INTERNATIONAL LINKS OF LARF

S E C R E T STATE 038496 TERREP E.O. 12356: DECL:OADR TAGS: PTER SUBJECT: INTERNATIONAL LINKS OF LARF REF: 1. ROME 1902, 2. STATE 31565 3. STATE 014859 ¶1. SECRET ENTIRE TEXT. ¶2. REFTEL 1 RAISES A NUMBER OF ISSUES AND QUESTIONS ABOUT CONNECTIONS BETWEEN EUROPEAN AND LEBANESE TERRORIST GROUPS AS THEY MIGHT RELATE TO INVESTIGATON OF LADISPOLI SEVEN. THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION MIGHT BE USEFUL IN DISCUSSIONS ON THIS SUBJECT WITH ITALIAN MAGISTRATE. ¶3. AN ETA-LARF LINK. ACCORDING TO ROME 1902 THERE IS REASON TO SUSPECT THAT SOME OF THE RECENT BOMB ATTACKS ON TRAINS CLAIMED BY BASQUE FATHERLAND THE FREEDOM (ETA) HAVE, IN FACT, BEEN CARRIED OUT BY THE LEBANESE ARMED REVOLUTIONARY FACTION (LARF) ON BEHALF OF ETA. ¶4. WE HAVE NO IDEA OF THE EVIDENCE UPON WHICH THIS IS BASED. IN LATE 1984 THERE WERE THREE INCIDENTS IN WHICH ETA WAS SUSPECTED OF CARRYING OUT BOMBINGS ON RAILWAY STATIONS OR NEAR RAILWAY TRACKS, BUT NOT AGAINST A TRAIN. TWO OF THESE WERE LOW-LEVEL EXPLOSIONS CAUSING NO CASUALTIES AND LITTLE DAMAGE. THE THIRD WAS A BOOBY-TRAPPED DEVICE THAT KILLED SEVERAL CIVIL GUARDS, BUT WAS CONSISTENT WITH PAST ETA ACTIONS. ¶5. THE REFERENCE IN ROME 1902 MAY BE TO A FEBRUARY18, 1984 EXPLOSION AT URRUGNE NEAR THE FRENCH-SPANISH BORDER THAT APPARENTLY WAS DESIGNED TO CAUSE A MID-COURSE COLLISION BETWEEN TWO TRAINS, ONE BOUND FOR MADRID, THE OTHER FOR PARIS. THE EXPLOSION CAUSED NO INJURIES OR COLLISION, BUT ONLY A STROKE OF LUCK PREVENTED A MAJOR CATASTROPHE. CLAIM FOR THE ATTACK, HOWEVER, WAS NOT MADE BY ETA BUT BY IPARRETARRAK ("MEN OF THE NORTH"),A FRENCH BASQUE GROUP FIGHTING FOR THE INDEPENDENCE OF THREE BASQUE-POPULATED FRENCH PROVINCES. ALTHOUGH THE TWO GROUPS ARE SEPARATE ORGANIZATIONS, THE SIMILARITY OF THEIR AIMS COULD CAUSE CONFUSION. IN THE PAST ETA HAS GENERALLY SHUNNED RELATIONS WITH IPARRETARRAK NOT WISHING TO OFFEND THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT. ¶6. THE FEBRUARY 18 INCIDENT WAS A POTENTIALLY MUCH MORE VIOLENT ATTACK THAN USUAL IPARRETARRAK ACTIONS, AND IT REPORTEDLY ANGERED SEVERAL JAILED IPARRETARRAK MEMBERS. THE BOMBING, HOWEVER, APPARENTLY WAS THE WORK OF IPARRETARRAK MEMBERS WHO (CLAIMED) THAT THEY HAD WARNED FRENCH OFFICIALS ABOUT THE BOMB TEN MINUTES BEFORE IT WENT OFF AND DID NOT INTEND TO CAUSE A TRAIN COLLISION. ¶7. THE RED BRIGADES-LARF LINK. AGAIN ACCORDING TO ROME 1902 LARF AND THE ITALIAN RED BRIGADES (RB) HAVE BEEN PROVEN TO HAVE CONNECTIONS. WE SUSPECT THAT THIS ASSERTION IS BASED ON THE TESTIMONY OF LEAMON HUNT'S DRIVER WHO HAS IDENTIFIED MOHAMAD FAHS -- ONE OF THE ROME SEVEN -- AS HUNT'S ASSASSIN. GIVEN THAT BOTH LARF AND THE RB CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY FOR HUNT'S DEATH, SOME ITALIAN OFFICIALS MAY BELIEVE THAT FAHS WAS CONNECTED WITH LARF AND PERHAPS "CONTRACTED" BY THE RB TO KILL HUNT -- HENCE A LARF-RB LINK. ALTHOUGH IN NO POSITION TO DISPROVE THIS THEORY, WE ARE NOT PREPARED TO CONFIRM THIS LINK BASED UPON AVAILABLE EVIDENCE. ¶8. THE LARF ISLAMIC JIHAD LINK. WE CANNOT YET VERIFY THAT THERE IS A CONNECTION BETWEEN LARF AND ISLAMIC JIHAD. THE TWO GROUPS APPEAR TO BE COMPOSED OF MEMBERS FROM SEPARATE ISLAMIC SECTS. THEY ARE ACTIVE IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES, AND USE DIFFERENT MO'S. ¶9. "ISLAMIC JIHAD" IS APPARENTLY THE OPERATIONAL COVERNAME USED BY ONE OR MORE PROIRANIAN RADICAL LEBANESE SHIITE ORGANIZATIONS. THESE GROUPS, GENERALLY KNOWN UNDER THE RUBRIC HIZBALLAH (PARTY OF GOD) ARE OFFSHOOTS OF THE MODERATE AMAL ORGANIZATION LED BY NABIH BERRI. SOME HIZBALLAH MEMBERS RETAIN TIES TO AMAL AND MAY EVEN KEEP UP MEMBERSHIP IN IT. ¶10. HIZBALLAH HAS PROBABLY BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR SEVERAL MAJOR ANTI-WESTERN TERRORIST ACTS IN LEBANON. THE EARLIEST OF THESE, BEGINNING IN 1983, INVOLVED CAR BOMBS LOADED WITH HIGH EXPLOSIVES SUCH AS HEXOGER. LATER ATTACKS IN LEBANON CLAIMED BY ISLAMIC JIHAD ALSO INCLUDED SHOOTINGS AND KIDNAPPINGS. ALTHOUGH ANONYNOUS CALLERS ALLEGED TO BE SPOKESMEN FOR "ISLAMIC JIHAD" HAVE CLAIMED RESPONSIBILITY FOR ATTACKS OUTSIDE LEBANON (MURDER OF GENERAL OVERSSI, MINING OF RED SEA AND DECEMBER L983 KUWAIT BOMBINGS) WE CANNOT SUBSTANTIATE THIS. ¶11. LARF, ACCORDING TO MOST REPORTING, IS COMPOSED OF LEFTIST/MARXIST LEBANESE AND/OR PALESTINIAN CHRISTIANS FORMERLY ASSOCIATED WITH THE POPULAR FRONT FOR THE LIBERATION OF PALESTINE. LARF SEEMS TO OPERATE ON A SMALLER SCALE THAN ISLAMIC JIHAD. ¶12. INFORMATION ON MOHAMED FAHS. WE HAVE NO INFORMATION ON MOHAMAD FAHS THAT IS NOT ALREADY KNOWN TO THE ITALIANS. ¶13. THERE FOLLOWS A LIST OF LARF ACTIONS: NOVEMBER 1, 1981 ATTEMPTED SHOOTING OF CHRISTIAN CHAMPMAN US CHARGE D'AFFAIRS IN PARIS JANUARY 8, 1982 ASSASSINATION OF COL. CHARLES RAY US ASSISTANT MILITARY ATTACHE IN PARIS APRIL 9, 1982 ASSASSINATION OF SECOND SECRETARY IN CHARGE OF POLITICAL AFFAIRS AT THE ISRAELI EMBASSY IN PARIS - YACOV BARSIMANTOV AUGUST 21, 1982 ATTEMPTED BOMBING OF CAR BELONGING TO US COMMERCIAL COUNSELAR RODERICK GRANT IN PARIS SEPTEMBER 17, 1982 BOMBING OF CAR BELONGING TO ISRAELI DEFENSE PURCHASING MISSION IN PARIS SERIOUSLY WOUNDING THREE OCCUPANTS PLUS BYSTANDERS. SEPTEMBER 30, 1983 BOMBING OF MARSEILLE TRADE FAIR, KILLING ONE WOUNDING ¶27. ALSO CLAIMED BY ARMENIANS AND RIGHTIST FRENCH GROUPS. . FEBRUARY 1, 184 ASSASSINATION OF LEAMON HUNT SINAI MULTINATIONAL FORCE AND OBSERVERS DIRECTOR, IN ROME. ALSO CLAIMED BY RED BRIGADES MARCH 26, 1984 ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF ROBERT HOMME US CONSUL GENERAL TO STRASBOURG ¶14. GROUPS USING THE COVER NAME ISLAMIC JIHAD ORGANIZATION (IJO) HAVE CLAIMED CREDIT OR ARE BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR THE FOLLOWING ATTACKS IN 1982-1984: MAY 24, 1982 CAR BOMBING AT THE FRENCH EMBASSY IN BEIRUT IN WHICH 2 PERSONS WERE KILLED