The latest German-mediated agreement to swap prisoners between Israel and Lebanon`s Islamic resistance group Hizbollah includes also a specific provision which is to address the fate of four Iranians who went `missing` in Lebanon one month after the June 1982 Israeli invasion. The four Iranians include the charge d`affaires at Iran`s embassy in Beirut Mohsen Moussavi, a diplomat Ahmad Motovasselian, IRNA photographer Kazem Akhavan and an embassy driver Mohammad Taghi Rastegar-Moghadam all of whom were never seen again after being stopped at a checkpoint on the Beirut-Tripoli highway. The checkpoint was reportedly manned by the then-Israeli backed Christian Phalange Militia.
| My guess is that they're long-time deaders. What's yours? |
It is believed that Lebanese Phalangists handed the four Iranians to the Israelis who are holding them as political hostages. There have been unconfirmed reports that the kidnapped Iranians were brutally murdered by either the Phalangists or the Israelis. Iran has repeatedly demanded information on the whereabouts of its four nationals and has made clear that it holds the criminal Israeli regime responsible for the kidnapping. |