Word: swapping
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Ghorbanifar's value went far beyond negotiating a hostage swap. So say several CIA sources and, not surprisingly, Ghorbanifar as well. Insists one operative: "For years we had tried to recruit, to no avail, a simple Islamic revolutionary guard. Nobody in Iran wanted to touch the U.S., especially the CIA. Then this guy ((Ghorbanifar)) comes in and delivers for discussions practically anyone...
...originally ^ conceived as a test of mutual goodwill, into a principal objective of the dialogue with Tehran. This mistake eventually left the initiative mired in Iranscam. Says a recently retired senior CIA official: "Covert operatives despise grand strategy. They prefer tangible results that make them look good." The arms swap was sharply opposed by both Clarridge and Allen...
...West Germans' captors lost no time making their demands known. Within 24 hours of Cordes' disappearance, officials in Bonn received word that his kidnapers were indeed demanding a hostage-for-prisoner swap. Suspicion immediately centered on the radical Shi'ite organization Hizballah (Party of God), to which Hamadei is thought to be linked. A West German radio station, quoting an unnamed Christian source in Beirut, said the abductions were planned by Hamadei's brother Abdul, who is thought to be a Hizballah security officer...
...first time in the short history of the labyrinthine White House scandal, a plausible version of events was taking shape, based on sworn testimony and Administration documents. According to the latest scenario, the Administration's weapons deals with Iran were a straightforward arms-for- hostages swap. Reagan's repeated claim that the transactions were an overture to moderate factions in the Iranian government was no more than a rationale concocted by CIA Director William Casey. Lieut. Colonel Oliver North was instrumental in persuading the President to proceed; North's boss, former National Security Adviser John Poindexter, was aware that Iran...
...after the Senate report was leaked, White House Counsel Peter Wallison released both the background memo and Reagan's secret intelligence "finding" authorizing the arms sales to Iran. "I don't want to argue whether this was in fact a swap of arms for hostages," a Reagan aide told reporters. He insisted the documents showed that the weapons deal "was part of a much broader initiative that would help stabilize the (Persian Gulf) region...