Missing former FBI agent kin sues Iran
Lebanese charged
DUBAI, UAE, (Agencies): The family of a former FBI agent who went missing in Iran a decade ago on an unauthorized CIA assignment has filed a lawsuit against the Islamic Republic, accusing it of using “cold, cynical and false denials” to torture his loved ones.
The lawsuit by Robert Levinson’s family in US federal court comes years after the last hostage photos and video of the 69-year-old investigator surfaced in emails they say were sent by Iran so the country “would not be held responsible for his ultimate fate.” The lawsuit also describes in detail offers by Iran to “arrange” for his release in exchange for a series of concessions, including the return of a Revolutionary Guard general who defected to the West.
“Iran has, for many years, established a pattern of seizing and holding hostages in order to extract concessions from the hostage’s home country,” the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Washington reads. “That Robert Levinson’s seizure is a part of that pattern is reflected in Iran’s multiple attempts to use Robert Levinson’s imprisonment to extort concessions from the United States.”
The family’s lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages from Iran.
Iran’s mission at the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment Sunday, amid Iran’s long celebration of the annual Nowruz holiday that marks the Persian New Year and the arrival of spring. Iranian media previously carried international reports on the lawsuit, without elaborating.
Levinson disappeared from Iran’s Kish Island on March 9, 2007. For years, US officials would only say that Levinson, a meticulous FBI investigator credited with busting Russian and Italian mobsters, was working for a private firm on his trip.
Operations
In December 2013, The Associated Press revealed Levinson in fact had been on a mission for CIA analysts who had no authority to run spy operations. Levinson’s family had received a $2.5 million annuity from the CIA in order to stop a lawsuit revealing details of his work, while the agency forced out three veteran analysts and disciplined seven others.
The lawsuit said emails to Levinson’s family and friends began in August 2007, though the only photos and video of Levinson emerged in 2010 and 2011. The video message included a demand for $3 million and the release of “certain named individuals,” the lawsuit said.
Iranian authorities also used a meeting with an American religious organization to ask for the release of a report on its nuclear program to be delayed in exchange for Levinson, the lawsuit said. At another time, Iran asked for the exchange of the defecting general, while Levinson remained held all the while, it said.
“For the past 10 years the Iranian government has held Robert Levinson captive while at the same time denying any knowledge or involvement in the circumstances of his capture,” the lawsuit said. “In order to maintain its false story, Iran has held Robert Levinson incommunicado.”
US authorities charged a Lebanese businessman with evading sanctions placed against him because of his alleged support for the Hezbollah militant movement.
Kassim Tajideen, 62, pleaded not guilty in federal court in Washington, DC, on Friday, and will be held in jail until a detention hearing next week, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Reuters reported on Tuesday that Tajideen had been arrested on March 12 in Morocco on an international warrant issued by Interpol’s Washington office.
US authorities say Tajideen ran a multi-billiondollar “global business empire” that traded in commodities across the Middle East and Africa. In 2009, US authorities placed Tajideen on a sanction blacklist because of his alleged support for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Investigation
Tajideen’s arrest and indictment followed a twoyear investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and assisted by US Customs and Border Protection, the Justice Department said in a statement.
“Tajideen acted as a key source of funds for (Hezbollah’s) global terror network,” Raymond Donovan, a DEA special agent in charge of the Special Operations Division, said in the statement.
By restructuring the company and using a complex web of trade names, US authorities say Tajideen was able to hide his involvement and continue doing business with US companies.
American University of Beirut settles US lawsuit for $700,000: American University of Beirut, a recipient of US government aid, has agreed to pay $700,000 to settle a civil lawsuit over accusations that it assisted three organizations linked to the militant group Hezbollah, federal prosecutors said.
As part of its deal with the US Attorney’s Office in Manhattan, a party to the lawsuit, the university also agreed to revise its policies, prosecutors said in a statement on Thursday.
The agreement resolved a case originally filed under seal by an unnamed complainant.
American University of Beirut receives funding from the US Agency for International Development (USAID).
Acting Manhattan US Attorney Joon Kim said in the statement, “For years, the American University of Beirut accepted grant money from USAID, but failed to take reasonable steps to ensure against providing material support to entities on the Treasury Department’s prohibited list.”
The US Attorney’s Office said the university in the Lebanese capital admitted to training representatives of al Nour Radio and al Manar TV, media groups that the US Treasury Department lists as branches of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
Between 2007 and 2009 the university provided the training in workshops to representatives from al Nour and al Manar, who were allowed to participate among a larger group of journalists, a statement from the US Attorney’s Office said.
For instance, one workshop was titled “Citizen/ Online Journalism” and provided instruction on how to produce blogs, videos and podcasts, prosecutors said.