
Beirut Rules
The Murder of a CIA Station Chief and Hezbollah's War Against America
Author: Fred Burton, Samuel M. Katz
Narrator: Rich Miller
Unabridged: 10 hr 43 min
Format: Digital Audiobook Download
Publisher: Dreamscape Media
Published: 09/23/2025
Categories: Nonfiction, History, Middle Eastern History, Military History, Political Science, Terrorism
Synopsis
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.