The USA's man behind the scenes in the Iranian "revolution"

In the summer of 1985, Manucher Ghorbanifar and Adnan Khashoggi approached the White House with a deal that turned into the Iran-Contra scandal. Ghorbanifar was, at the time, the head of European Intelligence for Mir-Hussein Mousavi.

Source 1
Source 2

Ghorbanifar middle manned the deal with the assistance of Robert McFarlane, White House National Security Advisor, as described above and detailed in depth in the findings of the Contra report, available at your local library. This stuff is history - Ghorbanifar and Khashoggi were instrumental in singling out Ollie North.

Ghorbanifar was far from trustworthy - it's suspected that he played both sides in the deal, being on the payroll of both the CIA and Iranian intel - and skimming a bit off the top all around. But his involvement and contact with the US government at the highest levels cannot be denied.

Michael Ledeen, who worked for National Security and dealt with Ghorbanifar on many occasions, mentions a bit on his character here and again here.

Ghorbanifar, after years of being on the outs with the CIA and America in general, re-emerged on the scene in 2001. It's hardly a coincidence, as so many people in the Bush administration were people from the same administration that was responsible for Iran Contra.

On December 22nd, 2005 - Newsweek ran a story titled:Exclusive! Regime Change in Iran? One Man's Secret Plan.

The interview in question is with Ghorbanifar. In it, he details unofficial meetings with Harold Rhode and Larry Franklin, both working for the DOD. The meetings occured as far back as 2001. The topic, as the title suggests, was Regime Change. In his words:

...one of the things he discussed with Defense officials Harold Rhode and Larry Franklin at meetings in Rome in December 2001 (and in Paris last June with only Rhode) was regime change in Iran. Ghorbanifar says there are Iranians capable of organizing a peaceful revolution against the ruling theocracy.

At the time, these comments were not taken very seriously, and panned in the press as nothing but a conspiracy theory, or a partisan attack on the administration by people attempting to dredge up the Iran Contra affair again. See Ledeen's comments on that, above.

Shortly after, in April 2006:
Cheney has tapped Iranian expatriate, arms dealer to surveil discussions with Iran, officials say

Quote:

The Department of Defense and Vice President Dick Cheney have retained the services of Iran-Contra arms dealer and discredited intelligence asset Manucher Ghorbanifar as their “man on the ground,” in order to report on any interaction and attempts at negotiations between Iranian officials and US ambassador to Iraq, Zelmay Khalilzad, current and former intelligence officials say.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, three intelligence sources identified the Iran-Contra middleman as having been put back on the payroll, acting as a human intelligence asset and monitoring any movement in discussions about Iran’s alleged burgeoning nuclear weapons program.

So from 2006 at least, Ghorbanifar was the USA's "man on the ground".

In 1984, Time Magazine described the situation thusly:

In the summer of 1985, Billionaire Adnan Khashoggi,* a Saudi arms dealer, was instrumental in arranging a London meeting with three other influential arms merchants: Yaacov Nimrodi, a former Israeli army colonel and military attache in Tehran during the Shah's reign; Al Schwimmer, the founder of Israel Aircraft Industries, who is a good friend of then Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres; and Manucher Ghorbanifar, an Iranian who has close ties to his country's Prime Minister, Hussein Mousavi. Ghorbanifar told the Israelis that the leaders of his country's armed forces belonged to a moderate faction that would be vying for control of Iran after Khomeini died. By helping the Iranian army obtain U.S. weapons, Ghorbanifar said, Israel could open a line of communication with the moderates and help them win the battle for succession.

The basis for Ghorbanifar's involvement in the Iran-Contra deal was his close personal relationship with Mousavi.

And from 2006, he has been an asset of the USA, on the payroll. He has spoken publicly about his plans for regime change. And his old friend is now at the forefront, "capable of organizing a peaceful revolution against the ruling theocracy", as Ghorbanifar put it in 2006.




[edit on 15-6-2009 by vox2442]

S&F for a crucially important topic!!!

I am ashamed that nobody has posted a reply to this but I pray that it receives a million views and stays on top of current discussions.

Due to the issue being something close to me that I do not want to draw attention to myself with, I really can not get into detail about why this thread is so significant, however I invite an educated person to read my posts in the following threads and draw conclusions. I feel this wide-reaching issue absolutely must be brought to light before it is too late. I value my privacy and my life, so I dare not connect the dots and leave that up to your mind. This is becoming almost a personal crusade of mine, to drive the truth out into the open, I just wish there was a way I could do it with complete anonymity.

