Could it be possible that in order to get softer treatment in the ongoing Iranian nuclear standoff, Iran essentially handed Zarqawi's location over to the U.S.?
Such an act would be an effective and face-saving maneuver for Iran; a token gesture that would, at least initially give the United States a reason to 'turn down the heat' over the nuclear issue.
"In fact, a credible Moroccan newspaper, La Gazette du Maroc, is affirming that Zarqawi was caught thanks to Iran and was the first gift to the US.
...Coincidence or not the US position softened around that time when for the first time Secretary of State Rice announced a possible ouverture to Iran."
Amid internal dissent and failures to follow through with campaign promises, Iranian President Ahmadinejad has in some quarters been called weak. Given his propensity toward an almost reckless level of saber-rattling this type of information trade-off would, if authorized by President Ahmadinejad, signal either an unwillingness to continue his 'damn the world' attitude toward the nuclear issue, or an internal division over it.
The recent formation of an intermediary advisory council on foreign policy by the Ayatollah Khameini is seen by some as lending credence to the latter of those two possibilities.
(Sources: Counterterrorism Blog, AKI)
technorati tags:Iran, Ahmadinejad, Nuclear, enrichment, Ayatollah, Khameini, Zarqawi, Iraq, Terrorism
