The Looming Tower (2018): Season 1, Episode 7 - The General - full transcript
O'Neill and Soufan travel to Yemen to begin the investigation into the bombing of the USS Cole. The FBI becomes aware of a meeting in Malaysia and of Khallad, without knowing the CIA has been aware of both of those things for months.
NEMTUSIAK: You've been flagged
for recent expense patterns.
I'm having dinner and drinks
with important people.
You need to start living
within your means.
There is a chain of command
by which decisions are made.
Your boss has yet to learn this lesson.
Can you tell us what happened
a few months ago with your PalmPilot?
DIANE: "Qimma" means mountaintop.
But it also means summit.
- A summit meeting.
- MARTIN: In Malaysia.
DIANE: I'll get the Malaysian
Special Branch on this immediately.
We're gonna need eyes and ears
in Kuala Lumpur.
You've built an operation
based outside this country.
DIANE: That's where all roads lead.
Southeast Asia.
What exactly do you want from me?
I definitely want us
to be more than buddies.
HEATHER: Okay, then.
Walla?
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(AYMAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(HORN HONKS)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
Shit.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
Al-Qaeda?
(IN ENGLISH)
Please do not rush to conclusions.
- BARBARA: What is the death toll?
- Ten so far. The search continues.
- Please order a patrol boat for me.
- Not safe. I can't allow it.
Later today, once we secure the harbor.
BARBARA: I hope she doesn't sink.
I'm sure every measure
has been taken to save her.
You understand our own FBI agents
will have to investigate.
Foreign law enforcement
in Yemen is forbidden.
And non-negotiable.
There are dead Americans.
If Al-Qaeda did this,
it is an act of war.
The enemy of peace is the enemy
of all Islam, Ambassador Bodine.
You have my word
the FBI will collaborate
with the Yemen government,
and make
as small a footprint as possible.
(PLANE ENGINES ROARING)
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATION)
Don't tell me how it ends.
- I didn't know you were...
- Yeah.
On and off since I was a kid.
More on, lately.
Just can't escape it.
Can't run if it's inside you.
And you sure as shit
can't outrun a Jesuit.
But it helps. Sometimes.
I grew up in Beirut, boss.
God was the fuel and the flame.
- Why now, for you?
- Lot of pressure. I...
I need this one. I...
I need it to go well.
(HYDRAULICS WHIRRING)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SIGHS)
- (IN ENGLISH) What the...
- I told them you're a general.
Welcome to Yemen, General O'Neill.
(BACKGROUND CHATTER)
JOHN: What's going on?
We've been ordered to
relinquish our long guns, boss.
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
Is forbidden for the long guns.
- Who the fuck's in charge here?
- I am.
- Are you my point person on the ground?
- Actually, no.
I'm Ambassador Barbara Bodine
of the United States Foreign Service.
I am a guest of the Yemenis,
and you are my guest.
Here's how this will go.
Your men will not leave the hotel walls
without one of their men
who speaks Arabic
and understands the culture and laws.
Keep your handguns holstered unless
absolutely necessary, for your safety.
- Who are you?
- John O'Neill, FBI.
Well, Agent O'Neill, please hand over
your long guns as requested.
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
Around 11:18 local time,
08:18 Universal Coordinated Time,
a small boat containing an estimated
400 to 700 pounds of explosives
approached the port side
of the destroyer and exploded.
Seventeen dead sailors
have been identified.
Kenneth Eugene Clodfelter, 21,
Hull Maintenance Technician.
Richard Costelow, 35,
Chief Petty Officer.
Lakeina Monique Francis, 19,
Mess Management Specialist.
Timothy Lee Gauna, 21.
Information Systems Technician.
Patrick Howard Roy...
LIPPOLD: You're the case agent?
When were you at Quantico, Soufan?
'97, sir.
- A lot of sailors died on this ship.
- He's young, but he's good.
Goddamn skiff
the size of my bass boat back home.
I don't envy your job.
MAN ON PA:
Commander, 23MC on the bitchbox.
Excuse me.
- JOHN: What's the population here?
- Million, million two.
JOHN: Like picking
fly shit out of pepper.
- That's if they're still here.
- They're still here,
looking at us right now.
(ENGINE WHINES)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) Yes, he is General O'Neill.
Special Agent Ali Soufan.