First of all, a recent thread I did not post in but nonetheless it is a piece of the puzzle:

www.abovetopsecret.com...

And following are threads containing posts I made:

www.abovetopsecret.com...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

The tentacles of this go far and wide, and stretch back at least 35 years.

I am pondering putting together a massive "feature article" on this subject and offering it to several well-known sites like ATS, for anonymous, wide distribution. That is how significant I feel this issue is.

It was only a matter of time before some one tried blaming all Irans troubles that they caued themselves on the US and or Isreal.



Why don't you try blaming Iran and it's people for Irans problems, I know, thats just WAY to reasonable.


[edit on 6/16/2009 by mrmonsoon]

This is a great post, and very well researched. Thank you.

How did it make it to the front page with only one reply?

Bump!

Read people!

READ!

People see what they want to see and idealists ruin nations because they are so easily played. I see bitter and mean spirited people in the USA. Saw some of the kindest people I've ever met in the Middle East. People are too easily swayed into thinking a people different than them are evil. And the only solution is to make them like you to cure it. Even if you have to kill them. Iran would probably not like selling its soul to the US. If they do they'll end up just another corporate pawn who will sell their land for beads and trinkets.

[edit on 16-6-2009 by Apollumi]

Originally posted by mrmonsoon
It was only a matter of time before some one tried blaming all Irans troubles that they caued themselves on the US and or Isreal.

Why don't you try blaming Iran and it's people for Irans problems, I know, thats just WAY to reasonable.

[edit on 6/16/2009 by mrmonsoon]

I can't help but notice you've failed to mention any of my research.

Any comment on what I actually wrote?

And here's the next piece, following Cheney's actions in 2006.

Remember, Gholbanifar was the USA's man in Iran at the time, with a plan for regime change.

From May, 2007:
Bush Authorizes New Covert Action Against Iran

The CIA has received secret presidential approval to mount a covert "black" operation to destabilize the Iranian government, current and former officials in the intelligence community tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com.

The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the subject, say President Bush has signed a "nonlethal presidential finding" that puts into motion a CIA plan that reportedly includes a coordinated campaign of propaganda, disinformation and manipulation of Iran's currency and international financial transactions.

That sounds a little familiar - very much like what Gholbanifar was suggesting a year before in meetings with the DOD.

The timing:

The sources say the CIA developed the covert plan over the last year and received approval from White House officials and other officials in the intelligence community.

And yet MORE connections:

Also briefed on the CIA proposal, according to intelligence sources, were National Security Advisor Steve Hadley and Deputy National Security Advisor Elliott Abrams.

"The entire plan has been blessed by Abrams, in particular," said one intelligence source familiar with the plan. "And Hadley had to put his chop on it."

Elliot Abrams: Heavily involved in the Iran Contra deal, pardoned by Bush Sr. in 1992.

But wait, there's more:

In 2002, there was a coup attempt in Venezuela. For more on that, get some popcorn, go to google video and watch the incredible movie The Revolution Will Not Be Televised. It's about 75 minutes long, but it's brilliant.

Elliot Abrams:

Venezuela Coup Linked to Bush Team

Venezuela coup linked to Bush team

Specialists in the 'dirty wars' of the Eighties encouraged the plotters who tried to topple President Chavez

The failed coup in Venezuela was closely tied to senior officials in the US government, The Observer has established. They have long histories in the 'dirty wars' of the 1980s, and links to death squads working in Central America at that time.

Washington's involvement in the turbulent events that briefly removed left-wing leader Hugo Chavez from power last weekend resurrects fears about US ambitions in the hemisphere.

It also also deepens doubts about policy in the region being made by appointees to the Bush administration, all of whom owe their careers to serving in the dirty wars under President Reagan.

One of them, Elliot Abrams, who gave a nod to the attempted Venezuelan coup, has a conviction for misleading Congress over the infamous Iran-Contra affair.

There's our boy Elliot, right in the thick of a coup attempt that looks very, very familiar.

Thank you so much for this thread...pardon my 2U msg I did not find this thread until after sending it.

6 months ago Colin Powell stated that "In 6 months Obama will face a severe test"


Is this theatrical in Iran THE TEST?

I made a couple posts in the big iran thread but it seems that No one wants to address the question above.

Please see THESE THREE POSTS - Thanks in advance


*IF* Colin Powell KNEW there would be protests after the next election in November 2008, THEN the odds are pretty good these protests have been in pre-production phase for at least that long...








Sidebar: A few years ago I looked at the CIA's online employment pages.. and guess what they were looking for? Set Designers and Theatrical Makeup artists, ...


