Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
85STATE196513
1985-06-27 02:06:00
SECRET
Secretary of State
Cable title:  

IRANIAN SUPPORT FOR TERRORISM

Tags:  PTER 
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O 270206Z JUN 85
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO AMEMBASSY BONN IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY LONDONIMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY ROME IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY OTTAWA IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY PARIS IMMEDIATE
USMISSION GENEVA IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY TOKYO IMMEDIATE
S E C R E T STATE 196513 

TERREP EXCLUSIVE

E.O. 12356: DECL: OADR
TAGS: PTER
SUBJECT: IRANIAN SUPPORT FOR TERRORISM

S E C R E T STATE 196513

TERREP EXCLUSIVE

E.O. 12356: DECL: OADR
TAGS: PTER
SUBJECT: IRANIAN SUPPORT FOR TERRORISM


1. SECRET ENTIRE TEXT.


2. THE FOLLOWING SIRO ANALYSIS OF IRANIAN SUPPORT FOR
TERRORISM IS BEING SENT AS A PART OF A PACKAGE OF
INTELLIGENCE TO REINFORCE THE VICE PRESIDENT'S
PRESENTATION ON TERRORISM DURING HIS TALKS WITH HOST
COUNTRIES. OTHER ANALYSES DEAL WITH LIBYA AND BEIRUT AND
WILL BE TRANSMITTED SEPTEL. ADDRESSEE MISSIONS AND SIRO
SHOULD COORDINATE BEST MEANS TO COMMUNICATE CONTENTS OF
THESE STUDIES TO RESPONSIBLE, INTERESTED AGENCIES OF HOST
GOVERNMENTS AT APPROPRIATELY HIGH LEVEL. REACTIONS
SHOULD BE REPORTED IN TERREP EXCLUSIVE CHANNELS AS WELL
AS OTHERS.


3. QUOTE: UPDATE ON IRANIAN-SPONSORED TERRORISM: 23 JUNE

1985. IRANIAN-BACKED TERRORIST GROUPS HAVE BEEN
RESPONSIBLE FOR ALMOST 30 ATTACKS SINCE SEPTEMBER 1984.
IRAQ, FRANCE, AND THE UNITED STATES CONTINUE TO BE THE
PRIMARY TARGETS. WHILE MOST OF THE RECENT INCIDENTS
ATTRIBUTABLE TO IRANIAN-BACKED GROUPS HAVE OCCURRED IN
THE MIDDLE EAST, THERE IS AMPLE EVIDENCE TO INDICATE THAT
IRANIAN OPERATIONAL ACTIVITY IS CONTINUING IN OTHER PARTS
OF THE WORLD.

. IRAQ HAS SUFFERED SEVEN OR EIGHT TERRORIST ATTACKS AT
THE HANDS OF IRANIAN-SPONSORED GROUPS, INCLUDING THE
ATTEMPTED BOMBING OF FOUR IRAQI DIPLOMATS' CARS IN ATHENS
LAST DECEMBER. A GREEK BOMB DISPOSAL EXPERT WAS KILLED
IN ONE OF THESE INCIDENTS.

. THERE WERE ALSO THREE OR FOUR ATTACKS INSIDE IRAQ,
INCLUDING TWO BOMBINGS IN PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSAYN'S
HOMETOWN OF TIKRIT.

. IRAN TRAINS AND FINANCES SEVERAL IRAQI DISSIDENT
GROUPS, SUCH AS THE ISLAMIC ACTION ORGANIZATION THAT
CLAIMED CREDIT FOR THE BOMBINGS IN ATHENS, THAT ARE
DEDICATED TO OVERTHROWING IRAQI PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSAYN.
IF IRAN SUFFERS FURTHER SETBACKS IN ITS WAR WITH IRAQ,
TEHRAN MAY ACCELERATE ITS EFFORT TO HIT IRAQI TARGETS
WHEREVER THEY ARE VULNERABLE.


4. THE UNITED STATES AND FRANCE HAVE BEEN THE MAIN FOCUS
OF IRANIAN-SPONSORED TERRORIST ACTIVITY IN LEBANON. OVER
THE PAST 10 MONTHS, THE AVAILABLE EVIDENCE INDICATES THAT
PRO-IRANIAN SHI'AS IN LEBANON HAVE BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR
AT LEAST 19 INCIDENTS, INCLUDING EIGHT ATTACKS AGAINST US
AND SIX AGAINST FRENCH TARGETS:

. THERE IS SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE TO REMOVE ANY REASONABLE
DOUBTS OF IRANIAN COLLUSION WITH LEBANESE SHI'A
TERRORISTS WHO CARRIED OUT THE BOMB ATTACKS ON THE US
MARINE BARRACKS, THE AMERICAN EMBASSY AND THE FRENCH
MILITARY HEADQUARTERS IN BEIRUT IN L983. THE PRINCIPAL
POINTS OF CONTACT BETWEEN THE TERRORISTS AND IRAN ARE THE

SHAYKH ABDALLAH BARRACKS IN THE BAQA' VALLEY, CONTROLLED
BY THE IRANIAN REVOLUTIONARY GUARD, AND THE IRANIAN
EMBASSY IN DAMASCUS, PARTICULARLY AMBASSADOR MUTASHAMIPUR.

