Assassination of Paul R. Shaffer and John H. Turner
Colonel Paul R. Shaffer (1930–1975) was a United States military aide to Iran who served as an air force pilot in both Korea and Vietnam.[1][2] In 1975, he was assassinated along with Lieutenant Colonel Jack H. Turner. Vahid Afrakhteh, a founding member of Peykar, confessed to the killing and later was executed.[3][4][5][6] Nevertheless, some sources have said the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) the group which Vahid Afrakhteh and Peykar tried to eliminate was responsible.[7]
Background
According to the US ambassador to Iran, Richard Helms, the American presence in Iran during the 1970s was too large, estimated at 10,000–40,000 people. American personnel and arms had relocated to Iran due to the arms embargo against Turkey and withdrawal of Americans from Vietnam.[8]
In the leadup to the assassination, security for American personnel had deteriorated so much that senior officers had been assigned bodyguards. Two weeks before the two Iranian government officials had been assassinated in Tehran and nine political prisoners had been killed in Evin prison.[8]
Assassination
On 21 May 1975, terrorists stopped the car carrying Colonel Shaffer and Lieutenant Colonel John H Turner. One vehicle blocked the car from the front while another vehicle rammed it from behind.[8] They ordered the Iranian driver to lie down, and then shot and killed the Americans at point-blank range. The shooting happened when the two officers were on their way to work at an Iranian military base in south Tehran.[1][9][2][10] Hours after the attack, American officials received an anonymous call, which said the assassinations were retaliation for "Government atrocities against political prisoners".[11] The Iranian government identified the terrorists as "young leftists"[11] (according to another source it said "Marxist guerrillas"[1]).
Individuals belonging to a Marxist element of the MEK[12] (also known as Peykar)[13] were identified as responsible.[by whom?] Vahid Afrakhteh was accused and charged by an Iranian army tribunal, and was sentenced to death by firing squad.[14] Afrakhteh (one of the founders of Peykar)[15] confessed that he had led the cell that gunned down Col. Paul Shaffer and Lt. Col. Jack Turner, also saying that his immediate superiors at the time had close links with the Marxist Habash group.[16]
According to some sources, the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) was responsible for the assassination.[17][18][7][11][19][20][21] According to Col Wes Martin (U.S. army), there often is no distinguishment between acts committed by the MEK and the Marxist PMOI, and despite the Shah's police arresting "two people for the killings of Shaffer and Turner and stated they were part of the "Islamic Marxist group", and a member of the Marxist PMOI would later claim to have killed Hawkins, the blame remains on the PMOI [MEK]."[22]
According to The Bulletin, a newspaper of Bend, Oregon, "a group identifying itself as the Revolutionary Republican Movement of the Armed Forces of Iran" also claimed responsibility.[23]
Aftermath
In response to the assassinations, the United States Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) set up surveillance detection and antiterrorism efforts to protect American defense personnel in Iran. In 1976, this protective mission was expanded to include civilians, after three American civilian contractors for Rockwell International were assassinated.[24]
In 2005 a memorial was built by the War on Terror Foundation to honor Col. Shaffer.[25] In 2017, the family of Jack Turner filed a $35 million lawsuit against the MEK and Iran.[26]
See also
- Lewis Lee Hawkins
- List of people assassinated by the People's Mujahedin of Iran
References
- ^ a b c "Daily Kent Stater 22 May 1975". Kent State University. Archived from the original on 1 April 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ a b "Desert Sun 21 May 1975" – via California Digital Newspaper Collection.
- ^ Shirali, Mahnaz (28 July 2017). The Mystery of Contemporary Iran. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-47913-4.
The most notable actions of the Marxist Mojahedin were assassinations of Savak general, of two American military advisers, and a failed attempt against an American diplomat, all in 1975
- ^ Camp Ashraf: Iraqi Obligations and State Department Accountability: Joint Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations and the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, First Session, December 7, 2011. U.S. Government Printing Office. 2011. ISBN 978-0-16-090501-8.
Referred to in the Iranian press as the 'Iranian People's Strugglers', and later known as Peykar, this group led by Tagui Shahram, Vahid Arakhteh and Bahram Aram was one of several underground groups waging a covert war against the Shah's secret police, SAVAK. Afrakhteh, who later confessed to the killings of Americans, was executed
- ^ Iran Almanac and Book of Facts, Volumen 15. 1976.
