# The Al Mayadeen debate > **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou. > > Cite as: "The Al Mayadeen debate," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-al-mayadeen-debate/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia. *Two days before the 2026 attack on Iran, John Kiriakou went on the Lebanese network Al Mayadeen expecting the usual point-counterpoint with an academic and found himself opposite Iran's lead nuclear negotiator. His argument to the negotiator, that what the two sides were then negotiating was the JCPOA under another name, was rejected outright before being accepted.* - **Network:** Al Mayadeen, Lebanon, in Arabic - **When:** Two days before the 27 February 2026 attack - **Expected opponent:** One of the network's professors, "especially on American politics" - **Actual opponent:** Iran's lead nuclear negotiator - **His reaction:** "I was shocked when he came on the screen" - **His argument:** That what was being negotiated was the JCPOA under another name - **Outcome:** The negotiator "rejected outright and then finally came around" - **His view of the network:** "I always say yes when they ask me to go on" **The Al Mayadeen debate** took place two days before the American and Israeli attack on Iran, and [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) described it on air on 28 February 2026 while the first strikes were still being counted. He is a regular on the Lebanese network and volunteers his regard for it: *"I was on a Lebanese network called Al Mayadeen. I love this station. It is such an in-depth, I mean, it's in Arabic, of course, but it's such an in-depth news analysis station. I always say yes when they ask me to go on."*[1][2] ## The opponent he was not expecting The format is normally an argument with an academic. *"Usually they have me sort of uh you know, as a point-counterpoint with a professor. And they have fantastic uh professors, especially on American politics."*[2] This time it was not. *"Day before yesterday, they had me debating the lead nego- the lead nuclear negotiator from Iran. I was shocked when he came on the screen and that's who I was supposed to debate."*[2][3] Kiriakou noted that the negotiator made the same case he himself makes about Iranian compliance: that Iran is a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty and permits inspections, while *"it's the Israelis who have nukes, who won't sign the NPT, and who have forbidden any and all inspections."*[3] ## The point that was rejected and then conceded Where they disagreed was over what was actually on the table. *"I made a point that at first he he rejected outright and then finally came around and was like, well, okay. I said, look, what what the two sides are negotiating right now is [the JCPOA](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/jcpoa)."*[4] Kiriakou's evidence was the content of the terms: *"It's all the same tenets that were in the JCPOA"*, the agreement Donald Trump had scrapped unilaterally. He listed them: that Iran could not enrich uranium to weapons grade; that the enriched uranium and Iran's nuclear sites had to be open to IAEA inspection; and that any enriched uranium had to be stored in a third country, the three under consideration being Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.[4][5] His account is that Iran had accepted all of it, *"because they had agreed to it 15 years ago with Barack Obama."*[5] ## The single refusal One demand Iran would not meet, and Kiriakou does not treat the refusal as unreasonable. *"The only thing the Iranians did not agree to was scrapping their uh medium-range standard conventional missiles. And no country in its right mind would ever agree to something"* like that.[5][6] He added that even a successful deal would only have postponed the attack, *"all that would be doing is putting what happened uh last night and this morning uh off uh for another couple of years. That's all it would do, maybe."*[6] ## See also - [The JCPOA](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/jcpoa) - [Iran Nuclear Assessment](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/iran-nuclear-assessment) - ["Iran posed no threat"](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/iran-posed-no-threat) - [2026 Iran war](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/2026-iran-war) ## Sources 1. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 17:44. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=1064s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/ 2. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 18:16. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=1096s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/ 3. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 18:46. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=1126s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/ 4. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 19:16. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=1156s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/ 5. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 19:47. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=1187s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/ 6. DeProgram Show with Ted Ra (2026-02-28), at 20:19. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryefwYfcDVY&t=1219s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-02-28-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra/ --- From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-al-mayadeen-debate/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt