Ali-Reza Asgari
Iranian Army general (1952-2010)
Ali-Reza Asgari (Persian: علیرضا عسگری, born 1 November 1952) is an Iranian who served as a general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, as deputy defense minister, and as a cabinet member of Iranian President Mohammad Khatami.
Asgari had been "pushed aside" from his ministerial role after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a former rival, came into power in 2005. Asgari disappeared in Turkey in early 2007, and news reports indicate that he either defected to, or was kidnapped by, Western intelligence agencies. His disappearance has also led to reports that Iran would retaliate by kidnapping American or Israeli officials in Europe. According to The Sunday Times, Asgari was described as a "gold mine for western intelligence" by an Israeli defence source who claimed that they had been following him since the 1980s.
Early life
Ali Reza Asgari was born in Ardestan, a town in Esfahan province, Iran on 1 November 1952.
Military and intelligence career
In the 1980s Asgari was commander of the Revolutionary Guard in Lebanon and during the 1990s he was the top Iranian intelligence official in Lebanon, where he worked with the Shia militant group Hezbollah. One report said that during this time Asgari was involved in the alleged transfer of captured Israeli pilot Ron Arad to Iran. The Israeli website Debkafile claims that Asgari ran Iranian operations in Iraq, and is linked to the January 20, 2007 Karbala provincial headquarters raid.
Spying allegation
According to The Sunday Times, Asgari was recruited as a spy in 2003 during a business trip; however, it is not known what Western intelligence agency recruited him.
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