Leaked Iranian letter warned US that Syrian rebels have chemical weapons
| Istanbul
As a primary backer of the Syrian government, Iran has argued vehemently against US airstrikes, warned that sectarian "fire" will spread, and that jihadi rebels may have been behind the Aug. 21 chemical weapons attack that US officials say killed more than 1,400 people near Damascus.
According to leaked diplomatic correspondence, Iran has been warning Washington since July 2012 that Sunni rebel fighters have acquired chemical weapons, and called on the US聽to send 鈥渁n immediate and serious warning鈥� to rebel groups not to use them.
In a letter聽acquired by 海角大神聽that was聽sent sometime in the spring, Iran told American officials that, as a "supporter" of the rebels, the US would be held responsible for any rebel use of chemical weapons.
Iran amplified those year-old warnings over the weekend in its strongest public comments to聽date linking the rebels with a chemical weapons, echoing Russia's dismissal of American assurances that President Bashar al-Assad's forces were to blame. The comments come as the US Congress prepares to vote on military strikes.
鈥淭here is ample intelligence that takfiri聽 [extremist] groups are in possession of chemical arms,鈥� Iran鈥檚 Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said聽on Sunday聽during a visit to Iraq, according to state-run PressTV. 鈥淓xtremists and takfiris are a threat to the whole region.鈥� Semi-official Fars News Agency headlined its story: 鈥淚ranian FM refutes US claims on Syria鈥檚 use of chemical weapons.鈥�
Multiple warnings
Iran says that it warned the United States directly, in mid- and late- 2012, and at least once after that, about the risks of chemical weapons among the rebels. The letter acquired by the Monitor聽references messages from July 18 and Dec. 1, 2012.
According to the English translation that accompanies the one-page Persian document, the letter reads: 鈥淎lerting [worrying] news has been published about the preparations of insurgent forces in Syria for using chemical weapons/elements."聽
Iran 鈥渉olds responsible, in addition to the elements of violent forces, their supporter countries including the American government, for any resort to chemical weapons/elements by those insurgent forces,鈥� it states.
The letter makes no reference to the possibility of chemical weapons use by Syria itself 鈥� holder of the world鈥檚 third-largest chemical arsenal. Nor does it聽acknowledge that if the same argument was applied to the regime,聽then聽Iran and Russia, Syria's closest supporters,聽would likewise be held responsible for any regime use of chemical weapons.
The Iranian letter is聽undated and聽was聽produced by the previous government聽under聽President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, according to聽informed sources聽in Iran聽who provided a copy to the Monitor聽on the condition that they not be further identified.
A US State Department official聽would聽not聽verify the authenticity of the聽letter as a matter of policy, stating: 鈥淲e don鈥檛 comment on diplomatic correspondence.鈥�
Neither聽the Persian and English versions of the letter seen by the Monitor have聽any official letterhead or other identifying marks,聽but that is not unheard of聽with sensitive聽Iranian聽communications. The grand bargain offer sent by Tehran to the White House in聽2003, for example,聽looked similarly 鈥渃lean鈥� 鈥� authentic and with approval from Iran鈥檚 highest authorities, yet with no sign of that on the document itself.聽
Consistent opposition
Since the Aug. 21 attack, Iranian officials have聽repeatedly聽stated their opposition to chemical weapons use by any side聽鈥� a policy that has been consistent since Iran was targeted by chemical munitions repeated in the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s.聽But聽they聽has sent mixed messages about聽who they believe聽was responsible for聽this attack on the rebel-held suburbs of Damascus.
While making the case on Sept. 7 for punitive US strikes on Syria, Samantha Power, the US Ambassador to the United Nations, said that the US 鈥渃annot afford to signal to North Korea and Iran that the international community is unwilling to act to prevent proliferation or willing to tolerate the use of weapons of mass destruction.鈥澛�
Yet聽Ms. Power added, however, that Iran and the Russians had complied with American requests and sent messages to Syria 鈥渢o try to dissuade Assad from using chemical weapons鈥澛犫�� a known red line laid down by President Barack Obama. As reports of chemical incidents have grown inside Syria, so too has information that Iran and Russia have advised Mr. Assad not to use such weapons, in a conflict that has already taken more than 100,000 lives by conventional arms.聽
Mr. Zarif first revealed that Iran had sent direct warnings to the US via the Swiss Embassy in Tehran in an interview published Sept. 1 by Aseman weekly聽in Tehran. The Swiss聽have聽handled US interests in Iran聽throughout the聽34-year US-Iran estrangement, and have been a conduit for such messages in the past.
Zarif said聽in the interview that聽Iran sent a memo to the US last December聽stating聽that 鈥渉andmade articles of chemical weapons, including sarin gas, are being transferred into Syria.鈥� He added: 鈥淚n the same note, we warned [Washington] that radical groups might be planning to use these chemical agents.鈥�
Zarif said the US never responded to the letter.
The document seen by the Monitor appears to be a third letter, which recalls the 鈥渕essages鈥� of the two previous letters, but does not mention any specific details about the types of chemical weapons that might be in rebel hands, or where they came from.聽Nor does it mention what information, intelligence, or "published" news may have prompted the Iranians to write it.
Instead, it refers to two well-known incidents of chemical weapons use by Iraqi forces, the mustard gas attack on the Iranian town of Sardasht in 1987, and the gassing of the Iraqi Kurdish town of Halabja in 1988 鈥撀燽oth of which the letter says Iran holds 鈥淲estern countries鈥� accountable for by backing Saddam Hussein in the war,聽and drawing a parallel with Western-backed rebel forces today.
Conflicting claims聽
Reports of chemical weapons incidents began to multiply at the beginning of 2013, with accusations leveled at both sides but always denied. At the end of May, Turkish media reported the arrest of seven members of the聽rebel-allied聽jihadist group Jabhat al-Nusra in two southern Turkish cities,聽as well as the discovery of two kilograms聽of sarin gas in the suspects' homes.聽
Speaking today in London, US Secretary of State John Kerry said that the Aug. 21 attack which targeted 11 rebel zones and emanated from government-controlled areas聽could only have been conducted by regime forces, and聽and not rebels who do not have the "scientific capacity鈥� to mount such a sophisticated chemical attack.
The Iranian letter is written from a perspective of聽a Syria supporter, with what one Iranian analyst who has seen the聽text聽notes is the 鈥渞ough tone鈥� that characterized Mr. Ahmadinejad鈥檚 descriptions of the US and Western actions in the region.
The letter states: 鈥淧recedence and recent experiences of Syrian crises shows that, the violent forces [groups], emboldened by assurances of comprehensive political and military support given by some countries including the US, have so far applied no limitation in violence or brutal crimes against innocent people.鈥澛�
The letter adds that Iran 鈥渨ill not spare any effort鈥� to find a 鈥減eaceful solution.鈥� Iran 鈥渨ould like to urge the US government to prevent any undermining [of] the non-proliferation of WMDs鈥� and avoid 鈥渁 potential human tragedy鈥� by 鈥渟ending an immediate and serious warning to the insurgent forces in Syria about any resort to chemical weapons/elements.鈥�
