james le mesurier

Born in 1971, James Le Mesurier became a British Army officer and then a private security contractor. From 2011 he worked for a Dubai-based non-profit enterprise called ARK. Largely funded by the British Foreign Office, ARK helped to found the Syrian Civil Defense, better known to the world as the White Helmets.

In 2014 Le Mesurier established his own foundation, Mayday Rescue, to focus on supporting the White Helmets. He achieved enormous success, raising over a hundred million dollars from various western governments and promoting the group through a sophisticated media strategy.

But by 2019 Le Mesurier, his foundation, and the White Helmets were all embroiled in scandals. He died in November of that year, having fallen from a roof extending from one side of his apartment building in Istanbul, Turkey. Had be been driven to suicide by the enormous pressures he was under? Had he fallen off in a freak accident? Was he being chased at the time of his death? Or was this a deliberated assassination?

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The episode describes the work of a company Le Mesurier worked for called ARK (Analysis, Research, and Knowledge), founded by a British ex-diplomat named Alistair Harris. We wonder if ARK might be a “cut out” for British intelligence, and if this might have something to do with Le Mesurier’s work in the Middle East. Host Niall invites listeners to make up their own mind. Here’s a link to its website: https://www.ark.international

An investigative website called The Grayzone has done some good work on this subject, including publishing leaks from the UK Government, which show the ways in which it sought to shape a media narrative during the decade-long Syrian war. Here’s one example of its work: https://thegrayzone.com/2020/09/23/syria-leaks-uk-contractors-opposition-media/