Amir Farshad Ebrahimi, is an ex-vigilante who repented from his past after the student uprising in 1999. His video of confessions which was given to the Iranian Nobel Peace Priize winner, lawyer and human rights activist Shirin Ebadi made the headlines, but also resulted in Shirin Ebadi's suspended sentence and ban from her profession.

Amir Farshad Ebrahimi escaped from the Islamic Republic few months ago. In this revealing interview he sheds some light on the role of Islamic Republic of Iran in the current wave of terror and assassination in Iraq, and in particular the assassination of Ayatollah Hakim.

Hakim was hosted by the mullahs in Iran during the Saddam years but welcomed the overthrow of Saddam by the Allied forces.

The following interview was carried out with AFE on 9th October.

Q- You said on Thursday that you received information from a person who was directly involved in the assassination of Hakim. How exactly did you receive this information?

A- I received an email a couple of days ago from someone whose name was familiar but I really got to recognise him from his photo. With more
correspondence I got to know more about him. He is one of the officers of the Ghods division. We were together during the training period. For now I just refer to him as the Najaf Witness.He claims he was part of the team that carried out the assassination of Hakim and his entourage.

Q- What does the Najaf witness claim?

A- He claimed that the Ghods division received a mission from the Supreme Leader's office within the framework of the "Abedoon" project. The project was to ensure that the Shiite clergy in Iraq remain under the influence of the Supreme Leader. Najaf Witness claims he and three others were assigned the task of assassinating Ayatollah Hakim.

They entered Iraq via the land borders under the cover of State Radio and TV broadcasting reporters. On the very last day of the mission another person joined their group and provided them with the explosives.

Q- Why has the Najaf witness now escaped from Iran?

A- He claims one month after the assassination he has witnessed the suspicious deaths of the three other members of the assassination team. The first died in Baghiollah hospital from food poisoning. The second one died in a driving accident in Babayii Highway on his return from the military college. The third one apparently died when accidentally shot by a guard.

After hearing about these suspicious deaths he decided to flee Iran and save his life. I also know the third person who was killed. His name was Asgari and he was also with me in the military college. The Kayhan daily also printed the
announcement of his wake.

Q- How genuine is his claims in your opinion?

A- There is no doubt that he is an officer in the Ghods division, he was in the military college with me during training and had I stayed on I would have been the same rank as him. I also sent his photo to Ayatollah Hakim's brother. They confirmed that they met up with him before the Friday prayer which led to Hakim's death.

Q- What information do you have about the present situation of the Najaf Witness?

A- I am in constant correspondence with him. He is extremely scared and is in hiding. He is convinced that his former colleagues have the orders to kill him too.

Regards,

P A