Ali-Reza Asgari, a retired general who served in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, disappeared while on a private trip to Turkey in December 2006. In March of this year, a former German defense ministry official said Asgari had defected and was providing considerable information to the West on Iran’s nuclear program.
Iranian officials and Asgari’s family have claimed that he was abducted. One of Sunday’s Web reports, on a site called Alef, said German and British intelligence services assisted Israeli agents in abducting Asgari and taking him to Israel. The site, www.alef.ir, is close to a conservative Iranian lawmaker. Israel’s Foreign Ministry refused to comment.
Asgari, who became involved in the olive business after retirement, arrived in Turkey on a private visit from Damascus, Syria, on Dec. 7, 2006, and disappeared on Dec. 9, according to Iranian officials.