[edit on 16-6-2009 by seataka]

Originally posted by Apollumi
People see what they want to see and idealists ruin nations because they are so easily played. I see bitter and mean spirited people in the USA. Saw some of the kindest people I've ever met in the Middle East. People are too easily swayed into thinking a people different than them are evil. And the only solution is to make them like you to cure it. Even if you have to kill them. Iran would probably not like selling its soul to the US. If they do they'll end up just another corporate pawn who will sell their land for beads and trinkets.

[edit on 16-6-2009 by Apollumi]

this one line of yours should be a sig line...

"People see what they want to see and idealists ruin nations because they are so easily played."

and I agree with your post, and state that you are accurate

And to the OP, great post,

RE:

In the summer of 1985, Billionaire Adnan Khashoggi,* a Saudi arms dealer, was instrumental in arranging a London meeting with three other influential arms merchants: Yaacov Nimrodi, a former Israeli army colonel and military attache in Tehran during the Shah's reign; Al Schwimmer, the founder of Israel Aircraft Industries, who is a good friend of then Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres; and Manucher Ghorbanifar, an Iranian who has close ties to his country's Prime Minister, Hussein Mousavi. Ghorbanifar told the Israelis that the leaders of his country's armed forces belonged to a moderate faction that would be vying for control of Iran after Khomeini died. By helping the Iranian army obtain U.S. weapons, Ghorbanifar said, Israel could open a line of communication with the moderates and help them win the battle for succession.

Sidebar:
Adnan Kashoggi also has ties to Scientology...his wife got services at their big facility in Clearwater. His son is a member of WISE and has attempted business deals with a Scientology lawyer named McNulty (spelling) who was involved in the destruction of the Cult Awareness Network


[edit on 16-6-2009 by seataka]

[edit on 16-6-2009 by seataka]

In the summer of 1985, Manucher Ghorbanifar and Adnan Khashoggi approached the White House with a deal that turned into the Iran-Contra scandal. Ghorbanifar was, at the time, the head of European Intelligence for Mir-Hussein Mousavi.

Ghorbanifar middle manned the deal with the assistance of Robert McFarlane, White House National Security Advisor, as described above and detailed in depth in the findings of the Contra report, available at your local library. This stuff is history - Ghorbanifar and Khashoggi were instrumental in singling out Ollie North.

Ghorbanifar was far from trustworthy - it's suspected that he played both sides in the deal, being on the payroll of both the CIA and Iranian intel - and skimming a bit off the top all around. But his involvement and contact with the US government at the highest levels cannot be denied.

Michael Ledeen, who worked for National Security and dealt with Ghorbanifar on many occasions, mentions a bit on his character here and again here.

Ghorbanifar, after years of being on the outs with the CIA and America in general, re-emerged on the scene in 2001. It's hardly a coincidence, as so many people in the Bush administration were people from the same administration that was responsible for Iran Contra.

It would be great if things were as simple as implied here. Arms dealers Khashoggi (Saudi) and Ghorbanifar (Iranian) cooking a deal with the CIA to destabilize Iran. As always, Israel is somehow tied into the deal.

But the region is in constant flux as far as alliances.

Mousavi was one of only 4 Presidential candidates for last weeks election and was President during the crucial formative period in the 80s. We assume questions of his loyalties today have been cleared by the mullocracy. But there is some hint of conflict with his backing by 1997-2995 President , Mohammad Khatami who withdrew his candidacy.

And lets' recall how next door a vacuum was formed between Saddam Hussein being eliminated and a new democratic government forming. How many remember Ahmed Chalabi, an Iraqi and potential Prime Minister candidate, who was later dismissed for giving Iraqi state secrets to Iran?
This was during Khatami's Presidency.

Kurdish leader, Jalal Talabani, was known to side with Mousavi's regime in Iran during the 8 year war. Something that mystified me when the US invaded Iraq in 1991, was how the entire air force flew to Iran immediately, despite it being their fierce enemy so recently.


And there's Iran's association with Syria and it's pro-activity with Hamas and Hezbollah.

Lebanon is another case in point of shifting associations. Iran has actively contributed to fragmenting the country politically. Invariably the Saudis, the US and Israel have their political favourites who they back as leaders.

There have even been whispers of Middle East money finding it's way to the US and contributing heavily to the campaign of one Barack Obama. And he in turn is known to be backed by George Soros, infamous for active destabilization campaigns on an international scale.

I bring these up people and their shifting alliances, and there are many more, as examples of how the destabilization game has become endemic to the region.