. ISLAMIC JIHAD CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY FOR KIDNAPPING
FOUR PRIVATE US CITIZENS, AND PRO-IRANIAN SHIAS ALMOST
CERTAINLY WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR ABDUCTING ANOTHER AMERICAN
ON 9 JUNE. HIZBALLAH ELEMENTS NOW HOLD SEVEN AMERICANS
SOMEWHERE IN LEBANON.

. RADICAL SHIA TERRORISTS PROBABLY WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR
THE MURDER OF THREE MEMBERS OF THE FRENCH OBSERVER FORCE
IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY, THE KIDNAPPING OF THREE FRENCH
DIPLOMATS IN MARCH--TWO OF WHOM ARE STILL BEING HELD BY
THE SO-CALLED ISLAMIC JIHAD (HIZBALLAH),TOGETHER WITH
THE SEVEN AMERICANS--AND THE ATTEMPTED KIDNAPPING OF A
FRENCH JOURNALIST IN APRIL. ISLAMIC JIHAD PUBLICLY
CLAIMED CREDIT FOR THREE OF THESE INCIDENTS.

. RADICAL SHIAS MAY HAVE KIDNAPPED TWO BRITISH CITIZENS
IN WEST BEIRUT ON 14 AND 15 MARCH. THE TWO WERE
SUBSEQUENTLY RELEASED, PERHAPS BECAUSE THEIR CAPTORS
REALIZED THEY WERE NOT AMERICAN. A BRITISH PROFESSOR AT
THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN BEIRUT WAS KIDNAPPED IN MAY,
PROBABLY BECAUSE HE WAS MISTAKEN FOR AN AMERICAN. HE WAS
SUBSEQUENTLY FOUND DEAD.

. THE RADICAL SHIA GROUPS IN LEBANON--FUNDED, SUPPLIED,
AND TRAINED BY IRAN--ARE DEDICATED TO BRINGING ABOUT AN
ISLAMIC REVOLUTION IN LEBANON. THEY CONSIDER THE
ELIMINATION OF ANY WESTERN, PARTICULARLY AMERICAN,
PRESENCE IN LEBANON (SUCH AS THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF
BEIRUT AND CHRISTIAN RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS SUCH AS
PRESBYTERIAN MISSIONARIES--AND THE CATHOLIC RELIEF
SERVICE) TO BE BE THE FIRST STEP TOWARD ACHIEVING THEIR
GOAL. IN ADDITION, IRAN HAS ENCOURAGED ATTACKS AGAINST
FRENCH TARGETS BECAUSE OF FRANCE'S SUPPORT FOR IRAQ.

PRO-IRANIAN TERRORISTS CONTINUE TO OPERATE IN WESTERN
EUROPE, ALTHOUGH THERE HAVE BEEN NO ATTACKS OTHER THAN
THE FOUR BOMBINGS IN ATHENS SINCE SEPTEMBER. EVIDENCE
INDICATES IRAN USES ITS NETWORK OF DIPLOMATIC AND
CULTURAL MISSIONS TO SUPPORT THESE TERRORIST OPERATIONS.

. LAST NOVEMBER, SEVEN PRO-IRANIAN LEBANESE SHIA WERE
ARRESTED IN LADISPOLI, ITALY FOR PLANNING A CAR BOMB
ATTACK AGAINST THE US EMBASSY IN ROME.

. IN FEBRUARY, TWO IRANIANS WERE CONVICTED IN SPAIN FOR
THEIR INVOLVEMENT IN A PLOT TO HIJACK A SAUDI AIRLINER.

. IN MARCH, SEVERAL IRANIANS WERE EXPELLED FROM FRANCE
FOR SUBVERSIVE ACTIVITIES.

. FRAGMENTARY EVIDENCE SUGGESTS IRAN CONTINUES TO TRACK
ANTI-KHOMEINI EXILES IN EUROPE. ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTS
COULD OCCUR AT ANY TIME.

. THE TWO HIJACKERS OF TWA FLIGHT 847 THAT LEFT ATHENS
ON 14 JUNE MAY NOT HAVE BEEN MEMBERS OF HIZBALLAH, BUT
THEIR COMMUNIQUES CLEARLY INDICATED THE INFLUENCE OF
IRANIAN PROPAGANDA. HIZBALLAH ELEMENTS IN LEBANON
SUBSEQUENTLY TOOK CONTROL OF THE HIJACKING, HOWEVER, AND
NOW HOLD INDEPENDENTLY OF AMAL SOME OF THE REMAINING
AMERICAN PASSENGERS. THE HIZBALLAH MAY ALSO BE ABLE TO
BLOCK ANY DECISION BY AMAL TO RELEASE THE AMERICAN
PASSENGERS UNDER THE LATTER'S CONTROL.