I am General Ghaleb Al-Qamish.
I would like to escort you
to headquarters.
We're fine, General.
We got some leads we want to pursue.
Please, General.
It won't be safe
for you and your colleague
if you're just walking about. Please.
You are married, Sa'adit al Jiniral?
- Yeah. You?
- Yes, of course.
And you, uh, young Mr. Ali?
No.
You must marry. It is Allah's will.
(BOTH SPEAKING ARABIC)
(YEMENI MUSIC PLAYING ON RADIO)
(IN ENGLISH)
Captain Amin of our Aden Police.
He's our top guy.
I leave you now, with good hands.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) Our SAC, John O'Neill.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(ENGINE STARTS)
Soufan, that's a Yemeni name.
Lubnan.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
AMIN: (IN ENGLISH)
He asks you want sugar?
Why you speak Arabic,
but live in America, the beautiful?
The FBI gave you job because
you know about secrets of our people?
Maybe you have a blonde American wife
like Christina Aguilera?
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) Why not married?
So, you won't speak Arabic to me?
No. I don't trust you.
Tell me about the boat trailer.
Trailer?
Trailers are usually by lakes, or
where water freezes. Not warm harbors.
- I don't know the trailer.
- In the back, behind the fence.
Mmm.
- I'll ask.
- Can you ask, now?
- The man is not here today.
- When will the man be here?
We make good advance
on the investigation for you.
You see? All are held on suspicion.
Suspicion of what?
AMIN: Suspicion. (MUMBLES)
Suspicion.
- SOUFAN: We'd like to speak to them.
- Who?
All of them.
You must have a reason.
Dead American sailors is a reason.
I'll tell you. The men
you want to speak, they are dead.
Dead when
the boat they drive hit your boat.
We'd still like to speak
to all these men.
Sa'adit al Jiniral, please.
We have our policy.
We hold these men for a reason.
You must bring me legal basis,
or a good reason to interview.
Then we decide
kaza, kaza, kaza, who you talk.
(KNOCK ON DOOR)
(SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) I wish I had one of those.
You have several of those, boss.
Where's your wife?
With her mother, who is ill.
Mmm.
I like you, General.
And I will forgive
you did not understand
never to ask about a man's wife.
Sorry. You asked if I was married.
Mmm-hmm.
I was inquiring about
the character of a man.
You were seeking the location
of a woman, you see?
Ah... That's a subtle difference.
I take no offense.
It is a pleasure to have the opportunity
to sit with a friend from
beyond the borders of my little country.
Perhaps together, we can make decisions
that will change the world
for the better.
- All before midnight.
- (LAUGHS)
I never finished this in college.
I read them all. Many, twice.
JOHN: Oh. You're a better man than I.
(SIGHS)
In the Arab world today,
it is difficult to find books
written in English.
All we have available is Holy Qur'an,
or Hadith, you see?
The mind is closing.
That makes me very sad.
You play chess?
No. Not really.
Because I think you are
playing chess with me now.
The compliments, the late night visits.
We do have a favor to ask.
Please.
The police have a boat trailer
frozen out back.
We need the name and address
on the registration.
Amin won't supply it.
Yes, of course. Bring the official
license plate number to my office.
SOUFAN: Actually...
- Can you do it now?
- (PAPER TEARS)
You are pushy, Mr. Soufan.
I am sad to see you did not retain
the polite manner of our Arab people.
(SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(DISTANT GUNFIRE)
(DOGS BARKING IN DISTANCE)
(INDISTINCT CHANTING)
(DISTANT GUNFIRE)
SOUFAN: Clear.
See? Looking right at us.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(BOTH LAUGHING)
- (REWINDING)
- (KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(KHALLED LAUGHING)
(KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC)
Hi, how's it going?
Well, the Yemenis provided a dredger,
so, we're searching beneath the Cole,
and Forensics ships
what we find to Dubai for analysis.
It's a mess. You?
Ever hear the name Jamal al-Badawi?
The boat was registered to him.
(DISTANT GUNSHOTS)
(GUNFIRE CONTINUES IN DISTANCE)
(GUNSHOTS)
(CHILDREN SHOUTING)
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
I've worked hard in the State of Texas
to make sure our institutions are...
Reflect the state,
with good, smart policy.
