Arj O mand

Sabeti

Can ou tell us, how is life hidden like a Rat with a family???

What is happend bog mouth, come out and say some-things.

Why hidden? this free world, remember when killing people still I remember you Sabeti.

Dei like a man not like a Rat or Soosk, good name for you Soosk.

Sabeti, SAVAK and torture

Rat how long will take we find you.

Sabeti, just watch, we will find you soon.

Rat can not hide for a long time, cat is waiting.

Arj

Arj, for a blog that is covering such serious subject, why did you post a photoshopped picture?

I am referring to the photo of the man chained to the bed. I have done a lot of graphics work and even without zooming, I could tell from some of the horizontal lines in the man's arms and body that this is a photoshopped picture. Upon closer examination, the man's left under arm is clearly (and clumsily) altered. The bed's frame is running through the man's right arm, as though his arm is transparent. Also, the light angle is such that it does not match the shades on the man's clothing covering his mid-section.

I am not claiming that I am a pro, but even with my amateur experience, I could have done a better job than this.

But my point is that if you want to write about such sensitive subject, at the very least and out of respect, please don't use a photoshopped picture that cries foul/lie all over. It will end up having the reversed effect that you are seeking.

I would like to kindly ask you to please remove this photo and use another.

......

The fact of the matter is : Back in the 70 late shah was trying to restore Iran as decision makers of middle east look at Oil embargo of 73 during Amozegar and its impact for the American

change the country's name to persia and use the 25XX for our calender

he is gone and............

now if they (western govts) can switch the conflict in persian gulf..

maybe there will be a peace between Israel & palestine.

Maziar

Zero tolerance

In the case of torture, all progressives from across the political spectrum should show zero tolerance.  Every possible case under the Shah and under IR should be documented and openly spoken about (given the victim's consent).

The chronic violence in our society (Iran) is the elephant in the room.  

We have to talk about it and often. It takes a lot of courage for the victims of torture to come forward.  It is important that they recount exactly what happened to them and no more and no less.

Thank you Arj for the blog, I have to say the picture of the blog is disturbing but I know that so is the topic.  

Re Arj

To those of us who are unable to maintain a civil, respectful dialogue; sorry, but I'd rather decline engaging in a conversation with you! However, I assure you that there are many other blogs on here in which participants would share your mannerism and language, and I'm sure you'll be welcomed and quite at home there!

Re the picture used above; here is the link to Payvand News which originally (as far as I know) published the pictures under the title "Ebrat Museom..." which is about the "Komiteh Zed-e Kharabkari," the very prison where in part the torture of the victims in the video above had taken place: //www.payvand.com/news/12/feb/1092.html

Arj

What a nonsense blog this is. Can you actually name me at least one hundred of the "thousands" of Iranians allegedly tortured by Savak. 

Houshang Asadi, in his book 'Letters to my torturer'  (Oneworld), explained that during the reign of the Shah he was frequently arrested and sent to prison only to be released a short time afterwards. During his time in prison he even met and befriended the one armed bandit Syed Ayhatollah Khamenei, the future supreme leader and anti-Christ of Iran. He was then arrested by the Islamic Republic which he actively campaigned for and sent to 682 days of solitary confinement and tortured. 

See the following link:

 //www.youtube.com/watch?v=wq_bWz2cUOM

Other Iranians have also contrasted the harshaness by which the IR Terror Regime deals with poltical dissent with that of the Shah. Even the idiot Mir Hussein Mousavi has admitted in his own words that the Terrorist Regime is "even more brutal than the Shah"- and this is coming from Khomeini's former prime minister! 

The fact is Arj, like so many Iranian political activists in the 1970's, you are now living in exile which tells you exactly the world of difference between living under the Shah and living under Khomeini. Khomeini gave no hostages to fortune and if you or people like the singer Dariush Eghbali gave him any crap he would kick the living crap out of you. No messing about. Your zabun derazi only worked for the Shah and you wouldn't dare mess about with the brutal pschopath Khomeini and that speaks volume of how much more tolerant the Shah was.  

