Shahram Amiri
Encyclopedia
Shahram Amiri is an Iran
ian nuclear scientist who disappeared from Iran for a little over a year under disputed circumstances. In the spring of 2009, he disappeared while apparently on pilgrimage to Mecca
, Saudi Arabia
. About a year later two videos appeared, each purporting to be declarations by Amiri, but with contradictory stories. One showed him (or the person claiming to be him), stating that he had been kidnapped and tortured by Saudis and Americans; the other that he was in America of his own free will. In July 2010, Shahram Amiri reappeared in the American capital, Washington DC, at the Iran interests section of the Embassy of Pakistan, seeking help to return to Tehran
. Shortly thereafter he spoke at a press conference in Tehran
telling journalists he had been kidnapped, tortured and bribed to cooperate with the CIA, but had refused. He is now reportedly on trial in Iran for treason.
In 2009, the Iranian government accused the US government of kidnapping him, while Iranian government media later reported that he was working for Iranian intelligence. After his return to Iran, American sources confirmed he arrived in, or was taken to, the United States with the help of the CIA, but insisted he had not been taken or kept against his will. ABC News
and Haaretz
newspaper suggested Amiri "wanted to seek asylum abroad." According to a 2011 report by NPR
news, he "was believed to be an agent-in-place for the CIA," who decided "he wanted out of Iran", but once in the US "got cold feet" and "made his way back to Iran".
reported that "he was an expert on radioactive isotopes for medical uses at Malek-Ashtar University of Technology
(MUT), in Tehran
," and reports in Iran said he "was also an employee of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation
". Press TV
reported that he worked at Malek Ashtar University, but the Iranian government would not confirm that he was a nuclear scientist. A later report by ABC News
described him as a "researcher at Malek Ashtar University of Defense Technology," which according to the European Union Council, was “linked” to Iran’s Ministry of Defense and “set up a missiles training course in 2003.” The university's rector is a lieutenant general in the Iranian military who was "named in the UN Security Council’s first round of sanctions on Iran in 2006 as one of seven `persons involved in the nuclear program`.”
pilgrimage to Mecca
, Saudi Arabia
in either May or June 2009. In October 2009, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki
suggested the United States may have been involved in his disappearance. On October 7, 2009, Iranian Press TV reported Mottaki stated "we have evidence of a U.S. role in disappearance of the Iranian national ... in Saudi Arabia. ... There is evidence to suggest the United States was involved" in Amiri's disappearance. "We hold Saudi Arabia responsible and consider the US to be involved in his arrest." In response, a US State Department spokesman said only that "the case is not familiar to us".
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hasan Qashqavi stated a day or two earlier that "Amiri's fate is Saudi Arabia's responsibility." Saudi Arabia "deplored" Tehran's charge that he was kidnapped while on pilgrimage. On the other hand, in December 2009, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Ali Akbar Salehi
, denied that Amiri had any links with the AEOI or was ever employed by it.
Amiri's disappearance is thought by some to be connected to the revelation of a second uranium enrichment facility near the city of Qom
, as his disappearance came three months before the facility was revealed in the news, raising the possibility that Amiri "may have given the West information on it or other parts of the nuclear program."
The New York Times said "sources" in Washington confirmed he was an American spy in Iran for several years, even aiding the "National Intelligence" report in 2007. He then traveled to Saudi Arabia where the CIA smuggled him out of the country. The Obama administration said that his decision to return to Iran was an embarrassment and it was concerned that it may undermine efforts to convince other Iranian scientists to work against the country. One official said "His safety depends on him sticking to that fairy tale about pressure and torture. His challenge is to try to convince the Iranian security forces that he never cooperated with the United States." The Iranian Foreign Ministry stated "We first have to see what has happened in these two years and then we will determine if he’s a hero or not. Iran must determine if his claims about being kidnapped were correct or not." The Associated Press also reported American officials saying he has been paid $5 million for "significant original information."
According to the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, Mottaki made a formal complaint to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
about "the disappearances of Amiri and three other Iranians in recent years, some of whom they feared may have provided nuclear information to the West." One of these was Ali Reza Asgari, a former deputy defense minister and Revolutionary Guards general who vanished in Turkey
in 2007," and may have defected to the US according to "subsequent press reports." According to The Sunday Telegraph, both Asgari and Amiri were part of a CIA
defection program against Iran called "the Brain Drain
", which began in 2005.
On March 30, 2010, ABC News reported that Amiri was initially approached via an intermediary, agreeing to defect in a "long-planned CIA operation", and was then living in the United States.
