Part 96 – OCTOBER 6 1988
''I would hope that and I believe that these efforts to release the hostages have nothing to do with this campaign. These families and these hostages have been through too much pain and too much agony and too much tragedy as it is.'' - Democratic nominee, Gov. Michael S. Dukakis
Today, Oct. 6 1988, Ahmed Abassi, the younger brother of Hashem Abassi arrived to the German city of Neuss, near Dusseldorf. Ahmed Abassi resides in Sweden.
Ahmed Abassi meets Hafez Dalkamoni at his apartment located 16 Isarstrasse. The apartment was rented by Hashem Abassi.
Hashem Abassi, like many Palestinians, lives in exile. He runs a grocery shopcalled Morgenland in the center of Neuss. After the 1982 invasion of Lebanon by Israel, Abassi immigrated to Germany with his wife Somaia Saad El Din.
It appears that Ahmed Abassi helps Dalkamoni with translations from Arabic to German while he goes shopping for electronic parts, tools, radios and clocks.
Dalkamoni and Hashem Abassi are brothers in Law. Dalkamoni was married to Hannah, the sister of Somaia Abassi.
Intelligence
Today, L. Paul Bremer, the State Department's top counterterrorism official, described as "preposterous" reports that the US had offered weapons to Tehran in order to secure the release of Americans hostages held in Lebanon by pro Iran kidnappers.
Bremer rejected allegations made yesterday by former Iran President Abolhassan Bani-Sadr. The former president, who lives in Paris, told reporters that an agent of Vice President Bush, named Richard lawless, negotiated the release of Mithileshwar Singh who is a permanent resident of the United States and was held hostage in Beirut, along with three other Americans.
Lawless served for a short time in the US Army. He then joined the Central Intelligence Agency, where he stayed for nearly 15 years (1972-87). Lawless advanced to the post of director of operations, before quitting. There are rumors that Lawless conducted highly secret operations for then-CIA director William Casey and that these operations got him in trouble with several senior officials at the agency.
Lawless denied having played a role in the hostage release. "I categorically deny and state for the record that I am involved either directly or indirectly in any discussions or negotiations with any party related to attempts to secure the release of hostages in Lebanon. I have never in my entire life had any direct or indirect contact with any Iranian government officials or any Iranian national claiming to represent the Iranian government or any Iranian-related interests," Lawless said today.
State Department spokeswoman Phyllis Oakley described Bani Sadr's claims as "pure fantasy". "There have been no negotiations, no direct contacts between the United States and Iranian officials."
"There may be private individuals who misrepresented themselves as speaking on behalf of the US government. They are not. I don't know of anybody who has done that, but that doesn't exclude the possibility that there may be somebody out there, as we speak, who says, 'I'm speaking for the US government.' I'm just trying to be very prudent and cautious. But I don't know of any names of anyone who is doing this," Oakley said.
"There is a fellow named Lawless. He is over there. What he's up to nobody knows. But he doesn't represent the United States ... He does not represent the vice president or the president [Ronald Reagan] or anybody else," White House spokesman Martin Fitzwater said.
"I've never been able to explain the Iranians and what their strategies are and what they do," Reagan declared today. "But obviously, we couldn't do any negotiating with them until and unless the hostages are released."
Reagan will eventually admit that he had been negociated with Tehran the release of the hostages held in Lebanon. Lawless advanced rapidly through the ranks of the US government. He would be appointed under secretary of defense for Asia and Pacific affairs. Lawless resigned in July 2007.
"Lawless, the deputy under secretary of defense for Asia and Pacific security affairs, has elected to retire from the US government in July 2007 after four-and-a-half years of distinguished service" in the Pentagon, the Defense Department said in a statement. [1]
NOTES AND REFERENCES
1.
US defense policymaker Richard Lawless resigns
U.S. Official Denies Rumors of Secret Talks on Hostages - October 6, 1988
