Posted on 10/15/2001 8:08:25 PM PDT by NixNatAVanG InDaBurgh
(14:00) Report: Hizbullah terrorist leaves Iran
A former Lebanese Hizbullah security chief, who is on the FBI's "Most Wanted Terrorists" list, has left Iran on the advice of the Iranian government, a leading Arabic newspaper said today.
Imad Mughniyeh left Iran voluntarily after being told that his presence in Iran "is not in the interest of the country and his safety is not guaranteed," Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper said. It attributed the information to an unidentified source close to the Revolutionary Guards, Iran's elite military force.
The Saudi-owned daily, based in London, is known for maintaining close relations with some influential Iranian officials. The report could not be independently confirmed in Iran.
Mughniyeh is accused of organizing the 1985 hijacking of a TWA jet. One passenger, a US Navy diver, was killed during a 17-day standoff at the airport in Beirut, Lebanon.
He hasn't made a public appearance for about a decade and earlier reports indicated he was living in Iran. Hizbullah fought for years to drive out Israeli occupation troops in Lebanon.
Mughniyeh and two other Lebanese men are on America's list of 22 "most wanted" terrorists published by US President George W. Bush as part of his war against terrorism following the devastating Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington.
The other two are Hassan Izz-al-Din and Ali Atwa, who are believed to be in hiding in Lebanon.
Mughniyeh fled Lebanon to Iran after a failed assassination attempt on his life in Sidon and was assigned to a security job related to the Arab Shiite students studying at Iran's holy city of Qom, the Iranian source was quoted as saying by Asharq Al-Awsat.
It said the source told the newspaper that Mughniyeh was advised to leave Iran after President Mohammad Khatami agreed to a conditional cooperation against terrorism after Sept. 11.
Iran has supported the need for international action against terrorism, but says it wants the United Nations, not Washington, to lead any alliance.
Atwa visited Iran several times in 1999 but he hasn't been heard of after former US President Bill Clinton sent a message to Khatami asking for Tehran's cooperation with Washington to pin down heads of terrorism, the source was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri told Asharq Al-Awsat in an interview published Sunday that none of the three men wanted by the United States were on Lebanese territory.
"For a long period, Lebanon was hijacked, and a country cannot be held accountable when it had no control over its own affairs," he said, in reference to the 1975-90 civil war chaos.
"...There isn't on Lebanese land any of the wanted. The Lebanese state and government are against all acts of terrorism and this is documented," he said.
Hariri's office confirmed today he made the comments.
Last month, the United States listed a small group, Asbat al-Ansar, as a terrorist organization.
It says its Palestinian leader, Ahmed Abdel-Karim al-Saadi, is hiding in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ein el-Hilweh in Lebanon.
Lebanese troops have control over the entrances to the camp but have no presence inside.
Al-Saadi is not on the "Most Wanted Terrorists" list. Hariri, in his interview to the Asharq Al-Awsat, suggested that al-Saadi is not in Lebanon.
"This is just talk, but nobody knows where he is," he said, adding that if this is the case the government will use whatever means at its disposal to capture him.
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.