American Scholar Detained in Iran [Smithsonian Program Director Held Since December Visit]

Washington Post ^ | 5/8/07 | Robin Wright

[parisa]

American Scholar Detained in Iran Smithsonian Program Director Held Since December Visit By Robin Wright Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, May 8, 2007; 4:40 PM

Iran today detained prominent American academic Haleh Esfandiari, director of the Middle East Program at the Smithsonian's Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, according to a family member and center president Lee Hamilton.

Esfandiari, a dual U.S.-Iranian citizen who has lived in the United States for more than a quarter century, has been under virtual house arrest since last December when the government refused to allow her to leave Iran after visiting her 93-year-old-mother. Since then, she has been summoned repeatedly for interrogations by intelligence officials about U.S. programs on Iran. In particular, she was questioned about Iran programs at the Woodrow Wilson Center, one of Washington's most prominent foreign policy think tanks.

Esfandiari was summoned by the intelligence ministry again today but was then taken to Tehran's Evin Prison, the sources said.

Esfandiari is one of three "soft hostages," all dual U.S.-Iranian nationals, whose passports have been confiscated by the Iranian government, rendering them unable to leave the country.

[parisa]

Lee Hamilton, the co-chair of Iraq Study Group, is the president of Wilson Center. He advocated, and as he still does in this article, for "dialogue" and "cooperation" with this dastardly regime.

More troubling news in the article. Let me know if you want to read the whole thing.

[Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus]

Mr. Perot, you have a call on line one, Mr. Perot, line one.

[js1138]

placemarker

[MarkT]

Kill the ragheads...their survirors will understand,,,it’t rally an intellectual issue...

[MarkT]

Kill the ragheads...their survirors will understand,,,it’t rally an intellectual issue...

[nuconvert]

“Esfandiari brought in many scholars and analysts from Tehran to speak at the Wilson Center, one of the few places in Washington that offered a robust range of opinions on Iran.

“The irony is, in Washington she faced criticism for bringing in people who were sympathetic to the Iranian government,” said Karim Sadjadpour of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “By detaining her the Iranian government only eliminates an advocate for diplomacy and strengthens the voices of those in Washington who say the regime is cruel and should not be engaged.”

I kinda stopped feeling sorry for her after reading that.

[nuconvert]

There was a report several days ago that Levinson (the ex-FBI agent) was returned through Iraq. Have you heard any more about it? Last I read, the U.S. wasn’t confirming it.

BTW - these stories should get a lot of publicity, because they’re going to backfire on the regime when more people decide not to travel to Iran.
The more publicity, the sooner these women will be allowed to leave.

[nuconvert]

Also, Robin Wright has been on a ‘it’s all Bush’s fault’ campaign lately because of “the $75 million program to promote democracy in Iran”. She had an article about a week ago on how it’s making things worse for the opposition groups. She was fed info by leftists.
Anyone following that story, knows that the vast majority of money has been wasted and hasn’t accomplished much at all.

[parisa]

The last news I read on Levinson is that he's still missing.

This regime is so evil nothing good will ever come of it. So unfortunately no, I don't think the ex-FBI agent has been let go.

The rumors of his release I believe were just that, rumors, probably started by the molla-thugs themselves.

[parisa]

She had an article about a week ago on how it’s making things worse for the opposition groups.

Would the forever carping liberals ever consider that that's precisely why the mollas have started arresting people and broadcasting it - e.g. in response to the $75 mil pittance US has set aside to help pro-democracy advocates??? Is it beyond the perfidious tactics of the mollas to use these arrests as a publicity stunt and ammunition for their useful idiots in the west to go to work subverting, and sabotaging the program altogether, just as they have done???

Would the liberals ever consider that the actions of the mollas IS A SIGN of their weakness, NOT their strength, and that of course the enemy of the people will start arresting people, but that's not the time to stop, but push forward???

[odds]

Thanks for the ping. I don’t think Levinson has been released.