Leaked Cables: Iranian spies 'used Red Crescent to enter war zones'

[Turborama]

Source: The Guardian

US embassy cables reveal claims that intelligence agents and weapons were smuggled into Lebanon and Iraq

Ewen MacAskill in Washington
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 28 November 2010 18.15 GMT

Iran abused the strict neutrality of the Iranian Red Crescent (IRC) society to smuggle intelligence agents and weapons into other countries, including Lebanon during the 2006 war with Israel, according to claims in a leaked US embassy cable.

The society, which is supposed to be independent of government, is alleged to have provided cover for members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRG), the most powerful military force in Iran, to infiltrate a number of countries, including Iraq and Lebanon, according to a well-placed Iranian source who spoke to US diplomats.

The Iranian Red Crescent has strongly denied the allegations.

The claim of involvement by Iran will infuriate Israel, which has long claimed the Palestinian Red Crescent has helped to move Palestinian fighters around. Israel views Iran as a much more serious threat than the Palestinians.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/28/iranian-spies-red-crescent-war

[Rosa Luxemburg]

1. 2006 - now that is intereting!

[Ozymanithrax]

2. Israel has made this claim several times.

This isn't particularly new.

Just the source is different.

[Arctic Dave]

3. Would not surprise me.

Every country in the world uses NGO's to spy and cause mischief.

[crikkett]

4. So is the cable proof that it happened

or is the cable proof that State Dept. Staff repeated an allegation?

[joshcryer]

7. The cable is only proof if we agree.

Indeed, it is enough to start arresting people if we agree.

[crikkett]

9. I don't understand what you're saying. Are we agreeing that the cable

is fact or opinion?

[TheWraith]

5. Not really surprising.

Aid organizations are always subject to this sort of thing. While the Red Cross and Red Crescent is supposed to be one of the groups that's "hands off" by international agreement, it's only cheating if you get caught.

[Arrowhead2k1]

6. Just because it's in a cable, doesn't mean it's a fact.

It's just an American diplomats opinion.

[joshcryer]

8. Exactly, I really am not surprised by any of these damn cables.

Some diplomat talking about some crap that reporters have talked about on quite a few occasions, only, on the 5th page of the newspaper buried so no eyes can see it.