A high-level Iranian official admitted in Farsi-language remarks broadcast on state TV that Tehran facilitated the travel of terrorists connected to the 9/11 attacks on America.
Mohammad-Javad Larijani, an international affairs assistant in the Iran’s judiciary, disclosed in Farsi-language remarks broadcast on Iran’s state-controlled television that Iranian intelligence officials secretly helped provide the al Qaeda attackers with passage and gave them refuge in the Islamic Republic, according to an English translation published by Al Arabiya.
“Our government agreed not to stamp the passports of some of them because they were on transit flights for two hours, and they were resuming their flights without having their passports stamped. However their movements were under the complete supervision of the Iranian intelligence,” Larijani was quoted as saying.
The remarks represent the first time senior Iranian officials have publicly admitted to aiding al Qaeda and playing a direct role in facilitating the 9/11 attacks.
The confession comes as no surprise to anyone who has read the conclusions of the 9/11 commission.
The U.S. government has long accused Iran of playing a role in the attacks and even fined the Islamic Republic billions as a result. The U.S. 9/11 Commission assembled to investigate the attacks concluded that Iran played a role in facilitating the al Qaeda terrorists.
Larijani admitted that Iranian officials did not stamp the passports of the al Qaeda militants in order to obfuscate their movements and prevent detection by foreign governments. Al Qaeda operative also were given safe refuge in Iran.
“The Americans took this as evidence of Iran’s cooperation with al-Qaeda and viewed the passage of an airplane through Iran’s airspace, which had one of the pilots who carried out the attacks and a Hezbollah military leader sitting [next to] him on board, as evidence of direct cooperation with al-Qaeda through the Lebanese Hezbollah,” Larijani was quoted as saying in the May 30 interview, which is gaining traction on social media.
You may recall in the aftermath of 9/11 many American pundits scoffing at the notion of cooperation between Iran and al-Qaeda. Why would a Shia regime aide Sunni terrorists? More to the point, “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” would appear to have been the operative attitude of Iran.
Several al-Qaeda members took refuge in Iran after we invaded Afghanistan. We were assured by U.S. intelligence they were under “house arrest,” although what difference that made was a mystery then — not so much now.
What are the chances Iranian intelligence, which was behind the surreptitious travel arrangements of the terrorists, had advance knowledge of the 9/11 attacks? It’s difficult to believe they did not. They may not have known of the exact date of the attacks, but they knew something big was going down and chose to keep quiet.
By removing the sanctions on Iran under the nuclear deal, we enabled a regime that actively facilitated the attacks on America on September 11, 2001. Some dare call that treason and would put the architect of that deal on trial rather than make him a civic saint.
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