Posted on 03/30/2010 7:44:18 PM PDT by Lorianne
WASHINGTON — An Iranian nuclear scientist who had been reported missing since last summer has defected to the U.S. and is assisting the CIA in its efforts to undermine Iran's nuclear program, ABC News reported Tuesday.
The scientist, Shahram Amiri, has been resettled in the U.S., according to the report.
The CIA had no comment on the report, a spokesman said.
President Barack Obama said Tuesday he hopes international sanctions against Iran for pursuing its nuclear ambitions will be in place this spring. Iran maintains that its nuclear research is for peaceful purposes and not to develop weapons.
Amiri, who worked at Tehran's Malek Ashtar University, an institution closely connected to Iran's Revolutionary Guard, disappeared last June while in Saudi Arabia on a pilgrimage. While his disappearance led to speculation that he had defected and was assisting the West in its efforts to keep track of Iran's nuclear program, the foreign minister for Iran accused the U.S. of helping to kidnap him.
Citing people briefed on the intelligence operation, ABC News said Amiri's disappearance was part of a long-planned CIA operation to persuade him to defect. The CIA reportedly approached Amiri in Iran through an intermediary who made an offer of resettlement on behalf of the United States, ABC News said.
(Excerpt) Read more at google.com ...
Anybody want to bet he gets sent back?
SHhh.Lets keep this quiet in case some other Iranian dudes want to escape to America and never be found or heard of again..
I hope he has no family back in Iran..
Iran Nuclear Scientist Defects to U.S. In CIA ‘Intelligence Coup’
Keep him away from Obama!
MSM outs another CIA op. Well, so what’s new. Betraying a secret only really MATTERS when a libbie analyst is the subject and Scooter Libby.... Whoops. I mean Colin Powell’s hack crony does the outting.
Yup, in a day or two we’ll have his picture and street address on the pages of the MSM.
Quick tell him to not talk so we don’t learn anything important!!
Wonder how long it will be before Osama sends him back?
COOL!
The one who came here is a double.
So, is the putz-in-chief going to return him?
I saw this guy working at the 7-11 down the street.
So how long until zero has Holder file charges against the CIA agents involved? /sarc, but barely
Also, zero is an idiot for disclosing this. It gives notice to the Iranian mullahs to change whatever they can ASAP. It guarantees reprisals against the scientist’s family. That will also deter any further defections.
So why do speak out about the defection? So zero can score some political points. For zero, it’s all and only about zero.
Iran has been "ranting" for many months that the USA has this specific physicist; perhaps letting his colleagues back home learn that he is resettled happily somewhere in a witness protection program in America would be better than letting them worry that he is imprisoned somewhere???
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.