Iran Rejects Links to Al Qaeda
January 25, 2004
The Iranian embassy in Berlin said in a statement on Saturday that claims of a link between Iran and the al Qaeda terrorist network were groundless. The statements made by a witness in the Hamburg trial of Mzoudi are the "contradictory and false declarations of an unknown person."
The witness, identified by the codename Hamid Remz Zakeri, claims he was a former member of the Iranian intelligence services and that he had tried to warn the CIA of the planned Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but that he was not believed.
According to two members of the German Federal Criminal Police who interviewed the witness, Zakeri worked in the department of the Iranian secret service responsible for "carrying out terrorist attacks globally." He allegedly told the police that Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several other high-ranking officials met with Osama bin Laden's oldest son in Tehran on May 4, 2001, to finalize the plans for the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.
In its statement, the Iranian embassy "robustly denied this rumor, which is without foundation," and stressed that Tehran was fully committed to the fight against global terror.
Mystery witness
The Iranian has been called as a witness in the trial of Mzoudi, who is charged with involvement in the Hamburg terror cell of al Qaeda and assisting the Sept. 11 attackers. The Moroccan student was expected to be cleared of several thousand counts of aiding and abetting murder in a verdict originally due on Thursday, but postponed after the emergence of the Iranian witness.
The court announced it would withhold its verdict in order to assess the credibility of the Iranian, whom federal prosecutors believe could incriminate Mzoudi. On Jan. 29, the Iranian is expected to appear before the court and give a more detailed testimony.
A credible witness?
Terror experts in Germany disagree over the witness’ credibility. German investigators involved in the case say the Iranian had been keen to receive money for his cooperation, although he had not openly demanded payment.
According to the German news magazine Der Spiegel, security experts in the German government don't place much trust in the witness’ claims. Already back in 2002 the man tried to establish contact with the federal intelligence service, who after thoroughly investigating him dismissed his story as "not credible."
The Süddeutsche Zeitung has also cited sources from U.S. intelligence services and high-ranking experts in Berlin who regard the Iranian’s statements as "trash."
Iranian connection
Tehran, which adamantly denies any connection with al Qaeda, announced for the first time on Friday that it was planning to try a dozen terrorist suspects who have been detained in Iran. The Bush administration, which has accused Iran of harboring al Qaeda militants who slipped out of Afghanistan following the American-led invasion in 2001, countered by saying Tehran should extradite the suspects to their home countries for trial.
"We want to see action, and the action we want to see is that they turn over those al Qaeda members in their custody to their country of origin," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.
Another White House official on Saturday said he feared al Qaeda terrorists were still operating within Iran. "The Iranians need to think very carefully before they allow a group of senior al Qaeda members to operate on their territory while they foment attacks against the United States or our allies," he said.