Episode 453: Operation Pineapple Express

In April 2020, an urgent call was placed from a Special Forces operator serving overseas. The message: Get Nezam out of Afghanistan now! Nezam was part of the Afghan National Army’s first group of American-trained commandos. He served alongside the U.S. Special Forces for over a decade. The message reached Nezam’s former commanding officer, retired Lt. Col. Scott Mann, and he sent out an SOS to a group of Afghan vets (Navy SEALs, Green Berets, CIA officers, USAID advisors). They all answered the call for one last mission, to save a former comrade—and 500 other Afghans—being targeted by the Taliban in the chaos of America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.  Newt’s guest is Lt. Col. Scott Mann.  His new book, “Operation Pineapple Express: The Incredible Story of a Group of Americans Who Undertook One Last Mission and Honored a Promise in Afghanistan” is out now.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.