Iranian news sources claim their diplomat which was abducted in Iraq and recently released was tortured:
Who are you going to believe, the government which claimed it had proof Iraq had WMDs and links to alQaeda or the government which claims its nuclear research is peaceful.
In other news:
Iraqi Cleric M. Sadr is calling for an anti-US demonstration tomorrow.
Now the Shiite is going to hit the fan in Iraq...
Meanwhile:
Behind release of Iranian diplomat
Sat, 07 Apr 2007
An informed source unveiled details of the release of the second Secretary of Iran's embassy in Iraq on Saturday.
The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, stated that Jalal Sharafi was handed to the Iranian diplomats in Baghdad on April 2, while he was handcuffed.
He added that the diplomat was immediately held under tight security measures.
The source reiterated that the Iranian diplomats had informed the Iraqi officials of Sharafi's release and called for troop dispatch around Iranian embassy in Baghdad for protection of the site.
The source noted that Sharafi had been tortured by his captors, among them U.S. intelligence officials, saying there were also signs of torture on his hands and feet.
He pointed out that Sharafi was subjected to different forms of torture day and night.
The official said the kidnappers took Sharafi to a base near Baghdad airport and he was questioned by Arabic-speaking and English-speaking interrogators.
He quoted Sharafi as saying, "The CIA questions focused mainly on Iran's presence and influence in Iraq. When faced with my responses on Iran's official ties with the Iraqi government, they increased the torture."
Jalal Sharafi, who was abducted in February 2007, entered Tehran on April 3.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=5270§ionid=351020101
Who are you going to believe, the government which claimed it had proof Iraq had WMDs and links to alQaeda or the government which claims its nuclear research is peaceful.
In other news:
Iraqi Cleric M. Sadr is calling for an anti-US demonstration tomorrow.
Now the Shiite is going to hit the fan in Iraq...
Sadr calls for anti-U.S. protest in Iraq
NAJAF, Iraq: Thousands of Iraqis streamed to Najaf on Sunday in response to a call by a Shiite cleric, Moktada al-Sadr, for a big anti-American protest Monday.
Sadr, who blames the U.S.-led invasion for unrelenting violence in Iraq, has urged Iraqis to protest on a day that marks the fourth anniversary of when American forces swept into central Baghdad.
"In order to end the occupation, you will go out and demonstrate," Sadr, who accuses U.S. forces of fomenting civil strife in Iraq, said in a statement...
...Thousands of supporters of Sadr boarded buses and rode in cars to Najaf on Sunday, responding to Sadr's call. Roads were packed with hundreds of vehicles crammed with passengers waving Iraqi flags and chanting religious and anti-U.S. slogans.
The U.S. military says that Sadr is in Iran. His aides insist the cleric is in Iraq, and they have denied suggestions that he had fled to Iran to escape the security crackdown.
The U.S. military said violence had dropped in Baghdad, with a 26 percent decline in "murders and executions" from February to March, and a 60 percent fall between the last week of March and the first week of April.
An Iranian diplomat freed two months after being abducted in Iraq has accused the CIA of torturing him during his detention, Iranian state television reported, according to an Associated Press dispatch from Tehran. The United States immediately denied any involvement in the Iranian's disappearance or release.
Jalal Sharafi, who was freed last Tuesday, said the CIA had questioned him about Iran's relations with Iraq and assistance to various Iraqi groups, according to state television.
"Once they heard my response that Iran merely has official relations with the Iraqi government and officials, they intensified tortures and tortured me through different methods days and nights," he said Saturday.
Gordon Johndroe, a White House spokesman, said in Washington: "The United States had nothing to do with Mr. Sharafi's detention...
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/04/08/news/iraq.php
Meanwhile:
[SIZE=+2]Storm in UK as freed sailors sell stories[/SIZE]
By Adrian Croft
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Defence Ministry came under fire on Sunday for allowing 15 sailors and marines held by Iran for 13 days to sell their stories to the media.
The ministry said it had waived rules barring serving military personnel from selling their stories because of huge public interest in the case. "These are considered to be exceptional circumstances," a ministry spokeswoman said.
British naval personnel who were detained in Iran are seen in Tehran in this April 4, 2007 file photo. Britain's Defence Ministry came under fire on Sunday for allowing 15 British sailors and marines held by Iran for 13 days to sell their stories to the media. (REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl)
Some popular British newspapers pay people for their sensational stories to boost sales. The spokeswoman said the 15 would be able to keep fees which press reports estimated could total as much as 250,000 pounds ($493,500).
One former detainee, Royal Navy Lieutenant Felix Carman, gave the BBC an interview free-of-charge but agreed that the service members did have a chance to make a lot of money. "I think every one of us has had offers ... I think some people will probably take it up. However I'm just happy to get the actual truth out in the open because we did receive some criticisms...," he said....
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.as...01_NOOTR_RTRJONC_0_-293501-2&sec=worldupdates