THE HIJACKING OF TWA 847 AND THE FATE OF ITS PASSENGERS
HAS BECOME ENMESHED IN AN INTERNAL STRUGGLE BETWEEN
HIZBALLAH AND AMAL FOR DOMINANT INFLUENCE AMONG THE SHIA
COMMUNITY. HIZBALLAH IS IN DIRECT CONTACT WITH TEHRAN ON
THIS QUESTION. THE LONG-TERM IMPLICATIONS OF THIS
STRUGGLE FOR TEHRAN, SYRIA, ISRAEL AND THE ENTIRE MIDDLE
EAST ARE OBVIOUS, AND COULD BE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.

IRAN CONTINUES TO TRAIN AND PROVIDE OTHER SUPPORT TO
DISSIDENTS IN THE PERSIAN GULF, ASIA AND AFRICA.
TERRORIST ATTACKS COULD BE ENCOURAGED BY IRAN AT ANY TIME.

. SHIA DISSIDENTS FROM SAUDI ARABIA, KUWAIT, AND BAHRAIN
ARE RECEIVING MILITARY TRAINING IN IRAN AND SOME HAVE
RETURNED HOME TO UNDERTAKE SUBVERSIVE ACTIVITY. RECENT
SUBVERSIVE ACTIVITIES IN BAHRAIN, TWO BOMBINGS CLAIMED BY
ISLAMIC JIHAD IN SAUDI ARABIA IN MAY, AND THE SUICIDE CAR
BOMB ATTACK ON THE AMIR OF KUWAIT INDICATE AN INCREASING
THREAT FROM IRANIAN-TRAINED TERRORISTS AGAINST MODERATE
ARAB REGIMES. THIS THREAT COULD IMPACT DIRECTLY UPON THE
VITAL INTERESTS OF WESTERN EUROPE, SUCH AS ACCESS TO OIL
AND PEACE PROCESS.

. IRAN IS INVOLVED IN AGITATION AND PROPAGANDA ACTIVITY
AMONG MUSLIM POPULATIONS IN COUNTRIES AS DIVERSE AS
NIGERIA, PAKISTAN, INDONESIA, AND THE PHILIPPINES.

MANY ELEMENTS OF THE IRANIAN GOVERNMENT, INCLUDING
SEVERAL SENIOR OFFICIALS, ARE DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN
TERRORIST ACTIVITY. FOR EXAMPLE, DIRECT LINKS BETWEEN
TEHRAN AND TERRORIST ACTIVITIES ABROAD ARE MAINTAINED
THROUGH THE FOREIGN MINISTRY AND THE PASDARAN
(REVOLUTIONARY GUARD). SO LONG AS THE CHARACTER OF THE
CURRENT REGIME REMAINS THE SAME, WE DO NOT BELIEVE THAT
IRAN'S POLICY OF SPONSORING TERRORISM WILL CHANGE. WE
ARE THEREFORE FACING A LONGTERM PROBLEM OF HOW TO
MINIMIZE THE EFFECTS OF IRANIAN TERRORIST POLICIES,
PERSUADE IRAN TO ABANDON THEM, PROTECT MODERATE ARAB
REGIMES AND PREVENT TERRORISM FROM SPILLING OVER INTO
WESTERN EUROPE. THERE ARE THREE AREAS OF OPPORTUNITY FOR
WESTERN ACTION:

. FIND WAYS TO MAKE TEHRAN PAY A PRICE FOR ITS CONTINUED
SUPPORT OF TERRORISM;

. STRENGTHEN THE ABILITY AND WILL OF OTHER STATES TO
RESIST IRANIAN TERRORISM;

. TRY TO ENCOURAGE SYRIA, AFTER THE ISRAELI WITHDRAWAL
FROM LEBANON, TO EXERT ITSELF MORE FORCEFULLY IN
CURTAILING IRANIAN-SPONSORED TERRORISM BASED IN LEBANON.

UNLESS RAPID DECISIVE COLLECTIVE ACTION CAN BE TAKEN SO
AS TO STEM THE GROWING RADICAL SHIA CANCER, STRONGLY
INFLUENCED AND DIRECTED FROM TEHRAN, IT IS LIKELY THAT
THERE WILL BE A STILL MORE RAPID SPREAD OF RADICALISM
INTO OTHER ARAB COUNTRIES, TOGETHER WITH AN INCREASED
SPILLOVER INTO WESTERN EUROPE AND OTHER COUNTRIES.


ARMACOST