Policy that rejects quotas.
I don't like quotas.
Quotas tend to pit
one group of people against another.
Anything?
GEORGE ON TV:...that's not
the way America's all about.
Kids.
Can you believe this crap?
Nobody mentioned terrorism.
Do these candidates
even know we're here?
Or why?
GEORGE ON TV:...both Republicans
and Democrats to pass a law
that said if you come in the top 10%
of your high school class,
you're automatically admitted
to one of our...
- Ali?
- SOUFAN: I'm still here.
- HEATHER: Are you?
- Yeah.
What's going on?
I saw these boys tonight.
They were
like my friends
back in Beirut, when I was a kid,
me.
(DISTANT GUNSHOTS)
- What was that?
- It's nothing. Nothing.
The kids that I work with,
you know, the ones that want to heal,
they find a way to tell their story.
Saying it out loud helps.
- So, you sit with them?
- Yeah.
Yeah.
It's nice to be with someone, isn't it?
It can be.
(DISTANT GUNFIRE)
I know that's gunfire.
(GUNSHOTS CONTINUE)
It is.
- It's non-stop here.
- Please be careful.
I will.
(ENGINE REVVING)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
He says his boat was stolen.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
The boat and trailer are registered to
him in a house at Al-Safarat District.
The men who bombed the Cole
were living in that house.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) I told him about you.
That you are a human lie detector.
Hmm.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
Walid Mohammed Saleh
bin Roshayed bin Attash?
(CALL TO PRAYER SOUNDS)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
(IN ENGLISH) Finish now.
No work at prayer time. No work.
I had him. Fuck!
Amin shriveled up when he heard Quso
and the long-named guy.
Walid Mohammed Saleh bin
Roshayed bin Attash.
- I assume that's Quso.
- No. See, I didn't get that.
Badawi's going up
the chain of command. Quso is next.
Then long name guy.
Quso owns the house?
I don't think we know who owns it.
I don't think he knows.
They keep the cells small.
Five or six at the most.
He's saying that
if you want to know about the house,
talk to Quso, or
long name guy.
(DOOR OPENS)
Not possible, Sa'adit al Jiniral.
What's wrong with him?
Quso is on your list.
Again, I tell you, we have a system.
Material witness offers the name Quso.
In our system,
that would justify bringing him in,
or at least a knock-and-talk visit.
Mr. Ali tricked Badawi with
the lie detector. It's a joke, right?
If he says Britney Spear,
I can't bring Britney Spear
here to talk for you.
Britney Spear is not on your list, man.
The men you want are all dead.
I'm gonna go above your pay grade!
Sa'adit al Jiniral, you give me reason,
I give you Quso.
Hey.
What are you afraid of, Amin? Hmm?
Not you, America, Mr. Ali.
Hotel bar remnants from a better day.
Oh, you shouldn't have.
I wanted to.
- What is it?
- We can't make progress this way.
Did you recently make
the great sociological discovery
that far away, foreign cultures
don't operate the same way
mob thugs in Flushing do?
Seventeen dead American sailors
and their families want justice served.
Every one of those families
would rather live in a peaceful world.
Yeah, I need you to clear a path for us.
Yeah, I don't like your hostility. Sit.
We need Yemen!
It borders Saudi Arabia,
our most vital ally in the Arab world.
Every move you have made
since you've arrived,
has offended every man, woman,
and organization
you've come in contact with.
You make enemies,
not progress here, in my country.
You're confused.
Isn't your country the United States?
We're citizens of a country
that offers so much,
the rest of the world
either wants to be us, or kill us.
My goal is to make sure
Yemen is the former.
Seventeen dead Americans!
Their blood's gonna be on your hands.
After my initial tour of the Cole,
my clothes were covered in blood.
I could've gone to change
before my meeting
with President Abdullah Saleh,
but I wanted him to see it.
- Don't talk to me about...
- Make the fucking phone call, Bodine.
Diplomacy will recover.
Those sailors are gone forever.
Please.
(AMIN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
Is this man in custody, or what?
You want to talk, so, talk.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) If he's Al-Qaeda,
just arrest him.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) He said he filmed the Cole.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(CLICKS)
(CAMERA WHIRS)
(KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC ON VIDEO)
(WALLA AND KHALLED
SPEAKING ARABIC ON VIDEO)
(KHALLED LAUGHS)
(KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC)
(CAMERA WHIRS)
(CAMERA STOPS)
(IN ENGLISH)
Usama's very disappointed in you.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) He says he overslept.
