ACCESSING CLASSIFIED FILES
Decrypting documents...
Your connection is being monitored
Back to Individuals
critical riskEstimated $10 million at death
Madeleine Albright
Secretary of State (1997-2001)
First female Secretary of State; defended Iraq sanctions killing 500,000 children as "worth it"
Overview
Madeleine Jana Korbel Albright (born Marie Jana Korbelova) served as the 64th United States Secretary of State from 1997 to 2001, the first woman to hold the position. Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, her family fled first the Nazis and then the Communists; she did not learn until 1997 that her family was Jewish and that three of her grandparents died in the Holocaust. As U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (1993-1997), she appeared on CBS's 60 Minutes on May 12, 1996, where correspondent Lesley Stahl asked whether the deaths of 500,000 Iraqi children from sanctions was "worth it." Albright replied: "We think the price is worth it." That statement became one of the most infamous in American diplomatic history, was cited by Osama bin Laden in his 1998 fatwa justifying attacks on Americans, and crystallized global perception of U.S. indifference to Muslim suffering. As Secretary of State, she was the principal advocate for NATO intervention in Kosovo (1999), pushed for NATO expansion to include former Soviet states, and maintained comprehensive Iraq sanctions throughout her tenure. After government service, she co-founded the Albright Stonebridge Group consulting firm and taught at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. She co-invested in a $350 million private equity fund with Jacob Rothschild and George Soros. She served on the board of the New York Stock Exchange. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012. She died on March 23, 2022, at age 84 from cancer. At her funeral at Washington National Cathedral, five U.S. presidents paid tribute. No mention was made of Iraqi children.
Key Affiliations
U.S. State Department
Secretary of State (1997-2001)
agency
United Nations
U.S. Ambassador to the UN (1993-1997)
agency
National Security Council
Staff member under Zbigniew Brzezinski (1978-1981)
agency
Albright Stonebridge Group
Co-founder and Chair
corporation
Georgetown University
Professor, School of Foreign Service
organization
Albright Capital Management
Co-founder; $350M private equity fund co-invested with Rothschild and Soros
corporation
New York Stock Exchange
Board member
corporation
Herbalife
Board member (2007-2022); company accused of being a pyramid scheme
corporation
Democratic Party
Foreign policy advisor to multiple presidential campaigns
organization
Controversies & Concerns
"WORTH IT" STATEMENT: On May 12, 1996, on CBS 60 Minutes, Lesley Stahl asked about 500,000 dead Iraqi children. Albright replied: "We think the price is worth it." The segment won an Emmy. The quote was cited by Osama bin Laden in his 1998 fatwa justifying jihad against Americans. Albright later called the answer "totally stupid" but never apologized to Iraqi families.
IRAQ SANCTIONS ADVOCACY: As UN Ambassador and then Secretary of State, Albright was the strongest advocate for maintaining comprehensive sanctions on Iraq that caused mass civilian death. She blocked attempts to ease restrictions despite evidence of humanitarian catastrophe. Three consecutive UN humanitarian coordinators resigned in protest.
KOSOVO AND NATO BOMBING: Pushed aggressively for NATO intervention in Yugoslavia without UN Security Council authorization in 1999. NATO bombing campaign killed approximately 500 Yugoslav civilians and destroyed civilian infrastructure including a television station and the Chinese embassy.
JEWISH HERITAGE CONCEALMENT: In 1997, the Washington Post revealed that Albright's family was Jewish, not Catholic as she had claimed, and that three of her grandparents died in the Holocaust. She initially insisted she had not known, but investigators found the family history was well-documented in Czech archives.
HERBALIFE BOARD SERVICE: Served on the board of Herbalife (2007-2022), a multi-level marketing company repeatedly accused of being a pyramid scheme, including by the Federal Trade Commission which required a $200 million consumer redress payment in 2016.
RWANDA INACTION: As UN Ambassador during the 1994 Rwandan genocide, Albright was part of the Clinton administration that refused to call the massacres "genocide" and blocked UN Security Council action, contributing to the deaths of approximately 800,000 Tutsis.
