buckley’s a little different, okay?
He never trained at the Farm, so...
Ah. You must be Chet Riley.
- Yeah. - They say you speak Arabic.
- A little. - A little or a lot?
- A lot. - Ah. I hate languages.
Well, this is all we’ve got, boys.
I asked Langley for more, but go figure.
Welcome to Operation Conestoga.
We’re here to find the assholes
that killed our brothers and sisters.
Ames had a hunch about Iran.
Some, uh, camp near the Syrian border.
Iran? Why would they be here?
I mean, they’re Persian, not Arab.
Thanks, Professor. We all know that.
I know. Just... I was saying it doesn’t make sense.
Well, nothing makes sense around here.
All right.
I got a meeting with a Shia leader
who thinks he’s our best friend. His name is--
Nabih Berri, from Amal.
You’re gonna be my translator.
Better get cleaned up. You’re coming with me.
[Steve] All right, let’s do this.
[Wyman] Bill was a unique character.
He was a...
He was a soldier of fortune, I think,
in the old school sense.
His job was to try to sort things out
on the ground in Lebanon.
Build something out of the ashes.
I read your file.
Army grunt, huh?
I enlisted, took a test.
Turns out I was good at languages.
[chuckling] Next thing you know, I’m at the Farm.
Just watch out for the Ivy Leaguers.
- You were Special Forces? - 5th Group.
Then I went to the Agency.
[clears throat]
- Sounded good at the time. - [door opens]
Egypt, Saudi. Kicking around, you know.
Yep.
[Nabih speaking Arabic]
[man chuckles]
Oh.
[in English] Mr. Buckley.
- Welcome to Lebanon. - Thank you.
How can I be of assistance?
- Mr. Berri-- - Please, call me Nabih.
Or more simply, Abu Hassan.
Okay.
Mr. Abu Hassan,
we’re trying to figure out who bombed our embassy.
America has many enemies.
I know that.
What about that group of Shia working out of Iran?
[Nabih] I will tell you what I told Robert Ames.
This group is nothing.
Too small and weak.
Well, Ames is dead, maybe because he believed you.
[speaking Arabic]
[in English] Have a seat, please.
Sure.
Thank you.
[Buckley clears throat]
Have you heard about Sheikh Fadlallah?
Mm-mm. No.
They say he is their spiritual leader.
Their imam.
We do have a source who may know something.
We can ask him.
I’d like to ask your source myself.
That will not be possible.
How’s your wife liking Dearborn?
Lila.
Do your kids have their passports yet,
or are they still using green cards?
You have a green card too, right?
Those things come up for renewal at the strangest times.
He told a joke when I went inside.
What was it?
He, uh... [chuckles]
Uh, he said you look like a penguin.
[chuckles] That’s a good one.
[Chet chuckles]
I got a job for you.
[Mustafa speaking Arabic]
[Haidar speaking]
[Imad speaking]
[Fadlallah speaking]
[children giggling]
[child, in English] Pepsi, Fanta, 7Up!
Pepsi, Fanta, 7Up...
[Fadlallah speaking Arabic]
[audience chattering in agreement]
[indistinct chatter]
[man on tape speaking Arabic]
[Steve, in English] Okay, here’s a 50K transfer
through Sierra Leone.
What, is this the same trading company?
Mm-mm. Diamonds this time.
- These guys are good. - Mm-hmm.
[Imad speaking Arabic]
[door closes]
♪♪♪♪♪
[Arabic music playing]
♪♪♪♪♪
[indistinct chatter]
[speaking Arabic]
[chuckles]
[in English] Do you mind?
No. Suit yourself.
Thank you.
She call me a penguin, too?
- You really wanna know? - [Buckley chuckles]
Look, I know you really admired Ames.
But we’re very different.
Yeah, he was a good man who believed in people.
[chuckles] Okay. Listen to you.
You got a family?
I’ve been in the field too long.
[man] Only you. Alone.
- Yeah. - [Buckley] It’s all right.
I hear you have some information about the embassy.
If anyone sees me here, I’m done.
- You understand? - Yes.
Whoa. Slowly.
It’s just my fucking cigarettes.
What’s wrong with you?
[Buckley] If you have something to say,
now would be the time to say it.
I’ll make it worth your while.
They call themselves Islamic Jihad.
I know that. I need the name of their leader.
- He’s a ghost. - Give me a break.
Hey, listen, I’m a businessman, okay? And I love my country.
And I hate to see what these fanatics want to turn it into.
I need specifics.
Okay. Two more trucks are already here in Beirut.