(LAUGHS)
- Are these men al-Qaeda?
- (SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
Say what you want from this man...
Shh!
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) $36,000 USA cash.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
He says the cash was for a new leg.
A new leg? A peg leg?
Ask him if it's for a guy named Khallad.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
I don't get it.
The money's moving away
from an operation.
Maybe it moves towards one.
(TOILET FLUSHES)
SOUFAN ON PHONE: I need anything
about Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur, a meeting.
Any of our suspects.
Fahd al-Quso,
Khallad or Walid Mohammed,
Saleh bin Roshayed bin Attash.
I don't have anything. I'll check.
(COMPUTER CHIMES)
(DICE RATTLING AND CLATTERING)
JOHN: We have another request.
Play and talk first.
Then I do a favor for you,
friend, a brother.
- Tric troc. I win.
- Did you cheat?
(LAUGHING)
- I don't need to when I play you.
- (LAUGHS) You are ruthless.
I'm a man of peace
in a military uniform.
(BOTH CHUCKLE)
And you? You're a man of peace?
I'm a man of justice.
I'm sorry to say in this case of
the Cole, the bad guys are all dead.
Al-Qaeda's behind it.
They're still watching us.
Planning more.
My investigators told me
there were three men on the skiff.
One, a young boy,
maybe 12 years old.
This boy was likely born
in a bin Laden camp.
And educated where they teach
only from one book,
the Holy Qur'an,
a book I sincerely doubt
any al-Qaeda member has ever read.
In their version of this book,
there are two forces in the universe.
Allah, good,
and everything else, evil.
What does President Clinton think
when he puts this battleship
rising up in our harbor,
like the devil himself,
in a country where there is only Allah
and not-Allah?
If one squints at the mast,
with American flag,
- from the devil himself...
- You made your point.
Killing is not the appropriate response.
I agree.
- I'm not trying to convert you.
- (ZIPPER OPENS)
This is the only
English language book I have with me.
John, mine is not a curious country
in these times.
This book is seen as a threat.
But I have always dreamed
of reading the Holy Bible.
Thank you.
That book has helped me often.
I fear I have not been
thoughtful as you to bring a gift.
Oh, it's not necessary.
I'd like for you to have this.
Subha, Islamic prayer beads.
It belonged to my father.
No, those belong to your family.
They're special.
And the Holy Bible you gave me?
Fair enough, from my childhood, but...
You insult me
if you don't accept. Please.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) And now, for the request.
I need to speak to a Khallad.
Is he al-Qaeda?
(PIPE BUBBLING)
I ask for you, but make no promise.
- Malaysia was an operational issue.
- Intelligence. Not criminal.
It is foreign soil
in the Pacific region.
Not the domain of the FBI.
So, $36,000 originated offshore
and was delivered offshore.
CIA business.
(CALL TO PRAYER SOUNDS)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
- Ambassador Bodine.
- Special Agent O'Neill.
- I'd like to update you on our progress.
- I'm listening.
Dredging for evidence beneath the Cole
has been completed,
shipped for analysis.
The Quso interrogation,
which you arranged,
led to a name we believe
is the mastermind of the attack.
Khallad.
Thank you.
Are we okay? You and I?
As we ever were.
What do you have for me, Colonel?
COLONEL: We have a heavy-lift ship
moving South from Europe...
REPORTER ON TV:
...are bending to political pressure
by easing standards for considering
whether a ballot counts.
The board had been throwing out ballots
that did not have two corners
poked out of the chad.
- The...
- (TV CLICKS)
- Get me the FBI office in New York.
- WOMAN: Right away.
(PHONE BEEPS)
Ambassador Bodine.
Yes, thank you.
It is a difficult time. Listen,
I'm having a bit of a problem here,
with one of your guys.
(JET ENGINES ROARING)
SOUFAN: Maybe they need you back home.
Nah, it's a different play.
I'm getting jerked by Sanchez.
- Just wish me luck.
- All right.
General!
I found about the man you want.
Khallad.
A better gift than old prayer beads,
agree?
Thank you.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
I'm not a general anymore.
