Free Republic

TEHRAN, Iran — The mystery of a missing former Iranian deputy defense minister deepened Wednesday with the report by an Arab newspaper that he is being interviewed somewhere in northern Europe before defecting to the U.S. Retired Revolutionary Guards general Ali Reza Asghari disappeared in Turkey nearly a month ago and reportedly hopes to seek asylum in the United States, according to a report in the London-based al-Sharq al-Awsat. The newspaper quoted senior Iranian sources as saying Asghari is headed for the United States "along with the secrets he carried." A Senior U.S. official told FOX News that Asghari is...

Istanbul, 28 Feb. (AKI) - Retired Iranian general and former deputy defence minister, Alireza Asghari, has gone missing during a private visit to Turkey, Arab and Iranian newsreports said on Wednesday. Asghari arrived in the Turkish city on a flight from Damascus and after checking into the Hotel Ghilan has not been seen since, the reports said. Asghari is a former general in the hardline Pasdaran or Revolutionary Guard, and served in the cabinet of former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami. Baztab, an internet site linked to the Pasdaran, reported that Ashgari may have been kidnapped. Baztab recently reported that Asghari's...