According to an interview published this week, Iranian Brigadier-General Mohsen Rahfighdoost admitted to ordering the assassination of Iranians who lived abroad in Europe.
Rafighdoost stated in an Abdi Media interview that he had ordered the assassinations by former Iranian Prime Minister Shapour Bahtiar and naval officer Shahriar Shafiq of Fereydoun, Farrokhzad. The three victims were all killed in France or Germany by “Spanish Marxist Separatists” of the Basque separatist movement, who were paid to kill them by an Egyptian cleric living in Germany.
IranWire reports that this is the very first time an Iranian official of a high ranking has admitted to planning assassinations abroad. The European Union is currently considering whether or not to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization. This news could also lead France and Germany to reopen their investigations into the deaths.
Rafighdoost’s office released a statement following the publication of his interview comments. The statement stated that Rafighdoost had recently undergone brain surgery, which affected his memory, and therefore, his remarks could not be legally considered valid.
In a previous interview, also published by Abdi Media Rafighdoost stated that some of the funding came from commissions paid by Iran’s army on European military equipment purchased.