They will come for your embassy,
the one you share with the British,
very soon.
Anything else?
Mm. Yeah.
The man you want, they call him Radwan.
Hajj Radwan.
How do you know all this?
I sold them the explosives.
♪ tense music ♪
The guy’s got burn notice written all over him.
Write him up. Code name Alpha.
Our first source in New Lebanon.
And warn the embassies. We gotta find those trucks.
[Chet] You sure? I mean, it’s a big fucking city.
Uh, can the Marines help us look?
Yeah, there’s an Arabic word
for getting them out of their comfy barracks.
Even I know that one.
[Chet] Inshallah.
[Buckley] As in never.
No, we’re on our own.
- You gonna offer me a ride? - No.
Go back inside, have some fun.
See you bright and early.
[engine starts]
[speaking Arabic]
[Mustafa speaking]
Uh...
[Imad speaking]
[in English] All right, take south Beirut.
You two, take the west of town.
Chet and I’ll take the Corniche and warehouse districts.
Find ’em!
♪♪♪♪♪
[Chet] 7:00 a.m. again, boss.
You wanna switch that up?
Fuck off.
What are you gonna do?
[Daqduq speaking Arabic]
[Haidar speaking]
[Imad] Haidar.
[in English] Did this Alpha Boy Scout you recruited
give us a fucking clue, or what?
I didn’t recruit him.
Two trucks somewhere in Beirut, targeting the embassy.
[Steve] Ah. That’s...
That’s great intel.
It’s a shitty building anyway. They can blow it up.
We’ll just give it back to the Brits.
- There. - Yeah, yeah.
[tires screech]
- Out the way, out the way! - [horn beeps]
Move, move, move, move!
[hawker yells]
♪ tense music ♪
♪♪♪♪♪
[Arabic music playing on loudspeaker]
These wogs all look the same to me.
Come on. That doesn’t help.
[chuckles]
Don’t go native on us, Chet.
[Chet] Hey, uh, boss.
Yeah, we’ve been everywhere. Nothing.
I see.
[Chet] What about the others?
We found two vegetable trucks, a garbage truck
and one full of junk and searched them all.
Alpha might’ve been playing us.
Maybe.
But the embassy looks like a fortress.
We’ve warned the Marines and our allies.
Go home, get some rest.
We can keep going.
I said get some rest, right?
Okay. Copy that.
[sighs]
He said to call it a night.
Really?
He said, "Get some rest."
- He’s an odd one. - Tell me about it.
[Steve] You know, uh, he’s dating a recruit
back at the Farm,
twenty-five years old.
Apparently, he really likes her,
along with a couple dozen others.
- Buckley? Really? - [chuckles] Yup.
You know, I don’t know what’s worse.
Being single here
or thinking about your girlfriend
fucking someone else back home.
[Steve chuckles softly]
You got someone?
Yeah.
Serious?
Pretty serious.
Why the fuck are you here?
Thought I could make a difference.
Oh.
Another true believer, huh?
[explosion in the distance]
Up, up!
Oh, fuck.
♪♪♪♪♪
That’s not the embassy.
It’s not even fucking close.
[explosion in the distance]
♪ melancholic music ♪
The search goes on for more victims
in today’s murderous attacks on the Marine headquarters,
and a building housing French troops.
[reporter 1] Between 250 and 300 Americans
were in the building when the suicide bomber struck.
As snipers distracted the guards,
a man in a truck laden with 2,000 pounds of explosives
raced toward his target.
[Peter Jennings] It was just
after 9:30 in Kuwait this morning
when a truck loaded with explosives
crashed through the gates of the US embassy compound
and blew up.
[reporter 2] Within two hours, another five bombs went off
in sites all over Kuwait.
The bombs apparently hidden in booby-trapped cars.
[reporter 3] Who is responsible?
A radical terrorist group called Islamic Jihad,
or Islamic Holy War, has claimed credit.
[reporter 4] It’s the same group which earlier said
it blew up the American embassy in Beirut
and the Marine headquarters in Lebanon.
[reporter 5] The White House is under new pressure
to justify the presence of American peacekeepers
on the ground in Lebanon.
There was nothing else we could do.
Six bombs, all in minutes.
Who the fuck are these guys?
Hey, boss wants everyone downstairs.
[Buckley] Gentlemen.
I just got a call from Director Casey.
Apparently, the White House is done with Lebanon.
The Marines, the battleships, everyone’s pulling out.
So the message is hit America hard,
and then we just fucking cut and run?
Seems like.
And don’t think the bad guys won’t notice.