On July 13, 2010, Amiri went to the Embassy of Pakistan in Washington, DC, and asked to return to Iran. Senior US officials claimed that Iran
ian government authorities threatened to hurt Mr. Amiri's family in Iran if he did not go back to Iran, so Mr. Amiri returned home. Amiri claimed that he was drugged and kidnapped by American agents in Saudi Arabia, tortured and held for years against his will.
video apparently from Tucson, Arizona
and recorded on April 5, 2010, in which a man alleged to be Shahram Amiri said that he had been kidnapped by force in Saudi Arabia through a combined effort of the American and Saudi intelligence services. He further said that after being carried to the U.S., he had been torture
d and pressured to publicly state that he had willfully defected and that Iran had a secret nuclear weapon program. He called on international organizations and human rights groups to pressure U.S. for his release and expressed his wish to return to Iran.
A second video was released hours later on YouTube, in which a person who appears to be Amiri without stating whether he was initially abducted, said that "I am free here and I assure everyone that I am safe," and denied taking action against Iran. He stated that he was safe and wished to continue his education in the U.S., and that "I am not involved in weapons research and have no experience and knowledge in this field." A correspondent from the BBC speculated that he may have been reading from a script. BBC has published English-language transcripts of the two videos.
"Within days, the CIA learned that Amiri had given the Iranians a video and moved quickly to produce a version of its own. The second video shows Amiri well-dressed and manicured with a globe – turned to North America – and chess set behind him as he appears to read from a teleprompter. He says, in Persian
, that he is happily living in the U.S. and going to school. He also denied having worked in the Iranian nuclear program and made a plea to his wife and son. 'I want them to know that I never abandoned then, and that I will always love them.' According to one U.S. official, the CIA intended to produce the video and launch it on the internet before the Iranians had a chance to air their version. Instead, the video languished at CIA headquarters for weeks, according to a senior intelligence official. Then, earlier this month, Iranian state television aired the Amiri video. Within a day, the CIA posted their Amiri video on YouTube, with a user identification of 'shahramamiri2010.'"
Later in June, IRIB interviewed Amiri's wife, in which she expressed serious doubt that Amiri had gone to the U.S. of his own volition. The interview also made clear that despite more than one year of disappearance, Amiri had not contacted his wife and their seven-year-old son. She further called on human rights organizations to pressure the U.S. for Amiri's release.
On Tuesday June 29, BBC reported that Iranian state TV had shown a video of a "man who says he is an Iranian nuclear scientist" and "claims to have escaped after being abducted by US agents." In the video, the man states "I, Shahram Amiri, am a national of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a few minutes ago I succeeded in escaping US security agents in Virginia. Presently, I am producing this video in a safe place. I could be re-arrested at any time." BBC quotes him as saying he is not free, is not permitted to contact his family, that human rights organizations should pressure the U.S. for his release, and asserting that "The second video which was published on YouTube by the US government, where I have said that I am free and want to continue my education here, is not true and is a complete fabrication. If something happens and I do not return home alive, the US government will be responsible." A US official told the AFP news agency the allegations were "ludicrous", although its state department has refused to say whether Amiri is in the US.
Reuters reported on June 29 that earlier that month, Iran, which has no direct diplomatic relations with the United States, summoned the Swiss ambassador in Tehran and handed over documents which Tehran said showed Amiri had been kidnapped by the U.S. On July 4, BBC reported on this development, adding that the nature of the documents has not been disclosed.
, as the United States has no direct flights to Iran. After learning of the developments in the case, United States Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton said, "Mr Amiri has been in the United States of his own free will and he is free to go."
According to the Wall Street Journal, an unnamed Iranian who is familiar with Amiri's case said that Iranian authorities had threatened to hurt Mr. Amiri's family if he did not return to Iran. "His family has been under tremendous pressure, they even threatened to kill his son. He had no choice but to play the script the regime has given him and return to Iran." A spokesman at Iran's UN mission in New York did not answer requests for comment. The Wall Street Journal claims that his return was under threat of retaliation to his family.
On July 15, 2010, he returned to Iran and was welcomed by Iranian officials, including Foreign Affairs Ministry officials and his family. At a special press conference in Tehran, he said that he had been psychologically mistreated by the US intelligence Agency (CIA) after his kidnapping. "They offered me $50 million to cooperate with them and tell the media that I am a very important person in Iran's nuclear programme and have escaped from Iran and politically that I'm a refugee to the US. They wanted me to show a laptop on the TV and say we have obtained very important information on Iran's nuclear weapon programme. But I promised myself not to tell [them] anything against my country."
