Ex-diplomat accuses Iran of causing deadly Hajj stampede

A former Iranian diplomat has alleged that six Iranian Revolutionary Guard officers were responsible for the Hajj stampede which led to the death of at least 700 Muslims during the annual pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. It was, claimed Farzad Farhangian, part of a plot by Tehran to stir-up violence during the pilgrimage season.

Farhangian defected from Iran in 2010 and sought asylum in Norway. He made his allegation in a blog written in Arabic. “I have warned earlier of a planned terror operation by the Khamenei regime during the pilgrimage season,” he wrote. “I have full trust in my information source.”

The Iranian exile worked as press attaché at the Iranian Embassy in Brussels before seeking asylum in Oslo. He added that after the incident several statements were issued by the Khamenei regime which exceed all political norms. “What are the reasons for that?”

Investigations will condemn the Iranian regime for its involvement in fabricating the stampede, said Farhangian. “The operation which took place [near Makkah] is a terrorist operation. There were more than 5,000 Revolutionary Guards among the Iranian pilgrims. The plot aimed to cause a much higher number of deaths among pilgrims but the Saudi security agencies’ swift response foiled the operation.”

The six senior Revolutionary Guard officers alleged to be involved in the incident were named by Farhangian. They are all, he claimed, commanders within the elite Special Forces Unit 400 entrusted with foreign operations.

The high number of Iranian military and political personnel going for Hajj this year has raised many questions. Among the most notable was the former Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, Ghadanfar Rokon Abadi, who is reported to be missing.