[Steve] And what about us?
[Buckley] That’s a personal choice.
I won’t force anyone to stay.
Appreciate it.
Let’s get back to work.
[Tom Brokaw] President Reagan tonight
ordered a phased pullback of American Marines
from their positions around the Beirut airport.
That announcement came this evening
after the Lebanese forces backed by the United States
took a terrible beating today.
The Marines will be...
Thanks for everything.
- [knocking at door] - [Buckley] Chet.
[door closes]
Listen.
I’ve been around long enough
to recognize a sinking ship when I see one.
Especially when I’m standing on deck.
You do not want this stain on your record.
I can find this guy.
Well, you’re even more stupid than I thought.
- [knocking at door] - [Buckley] Yeah.
The guys who hit Kuwait. Found them. Seventeen of them.
Including one guy from Lebanon. Let’s go.
[news playing indistinctly on TV]
[Haidar speaking Arabic]
[Imad sighs]
[Imad clicks tongue, sighs]
[Saada sighs]
[sobbing softly]
[in English] Mustafa Badreddine had traveled out to Kuwait,
did a bombing there and was captured.
An American professor at the American University of Beirut
was kidnapped as he was coming from Beirut airport.
[Dan Rather] Another American has been kidnapped in Beirut.
[Wyman] All this awful stuff going on,
and it just creates a situation,
an atmosphere, an aura of why are we here?
What’s the point?
[Gary Berntsen] So many of these kidnappings
that take place in the late 1980s,
are all conducted because Mughniyeh
is trying to free his brother-in-law.
What do you got?
[Chet] This Islamic Jihad group
is demanding that we release Mustafa Badreddine,
who’s the guy in jail in Kuwait,
in return for some of these hostages.
[Buckley] Who the hell is Mustafa Badreddine?
We don’t know.
Can we get to him in Kuwait?
Well, Kuwaitis won’t help. They’ll probably kill him.
Was he with those assholes
you saw hanging out at that mosque?
Half of south Beirut hangs out at that mosque.
Time to talk to Alpha.
[men speaking Arabic]
[Arabic music playing on speakers]
[speaking Arabic]
[urgent footsteps]
[Steve, in English] All right. I’m gonna ask you again.
Who is Radwan?
Is he Mustafa Badreddine?
Mustafa? No, that’s not him.
It’s okay.
I’m here to help you.
They call him Abu Dukhan,
father of the smoke, because he disappears.
Father of the smoke? Really?
Let’s just hand him to the Israelis.
[Alpha] Come on, guys. Really?
We need a real name, okay?
Can you do that for us?
- Give me a real name? - Fuck.
[Buckley] Come on. Think about your own future.
Imad. [sighs]
Imad Mughniyeh.
Mughniyeh? How old is he? Where’s he from?
- I don’t know. - Who’s he work for?
Can I have my money now?
I think you want more than money, don’t you?
[Chet] Who’s he working for?
Fadlallah? Iran? Why hit Kuwait?
I don’t fucking know. I never saw him.
No one saw him.
You’ve never seen... No one’s seen him?
Come on.
If you’ve got something to offer, now’s the time.
They say he wants to lead
the Shia of Lebanon.
Begin our revolution.
I mean, who can blame him?
We need a revolution.
But not that kind.
[Buckley] You would do it differently, wouldn’t you?
Yeah.
I’ll choose my friends more carefully.
Where is he? Where can we find him?
Honestly, guys, I swear, I told you everything I know.
Okay. Okay.
[door opens]
[door closes]
I don’t trust him.
Check that name.
[indistinct chatter in Arabic]
♪♪♪♪♪
[Chet, in English] All right, I checked everything.
Marriage certificates,
school records, birth certificates.
There’s nothing on the name Imad Mughniyeh.
I mean, the fucking name doesn’t exist.
Fuck. I knew Alpha was lying.
Okay, that’s what I thought.
But then I had this guy at the passport office
pull photos from an old archive in a warehouse,
just on a hunch.
That’s our guy.
Kid from the slums, maybe five years ago.
That’s our guy.
[Buckley] So what, is he, like, 20 now?
[Chet] Yeah.
[folk music playing on speakers]
[Buckley] Now we know who’s fucking us. What a relief.
Right. So we track him down.
With our manpower, that could take ages.
No offense.
Listen, Bill,
you got to vary your routine or something.
You can’t keep dressing like an ad man on Madison Avenue.
What are you, my ex-wife?
[Chet] Or your 25-year-old girlfriend.
[Buckley] You know about that?
