London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 22, 2025

Western media ‘complicit in hiding truth’ of Afghan war, allowing ‘extraordinary lie’ to last two decades – WikiLeaks' Hrafnsson

Western media ‘complicit in hiding truth’ of Afghan war, allowing ‘extraordinary lie’ to last two decades – WikiLeaks' Hrafnsson

The abrupt US withdrawal from Afghanistan should not surprise anyone, WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Kristinn Hrafnsson told RT, saying the fact that Washington was able to deceive the world for two decades is more shocking.

Washington’s 19-year-long war campaign in Afghanistan was one “big lie” that only benefited America’s military industrial complex and private contractors, Hrafnsson said. The WikiLeaks editor-in-chief said it was not the ongoing chaotic withdrawal of the US and its allies that was now a surprise, but the fact that mainstream media did not catch on to the lies which prolonged the war long ago.

WikiLeaks published a trove of documents that “all painted a true picture of what was going on in Afghanistan 11 years ago,” Hrafnsson said, referring to the so-called Afghan War Diary – a collection of internal US military logs, diplomatic cables and CIA documents covering the period between 2004 and 2010.

The leak that included a total of 91,000 documents was considered one of the biggest in US military history. It did hit the headlines at that time, eventually leading to the arrest and prosecution of whistleblower Chelsea Manning and put WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange in Washington’s crosshairs.

Yet despite the document dump, somehow the general perception of the Afghan war did not change and “the lies continued,” Hrafnsson said, calling such a state of affairs “astonishing.”

“It is extremely surprising how long this went on,” the WikiLeaks editor-in-chief said, calling the war “an extraordinary 20-years-[long] lie.” It became the “forgotten war,” overshadowed by another US military adventure – the war in Iraq, he believes.

Discussions about what was truly going on inside the country were “largely avoided” until the Washington Post exposed it all over again by publishing the so-called Afghan papers in 2019, he said.

The documents, obtained by the Post through Freedom of Information Act requests, painted a picture of a sustained effort by several US administrations to mislead the American public on the engagement in Afghanistan.

Hrafnsson accused Western media that paid no attention to the reality of being “complicit in concealing this truth” and allowing it to happen. “There is a lot of soul-searching in my mind that the journalists have to do,” he added.

Ultimately, it was the US military industrial complex that benefited from what appears to be a tremendous waste of money, the WikiLeaks editor said.

“More than a trillion of dollars did go into the pockets of the US military industrial complex and private contractors that were supposedly training the Afghan police,” he told RT, adding that America’s biggest arms manufacturers saw “a tenfold increase" in their stock value over the 20 years the war lasted.

"It was a massive flow of money that went into the wrong pockets and it can be only called corruption on a large scale."


The truth about the war has now been laid bare for everyone to see as Washington and its allies are frantically pulling out of Afghanistan, which fell into the hands of the Taliban in mere weeks. However, it is unlikely to change the political course of the western elites that still prefer to “punish the truth-tellers” rather than draw lessons from their own mistakes, Hrafnsson believes.

“The war that is going now is the war on journalism and a war on Julian Assange, who still has to spend time in jail in London,” he said, adding that Assange’s prosecution is “political.”

“It is not about the law anymore... Will the truth matter there? I doubt it,” he said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
×