After his return to Iran, the Fars News Agency
claimed that he was secretly working for Iranian intelligence while in the United States. It was reported that he gathered information regarding CIA plans to gather intelligence on the Iranian Nuclear capabilities. U.S. officials disputed this claim, saying that he never had access to classified information.
Yusuf bin Alawai bin Abdullah, an Oman
i official involved in the September, 2010 release on bail of Sarah Shourd, stated that Iran had been prepared to discuss an exchange of Shourd for Amiri but that "at the White House
'not everyone was on board.'" Bin Alawai avoided saying that Shourd's release was part of an exchange, but allowed that "it may have helped" that Amiri had returned to Iran.
According to NPR
news, Amiri was jailed "months" after his arrival in Iran and as of May 2011 is "on trial for treason."
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...
ian nuclear scientist who disappeared from Iran for a little over a year under disputed circumstances. In the spring of 2009, he disappeared while apparently on pilgrimage to Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. About a year later two videos appeared, each purporting to be declarations by Amiri, but with contradictory stories. One showed him (or the person claiming to be him), stating that he had been kidnapped and tortured by Saudis and Americans; the other that he was in America of his own free will. In July 2010, Shahram Amiri reappeared in the American capital, Washington DC, at the Iran interests section of the Embassy of Pakistan, seeking help to return to Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
. Shortly thereafter he spoke at a press conference in Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
telling journalists he had been kidnapped, tortured and bribed to cooperate with the CIA, but had refused. He is now reportedly on trial in Iran for treason.
In 2009, the Iranian government accused the US government of kidnapping him, while Iranian government media later reported that he was working for Iranian intelligence. After his return to Iran, American sources confirmed he arrived in, or was taken to, the United States with the help of the CIA, but insisted he had not been taken or kept against his will. ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
and Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
newspaper suggested Amiri "wanted to seek asylum abroad." According to a 2011 report by NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
news, he "was believed to be an agent-in-place for the CIA," who decided "he wanted out of Iran", but once in the US "got cold feet" and "made his way back to Iran".
Life and career
The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
reported that "he was an expert on radioactive isotopes for medical uses at Malek-Ashtar University of Technology
Malek-Ashtar University of Technology
The Malek-Ashtar University of Technology is a public university of engineering, science, and military in Iran.This university was opened in1986. Its campuses are located in Tehran and Isfahan. The university is named after Malik al-Ashtar,...
(MUT), in Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
," and reports in Iran said he "was also an employee of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation
Atomic Energy Organization of Iran
The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran is the main official body responsible for implementing regulations and operating nuclear energy installations in Iran....
". 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 ....
reported that he worked at Malek Ashtar University, but the Iranian government would not confirm that he was a nuclear scientist. A later report by ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
described him as a "researcher at Malek Ashtar University of Defense Technology," which according to the European Union Council, was “linked” to Iran’s Ministry of Defense and “set up a missiles training course in 2003.” The university's rector is a lieutenant general in the Iranian military who was "named in the UN Security Council’s first round of sanctions on Iran in 2006 as one of seven `persons involved in the nuclear program`.”
Disappearance
Amiri disappeared during an apparent umrahUmrah
The Umrah or is a pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, performed by Muslims that can be undertaken at any time of the year. In Arabic, Umrah means "to visit a populated place"...
pilgrimage to Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
in either May or June 2009. In October 2009, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki
Manouchehr Mottaki
Manouchehr Mottaki is an Iranian politician and diplomat. He was the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs. Whilst technically appointed by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he is considered to be closer to more pragmatic conservative factions and during the 2005 presidential election, he was the campaign...
suggested the United States may have been involved in his disappearance. On October 7, 2009, Iranian Press TV reported Mottaki stated "we have evidence of a U.S. role in disappearance of the Iranian national ... in Saudi Arabia. ... There is evidence to suggest the United States was involved" in Amiri's disappearance. "We hold Saudi Arabia responsible and consider the US to be involved in his arrest." In response, a US State Department spokesman said only that "the case is not familiar to us".
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hasan Qashqavi stated a day or two earlier that "Amiri's fate is Saudi Arabia's responsibility." Saudi Arabia "deplored" Tehran's charge that he was kidnapped while on pilgrimage. On the other hand, in December 2009, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Ali Akbar Salehi
Ali Akbar Salehi
Ali Akbar Salehi is an Iranian politician, diplomat and academic and the current Minister of Foreign Affairs since 13 December 2010. Previous to his appointment as Minister of Foreign Affairs, he was Head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran from 16 July 2009 to 13 December 2010...