We were hoping to keep that as a secret
since she’s also in the Agency.
You have someone you like?
No.
Well, you should.
I’m gonna call it a night. You take it easy, brother.
♪♪♪♪♪
[alarm buzzing]
[urinating]
[breathing rhythmically]
[engine starts]
[men speaking Arabic]
[tires screeching]
[kettle whistling]
- [Steve, in English] Morning. - Hey.
Uh, you seen the boss?
Have you heard from him? It’s after 7:00.
Is he not in his office?
[Chet] I don’t think so.
- [knocking] - [Steve] Bill.
♪♪♪♪♪
[Chet speaking Arabic]
[Steve, in English] Yes, sir. Sat phone, contacts.
All our assets are lost.
Jesus Christ.
Well, did you warn the assets?
Some.
We think this is Islamic Jihad.
[Casey] Who the hell’s that? Who the hell is this?
[Dewey] It’s, uh... It’s Chet Riley.
He’s a case officer.
[Casey punches table lightly]
All right.
Case Officer, we got any light inside this group?
[Chet] Yes, we have Alpha.
[Casey] Who’s Alpha?
[Chet] He’s a source.
He could be playing us. We don’t know.
He gave us the name for Radwan.
[Casey] Radwan? Who’s Radwan?
The leader of this group, we think.
Okay. What’s the name?
[Chet] Imad Mughniyeh.
He probably hit our embassy, the Marines, Kuwait.
I think it’s safe to assume he has Buckley, too.
- [Casey] What’s his name? - Imad Mughniyeh.
Twenty-one years old.
[Casey] God damn it.
What, I’m supposed to tell the President
some punk kid has our station chief?
Huh?
He’s gonna ask me how long Buckley can hold out.
He’s sentimental that way.
Bill’s a Green Beret, sir.
He’ll hold out as long as he can.
All right.
Let me know if you hear anything.
Understand, Case Officer?
Yes, sir.
Uh, sir, one more thing.
We have intercepts here that tie back to Iran.
It’s possible they’re pulling the strings on all of this.
Just find Buckley.
[line buzzing]
[door creaks open]
[footsteps approaching]
[Imad, in English] Sorry. This is all we have.
Radwan.
I need you to tell me about Kuwait 17.
I know you have Mustafa Badreddine.
No.
No. The Kuwaitis have him.
Come on.
You’re CIA.
Eat.
You’ll be here for a long time,
Mr. William Francis Buckley.
♪♪♪♪♪
[grunts]
[sniffing]
[reporter speaking Arabic on TV]
[reporter continues]
[speaking Arabic]
[sniffles]
[speaking Arabic]
[in English] Okay.
What’s your name?
I’m not making a tape.
[clears throat]
[Imad] I want your friends to know
that I have your, uh, CIA briefcase,
your special phone,
and I have you.
So talk.
[softly] No.
[Imad sighs]
[Buckley grunting]
[Alpha] Hey, guys, you good?
- Hey. - [Alpha] Yeah.
I have something for you.
Proof of life.
[Imad speaking Arabic]
[Chet, in English] This is Buckley?
Where’d you get this?
- Where is he? - I don’t know.
Where’d you get the tape?
Guys.
He trusted you. You understand that?
Come on, man. Hey, hey, hey, hey.
- He trusted you. - Back off, back off.
I’m just a fucking messenger. What’s wrong with you?
- I’m here to help. - All right.
I understand that.
I just need you to tell me where the fuck he is.
- Yeah, I get it. - Yeah. Is he at Baalbek?
- Where is he? - Don’t fucking touch me.
You know what? Watch the tape. It’s very entertaining.
Watch it.
[Alpha grunting]
[Steve] Jesus, Chet.
Keep going like that.
You’ll get fucking Buckley in pieces!
I asked you, where the fuck is he?
Fuck you!
Damn it, Chet! Back off.
♪♪♪♪♪
They had broken the CIA,
not only with the Marine Corps bombing...
The Marines, United States Marines.
And now they’ve got a station chief.
Buckley was tortured horribly by them.
There were videos that were sent back.
They took an electric drill to joints.
And you don’t forget that.
You’re breathless
when you see that for the first time.
Sorry.
I hadn’t done that in a while. Sorry.
I’m good.
My name is William Francis Buckley.
I work for the CIA.
[Dewey softly] God damn it.
[drill whirring on TV]
Oh, no.
[Buckley screaming]
Oh, no.
[Casey on phone] Oh, no.
[screaming continues]
Is anyone there?
[clears throat] Yeah, it’s Dewey.