Also please spare us the rubbish propaganda picture which you have taken from the Terrorist Mehr News Agency to commemorate the oprning of the Savak Toture museum in Iran. You might be giving away more than you think..... 

Re Arj

Dear Aria, Im not rewriting history here, but rather reflecting a message which I believe has been long overdue both with regards to violation of human rights during the Pahlavi regime in general, and in response to Sabeti's unfounded recent claims in particular. I have many many issues with what you're trying to pass as facts and/or historical events, but this blog is not intended to revisit our recent history. However, IMHO, if you believe that SAVAK did not torture and Sabety is innocent, you're entitled to your opinion, just as an IRI-supporter is entitled to his/her opinion that there is no torture under the Islamic regime! 

................................ 

Darius,  I'm not sure what you mean by authority, but I'm not trying to challenge Sabeti's "authority," I just believe that he's a criminal just as I believe Saeed Mortazavi is one! What does that have to do with authority?! 

................................ 

MRX1, A Hezbollhi also believes that there should be a secretive penal/prison system and torture in order to maintain status quo! Crimes committed by secret police don't always leave a conspicuous track behind, just as Saeid Emami had been murdering political dissidents of IRI for nearly two decades (e.g. Dr. Sami, various PMOI members, and even a priest...), and only got caught when he came under pressure politically (for the murder of Foruhars, Mokhtari, Pouyande), yet getting away with the rest! That doesn't mean he's not guilty of the rest, for there are witnesses and circumstantial evidences that uphold in a court of law!

Plus we're not going to be Switzerland, because were not Switzerland, but that does not mean that we have to torture each other for our political views! India is not a switzerland, but people are free to pursue whatever political path they wish!

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MK jan thanks for the links.

Who is Mr. Emad Baghi?

Emad Baghi was an opponent of the previous regime with university background (professor) and expertise in statistics, who took it upon himself to establish as to how many people had actually died in the hands of SAVAK.

He looked at coroner’s office (Pezeshk-e-ghanuni) records, old newspapers, Imperial Military Court verdicts, ran ads on newspaper for family members of the killed ones to step  forward with their information, interviewed of members of Fedayian and Mojaheddin, and reviewed  Savak archives.

His findings put the number around 300 plus or minus.  This included those who were killed in street battles, executed by firing squad or died in prison while under interrogation.   The 300 or so also included the 9 prisoners who died on the hills of Evin.  The number also included the Tudeh party officers (30 or so), who had been executed by the military prior to the establishment of Savak. 

He also established that close to 2,000 people had died during street battles of the 1979 Revolution with the army.  There were a few hundred also killed during the 1963 uprising street battles. 

His numbers were so low and in such a contrast with the revolutionary days’ claims that the IRI leaders forced him to keep quiet and not reveal his findings.  They were claiming that thousands and thousands people had been killed by Savak but Mr. Baghi revealed a reality that they did not wish to surface.

Emad Baghi fell out of favor by IRI and was subsequently put in jail a number of times after the revolution for his activities.

Reza Baraheni's Crowned Cannibals

//www.amazon.com/The-crowned-cannibals-Writings-repression/dp/0394723570

Professor Khosrow Shakeri on Sabeti's LIES

Professor Khosrow Shakeri Zand on Sabeti's LIES:

//jebhemelli.net/htdocs/Historical&Social/ShakeriZandK_Sabeti.html

Monarchists are charlatans and liars. 

let's be real

Iran will always need some kind of a security agency (last i checked it's not located next to switzerland) , you can call it savak or any other name you want. post IRI you will have another agency,  like it or not. Do I approve  of thier methods? no not really but how would  you extract information from islamo facists,  by giving them love and underestanding?

 The only assisination that savak performed was killing of teymore bakhtiar. beyond that find us a shred of evidence to backup your assisination claims and i will take your postings then word by word. by the way if savak was brtual how come all the so called revoutionery reader are healthy and sor o mor gondeh.

->arvisz Sabeti (SAVAK's head of internal security) under whose direct
->supervision the execution, assassination, imprisonment and torture of
->thusands of political prisonsers.

