The tough line on Iran contemplated by the United States is partly driven by intelligence reports that Iranian revolutionary guards are sheltering al-Qaeda leaders at one of the former shah’s hunting lodges, it has emerged. The terrorist leaders suspected of taking refuge in Iran include Saif al-Adel, the alleged mastermind of suicide bombings in Saudi Arabia this month, and Abu Mohammed al-Masri, a suspected organiser of the 1998 US embassy bombings in east Africa. They may also include Saad bin Laden, one of Osama bin Laden’s sons. Intelligence sources said this week that the Egyptian-born al-Adel, believed to be No. 3 in the al-Qaeda leadership, has been seized in Iran. The trail of clues that led to a grand hunting lodge – now a military base – in the eastern highlands near the border with Pakistan and Afghanistan surfaced after an air crash in February outside the city of Kerman killed 200 soldiers from the revolutionary guards. A Washington source claimed the crash produced intelligence that the revolutionary guards were “hosting” the al-Qaeda leaders. The White House was prepared to accept Tehran’s assurances that it was dealing with al-Qaeda infiltration, and that terrorism suspects in Iran were all in custody, until the bombings in Saudi Arabia. US officials claimed that electronic communications about the attacks were traced to Iran and to the al-Qaeda leaders. Full Story
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