Beirut Rules: The Murder of a CIA Station Chief and Hezbollah's War Against America

From the New York Times bestselling coauthors of Under Fire comes the story of the kidnapping and murder of CIA Station Chief William Buckley and the bloody beginning of the CIA’s endless war against Islamic radicalism.

On April 18, 1983, a van rigged with two thousand pounds of heavy explosives broke through the security perimeter of the American embassy in Lebanon and exploded, killing sixty-three people and decimating intelligence operations in the Middle East.

One man in the CIA possessed the courage and skills to rebuild the networks destroyed in the blast: William Buckley. Assigned as the new Beirut Station Chief, Buckley found the CIA station in tatters and an intelligence playing field unlike any other in the world; the Cold War veteran would now be learning Beirut rules. A field operative at heart, he delved into Beirut’s darkest corners, developing new sources and handling assets.

On October 23, a US Marine Corps barrack was destroyed by a young terrorist named Imad Mughniyeh. Even as President Reagan vowed revenge, Mughniyeh eyed a new target: Buckley.

Beirut Rules is the account of Buckley’s abduction, torture, and murder at the hands of Hezbollah terrorists. Drawing on never-before-seen US government documents, as well as interviews with Buckley’s co-workers, friends, and family, Fred Burton and Samuel M. Katz reveal how the search for Buckley in the wake of his kidnapping ignited a war against terror that continues to shape the Middle East today.

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Release date

Lydbog: 23. september 2025