Jawbreaker

The Attack on Bin Laden and Al Qaeda: A Personal Account by the CIA's Key Field Commander

By: Gary Berntsen, Ralph Pezzullo

Narrated by: Gary Berntsen

Length: 5 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

In Jawbreaker Gary Berntsen, until recently one of the CIA’s most decorated officers, comes out from under cover for the first time to describe his no-holds-barred pursuit of Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda.

With his unique mix of clandestine knowledge and paramilitary training, Berntsen represents the new face of counterterrorism. Recognized within the agency for his aggressiveness, Berntsen, when dispatched to Afghanistan, made annihilating the enemy his job description.

As the CIA’s key commander coordinating the fight against the Taliban forces around Kabul, and the drive toward Tora Bora, Berntsen not only led dozens of CIA and Special Operations Forces, he also raised 2,000 Afghan fighters to aid in the hunt for bin Laden.In this first-person account of that incredible pursuit, which actually began years earlier in an East Africa bombing investigation, Berntsen describes being ferried by rickety helicopter over the towering peaks of Afghanistan, sitting by General Tommy Franks’s side as heated negotiations were conducted with Northern Alliance generals, bargaining relentlessly with treacherous Afghan warlords and Taliban traitors, plotting to save hostages about to be used as pawns, calling in B-52 strikes on dug-in enemy units, and deploying a dizzying array of Special Forces teams in the pursuit of the world’s most wanted terrorist. Most crucially, Berntsen tells of cornering bin Laden in the Tora Bora mountains—and what happened when Berntsen begged Washington to block the al-Qaeda leader’s last avenue of escape.

As disturbingly eye-opening as it is adrenaline-charged, Jawbreaker races from CIA war rooms to diplomatic offices to mountaintop redoubts to paint a vivid portrait of a new kind of warfare, showing what can and should be done to deal a death blow to freedom’s enemies.

CIA Commander Gary Berntsen on…

His eyebrow-raising style: “Most CIA Case Officers advanced their careers by recruiting sources and producing intelligence, I took a more grab-them-by-the-neck approach…I operated on the principle that it was easier to seek forgiveness than ask for approval. Take risks, but make sure you’re successful. Success, not good intentions, would determine my fate.”

Doing whatever it took: “I didn’t just want to survive: I wanted to annihilate the enemy. And I didn’t want to end up like one of my favorite historical characters—Alexander Burns…. He was one of the first of more than 14,000 British soldiers to be wiped out by the Afghans in the First Afghan War. Like Burns before me, I was also an intelligence officer and spoke Persian. This was my second trip into Afghanistan, too. The difference, I told myself, was that Burns had been a gentleman and I would do whatever it took to win.”

Dealing with a Taliban official who controlled American hostages: “Tell him that if he betrays me or loses the hostages I’ll spend every waking moment of my life hunting him down to kill him. Tell him I’m not like any American he has ever met.”

The capabilities of his Tora Bora spotter team: “Working nonstop, the four men directed strike after strike by B-1s, B-2s, and F-14s onto the al-Qaeda encampment with incredible precision. Somehow through the massive bureaucracy, thousands of miles of distance [and] reams of red tape…the U.S. had managed to place four of the most skilled men in the world above the motherlode of al-Qaeda, with a laser designator and communications system linked to the most potent air power in history…As I listened over our encrypted radio network, one word kept pounding in my head: revenge.”

