I do not have direct contact to source so unable to validate. however I received it from reliable sources.
Interesting read.
From: M A Lt Col
Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2007 4:42 PM
LONDON -- Behind Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's announcement of his Easter "gift"
to the people of Britain by releasing his pawns - the 15 hostages - was
the barely concealed fury of a tyrant who repeatedly tried, and failed,
to drive a horrendous deal.
As well as being allowed to stage-manage the release of the hostages, he
wanted an Iranian family who have sought refuge in Britain to be handed
back to face certain torture and death.
They are Iran's former spy chief, General Ali Reza Askari, his wife
Azil, and their three teenage children. They had secretly arrived in
Britain just five days before the Revolutionary Guards captured Faye
Turney and her fellow sailors in the still disputed waters between Iran
and Iraq.
The Askaris were spirited out of Iran by an MI6-led operation that one
intelligence officer called "the most daring for years."
What infuriated president Ahmadinejad was that Askari had been a
personal friend and had defected with the latest details of how close
Iran is to having a nuclear bomb - and how far Ahmadinejad will go to
support attacks on British troops in Basra.
MI6 agents in Iran now k now that the capture of the fifteen sailors had
been personally ordered by Ahmadinejad to trade them for the Askari
family.
"It was a deal the Iranian negotiators repeatedly raised during all the
talks our diplomats had with them," confirmed a senior intelligence
officer in London. "Time and again the Iranians were polite, but were
firmly told Britain would never consider such an exchange."
While Faye Turney and the other hostages had no clue as to what really
lay behind their capture, General Askari and his family knew only too
well the fate that awaited them if Iran could somehow force Britain to
return them to Tehran.
No amount of assurance by their MI6 "minders" in the safe house
"somewhere in B ritain" that they were indeed secure could hide their own
fears during the hostage crisis.
That only came when they saw the TV footage of the freed sailors
returning home. The family hugged each other and repeatedly thanked
their minders.
The operation to help General Askari to defect had begun in December
2006, after an MI6 officer at the British Embassy in Tehran sent a coded
message to the Iranian Desk at MI6 HQ overlooking the Thames.
Checks were made on Askari's background. He was 63 years old and, as
well as Iran's spy chief, had been deputy defense minister. Soon 50
personnel were involved in spiriting the Askaris out of Iran. A team of
agents "minded" Askari from the time he said he wanted to defect. At MI6
HQ, staff organized passports for the family and their travel documents.
An MI6 "housekeeper" selected the appropriate safe house in which the
family would stay. Security-cleared linguists were chosen to teach the
Askaris English. As each arrangement fell into place, it was signed-off
by various directors before ending up in MI6 chief John Scarlett's
office.
In January 2007 Meir Dagan, Mossad's chief, flew to London. Over
sandwiches and coffee with Scarlett in an MI6 conference room, Dagan had
agreed to provide what "help" he could. He suggested the "exit
strategy" for Askari s hould be either through Syria or Turkey; both were
countries Askari visited on a regular basis.
More meetings had followed in Tel Aviv between MI6 agents and Mossad.
Turkish intelligence was brought into the loop. Still further
discussions followed in Ankara.
There were also the first high-risk contacts between Iranian-born Mossad
agents and Askari in Tehran. Having established he really wanted to
defect, Askari insisted his wife and family must also be brought out of
Iran. For them to remain behind would guarantee their deaths.
The request was swiftly agreed by Scarlett. By early February a working
team had been established in MI6 to develop scenarios that would bring
Askari and his family to the West.
On Jan. 25, Askari's wife and children booked a holiday on the Black Sea
resort of Samusun. Awaiting them were Turkish intelligence officers and
an
MI6 agent. Meantime General Askari flew to Damascus, ostensibly to meet
Syrian intelligence officers and members of the Hezbollah at a regular
regional intelligence gathering.
Having been assured his wife and children were about to board a plane
from Istanbul to Rome, General Askari caught a flight from Damascus to
Istanbul on Feb. 27.
As instructed, he checked into a hotel and unpacked his clothes, having
paid for his room by credit card to cover two nights. A Mossad agent
observed the reservations being made.
On the evening of March 1, Askari left the hotel - and never returned.
A car driven by a Turkish intelligence officer took him across the
border with Bulgaria.
From Sofia he caught a flight to Rome. Sat behind him on the plane was
an
MI6 officer. Escorted by yet another MI6 officer, Askari flew to
London.
Within hours he was being debriefed.
Next day Askari was reunited with his family in the safe house. The
Iranian Foreign Ministry two days later issued an official notification
to Turkey that "General Askari has gone missing and we request all
possible assistance to locate him. He may have been kidnapped by
foreign agents."
Shortly afterwards the plot to capture the 15 sailors was launched - to
become a "deal, no deal."
This weekend the Askari family, accompanied by their minders, will be
driven on a carefully chosen route through the English countryside to
se e for themselves the freedom which is now as much theirs as that for
Faye Turney and the other sailors who were used as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's
pawns.
