Abdolmalek Rigi
Encyclopedia
Abdolmajid Rigi or Abdolmalek Rigi (also spelt Abdul-Malek Rigi or Abdulmalik Rigi) (c.
1983 – June 20, 2010) was the leader of Jundallah
, an Islamist Sunni militant organization based in the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of southeast Iran
, until his capture and execution in 2010 by the Iranian government.
. Prior to founding Jundallah, while a teenager, Rigi was convicted of assault with a knife, for which he served time in prison.
Although lacking any formal secular education, Rigi had been educated at Karachi
's Binnori Town seminary, a Sunni Madrasah
which was school to many of the Taliban leaders.
In recent years, there has been considerable controversy over their support and international ties. Jundallah is believed by many experts to be linked to Al-Qaeda
. There are also claims that Jundallah has had contact with the U.S. government and receives funding from Baluchi Iranians abroad.
Dan Rather
's U.S. cable channel HDnet
's television news magazine Dan Rather Reports, interviewed Rigi and showed a video of Rigi personally cutting off his brother in-law Shahab Mansouri's head. In the same interview, Rigi described himself as "an Iranian" and denied that his goal is to form a separate Baluch state. He claimed that his goal is to "improve conditions for ethnic Baluchis", and that his group is "fighting exclusively for the rights of Sunni Muslims in Iran".
On April 2, 2007, Abdolmalek Rigi appeared on the Persian
service of Voice of America
, the official broadcasting service of the United States government, which identified Rigi as "the leader of popular Iranian resistance movement" and used the title of "Doctor
" with his name. This incident resulted in public condemnation by the Iranian-American community in the U.S., many of whom are opponents of the Iranian government.
According to a former hostage , Rigi never slept in one place for two consecutive nights and did not shake hands with other people without wearing gloves. He is also reported to emulate Al-Zarqawi in his conduct and videos of hostage executions. It has also been reported that he killed his brother's wife, shooting her to death while she was asleep.
The Iranian newspaper Kayhan
incorrectly reported on April 7, 2005, "Abdolmalek Rigi, leader of the terrorist group, the Jundullah... was killed in an operation on the border with Afghanistan." A video surfaced on April 11, 2005, showing Rigi alive. Rigi's brother Abdulhamid Rigi accused his brother of working with Americans against Iran.
waters while he was traveling on a plane via Dubai to Kyrgyzstan.” According to one Iranian official, “His plane was ordered to land, and then he was arrested after the plane was searched.” The New York Times
later reported that the flight was from Dubai
to Kyrgyzstan
. At a later time, Bishkek airport confirmed that Kyrgyzstan Airways flight QH454 from Dubai had arrived several hours late after being intercepted by Iranian fighter jets over the Persian Gulf and told to land in Iranian territory, adding that “a number of foreign passengers were forcibly removed”.
An earlier report given by Al Jazeera
claimed that "[Rigi] had been handed over by the Pakistan authorities". The Tehran-based news analysis site Iran Diplomacy also claimed that Rigi was arrested by, or with the help of, Pakistan. Iran Diplomacy claimed that he was arrested in a hospital "with the help of Pakistani intelligence officials, who took action after 'consulting' with the United States". Pakistan's ambassador to Tehran, Mohammad Abbasi, has also claimed that "the arrest could not happen without Pakistan's help" without giving any further details, but promising "more details" in the coming days.
Iran has linked Jundullah to the Sunni Islamist Al-Qaeda network and accuses Pakistan, Britain and the U.S. of backing the group to destabilize the country. Several western media outlets have also reported that in 2007 the CIA provided funding and weapons to Jundullah.
In an interview with Press TV
Rigi added that Americans under NATO or Israelis approached him to take Jundullah's conflict from the Baluchi regions into the capital Tehran.
BBC
News carried a report on the statements, noting that "It is not possible to say whether Abdolmalek Rigi made the statement freely or under duress." The U.S. has denied having links with Rigi's group, Jundullah. Reuters also reported that Geoff Morrell, Pentagon
press secretary, dismissed claims by the Iranian government that Mr. Rigi had been at an American military base just before his arrest. Morrell called the accusations of American involvement “nothing more than Iranian propaganda.”
was executed in the city of Zāhedān. A judiciary official in the province of Sistan-Baluchestan said "The judiciary decided not to carry out the sentence in public because of some security issues." Families of victims of Jundullah attacks were said to be present at the execution. His brother's execution was put off in July 2009 and again in December in order to get more information from him.
in the Evin Prison
in Teheran. Irna
said the execution was carried out following a decision of the Tehran revolutionary tribunal. It quoted a court statement saying: "The head of the armed counter-revolutionary group in the east of the country...was responsible for armed robbery, assassination attempts, armed attacks on the army and police and on ordinary people, and murder." His execution was read as a "severe blow" to Jundullah.