Jesus Christ, Chet.
Sir, I need to go to Baalbek.
There’s a very good chance Buckley’s there
in that Iranian training camp.
[Dewey] No, you’re gonna stand down.
That’s far too risky.
How the fuck do you propose I get him out, sir?
[Dewey] I’ll get back to you.
[call disconnects]
[reporter on TV] The group that claimed responsibility
for the bombings of the US embassies
and the Marine base recently announced
that it’s holding all five kidnapped Americans.
And it...
I’m going to Baalbek.
You can’t.
Fuck it. Are you coming?
- Who you talking to? - No one. [clears throat]
[Steve] Damn it. Yeah, Dewey, he’s going.
♪♪♪♪♪
There’s gonna be a crossroads up ahead.
We’re gonna go left.
It’s where the ruins are.
Okay. Here.
Yeah, but we’re going left.
[speaking Arabic]
[in English] That way is closed.
Up ahead is better.
I understand, but the ruins are to the left.
Let’s take the left.
Yeah, I know, but we take this way.
♪♪♪♪♪
[camera shutter clicking]
Mister.
Please. Not...
I don’t want problems.
Mister! Mister, please.
Mister.
Please, back to the car.
[Chet] Yeah, yeah.
[driver] Mister, please. Please, mister.
Please, back to the car.
[indistinct chatter]
[man speaking Arabic]
[Imad speaking]
[Asgari speaking]
[Imad sighs]
[in English] You can ask him anything you want.
About the CIA, Iran.
Whatever.
Thank you.
[jazz music playing on speakers]
I told you not to go.
For fuck’s sake, I’m telling you Buckley’s there.
[Dewey] You think or you know?
Give me a Delta Force team, and I’ll prove it to you.
[Dewey] Come on.
[Steve] Chet... [clears throat] we all love Buckley.
But you’re too involved in this. We need you to step back.
We. Okay. Who’s "we"?
[Dewey] Counter-Terrorism Center.
CTC.
It’s a new division.
Steve works for me now, and our focus is Islamic Jihad.
- It’s not Iran. - They’re the same.
Do you understand that? Same thing.
Asgari and Pur, Syrian ambassador,
setting up something new,
tip of the spear of the revolution.
This is money, banks,
direct support for the operation.
I think these guys may have even interrogated Buckley themselves.
Stop, Chet. Stop it.
You yourself have been telling me
this is all Imad Mughniyeh, this Radwan.
Yeah, it is.
But he’s working for these guys somehow.
It’s an Iranian op.
[Dewey] Jesus Christ. Iran is not your concern.
What is your concern is Lebanon.
And you can start by telling me about the mosque in Beirut.
What’s the name of the, uh... the Imam?
Fadlallah. Sayed Muhamad Hussein Fadlallah.
No, Fadlallah is not Iran. It’s complicated.
This is a Counter-Terrorism matter now.
Jesus Christ!
It’s the CTC.
Maybe it’s not the best division for you after all.
But enjoy Cyprus.
Sorry, brother.
[speaking Arabic]
[baby cooing]
- [kisses baby] - [baby coos]
[Imad speaking]
[chuckles]
♪ dark music ♪
♪♪♪♪♪
[in English] Thank you.
Where is everyone?
With Dewey, I think.
Dewey is here in Beirut?
[Topher] I’m sorry.
♪♪♪♪♪
[speaking Arabic]
[Steve, in English] We are in position.
[horns blaring]
[horn honking]
[Chet speaking Arabic]
[horn honking]
[in English] Yeah, Chet Riley, Beirut Station.
I need the Director on the line.
[telephone ringing]
[man] I have Field Officer Chet Riley
on the line for you, sir.
[sighs]
Case Officer, you’re really not supposed to call here.
Sir, this cannot happen.
We cannot have this happen.
It’s gonna backfire on Buckley, on all of us.
[hangs up receiver]
[Fadlallah speaking Arabic]
[Fadlallah speaking]
♪♪♪♪♪
[indistinct chatter]
- [in English] It’s him. - [Dewey] Mm.
[Steve] Thirty seconds.
Uh, let’s proceed.
[man speaking Arabic]
♪ tense music ♪
[explosion]
♪♪♪♪♪
[in English] It’s time to go.
[people shouting and sobbing]
[coughs]
[indistinct chatter]
[Imad grunts, coughs]
[woman shouting in Arabic]
[coughing]
[Imad] Haidar!
Haidar!
♪ somber music ♪
♪♪♪♪♪
♪ pensive music ♪
♪♪♪♪♪