Interesting read.
From: M A Lt Col
Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2007 4:42 PM
LONDON -- Behind Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's announcement of his Easter "gift"
to the people of Britain by releasing his pawns - the 15 hostages - was
the barely concealed fury of a tyrant who repeatedly tried, and failed,
to drive a horrendous deal.
As well as being allowed to stage-manage the release of the hostages, he
wanted an Iranian family who have sought refuge in Britain to be handed
back to face certain torture and death.
They are Iran's former spy chief, General Ali Reza Askari, his wife
Azil, and their three teenage children. They had secretly arrived in
Britain just five days before the Revolutionary Guards captured Faye
Turney and her fellow sailors in the still disputed waters between Iran
and Iraq.
The Askaris were spirited out of Iran by an MI6-led operation that one
intelligence officer called "the most daring for years."
What infuriated president Ahmadinejad was that Askari had been a
personal friend and had defected with the latest details of how close
Iran is to having a nuclear bomb - and how far Ahmadinejad will go to
support attacks on British troops in Basra.
MI6 agents in Iran now k now that the capture of the fifteen sailors had
been personally ordered by Ahmadinejad to trade them for the Askari
family.
"It was a deal the Iranian negotiators repeatedly raised during all the
talks our diplomats had with them," confirmed a senior intelligence
officer in London. "Time and again the Iranians were polite, but were
firmly told Britain would never consider such an exchange."
While Faye Turney and the other hostages had no clue as to what really
lay behind their capture, General Askari and his family knew only too
well the fate that awaited them if Iran could somehow force Britain to
return them to Tehran.
No amount of assurance by their MI6 "minders" in the safe house
"somewhere in B ritain" that they were indeed secure could hide their own
fears during the hostage crisis.
That only came when they saw the TV footage of the freed sailors
returning home. The family hugged each other and repeatedly thanked
their minders.
The operation to help General Askari to defect had begun in December
2006, after an MI6 officer at the British Embassy in Tehran sent a coded
message to the Iranian Desk at MI6 HQ overlooking the Thames.
Checks were made on Askari's background. He was 63 years old and, as
well as Iran's spy chief, had been deputy defense minister. Soon 50
personnel were involved in spiriting the Askaris out of Iran. A team of
agents "minded" Askari from the time he said he wanted to defect. At MI6
HQ, staff organized passports for the family and their travel documents.
An MI6 "housekeeper" selected the appropriate safe house in which the
family would stay. Security-cleared linguists were chosen to teach the
Askaris English. As each arrangement fell into place, it was signed-off
by various directors before ending up in MI6 chief John Scarlett's
office.
In January 2007 Meir Dagan, Mossad's chief, flew to London. Over
sandwiches and coffee with Scarlett in an MI6 conference room, Dagan had
agreed to provide what "help" he could. He suggested the "exit
strategy" for Askari s hould be either through Syria or Turkey; both were
countries Askari visited on a regular basis.
More meetings had followed in Tel Aviv between MI6 agents and Mossad.
Turkish intelligence was brought into the loop. Still further
discussions followed in Ankara.
There were also the first high-risk contacts between Iranian-born Mossad
agents and Askari in Tehran. Having established he really wanted to
defect, Askari insisted his wife and family must also be brought out of
Iran. For them to remain behind would guarantee their deaths.
The request was swiftly agreed by Scarlett. By early February a working
team had been established in MI6 to develop scenarios that would bring
Askari and his family to the West.
On Jan. 25, Askari's wife and children booked a holiday on the Black Sea
resort of Samusun. Awaiting them were Turkish intelligence officers and
an
MI6 agent. Meantime General Askari flew to Damascus, ostensibly to meet
Syrian intelligence officers and members of the Hezbollah at a regular
regional intelligence gathering.
Having been assured his wife and children were about to board a plane
from Istanbul to Rome, General Askari caught a flight from Damascus to
Istanbul on Feb. 27.
As instructed, he checked into a hotel and unpacked his clothes, having
paid for his room by credit card to cover two nights. A Mossad agent
observed the reservations being made.
On the evening of March 1, Askari left the hotel - and never returned.
A car driven by a Turkish intelligence officer took him across the
border with Bulgaria.
From Sofia he caught a flight to Rome. Sat behind him on the plane was
an
MI6 officer. Escorted by yet another MI6 officer, Askari flew to
London.
Within hours he was being debriefed.
Next day Askari was reunited with his family in the safe house. The
Iranian Foreign Ministry two days later issued an official notification
to Turkey that "General Askari has gone missing and we request all
possible assistance to locate him. He may have been kidnapped by
foreign agents."
Shortly afterwards the plot to capture the 15 sailors was launched - to
become a "deal, no deal."
This weekend the Askari family, accompanied by their minders, will be
driven on a carefully chosen route through the English countryside to
se e for themselves the freedom which is now as much theirs as that for
Faye Turney and the other sailors who were used as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's
pawns.