In response to the execution, Iran's Interior Minister, Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar
, said "Over the past 30 years, our enemies faced defeat in every instance and their latest ploy was [inciting] the seditionists who wanted to break our ranks. With the execution of this villain, who was backed by several Western spy agencies and the Israelis, complete peace has returned to the region."
Abdolmalek Rigi was buried in Khavaran cemetery
, in South East of Tehran.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1983 – June 20, 2010) was the leader of Jundallah
Jundallah
Jundallah, or Jondollah , also known as People's Resistance Movement of Iran , is an organization based in Balochistan that claims to be fighting for the rights of Sunni Muslims in Iran. It was founded by Abdolmalek Rigi who was captured and executed in Iran in 2010...
, an Islamist Sunni militant organization based in the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of southeast Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, until his capture and execution in 2010 by the Iranian government.
Biography
Born in 1983, Abdolmalek Rigi is from the Regi tribe who are an ethnic Iranian Baloch peopleBaloch people
The Baloch or Baluch are an ethnic group that belong to the larger Iranian peoples. Baluch people mainly inhabit the Balochistan region and Sistan and Baluchestan Province in the southeast corner of the Iranian plateau in Western Asia....
. Prior to founding Jundallah, while a teenager, Rigi was convicted of assault with a knife, for which he served time in prison.
Although lacking any formal secular education, Rigi had been educated at Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
's Binnori Town seminary, a Sunni Madrasah
Madrasah
Madrasah is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, whether secular or religious...
which was school to many of the Taliban leaders.
In recent years, there has been considerable controversy over their support and international ties. Jundallah is believed by many experts to be linked to Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
. There are also claims that Jundallah has had contact with the U.S. government and receives funding from Baluchi Iranians abroad.
Dan Rather
Dan Rather
Daniel Irvin "Dan" Rather, Jr. is an American journalist and the former news anchor for the CBS Evening News. He is now managing editor and anchor of the television news magazine Dan Rather Reports on the cable channel HDNet. Rather was anchor of the CBS Evening News for 24 years, from March 9,...
's U.S. cable channel HDnet
HDNet
HDNet is a men's interest television channel in the United States, broadcasting exclusively in high-definition format and available via cable and satellite television...
's television news magazine Dan Rather Reports, interviewed Rigi and showed a video of Rigi personally cutting off his brother in-law Shahab Mansouri's head. In the same interview, Rigi described himself as "an Iranian" and denied that his goal is to form a separate Baluch state. He claimed that his goal is to "improve conditions for ethnic Baluchis", and that his group is "fighting exclusively for the rights of Sunni Muslims in Iran".
On April 2, 2007, Abdolmalek Rigi appeared on the Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
service of Voice of America
Voice of America
Voice of America is the official external broadcast institution of the United States federal government. It is one of five civilian U.S. international broadcasters working under the umbrella of the Broadcasting Board of Governors . VOA provides a wide range of programming for broadcast on radio...
, the official broadcasting service of the United States government, which identified Rigi as "the leader of popular Iranian resistance movement" and used the title of "Doctor
Doctor (title)
Doctor, as a title, originates from the Latin word of the same spelling and meaning. The word is originally an agentive noun of the Latin verb docēre . It has been used as an honored academic title for over a millennium in Europe, where it dates back to the rise of the university. This use spread...
" with his name. This incident resulted in public condemnation by the Iranian-American community in the U.S., many of whom are opponents of the Iranian government.
According to a former hostage , Rigi never slept in one place for two consecutive nights and did not shake hands with other people without wearing gloves. He is also reported to emulate Al-Zarqawi in his conduct and videos of hostage executions. It has also been reported that he killed his brother's wife, shooting her to death while she was asleep.
The Iranian newspaper Kayhan
Kayhan
Kayhan is an influential newspaper in Iran. Directly under the supervision of the Office of the Supreme Leader, it is regarded to be "the most conservative Iranian newspaper."...
incorrectly reported on April 7, 2005, "Abdolmalek Rigi, leader of the terrorist group, the Jundullah... was killed in an operation on the border with Afghanistan." A video surfaced on April 11, 2005, showing Rigi alive. Rigi's brother Abdulhamid Rigi accused his brother of working with Americans against Iran.
Capture and arrest
According to Iranian sources, on February 23, 2010, “Rigi was arrested in Persian GulfPersian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
waters while he was traveling on a plane via Dubai to Kyrgyzstan.” According to one Iranian official, “His plane was ordered to land, and then he was arrested after the plane was searched.” The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
later reported that the flight was from Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
to Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
. At a later time, Bishkek airport confirmed that Kyrgyzstan Airways flight QH454 from Dubai had arrived several hours late after being intercepted by Iranian fighter jets over the Persian Gulf and told to land in Iranian territory, adding that “a number of foreign passengers were forcibly removed”.