, denied that Amiri had any links with the AEOI or was ever employed by it.
Amiri's disappearance is thought by some to be connected to the revelation of a second uranium enrichment facility near the city of Qom
Qom
Qom is a city in Iran. It lies by road southwest of Tehran and is the capital of Qom Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 957,496, in 241,827 families. It is situated on the banks of the Qom River....
, as his disappearance came three months before the facility was revealed in the news, raising the possibility that Amiri "may have given the West information on it or other parts of the nuclear program."
The New York Times said "sources" in Washington confirmed he was an American spy in Iran for several years, even aiding the "National Intelligence" report in 2007. He then traveled to Saudi Arabia where the CIA smuggled him out of the country. The Obama administration said that his decision to return to Iran was an embarrassment and it was concerned that it may undermine efforts to convince other Iranian scientists to work against the country. One official said "His safety depends on him sticking to that fairy tale about pressure and torture. His challenge is to try to convince the Iranian security forces that he never cooperated with the United States." The Iranian Foreign Ministry stated "We first have to see what has happened in these two years and then we will determine if he’s a hero or not. Iran must determine if his claims about being kidnapped were correct or not." The Associated Press also reported American officials saying he has been paid $5 million for "significant original information."
According to the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, Mottaki made a formal complaint to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
Ban Ki-moon
Ban Ki-moon is the eighth and current Secretary-General of the United Nations, after succeeding Kofi Annan in 2007. Before going on to be Secretary-General, Ban was a career diplomat in South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in the United Nations. He entered diplomatic service the year he...
about "the disappearances of Amiri and three other Iranians in recent years, some of whom they feared may have provided nuclear information to the West." One of these was Ali Reza Asgari, a former deputy defense minister and Revolutionary Guards general who vanished in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
in 2007," and may have defected to the US according to "subsequent press reports." According to The Sunday Telegraph, both Asgari and Amiri were part of a CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
defection program against Iran called "the Brain Drain
Brain drain
Human capital flight, more commonly referred to as "brain drain", is the large-scale emigration of a large group of individuals with technical skills or knowledge. The reasons usually include two aspects which respectively come from countries and individuals...
", which began in 2005.
On March 30, 2010, ABC News reported that Amiri was initially approached via an intermediary, agreeing to defect in a "long-planned CIA operation", and was then living in the United States.
On July 13, 2010, Amiri went to the Embassy of Pakistan in Washington, DC, and asked to return to Iran. Senior US officials claimed that 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...
ian government authorities threatened to hurt Mr. Amiri's family in Iran if he did not go back to Iran, so Mr. Amiri returned home. Amiri claimed that he was drugged and kidnapped by American agents in Saudi Arabia, tortured and held for years against his will.
June 2010 videos
On June 7, 2010, IRIB aired a poor quality webcamWebcam
A webcam is a video camera that feeds its images in real time to a computer or computer network, often via USB, ethernet, or Wi-Fi.Their most popular use is the establishment of video links, permitting computers to act as videophones or videoconference stations. This common use as a video camera...
video apparently from Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
and recorded on April 5, 2010, in which a man alleged to be Shahram Amiri said that he had been kidnapped by force in Saudi Arabia through a combined effort of the American and Saudi intelligence services. He further said that after being carried to the U.S., he had been torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
d and pressured to publicly state that he had willfully defected and that Iran had a secret nuclear weapon program. He called on international organizations and human rights groups to pressure U.S. for his release and expressed his wish to return to Iran.
A second video was released hours later on YouTube, in which a person who appears to be Amiri without stating whether he was initially abducted, said that "I am free here and I assure everyone that I am safe," and denied taking action against Iran. He stated that he was safe and wished to continue his education in the U.S., and that "I am not involved in weapons research and have no experience and knowledge in this field." A correspondent from the BBC speculated that he may have been reading from a script. BBC has published English-language transcripts of the two videos.
"Within days, the CIA learned that Amiri had given the Iranians a video and moved quickly to produce a version of its own. The second video shows Amiri well-dressed and manicured with a globe – turned to North America – and chess set behind him as he appears to read from a teleprompter. He says, in 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...
