Former CIA Officer Breaks Down Source Operations in Afghanistan | Delbert Roll

Former Army officer and CIA operations officer Delbert Roll joins us to discuss his path from Third Special Forces Group to the Agency, including joining CIA just before 9/11 and working counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan. He breaks down CIA training, running sources, building targeting packages against al-Qaeda, working with JSOC and indigenous forces, and the realities of protecting assets in the field.<br />The episode also covers covert action, counterintelligence, counter-WMD work, teaching at the Farm, CIA bureaucracy, writing after retirement, and the bizarre CIA gold bar scandal.<br />Today's Sponsors:<br />GhostBed ⬇️<br />https://www.ghostbed.com/house<br />FOR 10% off! <br />Blue Chew ⬇️<br />https://bluechew.com/<br />Get 1 month free when you buy 2 of BlueChew Gold with code "HOUSECALL"<br />For ad free video and audio and access to live streams and Eyes On Geopolitics...JOIN OUR PATREON! <br />https://www.patreon.com/c/TheTeamHouse<br />To help support the show and for all bonus content including:<br />-live shows and asking guest questions <br />-ad free audio and video<br />-early access to shows<br />-Access to ALL bonus segments with our guests<br />Subscribe to our Patreon! ⬇️<br />https://www.patreon.com/TheTeamHouse<br />Support the show here:⬇️<br />https://www.patreon.com/TheTeamHouse<br />___________________________________________________<br />PRE ORDER JACK'S NEW BOOK "THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN" <br />⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️<br />https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/803651/the-most-dangerous-man-by-jack-murphy/paperback/<br />Subscribe to the new EYES ON podcast here:⬇️<br />https://www.youtube.com/@EyesOnGeopoliticsPod/featured<br />__________________________________<br />Jack Murphy's new book "We Defy: The Lost Chapters of Special Forces History" ⬇️<br />https://www.amazon.com/We-Defy-Chapters-Special-History-ebook/dp/B0DCGC1N1N/<br />——————————————————————<br />Or make a one time donation at: ⬇️<br />https://ko-fi.com/theteamhouse<br />Social Media: ⬇️<br />The Team House Instagram:<br />https://instagram.com/the.team.house?utm_medium=copy_link<br />The Team House Twitter:<br />https://twitter.com/TheTeamHousePod<br />Jack’s Instagram:<br />https://instagram.com/jackmcmurph?utm_medium=copy_link<br />Jack’s Twitter:<br /> https://twitter.com/jackmurphyrgr?s=21<br />Team House Discord: ⬇️<br />https://discord.gg/wHFHYM6<br />"Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio"<br /><br />00:00 — Start / Delbert Roll joins The Team House<br />01:10 — Growing up in Pennsylvania and joining the Army<br />07:06 — Third Special Forces Group, Africa missions, and comms work in the 1990s<br />15:09 — Leaving the Army and trying to join the FBI before the CIA<br />16:04 — Joining CIA three weeks before 9/11<br />21:09 — The day after 9/11 and CIA’s shift toward counterterrorism<br />23:46 — Moving from analyst to operations officer<br />25:20 — CIA training and “Ranger School for your brain”<br />30:42 — First Afghanistan tour and arriving at a forward operating base<br />33:22 — Running a source operation against a senior al-Qaeda target<br />39:13 — Building a targeting package without GPS coordinates<br />44:40 — Airstrike decision, protecting assets, and the target slipping away<br />48:54 — Working with JSOC and indigenous forces to shut down rat lines<br />52:47 — CIA support to conventional Army units in Afghanistan<br />56:17 — Language training, European posting, and traditional case officer work<br />01:04:25 — Covert action, liaison partners, and gathering intelligence through proxies<br />01:05:05 — Counterintelligence, recruiting foreign officers, and disrupting Russian operations<br />01:09:07 — Counter-WMD work and handling sources without being the technical expert<br />01:12:50 — Teaching at the Farm and training future CIA officers<br />01:22:29 — CIA bureaucracy, NSA comparisons, and publication review problems<br />01:27:58 — Recruiting, technology, and learning how to talk around classified subjects<br />01:28:57 — From CIA officer to fantasy, spy, and horror novelist<br />01:43:42 — CIA gold bars, non-traditional payments, and final thoughts<br /><br /><br />Become a supporter of this podcast: <a href="https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-team-house--5960890/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss">https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-team-house--5960890/support</a>.