IRAN'S SPY PARANOIA: ONE EXAMPLE OF A SOCIETY THE WEST CAN'T QUITE FIGURE OUT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000706960001-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 2, 2011
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: March 10, 1987
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

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Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/02 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706960001-6
AMIP AFFURW CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
-~ ON PAGE AGE
10 March 1987
Iran's spy paranoia: one example of a
society the West can't quite figure out
The writer was recently in Iran on
assignment.
By Claude van England
Special to The Chnstian Science Monitor
Throughout its history, Iranian society has al-
ways been very closed.
But since the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iranians
have become more inward looking than ever, ac-
cording to foreigners living in Tehran.
Iran's diplomatic isolation by the international
community, these foreigners add, has helped rein-
force this trend.
Walking in Tehran's streets these days is an
unsettling experience. People there live and think
in a way that is often beyond Western logic.
Westerners are sometimes struck by what, to
them, is the often-contradictory reasoning of
Iranians.
For instance, both detractors and supporters of
Iran's Islamic regime seem gripped by what can
best be described as a spy paranoia. Royalists still
claim the toppling of the Shah and the coming to
power of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini were the
result of a conspiracy hatched by the British
intelligence service and the US Central Intelli-
gence Agency. Recent arms sales by Washington
to the Islamic regime have reinforced this opinion.
Many supporters of the regime, for their part,
suspect all foreigners of being intelligence agents.
Westerners with long experience in Iran say the
country's strategic importance has made it a
prime target for Eastern and Western intelligence
services throughout this century. In addition, they
say, Iranians themselves display an innate fond-
ness for secret dealings and covert activities.
The distrust toward foreigners has grown in
recent years: Many Iranians feel they stand alone
against the rest of the world, which they accuse of
supporting Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
A European diplomat who regularly travels to
Tehran says he believes the international disap-
proval of the 1979 seizure of the US Embassy in
Tehran led most countries to ignore Iranian re-
quests that Iraq be formally designated as the
aggressor in starting the Persian Gulf war in 1980.
"Between 1980 and 1982 the United Nations
Security Council failed to condemn the occupation by
Iraq of parts of Iranian territory," the diplomat says.
"The council passed its first resolution calling for a
withdrawal of both armies ... only after it was clear the
Iraqis had lost the initiative. This was interpreted by the
Iranians as a denial of justice ...."
Though they share his views, many of this diplomat's
Tehran-based colleagues say things have now reached a
point where Iranians have buried themselves in intransi-
gent rhetoric and are convinced they will succeed in
ousting Iraqi President Hussein by military force.
Despite the anti-Western sentiments, this correspond-
ent has never felt threatened on frequent walks through
Tehran's populous and poor southern neighborhoods -
even though people were aware that I worked for an
American newspaper.
People appear eager to convince the foreigner of the
righteousness of their country's cause. "We believe that
Islam provides a good model of government for all
countries," said one Iranian at a demonstration in sup-
port of "exporting" the revolution.
Diplomats in Tehran
react differently to Iranian
perceptions. A charge
d'affaires says that he has,
for now at least, abandoned
all hope of establishing a
dialogue with Iran's rulers.
"They are intolerant and
have lost all sense of com-
promise," he says.
But a European ambassa-
dor suggests a different ap-
proach. "What we're wit-
nessing here is the
ment of a deep and
evelo
d
p
Khomeini: backers and
foes blame it all on CIA lasting resentment toward
the Western world in general
and the US in particular," he says. "On the other hand,
Iranian militancy is perceived as a major threat by
Western populations. But it's important to keep on talk-
ing to avoid any further escalation in the hatred."
On several occasions, this writer has experienced how
Iranian perceptions of today's world vary from Western
ones. During a discussion with the editors of one of Iran's
major dailies, our first exchange focused on the defini-
tion of terrorism. After explaining how Americans were
shocked by the kidnappings of their fellow citizens in
Beirut, I asked why Iranian leaders had not prevented
such acts being carried out by their Lebanese allies.
One journalist answered bluntly. "In December last
year, US media confirmed what we have =W Tor
months - that the CIA passes satellite. pictures of.Iran to
the Iraqi Air Fbrce," he said. "Those pictures are used by
the Iraqis to bombard our economic installations and our
..-cities killing hundreds of innocent civilians."
"In such a context," he asked, "how can we prevent
groups within our country from considering it normal for
[Lebanese] militants to kidnap US citizens?"
The journalist was echoing a theme regularly voiced
by Hashemi Rafsanjani, the influential speaker of Iran's
parliament. At a Jan. 28 press conference, Mr. Rafsanja-
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/02 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706960001-6
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/02 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706960001-6
Jk
ni insisted Iran is not directly involved in kidnappings in
Lebanon, but said: "The roots of terrorism are in the
Western world - where governments shelter
people."
groups which carry attempts against
This was interpreted as a reference to the People's
Mojahedin, an Iranian exile opposition movement which
regularly claims responsibility for killings of the Islamic
Republic's officials and supporters in Iran.
The Iranians were asked why they had not turned
their anger at the Soviet union, which is Iraq's major
arms supplier. Their answer. Unlike Washington, Mos-
cow is not bent on destroying Iran's Islamic revolution.
They also say that Moscow initially disapproved of
Iraq's invasion of Iran in 1980.
When told that Western attitudes toward the war
might have been different if some 50 US diplomats had
not been held hostage in Tehran for 13 months after the
Islamic revolution, the Iranians answer: "Those were
spies." They accuse the US press of systematically ignor-
ing evidence of this produced by Tehran.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/02 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706960001-6