ALBRIGHT STONEBRIDGE GROUP: After leaving government, co-founded a consulting firm that leveraged her diplomatic connections to advise corporations navigating foreign markets. Clients included countries with poor human rights records.
SUDAN AL-SHIFA STRIKE: Supported the 1998 cruise missile strike on the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical plant in Sudan, which the U.S. claimed was producing chemical weapons. The plant was later determined to produce approximately 50% of Sudan's pharmaceutical supplies; its destruction caused unknown civilian deaths from lack of medicine.
Related Investigations (3)
Known Associates & Connections
Bill Clinton
President who appointed her as UN Ambassador (1993) and Secretary of State (1997); closest foreign policy ally throughout administration
Sandy Berger
National Security Advisor (1997-2001); co-architect of Clinton-era Iraq sanctions policy and Kosovo intervention
Richard Holbrooke
Fellow diplomat; negotiated Dayton Accords to end Bosnian War; close professional ally
Zbigniew Brzezinski
Mentor and Ph.D. advisor at Columbia; she served on his NSC staff under Carter; shaped her foreign policy worldview
Jacob Rothschild
Co-investor in Albright Capital Management's $350 million private equity fund
George Soros
Co-investor in Albright Capital Management; fellow refugee from Central European totalitarianism
Wesley Clark
NATO Supreme Allied Commander who executed Kosovo intervention she championed
Sources & Documentation
5 documented sources from official records, investigations, and reports
Personal Information
- Born
- May 15, 1937
- Birthplace
- Prague, Czechoslovakia
- Also Known As
- Marie Jana Korbelova, Madlenka
Education
- •B.A. Political Science, Wellesley College (1959)
- •M.A. and Ph.D. Public Law and Government, Columbia University (1968, 1976)
- •Certificate, Russian Institute, Columbia University
Key Timeline
May 15, 1937
Born Marie Jana Korbelova in Prague, Czechoslovakia
1939
Family flees Czechoslovakia after Nazi invasion; spends WWII in London
1948
Family flees Communist Czechoslovakia; emigrates to United States; settles in Denver, Colorado
1959
Graduates Wellesley College with B.A. in Political Science; awarded Phi Beta Kappa
1968
Earns M.A. from Columbia University; begins Ph.D. under Zbigniew Brzezinski at the Russian Institute
1976
Received Ph.D. in Public Law and Government from Columbia; dissertation on Czechoslovak press
1978-1981
Serves on National Security Council staff under Brzezinski in Carter administration
1982-1992
Professor at Georgetown University School of Foreign Service; becomes leading Democratic foreign policy voice
January 27, 1993
Confirmed as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations by the Senate
April-July 1994
During Rwandan genocide, participates in Clinton administration decisions to avoid calling massacres "genocide" and block UN action
May 12, 1996
Appears on CBS 60 Minutes; tells Lesley Stahl that 500,000 dead Iraqi children from sanctions is "worth it"
January 23, 1997
Sworn in as 64th Secretary of State, the first woman to hold the position
February 1997
Washington Post reveals her Jewish heritage and that three grandparents died in the Holocaust; she claims she did not know
February 1998
Town hall at Ohio State University to make case for military action against Iraq; audience erupts in protest, drowning out Albright, Berger, and Cohen
October 1998
Denis Halliday resigns as UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Baghdad calling sanctions "genocide"; Albright dismisses his concerns
March 24, 1999
NATO begins 78-day bombing campaign against Yugoslavia; Albright was principal advocate for intervention without UNSC authorization
January 20, 2001
Leaves office as Secretary of State; co-founds Albright Stonebridge Group consulting firm
2003
Co-founds Albright Capital Management with Jacob Rothschild and George Soros; $350 million private equity fund investing in emerging markets
2007
Joins board of Herbalife, a multi-level marketing company later ordered by FTC to pay $200 million for deceptive practices
2012
Receives Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama
2020
Tells New York Times interviewer her "worth it" answer was "totally stupid"; acknowledges "comprehensive sanctions often hurt the people of the country"
March 23, 2022
Dies of cancer at age 84 in Washington, D.C.; five U.S. presidents attend memorial at Washington National Cathedral