Askari & Arad.

This is coolbert:

Heard this one on National Public Radio last night. Evidently a hot topic in some circles, but not being talked about in the general mass media.

It seems that a high ranking officer of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards has disappeared. [man is purportedly retired?]

Ali Reza Askari [various spellings of the last name].

Commanded Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps forces in Lebanon during the 1980’s and 1990’s.

"In the 1980s he was commander of the Revolutionary Guard in Lebanon and during the 1990s Asgari was the top Iranian intelligence official in Lebanon, where he worked with the Shia militia Hezbollah."

Four months ago, checked into a hotel in Istanbul, Turkey. In Turkey for “business dealings” [“business” = olive oil??].Two days later, his cell phone went dead, and he has not been heard from again.

A lot of speculation exists regarding the disappearance of this man. Again, not in the general media, but ONLY in certain circles.

He has been kidnapped. He has defected. Etc. Nothing has been substantiated one way or the other.

My initial reaction was RON ARAD! The Israeli air force navigator taken prisoner by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces in Iran in the early 1980’s. The plane of Ron Arad was shot down, Arad seen parachuting to the ground and being captured.




It has been OVER TWENTY YEARS NOW SINCE THERE HAS BEEN ANY WORD OF RON ARAD! It is widely believed that the Iranians did get their hands on him and transferred him to a secret prison in Iran. NONE OF THIS IS CONFIRMED, BUT IS THOUGHT TO BE TRUE??!!

In Israel, ARAD is a cause celebre’. A lot of attention over the years has been drawn to his case

If Israel IS involved in the “kidnapping” of Askari, it could be that he was taken to be used as a bargaining chip. Or just to find out WHAT EXACTLY DID HAPPEN TO RON ARAD. If anyone would know what happened to Ron Arad, surely you would think it would be Askari.

IT WOULD NOT BE THE FIRST TIME THE ISRAELI HAS “KIDNAPPED” A PERSON OF IMPORTANCE TO USE AS A BARGAINING CHIP. THE LEBANESE SHEIK OBEID WAS TAKEN PRISONER IN A COMMANDO RAID AND HELD IN AN ISRAELI PRISON FOR YEARS BEFORE BEING RELEASED!!

There certainly has been a lot of interest, again, in certain quarters, over this story. Here are some links related to the defection/abduction/kidnapping/disappearance:

http://www2.irna.com/en/news/view/line-16/0703068435191618.htm

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article1497034.ece

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1173115959011&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

http://www.debka.com/article.php?aid=1259

http://english.farsnews.ir/newstext.php?nn=8512160287

This story bears watching. Will we EVER hear the final conclusion? Mere snippets is what you usually get. Inconclusive at best.

Who knows?

coolbert.