Michael Weiss
News Director
Michael Weiss is news director at New Lines. He is also Editor-at-Large at The Daily Beast and director of special investigations at the Free Russia Foundation. He is the bestselling coauthor of “ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror.” He is writing a book about the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence agency. He was one of the founding editors of New Lines.
Latest from Michael Weiss
A Syrian Army Deserter Was Savagely Killed by Putin’s Wagner. Now His Family Seek Justice in Russia
Mhesn Alabdullah’s cousin Hamadi Bouta, a Syrian army deserter, was savagely beaten to death and mutilated on camera by soldiers of the notorious Wagner Group in eastern Syria in 2017. Now his family wants justice.
The Fallen Mercenaries in Russia’s Dark Army
"No one can build anything on blood. Blood has never been a foundation for any construction. On the contrary, it turns into a swamp in which you drown. Why fight for strangers and kill for strangers?"
Will Putin Invade Ukraine (Again)?
The cost to Putin in casualties would be enormous — not to mention triggering crippling economic sanctions that could shut down not just Nord Stream 2 but all of Russia’s exports of gas, oil, steel, aluminum and nickel. “We don’t see any plausible way in which Putin could actually win a war if he started it,” the British official told New Lines. “It’s not very clear what his war aims would even be.”
Exclusive: Berlin Murder Suspect’s New Ties to Russian Security Services
Upon his arrest, the killer insisted he was 50-year-old Vadim Sokolov and claimed he was just a tourist who had come to see Berlin after visiting Paris and Warsaw. However, a series of investigations spearheaded by Bellingcat showed that Sokolov was a nonexistent persona.
Exclusive: Western Intelligence Fears New Russian Sat-Nav’s Espionage Capabilities
Russia is preparing to introduce a new generation of its GLONASS satellite navigation system, with expanded global infrastructure. Several Western intelligence agencies say the program is also being used to conduct high-level espionage.
The Russian Agent Who Escaped
Mayorov would this time travel under a cover name and plant flash drives with compromising material on Belova so that she could be turned over to the French authorities. He’d asked his recruiter, Galiakberov, “Aren't you afraid that I’ll just stay there?” Galiakberov replied that if he did, he’d “come back in a zinc coffin.”
Lukashenko’s Crazy-Stupid Hamas Headfake
Adding to the fact that the message was sent after the mid-air bomb theatrics unfolded, the sought-for cease fire referenced in the email had already taken effect on Friday, two days before this communique was sent out.
Czechs and Imbalances
But then there’s the awkward fact that the Czechs themselves have, by their own admission, played a strong hand incredibly poorly, owing largely to the fact that high-profile members of their political establishment are more eager to represent Moscow’s interests over Prague’s.
How an Email Sting Operation Unearthed a pro-Assad Conspiracy—and Russia’s Role In It
Attempts to undermine the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons' investigation of the 2018 Douma chemical weapon attack involved Russian diplomats, Russian state media, WikiLeaks, and Julian Assange’s personal lawyer.
You Don’t Have to Be Recruited to Work for Russian Intelligence
Confidential contacts can be virtually anyone: politicians, diplomats, scientists, businessmen, engineers, and reporters. They have no state secrets to pass on, and the safest way of engaging them is in plain sight, under the guise of their everyday work.
Little Man, What Now?
Can anyone now deny that the core of MAGA is a molten cauldron of cultural and psychological pathologies characteristic of middle-class dilettantes and people with at least enough money to have way too much time on their hands?
Inside Russia’s Secret Propaganda Unit
Exclusive documents reveal the role of a secret Russian intelligence section in propaganda and espionage operations.
The Spectacle of Trump’s Unsuccess
That America’s first authoritarian commander-in-chief appears to be going out as “Richard III” directed by Corky St. Clair is a relief, but it’s also a testament to just how nourished Trump has been by the mere spectacle of success more than the thing itself.
In Praise of Working Mothers Under COVID
COVID has created a new level of stress for working mothers and highlighted the difference in expectations for men and women.