Written by a model from the transcript; not yet reviewed.
This episode investigates the deep state and NATO's Cold War-era stay-behind networks, framing the inquiry through infamous political assassinations and terror attacks like the Peteano bombing in Italy. The host explains how World War II resistance planning, such as Britain's SOE and America's OSS, evolved into clandestine anti-communist paramilitary networks across Europe. These secret structures, including Italy's Operation Gladio, utilized false-flag operations, right-wing extremists, and hidden weapons caches to manipulate politics and suppress leftist movements.
Furthermore, the narrative connects these hidden networks to high-level figures and major historical events, examining how intelligence agencies shielded operatives and fostered a strategy of tension. The host details the mechanics of stay-behind units, their extreme disposability, and their eventual exposure following judicial investigations in the 1980s and 1990s. Ultimately, the episode sets up an examination of international intelligence opposition to political figures who pursued detente with the Soviet bloc during the Cold War.
Hosts introduce the episode and play the QUO and Zocdoc sponsorship spots.
John Kiriakou explains the 1993 Turkish crash that exposed Cold War stay‑behind networks.
The final section connects the stay‑behind conspiracy to the unsolved 1986 murder of Sweden’s prime minister.
The narrative traces how post‑WWII paranoia birthed clandestine stay‑behind cells across Europe.
The episode details Italy’s GLADIO program and its ties to broader NATO stay‑behind operations.
Kiriakou outlines how stay‑behind cells proliferated in Belgium, Germany, France, and beyond.
The speaker links the explosion to the Ordine Nuovo and the Gladio stay-behind program, outlining the broader conspiracy.
A timeline of Italian bombings from 1974 to 1984 is presented, illustrating the use of false-flag tactics to justify authoritarian measures.
The episode opens with the 1972 Peteano bombing, detailing the casualties and the initial judicial inquiry.
The discussion shifts to Switzerland’s covert participation in Gladio, including submarine incursions and the creation of clandestine weapon caches.
The narrative explores how Swiss PM Olaf Palma, despite his pro‑NATO stance, became entangled with CIA and MI6 operations.
The hosts reflect on how Cold War covert actions continue to influence contemporary politics and security.
The Suspicious Turkish Car Crashstory
A 1996 car crash involving a Turkish politician, a police academy director, and an organized crime boss exposes secret state corruption and deep state networks.
A booby-trapped Fiat explodes in Peteano, killing three Carabinieri officers and launching a heavily obstructed and falsified investigation.
NATO Explosives Used in Bombinginsight
Judge Felice Casson discovers that the explosives used in the Peteano bombing were military-grade C4 originating from NATO weapons caches.
Prime Minister Andriotti Reveals Gladiodata
Under extreme pressure from judicial findings, Italian Prime Minister Giulio Andriotti officially reveals the existence of Operation Gladio to parliament.
Grim Survival Rates for Operativesdata
Internal military estimates placed the combat life expectancy of a stay-behind operative at just 12 days to two weeks.
Heavy Water Sabotage at Vemorkstory
Saboteurs successfully destroy the Vemork heavy water electrolysis chambers in occupied Norway, obliterating the entire inventory.
William Colby Escapes Gestapo Ambushstory
OSS operative William Colby realizes his French resistance partner Roger Bardet is a double agent and leaps from a car to escape Gestapo headquarters.
“The Susudluk scandal accomplished one other noteworthy thing. It gave us the term "derendevlet", or in English, "deep state."”
“The first large-scale covert operation would happen in Italy.”
“Non sarebbe sbagliato pensare all'esplosione della Piazza Fontana come la prima operazione falsa flagge principale”
“La Svizzera era parte dei network 'stare dietro' e lavorava con il Comitato di Planificazione Clandestine, il CPC”
“Il popolo svizzero aveva sempre stato più neutro verso l'Unione Sovietica di altri membri del blocco occidentale, ma la presenza di tutti quei submarini e i propri mari li ha trasformato in paura”
“Negli anni dopo l'esplosione, le autorità italiane hanno sviluppato una politica politica usando azioni violenti e terrorismo falsa flagge per creare paura e inaspettate del pubblico”
IN THIS EPISODE One of the most remarkable stories that no one knows - which is remarkable in itself - is the assassinatioin of Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme on a Stockholm street on February 28, 1986. Palme's murder is to Sweden what JFK's is to America: a demarcation point between a sense of goodness and integrity, and corruption. As of now, the crime still remains unsolved - though much work has gone into trying to figure out who did this terrible thing and why. Though we may think the Cold War is a museum piece, we still live in the darkest part of its shadow. The assassination of Olof Palme wasn't just a dark day in Sweden's history. It was a dark day in lots of other places, too - including the United States - because the US may have been guilty of helping that assassination happen. In episode 1 of this 7 part series, we'll introduce you to the "Stay-Behinds", a secret, anti-fascist army made for World War Two but repurposed - and rebranded as anti-Communist - for the Cold War, with branches and combatants all over Western Europe. SHOW NOTES If you enjoy this podcast, please check out our social media: Insta - @deaddroppodcast And check out our other podcast offerings at Costard & Touchstone Productions costardandtouchstone.com. Your next podcasting binge is just a click away! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy https://acast.com/privacy for more information.
10,157 words · 7 speakers
Speaker names marked are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.
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