Iran pick is wanted in Argentina attack

Ahmadinejad Taps Man on Interpol List as Defense Head

An Iranian official wanted by Interpol in the 1994 bombing of an Argentine Jewish center has been nominated for promotion to defense minister in President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's cabinet.

Ahmad Vahidi, now the deputy defense minister, is accused by Argentina of a key role in the bombing of the Argentine-Israeli Mutual Association in Buenos Aires, the worst attack on a Jewish target outside Israel since World War II. The blast killed 85 people and injured more than 150.

Argentina is seeking Vahidi's extradition. Among the other suspects it seeks is Mohsen Rezai, a former Revolutionary Guard chief who challenged Ahmadinejad in the June 12 election.

Argentina's Jewish leaders "express their strongest rejection and condemnation" of Ahmadinejad's nomination of Vahidi, DAIA, an association representing the Argentine Jewish community, said in a statement.

The move by Ahmadinejad, "who systematically denies the Holocaust and calls for the destruction of Israel, constitutes an incalculable offense against the victims of the massacre and their families, the Jewish community of Argentina, and the Argentine Republic," the group said.

Vahidi has been subject to an Interpol "red notice" since November 2007. Such a notice is distributed to police agencies worldwide to ask their help in detaining him.

At the time of the attack, Vahidi commanded a Revolutionary Guard unit known as the Quds Force. The Quds Force is involved in operations abroad, including working with Lebanon's Hezbollah extremist group, which is accused of carrying out the Buenos Aires attack.

Argentina prosecutor Alberto Nisman, who led the investigation into the bombing, said Vahidi was accused of "being a key participant in the planning and of having made the decision to go ahead with the attack." Vahidi was never in Argentina, he said.

Iran has denied being behind the bombing. Ali Akbar Javanfekr, a press adviser for Ahmadinejad, said the outrage from Argentina after the appointment was part of a "Zionist plot," Agence France-Presse reported.

Calls to the Foreign Ministry in Iran, where yesterday was the Muslim prayer day, were not immediately answered.

Andy David, an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman, said: "This is yet another of Ahmadinejad's actions that prove he is a person you cannot deal with."

A parliamentary vote on Vahidi and the other cabinet nominees is set for Aug. 30.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said that if Vahidi was indeed the man wanted by Interpol, it would be very "disturbing" to see him confirmed in the Iranian cabinet.

Interpol Notice

Vahidi has been subject to an Interpol “red notice” since November 2007. Such a notice is distributed to police agencies worldwide to request their assistance in detaining him, according to the Web site of Interpol, based in Lyon, France.

A message left at the press office of Argentina’s foreign ministry wasn’t immediately returned.

Phone calls to the Iranian Embassy in London weren’t immediately answered, nor were calls to the foreign ministry in Iran, where Friday is observed as the Muslim prayer day.

“This is yet another of Ahmadinejad’s actions that prove he is a person you cannot deal with,” Andy David, an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman, said today in a telephone interview, referring to Vahidi’s Aug. 19 nomination. “The leadership of Iran is simply not willing to take the path of peace.”

Vahidi has been a senior member of the Revolutionary Guards and served as deputy to two defense ministers, the state-run Fars news agency reported. He is also a member of the Expediency Council, which has the final say in disputes on legislation. A parliamentary vote on Vahidi and the other cabinet nominees is scheduled for Aug. 30.

Signaling ‘Defiance’

Ali Akbar Javanfekr, a press adviser for Ahmadinejad, said the outrage from Argentina after the appointment was part of a “Zionist plot,” Agence France-Presse reported.

“Vahidi’s nomination represents not only the president’s choosing of a relatively narrow echelon of Iran’s security apparatus to top positions, but also signals his defiance and lack of care for the consequence of such key appointments on foreign policy,” Gala Riani, Middle East analyst for London- based business intelligence and forecasting company IHS Global Insight, said today in an e-mail.

“The appointment may be a strong signal by the embattled president against international and domestic pressure; on the other hand it may simply represent a continuation of Ahmadinejad’s well-trod path of defiance, or a combination of both,” she said.

The announcement that Ahmadinejad won a second term in the election triggered major street protests, after defeated candidates Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karrubi claimed the ballot was rigged. Ahmadinejad has denied the allegation.

The Iranian government deployed police officers and members of the volunteer Basij militia armed with batons and tear gas to quell the mass protests. The demonstrations were followed by thousands of arrests and trials of some 140 leading opposition figures and supporters. The crackdown on protesters prompted international condemnation. The government said 30 people died in the unrest, while the opposition put the number at 69.

Ahmadinejad has been criticized by the opposition for stoking tension with the West over his rigid stance on Iran’s nuclear program and routinely questioning Israel’s right to exist and the extent of the Nazi Holocaust. Iran is under United Nations sanctions for refusing to suspend uranium enrichment.

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