An earlier report given by Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera is an independent broadcaster owned by the state of Qatar through the Qatar Media Corporation and headquartered in Doha, Qatar...
claimed that "[Rigi] had been handed over by the Pakistan authorities". The Tehran-based news analysis site Iran Diplomacy also claimed that Rigi was arrested by, or with the help of, Pakistan. Iran Diplomacy claimed that he was arrested in a hospital "with the help of Pakistani intelligence officials, who took action after 'consulting' with the United States". Pakistan's ambassador to Tehran, Mohammad Abbasi, has also claimed that "the arrest could not happen without Pakistan's help" without giving any further details, but promising "more details" in the coming days.
Iran has linked Jundullah to the Sunni Islamist Al-Qaeda network and accuses Pakistan, Britain and the U.S. of backing the group to destabilize the country. Several western media outlets have also reported that in 2007 the CIA provided funding and weapons to Jundullah.
Post-arrest statements
On February 25, 2010, Iranian state television broadcast a statement by Rigi stating he had had American support and that"The Americans said Iran was going its own way and they said our problem at the present is Iran… not Al-Qaeda and not the Taliban, but the main problem is Iran. We don't have a military plan against Iran. Attacking Iran is very difficult for us (the U.S.). They [Americans] promised to help us and they said that they would co-operate with us, free our prisoners and would give us [Jundullah] military equipment, bombs, machine guns, and they would give us a base."
In an interview with Press TV
Press TV
Press TV is a 24-hour English language global news network owned by the Iranian government. Its headquarters are located in Tehran, Iran, with bureaux in Beirut , Damascus , London , Seoul and Washington DC ....
Rigi added that Americans under NATO or Israelis approached him to take Jundullah's conflict from the Baluchi regions into the capital Tehran.
"When we looked back at all the things that had happened we felt that two things were unclear. First, if they are from NATO why did they not meet with us in Afghanistan where they have bases and where they can contact us in a much more easy and secure manner. The second issue was that the first time they informed us that NATO forces wanted to meet with us we thought they were going to speak about eastern parts of Iran, because NATO forces are stationed in Afghanistan. But they insisted that we should transfer our operations from the eastern border region to the capital. We thought that this was very strange. When we thought about it we came to the conclusion that they are either Americans acting under NATO cover or Israelis."
BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
News carried a report on the statements, noting that "It is not possible to say whether Abdolmalek Rigi made the statement freely or under duress." The U.S. has denied having links with Rigi's group, Jundullah. Reuters also reported that Geoff Morrell, Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
press secretary, dismissed claims by the Iranian government that Mr. Rigi had been at an American military base just before his arrest. Morrell called the accusations of American involvement “nothing more than Iranian propaganda.”
Brother's execution
On May 24, 2010, his brother Abdolhamid RigiAbdolhamid Rigi
Abdolhamid Rigi was the elder brother of the detained leader of Jundallah, Abdolmalek Rigi...
was executed in the city of Zāhedān. A judiciary official in the province of Sistan-Baluchestan said "The judiciary decided not to carry out the sentence in public because of some security issues." Families of victims of Jundullah attacks were said to be present at the execution. His brother's execution was put off in July 2009 and again in December in order to get more information from him.
Execution
On June 20, 2010 the Iranian and international media reported that Rigi had been hangedHanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
in the Evin Prison
Evin Prison
Evin House of Detention is a prison in Iran, located in Evin, northwestern Tehran. It is noted for its political prisoners' wing, where prisoners have been held both before and after the 1979 Iranian Revolution...
in Teheran. Irna
Islamic Republic News Agency
The Islamic Republic News Agency , or IRNA, is the official news agency of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It is government-funded and controlled under the Iranian Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. The agency also publishes the newspaper Iran. , the Managing Director of IRNA is Ali Akbar...
said the execution was carried out following a decision of the Tehran revolutionary tribunal. It quoted a court statement saying: "The head of the armed counter-revolutionary group in the east of the country...was responsible for armed robbery, assassination attempts, armed attacks on the army and police and on ordinary people, and murder." His execution was read as a "severe blow" to Jundullah.
In response to the execution, Iran's Interior Minister, Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar
Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar
Mostafa Mohammad Najjar is the current Interior minister of Iran since August 9, 2009. He was Minister of Defense in the first cabinet of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from 2005 to 2009. He is a veteran of the Revolutionary Guards .-Early life:...
, said "Over the past 30 years, our enemies faced defeat in every instance and their latest ploy was [inciting] the seditionists who wanted to break our ranks. With the execution of this villain, who was backed by several Western spy agencies and the Israelis, complete peace has returned to the region."
Abdolmalek Rigi was buried in Khavaran cemetery
Khavaran cemetery
Khavaran cemetery is a cemetery located in South East of Tehran. It was used as a graveyard for the religious minorities such as Christians, and recently Bahá'ís, and also as a mass grave site for political prisoners executed in the 1988 mass executions...
, in South East of Tehran.