Salaam.
Salaam.
Salaam, brother John.
for recent expense patterns.
I'm having dinner and drinks
with important people.
You need to start living
within your means.
There is a chain of command
by which decisions are made.
Your boss has yet to learn this lesson.
Can you tell us what happened
a few months ago with your PalmPilot?
DIANE: "Qimma" means mountaintop.
But it also means summit.
- A summit meeting.
- MARTIN: In Malaysia.
DIANE: I'll get the Malaysian
Special Branch on this immediately.
We're gonna need eyes and ears
in Kuala Lumpur.
You've built an operation
based outside this country.
DIANE: That's where all roads lead.
Southeast Asia.
What exactly do you want from me?
I definitely want us
to be more than buddies.
HEATHER: Okay, then.
Walla?
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(AYMAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(HORN HONKS)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
Shit.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
Al-Qaeda?
(IN ENGLISH)
Please do not rush to conclusions.
- BARBARA: What is the death toll?
- Ten so far. The search continues.
- Please order a patrol boat for me.
- Not safe. I can't allow it.
Later today, once we secure the harbor.
BARBARA: I hope she doesn't sink.
I'm sure every measure
has been taken to save her.
You understand our own FBI agents
will have to investigate.
Foreign law enforcement
in Yemen is forbidden.
And non-negotiable.
There are dead Americans.
If Al-Qaeda did this,
it is an act of war.
The enemy of peace is the enemy
of all Islam, Ambassador Bodine.
You have my word
the FBI will collaborate
with the Yemen government,
and make
as small a footprint as possible.
(PLANE ENGINES ROARING)
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATION)
Don't tell me how it ends.
- I didn't know you were...
- Yeah.
On and off since I was a kid.
More on, lately.
Just can't escape it.
Can't run if it's inside you.
And you sure as shit
can't outrun a Jesuit.
But it helps. Sometimes.
I grew up in Beirut, boss.
God was the fuel and the flame.
- Why now, for you?
- Lot of pressure. I...
I need this one. I...
I need it to go well.
(HYDRAULICS WHIRRING)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SIGHS)
- (IN ENGLISH) What the...
- I told them you're a general.
Welcome to Yemen, General O'Neill.
(BACKGROUND CHATTER)
JOHN: What's going on?
We've been ordered to
relinquish our long guns, boss.
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
Is forbidden for the long guns.
- Who the fuck's in charge here?
- I am.
- Are you my point person on the ground?
- Actually, no.
I'm Ambassador Barbara Bodine
of the United States Foreign Service.
I am a guest of the Yemenis,
and you are my guest.
Here's how this will go.
Your men will not leave the hotel walls
without one of their men
who speaks Arabic
and understands the culture and laws.
Keep your handguns holstered unless
absolutely necessary, for your safety.
- Who are you?
- John O'Neill, FBI.
Well, Agent O'Neill, please hand over
your long guns as requested.
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
Around 11:18 local time,
08:18 Universal Coordinated Time,
a small boat containing an estimated
400 to 700 pounds of explosives
approached the port side
of the destroyer and exploded.
Seventeen dead sailors
have been identified.
Kenneth Eugene Clodfelter, 21,
Hull Maintenance Technician.
Richard Costelow, 35,
Chief Petty Officer.
Lakeina Monique Francis, 19,
Mess Management Specialist.
Timothy Lee Gauna, 21.
Information Systems Technician.
Patrick Howard Roy...
LIPPOLD: You're the case agent?
When were you at Quantico, Soufan?
'97, sir.
- A lot of sailors died on this ship.
- He's young, but he's good.
Goddamn skiff
the size of my bass boat back home.
I don't envy your job.
MAN ON PA:
Commander, 23MC on the bitchbox.
Excuse me.
- JOHN: What's the population here?
- Million, million two.
JOHN: Like picking
fly shit out of pepper.
- That's if they're still here.
- They're still here,
looking at us right now.
(ENGINE WHINES)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) Yes, he is General O'Neill.
Special Agent Ali Soufan.
I am General Ghaleb Al-Qamish.
I would like to escort you
to headquarters.
We're fine, General.
We got some leads we want to pursue.
Please, General.
It won't be safe
for you and your colleague
if you're just walking about. Please.
You are married, Sa'adit al Jiniral?
