Iran Sentences Man To Death For Espionage

Special Court Convicts Electronics Salesman Of Supplying Nuclear Information To Israel

(AP)  A special Iranian court sentenced an Iranian man to death Monday on charges of spying for Israel, state television said. It was the country's first known conviction for espionage linked to Israel in almost a decade.

Ali Ashtari, a 45-year-old salesman of electronic merchandise, had a job supplying military, security and defense centers across the country with electronic devices, according to the web site of Iranian state TV.

The web site quoted an unnamed intelligence official as saying Ashtari "relayed sensitive information on military, defense and research centers" to Israeli intelligence officers. Iranian state media, considered mouthpieces for the government, customarily cite officials without identifying them by name.

The material that Ashtari allegedly passed to Israeli intelligence officials also included information on Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, state TV said.

An Israeli government spokesman, Mark Regev, said officials in Israel had no knowledge of the case.

Ashtari, who was arrested in 2007, tried to "create a link" between Iranian experts and Israeli agents, the unnamed Iranian official said, according to state media.

Under Iranian law, Ashtari has 20 days to appeal the verdict, which was handed down Sunday.

Iran and Israel have long been enemies. But the ruling against Ashtari is the first time since 2000 that an Iranian court has convicted and sentenced an Iranian citizen on charges of espionage for Israel.

It was handed down by Iran's Revolutionary Court, which handles security issues.

A closed-door trial in 2000 convicted 10 Iranian Jews of spying for Israel and sentenced them to prison terms ranging from four to 13 years. All were released before serving out their full sentences.

Ashtari's conviction comes amid renewed moves by the international community to step up diplomatic pressure on Iran over its nuclear activities.

Israel, the United States and many Western countries contend that Iran's nuclear program is intended to produce nuclear weapons. Iran denies that, saying its program is for peaceful purposes, including electricity production.

Israel has said it favors a diplomatic solution to the nuclear standoff, but it has not ruled out a military strike of its own against Iran.

In 1981, an Israeli air attack destroyed an unfinished nuclear reactor in Iraq. Israel also hit a suspected nuclear facility in Syria in September.

The commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari, warned in a newspaper interview last week that if attacked, Iran would strike back - barraging Israel with missiles and choking off a key oil transit point in the Persian Gulf.

[reptilian96]

FOX NEWS discovered the presence of a massive spy ring inside the United States run by the government of Israel. This seems a harsh gratitude from a nation which obtains 10% of its annual budget from the American taxpayer, $3+ billion a year. Over the years, American taxpayers have been required to send Israel more than four times what the US spent to go to the moon.

[reptilian96]

BRIT HUME, HOST: It has been more than 16 years since a civilian working for the Navy was charged with passing secrets to Israel. Jonathan Pollard pled guilty to conspiracy to commit espionage and is serving a life sentence. At first, Israeli leaders claimed Pollard was part of a rogue operation, but later took responsibility for his work.



Now Fox News has learned some U.S. investigators believe that there are Israelis again very much engaged in spying in and on the U.S., who may have known things they didn''t tell us before September 11. Fox News correspondent Carl Cameron has details in the first of a four-part series

[reptilian96]

BRIT HUME, HOST: It has been more than 16 years since a civilian working for the Navy was charged with passing secrets to Israel. Jonathan Pollard pled guilty to conspiracy to commit espionage and is serving a life sentence. At first, Israeli leaders claimed Pollard was part of a rogue operation, but later took responsibility for his work.



Now Fox News has learned some U.S. investigators believe that there are Israelis again very much engaged in spying in and on the U.S., who may have known things they didn''t tell us before September 11. Fox News correspondent Carl Cameron has details in the first of a four-part series

[cheetah-man7]

Iran doesn''t have spies, just like they don''t have homosexuals!

[neoconrcrazy]

Here is how wars are started, without your knowing about it;

"Introduced less than a month ago, Resolution 362, also known as the Iran War Resolution, could be passed by the House as early as next week.

The bill is the chief legislative priority of AIPAC. On its Web site, AIPAC endorses the resolutions as a way to Stop Irans Nuclear Program" and tells readers to lobby Congress to pass the bill. In the Senate, a sister resolution, Resolution 580, has gained co-sponsors with similar speed. The Senate measure was introduced by Indiana Democrat Evan Bayh on June 2. It has since gained 19 co-sponsors.

The bills key section "demands that the president initiate an international effort to immediately and dramatically increase the economic, political, and diplomatic pressure on Iran to verifiably suspend its nuclear enrichment activities by, inter alia, prohibiting the export to Iran of all refined petroleum products; imposing stringent inspection requirements on all persons, vehicles, ships, planes, trains, and cargo entering or departing Iran; and prohibiting the international movement of all Iranian officials not involved in negotiating the suspension of Iran''''''''''''''''s nuclear program."

"Imposing stringent inspection requirements on all persons, vehicles, ships, planes, trains, and cargo entering or departing Iran" can be read to mean that the president should initiate a naval blockade of Iran. A unilateral naval blockade without UN sanction is an act of war."

[brianbwb-2009]

"some israeli spies caught by US why government doesnt put to death those *** ?" Posted by kretos

Because Wolfowitz, who placed them in the pentagon, told Bush not to touch them.

[ioweign]

See libs, aren''t you glad you live in America?

Posted by EndTimes22 at 12:12 PM : Jun 30, 2008

It wasn''t a lib that was responsible for revealing Plame...

[kretos-2009]

some israeli spies caught by US why government doesnt put to death those *** ?

[feelfree4u]

Re: "Iran Sentences Man To Death For Espionage"

While I am against capital punishment overall, this sentence will probably be more effective than the punishments that are typically handed out to Israeli spies against the U.S., which are usually insignificant and are often watered-down, ala- Scooter Libby.

[stevex47]

"See libs, aren''''t you glad you live in America? "

I know one thing, whoever outted the CIA agent is lucky they live here and not Iran...they''d be dead.

[inventagod2]

Bu$hCo would call him an enemy combatant, and you wouldn''t hear another word about it...