Kabul Falling – Details, episodes & analysis

This is The Illuminator - out now, from Brazen. Subscribe to get early releases and listen ad-free. http://brazen.fm/plus Mark Lombardi, a conceptual artist on the cusp of international success, had everything to live for. So why was the 48-year-old found hanged and deemed suicidal? Was his death the ultimate conceptual art, an afterlife laugh at those who doubted his brilliance? He did, after all, carry business cards eerily portending "death defying acts of art and conspiracy."  Or was he ultimately overwhelmed by the subject of his work: the financial networks connecting some of the most powerful and corrupt people on earth?  His intricate drawings traced hot money, from Cold War funding to the heroin trade. But his most dogged scrutiny fell on the Bank of Credit and Commerce International, a global money laundry bankrolling fraudsters, smugglers, and CIA operations abroad. Since his death, Lombardi's masterwork on the rogue bank has been held at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Could it be responsible for his demise? The answer can only be found within Lombardi himself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

Reporter Neha Wadekar interviews Mohsin Mohi Ud Din, leader of Me We International, an organisation that uses art to help refugees around the world heal from trauma, reframe their narratives, and author their futures. To follow Me We International and learn more about their work, please visit www.meweintl.org. You can find them online at @meweinternational on Instagram and @meweintl on Twitter. Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

With security now on high alert at the Kabul airport, it is nearly impossible for Afghans to fly out of the country to escape the Taliban takeover. Danna Harman, the journalist who profiled Rodaba Noori and her all-girls robotics team, comes up with a wild plan to evacuate the women to Tajikistan by bus, along with a group of female cyclists. Tajik journalist Anahita Saymidinova is waiting on the other side to receive them. But they have to work with the Taliban to bring the women out of Afghanistan and over the border — putting them face to face with the very men they’re afraid of. Meanwhile, Mohammed is turned away from one of the very last evacuation flights leaving Afghanistan and must say goodbye to his wife. For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

With the evacuation deadline looming, Afghans race to Kabul airport in hopes of getting on a flight and escaping the Taliban regime. With help from Jake, an ex-Marine Corps officer, Tariq and his family manage to get in and board their plane for evacuation, after spending a harrowing night outside in a desolate yard. Abdul and his family also make it out — just hours before a suicide bomber detonates his explosive belt, killing at least 170 Afghan civilians and 13 members of the United States military. You’ll also hear from newlyweds Mohammed and Taara as they confront the possibility that they will be separated, as only Taara has the proper paperwork to flee Afghanistan and fly to the US. For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

As the US and NATO prepare to withdraw all forces from Afghanistan by the deadline of August 31, the evacuation of Afghan allies and partners quickly spins out of the control of Western governments. There is chaos as desperate crowds try to enter the airport in Kabul, where final evacuation flights are departing. Those lucky enough to make it over the high cement walls wait for hours on the tarmac under the hot sun with no food or water. This includes Fatima Faizi, an Afghan journalist working for the New York Times. Informal networks of foreign volunteers quickly spring up to help their Afghan friends and colleagues navigate the chaos and evacuate the country. Ultimately, for many Afghans, getting out comes down to who is in their WhatsApp contacts list. For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

With the Taliban back in power, Kabul’s streets were mobbed with traffic as thousands rushed to escape, many heading towards the capital’s airport. At particular risk of retribution were Afghans who had worked with the US Army or the international community, those who'd served in Afghanistan’s government and women who had pursued full lives outside the home. In this episode, you’ll hear how quick thinking — and chance — helps former CIA interpreter Abdul and TV journalist Ogai Wardak evade Taliban fighters and pass through checkpoints towards Kabul airport. Amidst the chaos, Tariq, a young father and former US contractor, walks for 8 hours across the blisteringly hot city to get his son from kindergarten and then tries to take his family to the airport. But with huge crowds of desperate Afghans surrounding the gates, there is no easy way in. For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com Correction: In this episode, we stated that Muhammad Javed and his brother are from the Paktia Province. This is an error - they are from the Paktika Province. Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

On August 15, 2021, the Taliban regained control of Kabul, nearly 20 years after the US Army and Coalition Forces  had cast them out of power. To many Afghans and observers watching from abroad, the fall of Kabul came as a shock. The news thrust thousands of Afghans into a terrifying journey to flee the country, leaving their old lives behind. In this episode, you’ll hear from Ogai Wardak, a young journalist at a women’s TV station, and Abdul, a former CIA interpreter and father of four, describing how they began planning their escape as Taliban fighters patrolled the streets. For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

Bradley Hope sits down with host Nelufar Hedayat to chat about Project Brazen’s latest podcast series, Kabul Falling. In this exclusive audio interview, Nelufar talks about what it’s been like working on Kabul Falling, an eight-part series on the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan last year, and what makes her connection to it — as an Afghan-born journalist—so personal and important. She shares her own experiences of leaving Afghanistan with her family as a young child, and how the Taliban’s takeover has affected Afghans in the country and around the world. Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

In August 2021, the Taliban regained control of Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. The takeover sent shockwaves throughout the country. It forced thousands of Afghans to leave their old lives behind and embark on a hellish journey for survival. In this eight-episode podcast, Afghans themselves will tell you how it happened. You’ll hear stories about big risks, close calls, and unexpected moments of kindness — or luck — that changed everything. You’ll meet Afghan women and men from different walks of life, and even a young man who chose to fight with the Taliban — in his eyes, to protect the country he loves. This is the story of a home ripped apart — and of a courageous new beginning. Thanks for listening. You can find Kabul Falling on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

Project Brazen is excited to announce Arson Fahim, the composer of Kabul Falling’s main theme music, has been nominated for an Ambie award for Best Original Score and Music Supervision. Arson Fahim is a pianist, composer, and conductor from Afghanistan, In 2021, only two weeks before the Taliban took control and once again banned music, Arson arrived in the US and started his studies at the Longy school of music, where he was awarded a scholarship. The Podcast Academy will announce the winners at its third annual Awards for Excellence in Audio, a.k.a. The Ambies, on 7 March 2023. Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.  For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/