Word: arab
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What the Iranians wanted was a multilateral mechanism, initiated by the U.S., to get the Arab intruders off their hands. Such a mechanism would have given U.S. interrogators access to the al-Qaeda operatives (whom the Iranians would presumably have detained if they once again tried to cross the border). But, says Leverett, the Bush Administration insisted that the Iranians deport the Arabs without any preconditions. By May, negotiations between the two countries broke down, and the chance was lost. Shortly thereafter, Saad bin Laden succeeded in crossing the border. Details of what happened next are murky, but he didn...
Later that summer, after the U.S.-led coalition toppled Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq, the Iranians came up with another offer: they would trade their Arab captives, including Saad, for members of the Mujahedin-e-Khalq (MEK), an Iranian terrorist group that was given sanctuary by Saddam. "It was a straightforward swap: your terrorists for ours," says a Western intelligence official familiar with Tehran's offer. The official says the offer included assurances that the MEK operatives would not be tortured and that international human-rights organizations would have access to them. "They said...
...Administration's strategy for dealing with Iran. The U.S. has been pushing for the resumption of final-status talks between Israel and the Palestinians, which stalled early in 2001, and Ross and Jones are reinforcing Mitchell's efforts to broker an Israeli settlement freeze in exchange for Arab goodwill gestures. The Israelis see Iran as a higher priority than talks with the Palestinians. The White House officially views the two issues as being on separate tracks but says the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a key issue whose impact on the region reinforces Iran's ability to resist international pressure...
...strategist Dennis Ross and special envoy George Mitchell all descended on the region, each with his own agenda. Among the initiatives in play were an attempt at diplomatic warming with the regime of Bashar Assad in Damascus, a push for renewed talks between Israel and the Palestinians backed by Arab neighbors, and stepped up military cooperation with U.S. allies in the region...
...over the weekend in Damascus. He announced the U.S. intention to ease sanctions on sales of aircraft parts and computer and telecommunications equipment to Syria. The Obama Administration is hoping that a diplomatic rapprochement with Syria will help peel Damascus away from its longtime role as Iran's key Arab ally. Though Syria is hedging its bets, it has opened up to Washington's advances. (See pictures of the world's worst nuclear disasters...