Wall Street Journal Report: Envelopes of Money and Bomb Plans; A Look at Iran's Covert Operations in Europe
In the failed Iranian plot to bomb a gathering of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran in the suburbs of Paris, Asadollah Asadi, the third secretary of the Iranian embassy in Austria, played a pivotal role. His alias and intelligence name in the case was "Daniel."
On a sunny June day in a cafe in Luxembourg, Daniel hands over half a kilo of explosives to Amir Saadouni and his wife, Nasima Naami. The two had been gathering intelligence for Daniel from the MEK for years.
"Daniel" offered thousands of euros to obtain information from the Mujahideen and threatened to make life difficult for their family in Iran if they did not cooperate.
Amir and Nasima had been attending Mujahideen gatherings since 2014 and reporting to Asadi (Daniel). Asadi insisted that Nasima accompany Amir to the meetings.
The couple sometimes went to Vienna by changing several trains to ensure they were not being followed, and while providing information to Asadollah Asadi, they would receive cash in envelopes from him and return home.
Nasima Naami worked in a dry cleaner. The couple had their own apartment and car when they decided to live separately a few years ago. Saadouni paid more than 400 euros for tickets to a Roger Waters concert in Antwerp earlier this year.
Saadouni believed that Asadi had other informants among the Mujahedin. He would sometimes show Saadouni pictures of people attending Mujahedin meetings who had not been previously discussed.
Shahin Ghobadi, a spokesman for the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, says that Amir Saadouni and Nasimeh Naami were supporters of the Mojahedin, but were not in the inner circle.
Saadouni and Naami were regular participants in the annual gatherings of the Mujahedin in the suburbs of Paris in recent years.
Asadi, also known as "Daniel," had summoned Saadouni and Naami to Luxembourg a few days before the June 30 gathering.
Amir Saadouni's asylum application in Belgium was accepted a decade ago on the basis of his membership in the Mojahedin Organization. Amir later brought Nasima, who worked in a swimming pool in Iran, to Belgium and married her. In Europe, Saadouni showed a great interest in music and bands such as Pink Floyd.
A number of European politicians have tried to portray the operation as the work of arbitrary forces, but French officials have made it clear that the operation was directed by Saeed Hashemi Moghadam, Iran's deputy intelligence minister.
Source: Voice of America
