Heroes Behind Headlines

In the late 1970s Iran fell into violent revolution, as Ayatollah Khomeini installed an Islamic fundamentalist government. This forced millions of citizens opposed to his system of rule to flee their home nation, as refugees. Armin Armiri was only thirteen when his family left the only country they had ever called home.  Forced to spend his teenage years in refugee camps, Armin finally arrived in...

As the Cold War was taking shape in 1953, the United States accepted Lockheed Corporation’s proposal to build the U-2 spy plane, out of absolute necessity. The program has been such a massive success for the US military and CIA, that the plane remains in service today over 64 years later. However, only one black woman has ever flown the U-2. We are honored to welcome United States Air Force Col. M...

Introducing ‘Rapid Fire’, new short-form episodes of Heroes Behind Headlines featuring our host Ralph Pezzullo himself, telling an amazing story about an incredible hero. There is no better person with whom to begin, particularly during the week of September 11, than CIA Case Officer Gary Berntsen. Gary is the man the CIA picked to lead the first Americans into Afghanistan in the wake of 9/11. Arm...

August 6th, 2011. Wardak Province, Afghanistan. 15 SEAL Team 6 operators and 23 allied personnel traveled on board a helicopter with call sign “Extortion 17”. Tragically, the aircraft was struck by a Taliban-fired rocket-propelled grenade and crashed. Moments later, an urgent rescue mission was launched. HBH is honored to welcome the man who led that mission: author and retired US Army Ranger Serg...

Easily breaking bones and having to do “death math” to judge if an activity is safe enough for you on a daily basis creates countless challenges. But that is what living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) requires. To overcome those enormous hurdles, and now star as a supervillain in the brand new Marvel television series ‘She-Hulk: Attorney At Law’ on Disney+, is nothing short of incredible. HBH i...

In case you missed any of Heroes Behind Headlines, check out this special episode with some of our listeners' favorite moments to date. Thank you to our loyal audience for your feedback, and if you are one of our many new listeners, take a listen to these highlights, pick any episode to start with and catch-up today. With over 100 more episodes already planned, we will continue to bring all o...

Human trafficking is a $150 billion global industry, which remains severely underreported. One of the epicenters for this barbaric business is Western Africa, where lawlessness has reigned for generations. Fortunately, one man decided to go undercover to try and help take down the people behind these atrocities. On his own and utilizing only a $34 pair of glasses with a hidden camera, he put his l...

In November of 2016, Mosul was the epicenter of the intense battle to drive ISIS out of Iraq. CNN reporter Arwa Damon, her cameraman, and an Iraqi security convoy were ambushed and trapped behind ISIS enemy lines. A US Navy SEAL platoon quickly activated to save them. However, as hundreds of ISIS fighters were closing in, the only chance of a rescue was with the assistance of incredibly precise an...

Very few people have a lifestyle in which it is entirely possible to be working on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, and then two weeks later find yourself on an unbelievable deployment with US Special Forces in Afghanistan. However, as a reservist, that is exactly the life one lives. HBH is excited to welcome Navy Reserve Lieutenant Commander Tim Sanchez. Since 9/11 Tim has had he...

In 2012, an Al-Qaeda sleeper cell was planning 2 potentially devastating attacks in the United States and Canada - at the same time. To prevent catastrophe, a Muslim undercover FBI agent had to gain to the trust of the extremely dangerous Al-Qaeda operative planning the attacks. HBH is thrilled to welcome FBI agent and author Tamer Elnoury. Already an experienced undercover officer, Tamer joined t...

On October 3, 1993, a US Army operation in Mogadishu, Somalia, which was supposed to take 45 minutes, lasted for more than 18 hours. Delta Force operators had surgically and swiftly taken high value targets supporting warlord Mohamed Farrah Aydid into custody. However, when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed, the original plan to leave the city had to be abandoned - and then another Black Hawk went d...

We are excited to welcome former Navy SEAL Sniper, Team Leader, Platoon Commander, Troop Commander and Task Unit Commander, as well as bestselling author and producer of 'The Terminal List' television series based on his book: Jack Carr to HBH. Jack shares incredible insights into how his love of reading and writing shaped his life beginning at a young age and helped him discover his car...

In World War II, an American bomber pilot’s combat service was to last for 25 missions. However, most did not survive to see their 10th. In October 1943, John ‘Lucky’ Luckadoo began his 22nd mission. The assault on Bremen, Germany was to utilize dense cloud cover to shield the B-17 Flying Fortresses. However, when they arrived, the clouds had disappeared, and 50 American pilots and crew members wo...

A very happy 4th of July to everyone, as we celebrate by going behind the headlines of two of the most famous rescue missions in United States military history. The operations to save both US Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell and US Army Private First Class Jessica Lynch, both of which involved the Army Rangers. HBH is honored to welcome author, and the Army Ranger who was a part of both missions, Nichola...

156 miles of Afghanistan stood between a convoy led by US Army Special Forces and the Forward Operating Base (FOB) they were to resupply. As their destination was in the very heart of Taliban territory, they knew they would be attacked. However, no one could have predicted the absolutely terrifying firefight would last for three days. HBH is honored to be joined by US Army Special Forces Green Ber...

In June of 1939, a five-year-old American girl traveled with her family to Germany to visit her grandfather. The visit was supposed to last three months. However, before they could board a ship back to the USA, the Nazi’s seized control of Germany and closed all borders. That little girl would overcome unfathomable odds to survive 7 more years in Nazi Germany, before returning to her native soil....

On April 26, 1717, amidst the golden age of piracy, Captain Samuel ‘Black Sam’ Bellamy tried to navigate a violent storm  off of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The flagship of his pirate fleet, The Whydah Gally, shipwrecked and sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean where it stayed until 1984. Now, more than 300 years after the wreck, HBH is excited to be joined by the man who discovered the Whydah, U...

Prior to May 5, 1980, the world was largely unaware that the UK’s SAS (Special Air Service), or any elite special operations units,  existed at all. Six days earlier, terrorists had stormed the Iranian Embassy in London and taken 21 hostages. As the situation was being covered on live TV around the world, the SAS attacked the embassy. HBH is honored to be joined by two members of that elite SAS te...

In a first of its kind episode for HBH, we are joined by former gangster ‘Boston’ Bobby Luisi Jr, a key figure in the undercover operations detailed in our previous episode ‘Knockout Blow to the Italian Mafia in the US’. Bobby gives his perspective on the operation that put him behind bars, and the very surprising turn his life took - at a particularly dangerous time in mafia history. Bobby Luisi...

Part 2 with Mike McGowan continues, detailing how the FBI dealt the most devastating blow to the Italian Mafia in its US history. In this episode, the story concludes with the takedown of kingpins Joseph ‘Skinny Joey’ Merlino, and ‘Boston’ Bobby Luisi. The Italian Mafia is well known as the dominant organized crime force in the history of the United States. However, this is no longer the case. HBH...

The most secretive mission of World War II ended in the largest scale shark attack of all time. The U.S.S. Indianapolis’ mission was so secret, the entire crew was unaware of their cargo: the components of the atomic bomb ‘Little Boy’ which was dropped on Hiroshima. Thus, when the cruiser was sunk by a Japanese torpedo, no one knew, and 900 sailors were left floating in shark-infested waters for f...

The Italian Mafia is well known as the dominant organized crime force in the history of the United States. However, this is no longer the case. HBH is excited to be joined by former FBI Special Agent Mike McGowan, who led a series of operations across multiple cities & targeted three different mob families, collectively dealing a blow to ‘La Cosa Nostra,’ from which they have never recovered....

Before 2006, no woman had ever embedded to operate within a SEAL team, nor had a non-SEAL Counter-Intel officer ever been assigned to a platoon. HBH is honored to welcome the pioneer who broke down both of those barriers at once, Chief Warrant Officer Ama Adair.  Ama discusses the immense challenges she faced and tells the incredible story of an operation where she helped a SEAL Team target and ta...

HBH is thrilled to welcome back our good friend, Omar Kahn. Today, Omar tells us of an operation he undertook as a private investigator against the vast smuggling network of Ayub Afridi, the single largest funding source for Al-Qaeda. Dating back to the 1970s and through the early 2000s, Afridi ran one of the biggest smuggling operations the world has ever seen. With Afghanistan’s infamous opium t...

On June 24th, 1994, Fairchild Air Force Base in Washington State became the site of the second single-shooter mass shooting on a U.S. military base. Andy Brown joins HBH to tell the story of how he stepped in and incredibly prevented an even greater tragedy.   He details the day that forever changed his life and the lives of so many others, as well as how he bravely handled the psychological after...