Savak Policy

Savak due to its mandate and responsibility was extremely sensitive to groups that carried out armed guerilla activities, bombings and assassinations.  If a member of these groups were arrested ,Savak asserted pressure to extract information to find out about the group’s  safe-houses, other members activities and other imminent terrorist operations in order to avert them.  So, in these cases there were sleep depravation, flogging and roughing up of the prisoner to the extent that the prisoner would reveal his information so that the cell could be broken up. 

Today, as we speak, US and West, are struggling with the issues of Abu Gharib, water-boarding,  and rendition programs.

There are those in the West who completely disagree with these methods, and that is fine as long as they are in the safety of their houses in London, Paris, New York and Los Angeles.     But, what if a terrorist operation affected them: blew up their loved ones and affected them personally, would their idealist view still stand or would they react differently and expect that their government do whatever that is needed in order to protect them?  

That is a question one must think about twice.

Savak never had a policy of wide-spread torture for those   who were arrested, for whatever reason.  There were many opponets of the previous regime who were arrested by Savak for their anti-government activities but were never tortured, a famous one is the author Shahrnous Parsipour (the lasdy is still around).

Were there psychological intimidations?  Of course there were.

Were a few students slapped here and there?  Of course there were.

Were there cases that one was not part of an armed guerrilla group but still was mistreated?  Of course there were, but those were exceptions and not part of Savak general practice or policy.

For more about this particular issue I recommend the book written by General Manoochher Hashemi, the head of 8th Division, Counter Espionage, of Savak.

Dear Arj

I have a question for you.What authority or credential you have to disqualify Parviz Sabeti 's statement?

Why Parviz Sabeti is not as credible as Masood Rajavi or all other groups?

Dear Arj

I have a question for you.What authority or credential you have to disqualify Parviz Sabeti 's statement?

Why Parviz Sabeti is not as credible as Masood Rajavi or all other groups?

Pre-and-revolutionary days talk/perception of Savak

It was rumored that there were 100,000 political prisoners in Iran before the revolution.  This turned out to be a big lie.  The number of political prisoners ranged anywhere between 1,500 and  3,500 during different periods.

It was rumored that daughters were raped in front of their fathers.   Thirty-three years later there is not one single documented/verified/confirmed case that one was raped.  Not even one person has stepped forward, even anonymously in front of any entity, to prove these allegations.    

It was said that Mr. Sabeti had personally (please forgive me for repeating it here) peed into Ms. Azzam Taleghani’s mouth.   This, along with many other lies, were mentioned wide-spread in those days.   Finally, both Ms. Taleghani and her father, Ayatollah Taleghani, issued statements refuting these rumors.   

origin

The discussion about SAVAK cannot be complete unless it is carried out within the context of the discussion of the understanding and analysis of  the recent history of the Iranian Politics.

SAVAK was created as the result of Tudeh party’s activities and the political violence that preceded the 1960s – e.g. Ahmad Kasravi’s assassination by Fedayeian Islam, Mohammd Masoud by Tudeh Party (masterminded by Kianuri and carried out by Khosro Ruzbeh). 

Mr. Arj

I will address the following topics individually, but not necessarily in the order indicated below:

• Street talk and perception of Savak before and during revolution
• Savak’s policy on torture
• Who is Mr. Emad Baghi, why his research was important, and why IRI suppressed his report?
• Savak’s treatment of prisoners during three periods – Teymour Bakhtiar, Nassiri and Moghadam
• Policy versus practice
• 1975/1976 Human Rights Report about Savak
• The incident at the Shoe Store
• The Hills of Evin ( 9 prisoners)
•  Mr. Sabeti's recent interview

   I will add on to the above topics as I will see relevant to the subject of the discussion.    

Respectfully,

Mr. Arj

Thank you for providing this blog as it is very sensitive and important topic, regardless of one's belief system.

Due to the complexity of the issue I will divide up my comments between different sub-topics and welcome comments back.

I will follow up shortly on each sub-topic.

Respectfully,