Posted on 07/05/2008 4:36:29 PM PDT by faq
"I wish each and every Iranian could travel abroad, come to the U.S. or go to Europe, for just one week, and feel, smell, and breathe freedom, human dignity, and realize the value of their lives."
Ahmed BatebiAHMED BATEBI HAS ESCAPED TO THE UNITED STATES--
Voice of America Interview
Washington DC, USA
June 30, 2008
Ahmed Batebi is the Iranian student who gained international fame for his appearance on the cover of The Economist magazine holding up a bloodied shirt claiming to belong to a fellow student beaten by the Basij paramilitaries. The photo, which has been called "an icon for Iran's student reform movement," was taken during the Iranian Student Protests in July 1999 in Tehran. Human Rights activist Shirin Ebadi, reports that the shirt belonged to Ezzat Ebrahim-Nejad, a student who was shot and killed reportedly by a plainclothes police or vigilante.
Ahmed Batebi was one of four people who received a death sentence in a closed-door trial by a Revolutionary Court on charges relating to "creating street unrest" and "agitating people to create unrest," and "endangering national security" following the demonstrations. Batebi, in an open letter addressed to the judiciary, wrote that he had been beaten in his "testicles, legs, and abdominal area- -Wiki.
Ahmad Batebi is now in Washington D.C. and had a tv appearance on VOA Persian a few days ago in which he spoke of the horrific torture he endured at the hands of his interrogators for 9 years!!!
Iranian blogger Aryamehr has more on Batebi's escape to America where he describes more of Batebi's horrible torture.
This is a MAJOR BLOW to the brutal Iranian Regime!
WELCOME TO AMERICA AHMED BATEBI!
--Hat Tip to Iranian Human Rights Activist Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi--
MORE-----
July 8th is the anniversary of the student uprising that ended in bloodshed in 1999. Every year students commemorate this day. This year, there is a special commemoration. Iranians inside Iran are organizing widespread demonstrations across the country in all major cities (More HERE). The people of Iran need the support of the international community in their uprising against the dictatorial Islamic regime.
From what I can gather and I have talked to contacts with sources inside Iran and they say that he is a plant/infiltrator for certain.
His probable mission is - as the suddenly trusted and adored darling of the opposition - to find out what the West has in mind.
Remember he has family back home being held hostage.
Does it not seem strange that this “most wanted” man could go into Iraq, then Turkey and make his way to the West, as if he were not wanted by the Islamic regime?
His “hosts/supporters” here are also possibly suspect as pro-Mullah facilitators. As was Communist Noam Chomsky, the facilitator and supporter for infiltrator Akbar Ganji.
Batebi is not a secret agent infiltrated here as were spies in World War II. He is someone who was helped to the West by the Mullahs to be taken in by our authorities who might share their secrets and plans against Islamic Iran with someone “apparently” anti-Mullah and perhaps able to help our weak agencies with their plans to destabilize the islamic regime.
Specially with some $400 million approved by Congress for covert ops inside Iran.
The timing is perfect - from the Mullahs’ viewpoint. And they hold our intel and security in such disdain, they have not bothered to change their modus operandum but simply repeat what they have done successfully to penetrate our defenses. Time and again.
AntiMullah has stated clearly that it has been expecting, waiting for this to happen with a certainty that had no misgivings. And here it is.
My contacts are horrified - again - by how naive we are. And how some Dhimmis on the Internet have rushed to help the Mullah tactic and strategy.
BTW, Islamic Iran is conducting a huge campaign inside the USA to oppose an attack on Iran, using all kinds of anti-war groups to specifically oppose any attack on Iran. Details wil be posted on AntiMullah soon.
Ya - Hoo dere, hoser. My parents retired to Midland, Ontario, Canada aboot 40 years ago, which is aboot the same latitude as the U-P.
I asked my Dad why they didn't go to Clearwater, FLA, where they had land. He said that the people talked funny.
You guys measure snow in feet instead of inches! Clearwater is aboot 10 miles South of me now, and I never have to dig my car out.
Stay well, pal ........... FRegards
Of course, one cannot be 100% sure, but, imo, there is a very strong possibility, and I’m going to agree with you for some of the reasons you’ve mentioned.
Additionally, it is not humanly possible to endure 9 years of abuse based on initial psychological assessment which these type of high profile, and often, political prisoners in IRI go through.
The initial psych assessments are done for specific reasons; a type of diagnose, if you will. Psychological breaking and reconditioning processes are then employed as per initial psych assessment as well as ongoing ones (checkpoints of progress, in other words).
Actually physical torture I hear is a secondary tool used in IRI; the emphasis is more and more on shifting mindset and indoctrination. Of course, this process does not apply to every single prisoner.
diagnose = diagnosis
I have contacted some of my people again and they repeat that Batebi is a plant. They ask “what kind of passport did he use for his travels?”
Like the infiltator Abbas Fakhrovar who claimed he had a sboot on sight order out on him, yet traipsed in and out of Evin prison to visit Akbar Ganji, another infiltator, at that time and eventually used a regular passport issued to him by the same Islamic regime that put the shoot on sight order out on him to leave the country and be received by those who then brought him into the USA.
Incidentally, it appears that the minders and supporters of Batebi, who are trumpeting his arrival - may well have very close relatives on furlough from Evin prison inside Iran themselves and risk them being rearrested and probably dying in prison if that happens. Quite a leverage for the Mullahs to ensure their co-operation and support for their Batebi plant. The same group was involved with promoting another plant in the past.
There is much more to this than meets the eye and the website that posted the story is trusting and has trusted sources that have provided disinformation and have close family in peril inside Islamic Iran.
Batebi was free for a long time and working in plain sight and living in full sight of the Mullahs, so the torture etc., is highly exaggerated and part of the background fabricated for him.
Yes, he suffered torture for a while but was let go fairly quickly (relatively speaking) and went back to leading a normal life and earning a living in advertising sales.
Last year he was rearrested and so was his wife to bring him into play and prepae him for us. Enough said.
Wearing a dog collar while a Pretty young woman walks you on a leash= Torture.
“Has the DNC (and DU) called for his immediate return to Iran yet?”
No, but I bet the ACLU has. Remember Walter Polovchak, the Ukrainian defector they tried to send back in the 1980s?
In Florida I could only afford dial-up. Then two years ago I moved to Kentucky, and have had a cable modem since then. Who’d have thought that would happen? The Appalachians are supposed to be behind the rest of the country, when it comes to getting “wired.”
Fascinating insights.
Thanks for the ping!
Woo-hoo!! Good news! Welcome to America, Ahmad!
(I’d write it in Farsi if I knew the words ;) )
Is there a brave Senate Member that can have this dissident testify in front of a special Senate meeting? All I am hearing is an echo, and the crickets are chirping./Just Asking - seoul62.......
See FARS’ posts on this ‘prisoner’
Thanks.
If his wife and family are still being held inside Iran, it is more likely that he was SENT out (rather than "escaped") by the Iranian regime. To do what? Make contact with expatriot Iranians and try to gather intelligence on their sources inside Iran; to spread disinformation; who knows
You are right. He was a genuine dissident student, which makes his positioning more dangerous for our naive, easily fooled authorities. He is not a bad guy himself but as you say, he has no choice but to obey Mullah pressures.
IN THE MEANTIME, view this and allow your mind to be boggled.
http://noiri.blogspot.com/2008/07/mullah-engineering-mohandessi-mullahi.html
and scared him with unclean dogs, and pointed at his privates.
I have a feeling a translation would very amusing. The reporter seemed to be enjoying his expose.
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