©2006 Gary Berntsen and Ralph Pezzullo (P)2006 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

“The hunt for Osama bin Laden is the story of courageous CIA officers, like Gary Berntsen, repeatedly finding him and U.S. political and military leaders refusing to kill him. Berntsen’s excellent book Jawbreaker—which CIA leaders tried to suppress to protect America's bipartisan political elite and its military sycophants—precisely describes the eleventh such opportunity since 1998, and again shows that uniformed bureaucrats masquerading as U.S. generals let him escape from Tora Bora rather than risk the lives of U.S. soldiers. Read this heartbreaking book, keep it safe, and reread it after al-Qaeda detonates a nuclear device in America. You will then know who signed the death warrant for tens of thousands of your countrymen.” —Michael Scheuer, bestselling author of Imperial Hubris and Through Our Enemies’ Eyes

“Jawbreaker is a real page turner . . . Berntsen was the CIA’s ‘go to guy’ when it came to leading in Afghanistan, owing to his exceptional operational and leadership skills in situations involving the threat of immediate danger. Berntsen is brave and bold and a true American hero.” —Cofer Black, former Chief of the Central Intelligence Agency's Counterterrorism Center

“The Afghan campaign of 2001 was the CIA’s finest hour. Jawbreaker is the story of that victory and of the handful of clandestine service officers who organized one of the swiftest, most economical and most decisive military operations in history. Jawbreaker is both a thrilling read and a timely reminder of why America needs a clandestine service, and what we owe to those who serve in it.” —James Dobbins, Director of International Security and Defense Policy, Rand Corporation; Former U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan

Amazing story

Amazing chain of events now revealed..kind of..throughout the narration the CIA cut out much of the detail to the public so the narrator simply says "redaction follows" before something that is blocked. Other than that though the actual story revealed is pretty dam badass. Hard working individuals determined to seek and destroy any threat to all Americans. Glory and sacrifice.

Outstanding Book

This book is a real eyeopener! Highly recommended!

Must Read

Simply fantastic, only wish the CIA would have let them include all the information they wanted to.

So That's What Happened

Excellent book. I could not stop listening to it. I never had a clear picture of this conflict from the media reports, at the time. This book makes sense how this operation was formed and orchestrated.

Thank God there are people watching over us.

Outstanding

This is THE story of the toppling of the Taliban. Nearly impossible to put down. Very enjoyable!

Listen to this, it's great.

This is the only book I've rated at five stars so far. What a difference it makes when it is narrated by the author, and done well! The emphasis was done as the author intended, with his understanding of the material, which simply can not be replicated. The danger then lies with the possibility that the voice simply doesn't fit. Berntsen's does, remarkably well.

The material itself was great too. Like another listener, I simply don't remember hearing much about our invasion of Afghansitan. Despite bin Laden's escape and Hussein's capture, I can't help but believe this attack was far more successful.

Of course, it was hard to digest the redacted bits, but their presence is ultimately forgivable, given the freshness of the material. Our operations are undoubtedly still going on in that nation. We have placed our trust in those individuals to accomplish a gritty task. Do we or do we not owe it to them to allow them to work in as safe an environment as we can create? If you don't understand this, imagine assaulting
a bank held by hostage-takers that are watching your every move on the nightly news. Wouldn't you want some secrecy to protect you?

A little disappointing

Of course, I applaud the author for everything he has done for his country. However, I was disappointed in the audiobook. There was very little included that I didn't already know from other sources. This was an abridgement, yet still included details like what the author had for breakfast on certain days. This book was also hampered by all the redactions forced on the author by the CIA.

Excellent

This is a very exciting and interesting piece. Great inside information. Well written and read. I have listened more than once.

Real

Wow, this was a great book. I love to keep up with what goes on in the world but most of what goes on behind the scenes in the CIA is kept from public view. This book, Jawbreaker, finally lets us see what those guys are really up against. I have more of an appreciation than ever for the danger we are in and the bravery of anyone who will join the military or the CIA. One negative about the book was that it was heavily censored. I'm looking forward to listening to it again without the censoring. Even with the censoring I still give this book 5 stars.

Excellent, very informative, behind the scenes

I would have rated this 5 stars if the CIA had not "redacted" a good portion of it. However, in it's stripped form, the book has a wealth of knowledge and demonstrates the importance of allowing commanders on the ground to make timely and appropriate decisions with the complete support from back home. It also sheds light on how even at the pinnacle of the those working to defend against threats to mandkind there is reservation about sending people out to get the job done.