- Yeah. You?
- Yes, of course.
And you, uh, young Mr. Ali?
No.
You must marry. It is Allah's will.
(BOTH SPEAKING ARABIC)
(YEMENI MUSIC PLAYING ON RADIO)
(IN ENGLISH)
Captain Amin of our Aden Police.
He's our top guy.
I leave you now, with good hands.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) Our SAC, John O'Neill.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(ENGINE STARTS)
Soufan, that's a Yemeni name.
Lubnan.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
AMIN: (IN ENGLISH)
He asks you want sugar?
Why you speak Arabic,
but live in America, the beautiful?
The FBI gave you job because
you know about secrets of our people?
Maybe you have a blonde American wife
like Christina Aguilera?
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) Why not married?
So, you won't speak Arabic to me?
No. I don't trust you.
Tell me about the boat trailer.
Trailer?
Trailers are usually by lakes, or
where water freezes. Not warm harbors.
- I don't know the trailer.
- In the back, behind the fence.
Mmm.
- I'll ask.
- Can you ask, now?
- The man is not here today.
- When will the man be here?
We make good advance
on the investigation for you.
You see? All are held on suspicion.
Suspicion of what?
AMIN: Suspicion. (MUMBLES)
Suspicion.
- SOUFAN: We'd like to speak to them.
- Who?
All of them.
You must have a reason.
Dead American sailors is a reason.
I'll tell you. The men
you want to speak, they are dead.
Dead when
the boat they drive hit your boat.
We'd still like to speak
to all these men.
Sa'adit al Jiniral, please.
We have our policy.
We hold these men for a reason.
You must bring me legal basis,
or a good reason to interview.
Then we decide
kaza, kaza, kaza, who you talk.
(KNOCK ON DOOR)
(SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) I wish I had one of those.
You have several of those, boss.
Where's your wife?
With her mother, who is ill.
Mmm.
I like you, General.
And I will forgive
you did not understand
never to ask about a man's wife.
Sorry. You asked if I was married.
Mmm-hmm.
I was inquiring about
the character of a man.
You were seeking the location
of a woman, you see?
Ah... That's a subtle difference.
I take no offense.
It is a pleasure to have the opportunity
to sit with a friend from
beyond the borders of my little country.
Perhaps together, we can make decisions
that will change the world
for the better.
- All before midnight.
- (LAUGHS)
I never finished this in college.
I read them all. Many, twice.
JOHN: Oh. You're a better man than I.
(SIGHS)
In the Arab world today,
it is difficult to find books
written in English.
All we have available is Holy Qur'an,
or Hadith, you see?
The mind is closing.
That makes me very sad.
You play chess?
No. Not really.
Because I think you are
playing chess with me now.
The compliments, the late night visits.
We do have a favor to ask.
Please.
The police have a boat trailer
frozen out back.
We need the name and address
on the registration.
Amin won't supply it.
Yes, of course. Bring the official
license plate number to my office.
SOUFAN: Actually...
- Can you do it now?
- (PAPER TEARS)
You are pushy, Mr. Soufan.
I am sad to see you did not retain
the polite manner of our Arab people.
(SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(DISTANT GUNFIRE)
(DOGS BARKING IN DISTANCE)
(INDISTINCT CHANTING)
(DISTANT GUNFIRE)
SOUFAN: Clear.
See? Looking right at us.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(BOTH LAUGHING)
- (REWINDING)
- (KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(KHALLED LAUGHING)
(KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC)
Hi, how's it going?
Well, the Yemenis provided a dredger,
so, we're searching beneath the Cole,
and Forensics ships
what we find to Dubai for analysis.
It's a mess. You?
Ever hear the name Jamal al-Badawi?
The boat was registered to him.
(DISTANT GUNSHOTS)
(GUNFIRE CONTINUES IN DISTANCE)
(GUNSHOTS)
(CHILDREN SHOUTING)
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
(SPEAKS ARABIC)
I've worked hard in the State of Texas
to make sure our institutions are...
Reflect the state,
with good, smart policy.
Policy that rejects quotas.
I don't like quotas.
Quotas tend to pit
one group of people against another.
Anything?
GEORGE ON TV:...that's not
the way America's all about.
Kids.
Can you believe this crap?
Nobody mentioned terrorism.