Ten terrorists were sentenced to death... The condemned terrorists were Vahid Afrakhteh... The terroirsts were charged with the murders of Brigadier-general Reza Zandipur, United States Colonels Hawkins, Paul Shaffer and ack Turner, the U.S. Embassy's translator Hassan Hossnan
- ^ Reisinezhad, Arash (2018). The Shah of Iran, the Iraqi Kurds, and the Lebanese Shia. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 8. ASIN B07FBB6L8Y.
- ^ a b Ervand Abrahamian (1989). The Iranian Mojahedin. Yale University Press. p. 142.
- ^ a b c Andrew Scott Cooper (2012). The Oil Kings: How the U.S., Iran, and Saudi Arabia Changed the Balance of Power in the Middle East. Simon & Schuster. pp. 255–256.
- ^ "Desert Sun 28 August 1976" – via California Digital Newspaper Collection.
- ^ "Terrorists Kill Iranian Employe of U.S. Embassy". The New York Times. 4 July 1975.
- ^ a b c Eric Pace (1975-05-22). "Iranian Terrorists Slay 2 U.S. Colonels". New York Times.
- ^ "Chapter 8 -- Foreign Terrorist Organizations". U.S. Department of State. Archived from the original on 2021-08-25. Retrieved 2021-12-17.
- ^ Shirali, Mahnaz (2014). The Mystery of Contemporary Iran. Transaction Publishers. ISBN 978-1-351-47913-4.
- ^ Mickolus, Edward F. (1980). Transnational terrorism: a chronology of events, 1968-1979. Greenwood. ISBN 978-0-313-22206-1.
- ^ Arash Reisinezhad (2018). The Shah of Iran, the Iraqi Kurds, and the Lebanese Shia. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 8. ASIN B07FBB6L8Y.
- ^ "Clippings of Latin American political, social and economic news from various English language newspapers". ISLA. 12. April 1976.
- ^ Goulka, Jeremiah; Hansell, Lydia; Wilke, Elizabeth; Larson, Judith (2009). The Mujahedin-e Khalq in Iraq: a policy conundrum (PDF). RAND Corporation. p. 56. ISBN 978-0-8330-4701-4. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-02-22. Retrieved 2021-12-20.
- ^ Scott Horton (2012-04-09). "For Official Washington, Terrorism Is a Laughing Matter". Harper's. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved 2021-12-20.
- ^ Global Terrorism Database [Data file], National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), 1975-05-21, 197505210002, archived from the original on 2018-08-29, retrieved 2018-08-29
- ^ Dennis Pluchinsky. Anti-american Terrorism: From Eisenhower To Trump – A Chronicle Of The Threat And Response: Volume I: The Eisenhower Through Carter Administrations. World Scientific. pp. 54–55.
- ^ Albert V. Benliot (2001). Iran Outlaw, Outcast Or Normal Country?. Nova Science Publishers. p. 99.
- ^ Camp Ashraf: Iraqi Obligations and State Department Accountability: Joint Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations and the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, First Session, December 7, 2011. U.S. Government Printing Office. 2011. p. 160. ISBN 978-0-16-090501-8.
- ^ "Group claims responsibility for Iran deaths". The Bulletin. Archived from the original on 2021-12-17. Retrieved 2021-12-17.
- ^ The Air Force Office of Special Investigations, 1948-2000. United States Air Force Office of Special Investigations. 2008. pp. 332–333. OCLC 298116347.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-04-01. Retrieved 2018-03-31.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Trump Cabinet pick paid by controversial Iranian exile group". Associated Press. 24 April 2021. Archived from the original on 20 August 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
- v
- t
- e
- Embassy of Iran, Washington, D.C.
