PressTV – 2010-12-03 00:53:46
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/153621.html
Iran Arrests Terrorist Attack Elements
PressTV
TEHRAN (December 2, 2010) — The Iranian intelligence minister says some of the perpetrators of the recent terrorist attacks, which killed an Iranian academic and injured another have been arrested. “The three spy agencies of Mossad, CIA and MI6 played a role in these attacks,” Heidar Moslehi said on Thursday.
Unknown terrorists detonated bombs in the vehicles of Dr. Majid Shahriari and Professor Fereydoun Abbasi in separate locations on Monday. Shahriari was killed immediately, but Abbasi and his wife sustained injuries and were transferred to hospital. Both men were professors at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran.
“With the arrest of these people, we have found new clues to arrest other elements,” IRIBNews quoted Moslehi as saying. The Iranian intelligence minister added that the individuals who cooperated with these spy services were part an extensive organization and were planning more attacks but were stopped.
It was clear to us, given the adoption of the UN resolution against Iran and publishing the names of Iranian nuclear scientists, that the global arrogance sought to make mischief, Moslehi said.
Resolution 1747 adopted by the United Nations Security Council in March 2007 against the Islamic Republic cited Abbasi’s name as a “nuclear scientist,” thus suggesting that perpetrators behind the assassination could be traced through those who included the professor’s name in the UN resolution.
Iran has blamed Israel and Western powers for the terrorist attacks, hinting at the possible connection between the recent remarks of the head of the British intelligence agency (MI6) about Iran and the European Parliament’s new stance regarding anti-Iran terrorist group.
On October 28, John Sawers accused Iran of pursuing clandestine nuclear activities and said spying is crucial to stop Tehran’s nuclear program. “Stopping nuclear proliferation cannot be addressed purely by conventional diplomacy. We need intelligence-led operations to make it more difficult for countries like Iran to develop nuclear weapons,” Sawers said.
Last week, the European Parliament issued a declaration, urging Washington to remove the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) from its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
The European Union took the MKO off its blacklist in 2009. The terrorist group has been on the US terror list since 1997. The MKO is listed as a terrorist organization by much of the international community and is responsible for numerous acts of terror and violence against Iranian civilians and government officials.
The organization is also known to have cooperated with Iraq’s former dictator Saddam Hussein in suppressing the 1991 uprisings in southern Iraq and the massacre of Iraqi Kurds.
‘In US, 80 Agencies Eye Coup in Iran’
PressTV
TEHRAN (December 3, 2010) — Iran’s intelligence minister says as many as 80 organizations have been established in the United States for the sole purpose of attempting to overthrow the Islamic Republic government.
“These 80 organizations are actively operating in the United States with an estimated annual budget of 2 billion dollars,” said the Iranian Intelligence Minister Heidar Moslehi, adding that “there are numerous like-minded institutions and agencies inside and outside of Iran, whose missions are mainly focused on toppling the Islamic establishment in the country.”
“The enemies of the Islamic Republic have always been involved in hatching long-term plans over the past 19 years as part a “soft war” against the Iranian nation and in doing so they have allocated more than $17.7 billion in order to stage a coup against the sacred establishment of the Islamic Republic,” IRNA quoted the intelligence minister as saying on Thursday.
Moslehi made the remarks during a religious seminar in the holy city of Qom following his announcement that the Islamic Republic has taken into custody some of the perpetrators of the recent terrorist attacks that killed an Iranian academic.
On Monday, unknown terrorists detonated bombs in cars belonging Dr. Majid Shahriari and Professor Fereydoun Abbasi– both lecturers at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran– killing the former and injuring the latter along with his wife who were transferred to a nearby hospital.
Moslehi has stated that the three spy agencies of Mossad, CIA and MI6 were involved in the attacks.
On October 28, MI6 chief John Sawers accused Iran of pursuing clandestine nuclear activities, insisting that espionage operations were crucial in impeding Iran’s nuclear program.
Last week, the European Parliament issued a declaration, urging Washington to remove the anti-Iran terrorist MKO group from its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
The European Union took the MKO off its blacklist in 2009. The terrorist group, notorious for its indiscriminate terror attacks against Iranian civilians and officials, has been on the US terror list since 1997.
Time: Mossad behind Iran Hit?
PressTV
TEHRAN (December 2, 2010) — The recent assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist bears the fingerprint of a “custom-made” operation by Israel’s spy agency, Mossad, a Time report says.
Majid Shahriari, a top scientist and university professor involved in Iran’s nuclear program, was killed on Monday when his vehicle exploded. A second terror attack in Tehran injured another scientist, Fereydoun Abbasi, and his wife.
A Western intelligence expert “with knowledge of the operation,” told the magazine on Thursday that the assassination carried the “signature” of Mossad. Noting the agency’s ample experience with carrying out assassinations on foreign soil, the expert said the agents would have studied the target for months to familiarize themselves with his routines. The agents would have been on their way to exit the country before detonating the remote-controlled explosives, the unnamed source said.
Iran’s Response
Iran blames Israel and Western powers for the terrorist attacks on its nuclear scientists. Iranian officials have also condemned UN Resolution 1747 — adopted by the United Nations Security Council in March 2007 against the Islamic Republic — as a “hit list” for citing Abbasi’s name as a “nuclear scientist.”
“Political and security analysts are wondering about the connection between these inhumane incidents and the recent remarks of the head of the British intelligence agency (MI6)…,” A statement by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s office said on Monday
On October 28 John Sawers accused Iran of pursuing clandestine nuclear activities and said “intelligence operations” were crucial to stop Tehran’s nuclear program.
According to Tehran Police Chief Brigadier General Hossein Sajedinia, a bomb was attached to Dr. Shahriari’s car with a magnet moments before the blast.
Mossad Fingerprint
It is not the first time the Israeli spy agency has come under fire over allegations of carrying out assassinations abroad.
Earlier this year, Mossad was embroiled in a scandal that threatened to forever undermine Tel Avivi’s ties with Europe.
In February, Dubai’s police chief, Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan, urged the Interpol to issue a “red notice†for the arrest of Mossad head Meir Dagan.
The calls came after police authorities in the emirate said that there was a “99 percent” chance that Israel’s Mossad spy agency was behind the killing of Hamas commander Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in the city-state a month earlier.
The European Union was shocked to discover that the 11-member hit team that killed the Hamas official had used forged passports from EU member states.
EU foreign ministers in Brussels “strongly condemned” the use of forged passports in the assassination, but did not specifically name Mossad in their statement.
Israel refused to comment on the allegations but did not deny involvement.
“There is no proof Israel is involved in this affair, and if somebody had presented any proof, aside from press stories, we would have reacted,” Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said in a statement from his office on February 22.
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