Do these candidates
even know we're here?
Or why?
GEORGE ON TV:...both Republicans
and Democrats to pass a law
that said if you come in the top 10%
of your high school class,
you're automatically admitted
to one of our...
- Ali?
- SOUFAN: I'm still here.
- HEATHER: Are you?
- Yeah.
What's going on?
I saw these boys tonight.
They were
like my friends
back in Beirut, when I was a kid,
me.
(DISTANT GUNSHOTS)
- What was that?
- It's nothing. Nothing.
The kids that I work with,
you know, the ones that want to heal,
they find a way to tell their story.
Saying it out loud helps.
- So, you sit with them?
- Yeah.
Yeah.
It's nice to be with someone, isn't it?
It can be.
(DISTANT GUNFIRE)
I know that's gunfire.
(GUNSHOTS CONTINUE)
It is.
- It's non-stop here.
- Please be careful.
I will.
(ENGINE REVVING)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
He says his boat was stolen.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
The boat and trailer are registered to
him in a house at Al-Safarat District.
The men who bombed the Cole
were living in that house.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) I told him about you.
That you are a human lie detector.
Hmm.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
Walid Mohammed Saleh
bin Roshayed bin Attash?
(CALL TO PRAYER SOUNDS)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
(IN ENGLISH) Finish now.
No work at prayer time. No work.
I had him. Fuck!
Amin shriveled up when he heard Quso
and the long-named guy.
Walid Mohammed Saleh bin
Roshayed bin Attash.
- I assume that's Quso.
- No. See, I didn't get that.
Badawi's going up
the chain of command. Quso is next.
Then long name guy.
Quso owns the house?
I don't think we know who owns it.
I don't think he knows.
They keep the cells small.
Five or six at the most.
He's saying that
if you want to know about the house,
talk to Quso, or
long name guy.
(DOOR OPENS)
Not possible, Sa'adit al Jiniral.
What's wrong with him?
Quso is on your list.
Again, I tell you, we have a system.
Material witness offers the name Quso.
In our system,
that would justify bringing him in,
or at least a knock-and-talk visit.
Mr. Ali tricked Badawi with
the lie detector. It's a joke, right?
If he says Britney Spear,
I can't bring Britney Spear
here to talk for you.
Britney Spear is not on your list, man.
The men you want are all dead.
I'm gonna go above your pay grade!
Sa'adit al Jiniral, you give me reason,
I give you Quso.
Hey.
What are you afraid of, Amin? Hmm?
Not you, America, Mr. Ali.
Hotel bar remnants from a better day.
Oh, you shouldn't have.
I wanted to.
- What is it?
- We can't make progress this way.
Did you recently make
the great sociological discovery
that far away, foreign cultures
don't operate the same way
mob thugs in Flushing do?
Seventeen dead American sailors
and their families want justice served.
Every one of those families
would rather live in a peaceful world.
Yeah, I need you to clear a path for us.
Yeah, I don't like your hostility. Sit.
We need Yemen!
It borders Saudi Arabia,
our most vital ally in the Arab world.
Every move you have made
since you've arrived,
has offended every man, woman,
and organization
you've come in contact with.
You make enemies,
not progress here, in my country.
You're confused.
Isn't your country the United States?
We're citizens of a country
that offers so much,
the rest of the world
either wants to be us, or kill us.
My goal is to make sure
Yemen is the former.
Seventeen dead Americans!
Their blood's gonna be on your hands.
After my initial tour of the Cole,
my clothes were covered in blood.
I could've gone to change
before my meeting
with President Abdullah Saleh,
but I wanted him to see it.
- Don't talk to me about...
- Make the fucking phone call, Bodine.
Diplomacy will recover.
Those sailors are gone forever.
Please.
(AMIN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
Is this man in custody, or what?
You want to talk, so, talk.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) If he's Al-Qaeda,
just arrest him.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) He said he filmed the Cole.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(CLICKS)
(CAMERA WHIRS)
(KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC ON VIDEO)
(WALLA AND KHALLED
SPEAKING ARABIC ON VIDEO)
(KHALLED LAUGHS)
(KHALLED SPEAKING ARABIC)
(CAMERA WHIRS)
(CAMERA STOPS)
(IN ENGLISH)
Usama's very disappointed in you.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) He says he overslept.
