U.S. Hits Alleged Iranian Terror Front

(CBS/AP)  The Bush administration moved Wednesday to clamp down financially on a New York City business suspected of acting as a front company for Iran's Bank Melli, which has been accused of providing support to Iran's nuclear program.

"This scheme to use a front company set up by Bank Melli - a known proliferator - to funnel money from the United States to Iran is yet another example of Iran's duplicity," said Stuart Levey, the Treasury Department's under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.

The Treasury Department covers action ASSA Corp. of New York City as well as its parent, ASSA Co. Ltd., located in the Channel Islands. Any assets belonging to the companies found in the United States are frozen and Americans are prohibited from doing business with them.

The U.S. government alleged that ASSA Corp. was created by Bank Melli to hold its interest in a building located at 650 Fifth Ave. in New York. The building's construction had been partly financed by a Bank Melli loan, Treasury said. ASSA Corp. co-owns the building through a partnership formed with the Alavi Foundation of New York, called 650 Fifth Avenue Co., the government said.

The United States alleged that ASSA Corp. "has repeatedly transferred rental income generated from the 650 Fifth Avenue partnership back to Bank Melli through ASSA Co. Ltd." The government alleged that ASSA Corp. has shared financial and other information on a regular basis with Bank Melli.

The department said its action does not interfere with the business or other activities of the building's tenants.

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Read the Treasury Department's statement on the front company.

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Last year the United States accused Bank Melli of providing services to Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and put the bank on its list of companies whose assets must be frozen.

The move announced Wednesday marks the latest effort to tighten the financial noose on Iran, which the United States accuses of bankrolling terrorism and seeking a nuclear bomb. The United States has already imposed sanctions on several state-run Iranian banks and businesses along with elements of its defense ministry and Revolutionary Guard Corps.

[TommyCraig]

"So I am assuming you are also talking about the United States. And it would be OK for other countries to decide to take out our government if they felt unilaterally that it was oppressive. All''''s fair, is it not"?
Posted by noloyalisti at 08:41 PM : Dec 18, 2008
If our nation truly became a state which oppressed its'' people or other nations with evil intent, then we deserve the demise due us.

[noloyalisti]

Posted by cbs_tom

So I am assuming you are also talking about the United States. And it would be OK for other countries to decide to take out our government if they felt unilaterally that it was oppressive. All''s fair, is it not?

[cbs_tom]

Posted by noloyalisti at 05:14 PM : Dec 18, 2008

Is there ever a time to replace the leaders of a foreign government? Whether democratically elected or not?

I believe so. If there is an oppressive leadership and/or country (the people''s intent is evil or destructive towards our country or another), then it is our duty as a free nation with military might to change the direction of the country. And, those other free nations should do the same.

[noloyalisti]

IOWEIGN thanks for that information. The overthrow of a deocratically elected government by the CIA to install a pro-western regime describes much of our historical foreign policy. And fits in directly with my previous post about our supporting right wing fascists across the globe.

[ioweign]

You would think the Iranian Terrorist Goverment would love the USA, after all a US President, Jimmy Carter, was co-founder of the Iranian Terrorist State along with Khomeni.

Posted by jowand at 09:17 PM : Dec 17, 2008

Google "Operation AJAX"

The "present" Iran is a result of "AJAX"...

[noloyalisti]

I think Inketolstoy must be talking about the Republican Party of death and spending when he says engaging their mouths without their brains. Why else would they condone murder of civilians by our military, use of illegal chemical weapons on civilians, torturing, spying and supporting fascist CEOs of our major corporations? Oh, and propping up right wing fascist regimes across the globe.

[noloyalisti]

Shall we go down the list of crimes and immoral acts that this administration has done to its people and the people of the world. The FIRST thing we have to do to heal ourselves is to admit we have a problem. If we don''t admit we have a fascist government, we will NEVER rise up against it en masse.

P.S. You are the one who called it mindless dissent. I called it mindless obedience. Woof, woof.

[inketolstoy]

"Dissent is patriotic and mindless obedience to failed government is not."

Mindless dissent is one of the ways that idiots pass their days. There is a big difference between fighting for a just cause or fighting because we have nothing better to do. If dissent were the key to patriotism, most of us would be patriots, but most of us are just running our mouths without engaging our brains.

[noloyalisti]

Dissent is patriotic and mindless obedience to failed government is not. The lord and the military do not protect us or our freedoms. It is We the People who have the power to do that. It is We, with constant diligence, who guarantee that fascism will not prevail.

[xcuja]

The Bush Aministration has been trying for years to provoke Iran into a conflict, to start the Bush world war 3, even if he is out of office. Anything to destroy, and have more people die.