A vast 3-dimensional chess game is in play constantly. Arms dealers are positioned to supply weapons to uprising governments in waiting. Major outside players have agendas to remove non-compliant participants and replace them with one's of their choice.

A popular sort of self-loathing Western perspective is that US, the CIA, Israel are manipulating the Middle East by toppling populist governments. Less attention is given to the internecine machinations that go on within the Muslim world itself, particularly when regime leaders in waiting require economic support, intelligence, and weaponry.

The Unholy Western groups are guilty of influence peddling, but this should not exonerate the people enjoying power in these countries.

A naive seeming question, why do we see so much resentment of the US in the Middle East, but no overt attempts of reconciliation and co-operation in presenting a unified front against it?

We keep seeing alliances constantly shifting.

And it may be entering a new phase. An Iran that plays ball with the US may be something that has been brewing. An Iraq-Iran axis with the mainly Sunni Saudi, UAE, et al in a more vulnerable position could be on the agenda. Israel may even resume the quiet political and economic co-operation it once had with Iran.

No attempt at answers here, but pointing out how affinities and interests are always on the move. We may see Iran become the good guys soon, and new adversaries emerge. Nothing is ever as cut-and-dry as it may seem.

Mike

[edit on 17-6-2009 by mmiichael]

[edit on 17-6-2009 by mmiichael]

reply to post by mmiichael

It would be great if things were as simple as implied here. Arms dealers Khashoggi (Saudi) and Ghorbanifar (Iranian) cooking a deal with the CIA to destabilize Iran. As always, Israel is somehow tied into the deal.

25 years ago, it WAS that simple, except it wasn't Iran being destabilized - it was Nicaragua.

That's not a far out conspiracy theory, that's not baseless speculation tinged with antisemitisim as you seem to be implying. That's history. It was dragged into the light by congressional hearings, reported daily in the papers and daily on network TV. The players - the American ones at least - were tried, found guilty, and eventually pardoned by President George H. W. Bush.

4 of the men directly involved in Iran Contra - Elliot Abrams, John Poindexter, Otto Reich, and John Negroponte were appointed to the George W. Bush administration. Again, that's a fact. Abrams and Reich were both implicated in the 2002 Venezuela coup attempt. Negroponte was director of National Security when Cheney tapped Ghorbanifar for the Iranian job.

I know what you're saying about it being a bit too clear cut, but I don't know what else to say. These people - all of them - have links to Ghorbanifar thus to Mousavi. They've met him, they've done illegal business with him. Some of them have done this kind of thing before. Others, more recently, have given their support to black ops in Iran.

And yes, the Israelis were involved. That much is history. All of this is history. And history repeats, every so often.

I'm still digging, and I'll post more when I get things together.

Originally posted by vox2442
I know what you're saying about it being a bit too clear cut, but I don't know what else to say. These people - all of them - have links to Ghorbanifar thus to Mousavi. They've met him, they've done illegal business with him. Some of them have done this kind of thing before. Others, more recently, have given their support to black ops in Iran.

And yes, the Israelis were involved. That much is history. All of this is history. And history repeats, every so often.

The Cold War saw half a century of the US and the Soviet competing for influence in regions of the world and with various countries.

What things would be like had they been subtracted from the equation we’ll never know. The Iranians still remember having Mossadegh replaced by the Shah. The assumption has always been that Mossadegh would have been better for the country. But that's only an assumption. It's not inconceivable Iran would have come under the sway of the Soviet Union.

Ghorbanifar has a link to Mousavi. But it can be a serious mistake to automatically assume past connections are immutable. And keep in mind it's a small world with only so many players crossing paths and teaming up.

As with corporations, one year someone may be your boss, but next year you're working for the competition.

My feeling is there is an internal battle among Khameini, Khatami, and Rafsanjani. Mousavi was resuscitated because he was able to slip onto the short list of acceptable Presidency candidates. Iran’s Islamic Revolution is not going as planned. A power struggle is apparently happening.

Outside players have their favourites and will offer backdoor support. And the Usual Suspects will emerge.

It's popular to accuse the US and Israel of unfairly supporting those that benefit their interests. Can we say for sure that were they not engaged in this that things would necessarily be fair and equitable? Russia and China also have their agendas in the region.

The stronger prey on the weaker. Competition happens when resources or strategic locations are involved. This has been the way of the increasingly connected world for centuries.

I’d like to see Iran change for the better. I think it’s current theocratic regime is holding onto control resisting the need to come to terms with a rapidly evolving world. I’m pretty certain we will see the same names and faces unless there is a popular movement within the country. They will need financial support, arms, support of the military. And there will be those offering these – at a price.