, that he is happily living in the U.S. and going to school. He also denied having worked in the Iranian nuclear program and made a plea to his wife and son. 'I want them to know that I never abandoned then, and that I will always love them.' According to one U.S. official, the CIA intended to produce the video and launch it on the internet before the Iranians had a chance to air their version. Instead, the video languished at CIA headquarters for weeks, according to a senior intelligence official. Then, earlier this month, Iranian state television aired the Amiri video. Within a day, the CIA posted their Amiri video on YouTube, with a user identification of 'shahramamiri2010.'"
Later in June, IRIB interviewed Amiri's wife, in which she expressed serious doubt that Amiri had gone to the U.S. of his own volition. The interview also made clear that despite more than one year of disappearance, Amiri had not contacted his wife and their seven-year-old son. She further called on human rights organizations to pressure the U.S. for Amiri's release.
On Tuesday June 29, BBC reported that Iranian state TV had shown a video of a "man who says he is an Iranian nuclear scientist" and "claims to have escaped after being abducted by US agents." In the video, the man states "I, Shahram Amiri, am a national of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a few minutes ago I succeeded in escaping US security agents in Virginia. Presently, I am producing this video in a safe place. I could be re-arrested at any time." BBC quotes him as saying he is not free, is not permitted to contact his family, that human rights organizations should pressure the U.S. for his release, and asserting that "The second video which was published on YouTube by the US government, where I have said that I am free and want to continue my education here, is not true and is a complete fabrication. If something happens and I do not return home alive, the US government will be responsible." A US official told the AFP news agency the allegations were "ludicrous", although its state department has refused to say whether Amiri is in the US.
Reuters reported on June 29 that earlier that month, Iran, which has no direct diplomatic relations with the United States, summoned the Swiss ambassador in Tehran and handed over documents which Tehran said showed Amiri had been kidnapped by the U.S. On July 4, BBC reported on this development, adding that the nature of the documents has not been disclosed.
Return to Iran
On July 13, 2010, Amiri was unexpectedly dropped off at the Iranian interests section of the Pakistani Embassy seeking assistance returning to Iran. On July 14 the BBC reported that Amiri was "heading home" to Iran after asking to be repatriated. Amiri returned to Iran via TurkeyTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, as the United States has no direct flights to Iran. After learning of the developments in the case, United States Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
Hillary Clinton said, "Mr Amiri has been in the United States of his own free will and he is free to go."
According to the Wall Street Journal, an unnamed Iranian who is familiar with Amiri's case said that Iranian authorities had threatened to hurt Mr. Amiri's family if he did not return to Iran. "His family has been under tremendous pressure, they even threatened to kill his son. He had no choice but to play the script the regime has given him and return to Iran." A spokesman at Iran's UN mission in New York did not answer requests for comment. The Wall Street Journal claims that his return was under threat of retaliation to his family.
On July 15, 2010, he returned to Iran and was welcomed by Iranian officials, including Foreign Affairs Ministry officials and his family. At a special press conference in Tehran, he said that he had been psychologically mistreated by the US intelligence Agency (CIA) after his kidnapping. "They offered me $50 million to cooperate with them and tell the media that I am a very important person in Iran's nuclear programme and have escaped from Iran and politically that I'm a refugee to the US. They wanted me to show a laptop on the TV and say we have obtained very important information on Iran's nuclear weapon programme. But I promised myself not to tell [them] anything against my country."
After his return to Iran, the Fars News Agency
Fars News Agency
Fars News Agency is a news agency in Iran. While it describes itself as "Iran's leading independent news agency", news organizations such as CNN and Reuters describe it as a "semi-official" news agency with ties to the government...
claimed that he was secretly working for Iranian intelligence while in the United States. It was reported that he gathered information regarding CIA plans to gather intelligence on the Iranian Nuclear capabilities. U.S. officials disputed this claim, saying that he never had access to classified information.
Yusuf bin Alawai bin Abdullah, an Oman
Oman
Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...
i official involved in the September, 2010 release on bail of Sarah Shourd, stated that Iran had been prepared to discuss an exchange of Shourd for Amiri but that "at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
'not everyone was on board.'" Bin Alawai avoided saying that Shourd's release was part of an exchange, but allowed that "it may have helped" that Amiri had returned to Iran.
According to NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
news, Amiri was jailed "months" after his arrival in Iran and as of May 2011 is "on trial for treason."
In popular culture
An Iranian film studio said it would produce a telefilm about the Shahram Amiri saga.External links
- http://www.youtube.com/user/shahramamiri2010 Channel on YouTube