AND 27 WOUNDED. MARCH 15-16, 1983 GRENADE/ROCKET ATTACKS ON U.S. AND ITALIAN MULTINATIONAL FORCES IN BEIRUT. APRIL 18, 1983 AMERICAN EMBASSY TRUCK BOMBING IN BEIRUT. JUNE 5, 1983 ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF THE LIBYAN AMBASSADOR TO LEBANON IN THE NAPOLEON HOTEL IN BEIRUT. OCTOBE 2, 1983 TWIN TRUCK BOMBINGS AGAINST AMERICAN AND FRENCH MULTINATIONAL FORCES IN BEIRUT. NOVEMBER 4, 1983 TRUCK BOMBING ATTACK AGAINST AN ISRAELI MILITARY BUILDING IN TYRE. DECEMBER 12, 1983 SIX BOMB ATTACKS IN KUWAIT IN WHICH THE TARGETS INCLUDED BOTH THE AMERICAN AND FRENCH EMBASSIES. DECEMBER 21, 1983 TWO BOMBINGS IN BEIRUT AGAINST A FRENCH MULTINATIONAL FORCE HEADQUARTERS BUILDING AND A BAR FREQUENTED BY WESTERNERS. JANUARY 17, 1984 KIDNAPPING OF THE SAUDI ARABIAN CONSUL HUSSEIN FARRASH IN BEIRUT. JANUARY 18, 1984 ASSASSINATION OF AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT PRESIDENT MALCOLM KERR IN BEIRUT. FEBRUARY 7, 1984 ASSASSINATION OF GHOLAM ALI OVEISSI AND GHOLAM HOSEIN OVEISSI, TWO LEADING MILITARY FIGURES OF PRE-REVOLUTIONARY IRAN, IN PARIS. FEBRUARY 8,1984 ASSASSINATION OF UNITED ARAB EMIRATES AMBASSDOR IN PARIS. FEBRUARY10,19984 KIDNAPPING OF AN AMCIT FRANK REGIER, AN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING PROFESSOR AT THE AUB IN BEIRUT. MARCH-APRIL1984 THREATENING LETTERS RECEIVED BY U.S., BRITISH, FRENCH, AND ITALIAN DIPLOMATS AND SEVERAL U.S. BUSINESSES IN A NUMBER OF NEAR EAST/SOUTH ASIAN AND EAST ASIAN COUNTRIES. MARCH 7,1 984 KIDNAPPING OF CABLE NEWS NETWORK BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF JEREMY LEVIN. MARCH166, 1984 KIDNAPPING OF AMERICAN EMBASSY POLITICAL OFFICER WILLIAM BUCKLEY. MARCH 27, 1984 A FRENCH DIPLOMAT, SAUVEUR GLIOZZO, WAS SHOT AND SERIOUSLY INJURED IN BEIRUT. APRIL 2,1 984 BOMBINGS IN WEST BEIRUT TARGETING DRUZE-OWNED ESTABLISHMENTS. MAY 8, 1984 KIDNAPPING OF U.S. CLERGYMAN BENJAMIN WEIR IN BEIRUT. JUNE 7, 1984 EXPLOSION AT THE SAUDI EMBASSY. JULY 1984 PLACING OF MINES IN THE GULF OF SUEZ AND THE RED SEA. AUGUST 5, 1984 ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF KHALID ALMARZOOK, PUBLISHER OF AL-ANBA, IN MARBELLA, SPAIN. SEPTEMBER 12, 1984 ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF A LIBYAN DIPLOMAT IN MADRID. SEPTEMBER 14, 1984 ONE SAUDI WAS KILLED AND ANOTHER WOUNDED IN A TERRORIST ATTACK IN MARBELLA. THE SAUDIS WERE CIVIL ENGINEERS. SEPTEMBER 20, 1984 BOMBING OF AMERICAN EMBASSY ANNEX IN EAST BEIRUT. DECEMBER 3,1984 KIDNAPPING OF MR. KILBURN, LIBRARIAN OF THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY IN BEIRUT. JANUARY 8,1985 KIDNAPPING OF FATHER JENCO, HEAD OF CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES IN BEIRUT. NOTE: IN SOME CASES, OTHER TERRORIST GROUPS HAVE ALSO CLAIMED CREDIT FOR THE SAME INCIDENT. THE BEST AVAILABLE EVIDENCE INDICATES THAT LIBYA WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR GULF/RED SEA MINES. SHULTZ