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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Ex-Iranian Agent: Photo Not Ahmadinejad |
| 2005-07-02 |
| A top Iranian former secret agent said Saturday that the hostage-taker in a 1979 photograph that has come under intense scrutiny is not President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad but a former militant who committed suicide in jail. Saeed Hajjarian, a top adviser to outgoing President Mohammad Khatami, identified the man in the photo dating to the 1979 U.S. Embassy siege as Taqi Mohammadi. Iran's newly elected president has been accused of being a main participant in the taking of American hostages at the embassy. Six former U.S. hostages who saw the president-elect in photos or on television said they believe Ahmadinejad was among the hostage-takers. One said he was interrogated by Ahmadinejad. The White House said it was taking their statements seriously. President Bush said "many questions" were raised by the allegations. International media have compared photos of Ahmadinejad, who won a presidential runoff election last week, with a black-and-white picture of one of the hostage-takers, a young man with a thin, bearded face and dark hair that sweeps down across his forehead. But Hajjarian told The Associated Press they were not the same person. "This man is Taqi Mohammadi, a militant who later turned into a dissident and committed suicide in jail," he said, pointing to the 1979 photo. He said Mohammadi was a militant who joined students in the embassy takeover. Mohammadi was later arrested on charges of involvement in the 1981 bombing in Tehran that killed the country's president and prime minister, and committed suicide in prison, Hajjarian said. Hajjarian's comment follows statements by a number of the former Iranian students who carried out the U.S. Embassy seizure and held Americans hostage for 444 days that Ahmadinejad had no role in events. Hajjarian, considered the brains behind Khatami's democratic reforms program, is a former top official in the Intelligence Ministry, or the secret service. Both supporters and opponents describe him as the "walking memory" of Iran's recent history because of his access to classified information and secrets within Iran's ruling Islamic establishment. Hajjarian is one of many reformers who is at loggerheads with the hard-line Ahmadinejad. He was shot by a hard-line vigilante in 2000 and is paralyzed and cannot speak fluently. |
| Posted by:ed |
| #5 those pesky EU warrants |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-07-02 23:43 |
| #4 My question is, does it make a bit of difference? |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet 0’ Doom 2005-07-02 22:05 |
| #3 The White House said it was taking their statements seriously. President Bush said "many questions" were raised by the allegations. Whether the guy was involved in '79 or not, our leaders need to keep their eyes on the ball - regime change in Iran. There will be plenty of time afterward to deal with any hostage takers that are still alive. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-07-02 16:47 |
| #2 I saw a series of 4 photos: 2 of the hostage taker, 1 of Ahmadinejad circa 1980, and 1 recent Ahmadinejad photo. I don't think the hostage taker was Ahmadinejad. His hairline was straight, while Ahmadinejad's hairline dipped down in front and had a slight widow's peak. That said, I believe that Ahmadinejad murdered many Iranian dissidents/opponents when he was an executioner in Evin prison, and directed aasassinations outside Iran. Treat him as a mass murderer in a position of power. I won't mourn for him if he were to die in a massive explosion. |
| Posted by: ed 2005-07-02 16:14 |
| #1 ...Oh, well - if you can't trust an Iranian secret agent, who can you trust? Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2005-07-02 16:03 |