Mike

[edit on 17-6-2009 by mmiichael]

[edit on 17-6-2009 by mmiichael]

So, the CIA engineered this whole "revolution" in Iran? CIA rigged elections to make Ahmendinijad win the elections to make the elections look like a fake so that Iranians will rise up and Mousavi will take the presidency as a hero?

Seems plausible to me.

reply to post by vox2442


Thank you for posting a link to The Revolution Will Not Be Televised. It was a fantastic piece of film and I will be recommending it to everyone I know.

To the OP: great thread S&F! the CIA has been doing this sort of thing for years now,if this continues we will see a pro-western government in Iran or it may lead to an unending civil war in that country which considering our troubles over there either one will work for our Government.

Ok, people.

This is too big for me. I'm finding way too much, and I can't process it anymore. It's nearly 2 a.m. here, and I give up.

The names are in this thread. There are hundreds of offhand comments they've all made regarding overthrowing Iran, and Venezuela, and Chile, and Guatemala, and Nicaragua, and Ukraine, and Russia, and on and bloody on to the ends of the goddamn earth.

They're all in the bloody mainstream media, right out there in the open. Dig deeper to the journals and the academic research and the historians and - god help us - the political sites like ATS - and it's too much.

I'm just some cat sitting behind a computer in Hokkaido putting 1 and 1 together.

One or two of you, and you know who you are, have sent me some very encouraging u2us telling me I'm on the right track, and I appreciate that. Like you wouldn't believe. Yeah, it's hard. I've got a day job, and I'm working overtime, but I'm onto this every moment I can spare. And it's not enough.

A little rain must fall, isn't that what they say? Something like that, anyways. Many thanks, from the bottom of my heart. I'll get back to you when I can think straight, but thank you.

To the rest of you, take this:



-----------------------------------Please, help me.-------------------------------




All of you. This is beyond your petty partisan yank BS, this is beyond your reptillian fantasies. This is real. This is happening. This is today. This is now.

These are the men that are playing with the world like a goddamn toy, and have been since before most of you were born.

Keep your damned stars and flags, and stuff your applause.

Help Me.

Search these names, dig deep. And post what you find. Drag it into the light. I can't do it alone. There's too much. Find it. Source it. Document it. Choose your words with care. Avoid speculation. Let the facts speak. There are a lot of them. Too many, as you'll find.

If I had a photo of a UFO over Tehran, this thread would be 90 pages long of pro and bloody con. If I had footage with a decaying satellite feed that made someone look like they were turning into a lizard, we'd be on page 200.

All I've got is the Vice President of the United States of America appointing the middleman for the Iran Contra deal to destabilize Iran a few months before said middleman's former boss stages a damned revolution, and this post MIGHT take this thread to the SECOND PAGE.

Deny Ignorance. It's right up there at the top.

It means something to some of us.

Originally posted by vox2442
Help Me.

Search these names, dig deep. And post what you find. Drag it into the light. I can't do it alone. There's too much. Find it. Source it. Document it. Choose your words with care. Avoid speculation. Let the facts speak. There are a lot of them. Too many, as you'll find.

[...]

All I've got is the Vice President of the United States of America appointing the middleman for the Iran Contra deal to destabilize Iran a few months before said middleman's former boss stages a damned revolution, and this post MIGHT take this thread to the SECOND PAGE.

There are independent journalists who have been tracking this stuff for decades. The inner circle of arms dealers and government destabilizers is not as hidden as you think. Seymour Hersh is one of the best and I sufggest you check out his writings.

But this is a conspiracy site and members want their information predigested and spat out on reductive web pages and videos. Reading dozens of primary researched and cited books on a subject is too demanding for the majority.

I suggest political forums elsewhere where those who live and breathe this this stuff share their years of accumulated knowledge. You aren't the first to notice there is a hidden game out there.

It's good that you've tweaked to it and want to know more about how the world is really run.


Mike


[edit on 18-6-2009 by mmiichael]

One Hundred Ninth Congress of the United States of America


SEC. 302. ASSISTANCE TO SUPPORT DEMOCRACY FOR IRAN.


(a) Authorization-

(1) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the President is authorized to provide financial and political assistance (including the award of grants) to foreign and domestic individuals, organizations, and entities working for the purpose of supporting and promoting democracy for Iran. Such assistance may include the award of grants to eligible independent pro-democracy radio and television broadcasting organizations that broadcast into Iran.

www.theorator.com...



[edit on 18-6-2009 by Drexl]