(LAUGHS)
- Are these men al-Qaeda?
- (SOUFAN SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
Say what you want from this man...
Shh!
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) $36,000 USA cash.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH)
He says the cash was for a new leg.
A new leg? A peg leg?
Ask him if it's for a guy named Khallad.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
I don't get it.
The money's moving away
from an operation.
Maybe it moves towards one.
(TOILET FLUSHES)
SOUFAN ON PHONE: I need anything
about Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur, a meeting.
Any of our suspects.
Fahd al-Quso,
Khallad or Walid Mohammed,
Saleh bin Roshayed bin Attash.
I don't have anything. I'll check.
(COMPUTER CHIMES)
(DICE RATTLING AND CLATTERING)
JOHN: We have another request.
Play and talk first.
Then I do a favor for you,
friend, a brother.
- Tric troc. I win.
- Did you cheat?
(LAUGHING)
- I don't need to when I play you.
- (LAUGHS) You are ruthless.
I'm a man of peace
in a military uniform.
(BOTH CHUCKLE)
And you? You're a man of peace?
I'm a man of justice.
I'm sorry to say in this case of
the Cole, the bad guys are all dead.
Al-Qaeda's behind it.
They're still watching us.
Planning more.
My investigators told me
there were three men on the skiff.
One, a young boy,
maybe 12 years old.
This boy was likely born
in a bin Laden camp.
And educated where they teach
only from one book,
the Holy Qur'an,
a book I sincerely doubt
any al-Qaeda member has ever read.
In their version of this book,
there are two forces in the universe.
Allah, good,
and everything else, evil.
What does President Clinton think
when he puts this battleship
rising up in our harbor,
like the devil himself,
in a country where there is only Allah
and not-Allah?
If one squints at the mast,
with American flag,
- from the devil himself...
- You made your point.
Killing is not the appropriate response.
I agree.
- I'm not trying to convert you.
- (ZIPPER OPENS)
This is the only
English language book I have with me.
John, mine is not a curious country
in these times.
This book is seen as a threat.
But I have always dreamed
of reading the Holy Bible.
Thank you.
That book has helped me often.
I fear I have not been
thoughtful as you to bring a gift.
Oh, it's not necessary.
I'd like for you to have this.
Subha, Islamic prayer beads.
It belonged to my father.
No, those belong to your family.
They're special.
And the Holy Bible you gave me?
Fair enough, from my childhood, but...
You insult me
if you don't accept. Please.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(IN ENGLISH) And now, for the request.
I need to speak to a Khallad.
Is he al-Qaeda?
(PIPE BUBBLING)
I ask for you, but make no promise.
- Malaysia was an operational issue.
- Intelligence. Not criminal.
It is foreign soil
in the Pacific region.
Not the domain of the FBI.
So, $36,000 originated offshore
and was delivered offshore.
CIA business.
(CALL TO PRAYER SOUNDS)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
(CALL TO PRAYER CONTINUES)
- Ambassador Bodine.
- Special Agent O'Neill.
- I'd like to update you on our progress.
- I'm listening.
Dredging for evidence beneath the Cole
has been completed,
shipped for analysis.
The Quso interrogation,
which you arranged,
led to a name we believe
is the mastermind of the attack.
Khallad.
Thank you.
Are we okay? You and I?
As we ever were.
What do you have for me, Colonel?
COLONEL: We have a heavy-lift ship
moving South from Europe...
REPORTER ON TV:
...are bending to political pressure
by easing standards for considering
whether a ballot counts.
The board had been throwing out ballots
that did not have two corners
poked out of the chad.
- The...
- (TV CLICKS)
- Get me the FBI office in New York.
- WOMAN: Right away.
(PHONE BEEPS)
Ambassador Bodine.
Yes, thank you.
It is a difficult time. Listen,
I'm having a bit of a problem here,
with one of your guys.
(JET ENGINES ROARING)
SOUFAN: Maybe they need you back home.
Nah, it's a different play.
I'm getting jerked by Sanchez.
- Just wish me luck.
- All right.
General!
I found about the man you want.
Khallad.
A better gift than old prayer beads,
agree?
Thank you.
(SPEAKING ARABIC)
I'm not a general anymore.
Salaam.
Salaam.
Salaam, brother John.