Region | Iran
Terror activity in Iran 'on the rise'
Evidence that Iranian territory is being used as a base by Al Qaida to help in terrorist operations in Iraq and elsewhere is growing, say western officials.
- By Stephen Fidler, Financial Times
- Published: 00:23 July 8, 2007
London: Evidence that Iranian territory is being used as a base by Al Qaida to help in terrorist operations in Iraq and elsewhere is growing, say western officials.
It is not clear how much Al Qaida operation, described by one official as a money and communications hub, is being tolerated or encouraged by the Iranian government, they said.
The group's operatives, who link Al Qaida leadership in Pakistan with their disciples in Iraq, the Levant and North Africa, move with relative freedom in the country, they said.
The officials said the creation of some kind of Al Qaida hub in Iran appears to be separate from the group of seven senior Al Qaida figures, including Sa'ad Bin Laden, son of the group's figurehead, that Iran is said to have detained since 2002.
A senior US official said the information had produced different assessments.
"The most conservative, cautious intelligence assessment is that [the Iranian authorities] are turning a blind eye. But there are a lot of doubts about that," he said.
"They are benefiting from the mayhem that Al Qaida is carrying out. They don't have to deal with Al Qaida to benefit."
Yet while Tehran might be content with the pressure Al Qaida is placing on the US occupation in Iraq, Iran has long been wary of Al Qaida's fierce brand of religion. A former Iranian official said Iran feared Al Qaida and did not want to distract it from Iraq, dismissing any idea that Iran was supplying it with weapons.
"Our relationship with Al Qaida, at an intelligence level, can be said to be successful as long as they are at a distance," he said.
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