- Ambassadors of Iran to the United States
- Embassy of the United States, Tehran
- Ambassadors of the United States to Iran
- Interests Section of Iran in the United States
- Consulate-General of the United States, Tabriz
- Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs
- Iran–United States Claims Tribunal
- Iranian Directorate
- Iran Syria Policy and Operations Group
- Persian Corridor
- Persian Gulf Command
- Nationalization of the Iranian oil industry
- 1953 Iranian coup d'état
- Treaty of Amity, Economic Relations and Consular Rights
- Exercise Delawar
- Project Dark Gene
- Safari Club
- Island of Stability
- Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's letter to George W. Bush
- Correspondence between Barack Obama and Ali Khamenei
- Phone conversation between Barack Obama and Hassan Rouhani
- Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action
- Assassination of Paul R. Shaffer and John H. Turner
- Iranian Revolution
- Iran hostage crisis
- Beirut barracks bombings
- Khobar Towers bombing
- Lawrence Franklin espionage scandal
- Disappearance of Robert Levinson
- United States kill or capture strategy in Iraq
- United States raid on the Iranian Liaison Office in Erbil
- Kidnapping of Jalal Sharafi
- 2008 Naval dispute
- Project Cassandra
- Detention of American hikers
- United States diplomatic cables leak
- 2011 alleged Iran assassination plot
- Strait of Hormuz dispute
- RQ-170 incident
- MV Maersk Tigris
- 2016 Naval incident
- Nuclear program of Iran
- Kidnapping of Hossein Alikhani
- Arrest of Meng Wanzhou
- Deportation of Iranian students at US airports
- May 2019 Gulf of Oman incident
- June 2019 Gulf of Oman incident
- 2019 Iranian shoot-down of American drone
- 2019 K-1 Air Base attack
- December 2019 United States airstrikes in Iraq and Syria
- Attack on the United States embassy in Baghdad
- 2020 Iran explosions
- 2021 Erbil rocket attacks
- 2021 Natanz incident
- Leaked Mohammad Javad Zarif audiotape
- June 2021 United States airstrike in Syria
- July 2021 Gulf of Oman incident
- August 2021 Gulf of Oman incident
- 2021 U.S.–Iran naval incident
- 2022 Erbil missile attacks
- 2023 Northeastern Syria clashes
- Seizure of Suez Rajan and St Nikolas
- Attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq, Jordan, and Syria (2023–present)
- 2024 Erbil attack
- Tower 22 drone attack
- Iranian interference in the 2024 United States elections
- United States sanctions against Iran
- Executive Order 12170
- Executive Order 12172
- Executive Order 13769
- Executive Order 13780
- Executive Order 13876
- Iran and Libya Sanctions Act
- Iran Nonproliferation Act
- Iran, North Korea, Syria Nonproliferation Act
- Iran Freedom and Support Act
- Iran Sanctions Enhancement Act
- Kyl–Lieberman Amendment
- Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act
- Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act
- Public Law 113-100
- Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act
- Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act
- Dames & Moore v. Regan
- United States Diplomatic and Consular Staff in Tehran
- Oil Platforms case
- United States v. Banki
- Bank Markazi v. Peterson
- Certain Iranian Assets
- Rubin v. Islamic Republic of Iran
- Alleged violations of Treaty of Amity
- Iran Action Group
- Iran–America Society
- Iranian Students Association in the United States
- National Iranian American Council
- Organization of Iranian American Communities
- Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans
- United Against Nuclear Iran
- Farashgard
- Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
- Jundallah
- Kingdom Assembly of Iran
- National Council of Iran
- National Council of Resistance of Iran
- Elliott Abrams
- Howard Baskerville
- William J. Fallon
- Brian Hook
- Joseph Macmanus
- Robert Malley
- Stephen D. Mull
- Jon Pattis
- Erwin David Rabhan
- Jason Rezaian
- Scott Ritter
- Craig Wadsworth
- Michael R. White
- Roxana Saberi
- Saeed Abedini
- Saeid Aboutaleb
- Shahram Amiri
- Sirous Asgari
- Mahmoud Reza Banki
- Haleh Esfandiari
- Amir Mirza Hekmati
- Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil
- Shahrzad Mirgholikhan
- Mohammad Hosseini
- Esha Momeni
- Mohammad Mosaddegh
- Baquer Namazi
- Siamak Namazi
- Sahar Nowrouzzadeh
- Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince of Iran
- Noor Pahlavi
- Trita Parsi
- Maryam Rajavi
- Abdolreza Shahlaei
- Ali Shakeri
- Masoud Soleimani
- Morad Tahbaz
- Kian Tajbakhsh
- Karan Vafadari
- Xiyue Wang
- Nizar Zakka
- Iranian Guantanamo Bay detainees
- 1998 FIFA World Cup match
- Academic relations between Iran and the United States
- American Islam
- Anti-American sentiment in Iran
- Axis of evil
- CIA activities in Iran
- Copyright relations
- Death to America
- Dual containment
- Great Satan
- International Conference on Hollywoodism
- Iran and state-sponsored terrorism
- Iranian frozen assets
- Opposition to military action against Iran
- Our enemy is here, they are lying that it is America
- State Sponsor of Terrorism
- United States involvement in regime change
- United States and state-sponsored terrorism
- 650 Fifth Avenue
- Alborz High School
- American Institute of Iranian Studies
- American School of Isfahan
- Community School, Tehran
- Damavand College
- Iran Bethel School
- Iranzamin School
- Saint Peter Church, Tehran
- Tehran American School
- "Bomb Iran"
- Overthrow
- Not for the Faint of Heart