In November 1986 a story in a Lebanese magazine appeared in which high ranking members of the U.S. government were accused of having funneled money to
Nicaraguan contra rebels which was raised by weapon sales to Iran. Two facts came to light which shocked the whole American nation:- The CIA had - allegedly with the knowledge of
Everything was planned by three members of the NSC (National Security Council), they were
McFarlane, Admiral John M. Poindexter and Lieutnant Colonel Oliver North, and last but not least President Reagan, even if both the Tower Commission and the Congressional Committee never were able to directly link the President to scandal.According to the Report of the Congressional Committees investigating the Iran-Contra Affair the arm-sales to Iran which began in the summer of 1986 were send through Israel, allegedly after receiving the approval of President Reagan.
The report also reveals that Israel was involved. From 1985 the Iranian arms merchant Manucher Ghorbanifar and National Security Council consultant Michael Ledeen and the
NCS-Advisor Robert McFarlane secretly negotiated with Israel's Prime Minister Shimon Peres. Finally, Peres agreed to sell weapons to Iran at America's behest, but Israel demanded "a clear express and binding consent by the U.S. Gouvernment." According to McFarlane's statement in front of the Congressional committee he first received President Reagan's approval in July 1985, he orally authorized the first sale of weapons to Iran. The shipment of HAWK missiles happened in November 1985. In Dezember 1985 President Reagan again decided to sell weapons to the Iranians, but those weapons come directly from U.S. supplies.The salaries made from the transactions with the Iranians was funneled to Nicaraguan "contra"-rebels. The money was transferred, if you believe speculations, via a banks in Spain and Luxembourg and the Vatican Bank.
Like mentioned before the Congress had forbidden any military, direct and indirect, aid to the Nicaraguan contras. As a consequence any actions of the CIA, the NCS and NCA were direct violations of U.S. law.
According to the committees' report, NSC aide Lt. Col. Oliver North first used money from the Iran operation to fund the Nicaraguan resistance in November 1985. McFarlane later testified that the diversion of funds to the Contras was proposed to him by Ghorbanifar during a meeting in January 1986.
Saudi billionaire oil and arms trader Adnan Khashoggi stated in a television-interview,that he advanced $1 million to help finance the first arms shipment in the Iran Contra arms scandal and put up $4 million for the second shipment. According to the President's special review board, which was led by former Sen. John Tower, a foreign official (allgedly Saudi King Fahd) donated between $1 million to $2 million monthly from July 1984 to April 1985 to support covert financing for the Contras. Saudi Arabia denied any aid to the Nicaraguan rebels, but the New York Times reported the contribution may have been part of a 1981 secret agreement between Riyadh and Washington "to aid anti communist resistance groups around the sophisticated American AWACS radar planes, according to United States officials and others familiar with the deal."
The aftermath of the scandal:
President Reagan appointed a review board chaired by former Republican senator John Tower. The Tower Commission's report in February 1987 criticized the president's passive management style. In a nationwide television address on March 4, Reagan accepted the report's judgment without serious disagreement and also accepted the responsibility for the actions of other gouvernment officals.
Other select committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives held televised hearings from May to August. They heard speculations about a few members of the NSC (National Security Council) staff who set Iran and Nicaragua policies that the few officials who knew about these policies lied to Congress and other. Furthermore Independent Counsil Lawrence E.Walsh wrote his
Reports of the Independent Counsil, in which he published the results of his researches.Former national security advisor John Poindexter stated that he personally authorized the diversion of money and withheld that information from the president. The extent of
William J. Casey's involvement, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, remained in doubt. Clearly, however, the bizarre events shook the nation's faith in President Reagan and damaged U. S. prestige abroad.
Judgements
On March 11, 1988 Poindexter's predecessor as national security advisor, Robert McFarlane was pleaded guilty to criminal charges "of withholding information from Congress on secret aid to the contras." A year later he was fined $20,000 and given two years probation.
On March 16, 1988 North, Poindexter, and two other persons were indicted on a number of charges including "conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government". In July the court fined North $150,000 and gave him a three-year suspended sentence. The North convictions were later replaced by another court, which found defects in the trial procedure. On April 7, 1990, Poindexter was convicted on 5 counts of deceiving congressional investigators and sentenced to six months in prison.
For further information concerning the sentences look at
The Timeline.
EXTRA
The contras received only a small part of the diverted money. Many of involved persons deverted money not only to the contras, but also to their private bank accounts, in case of future financial difficulties.
The inofficial version
We have found another interesting article on an internet page called
The BIG SKY PATRIOT . The article is named " A CIA Funding Operation" was written by Gene Tatum and published on 12/28/96. It deals with maybe invented information about the Iran-Contra affair which were not verified, yet.The CIA especially William Casey arranged a short term loan of $8 billion from Banco Nacional de Panamá. The money was split in half. One half was sent to Iran to purchase "super bills". A super bill is a perfectly faked U.S. bill. These bills were printed by an Intaglio press which was sold to the Shah of Iran in the late 60s. The Shah was also given the plates, ink and paper necessary to successfully print U.S. dollars in large denominations. This was given to the Shah by the CIA. The Shah left the press, plates, ink and paper for the Iranian Revolutionary Councils when he fled in late 1978. The Iran printed two counterfeited U.S. bills for one bill they have got: As they received $4 billion from the CIA they printed $8 billion "super bills". Oliver North, who was commissioned by Vice President George Bush to oversee the Iranian connection, then delivered the $8 billion in super bills back to the Banco Nacional de Panamá.
The second half of the loan was sent to a launderer who was able to move large acounts of money around the world without leaving any trap. This was - as the "Big Patriot Sky" assumes - Nana Debusia.
The CIA now sells Iran arms and equipment of $4 billion worth in order to get the original $4 billion of "original" currency back. Now, the CIA has $4 billion to use in funding covert activities without relying on Congressional authority.
Nana Debusia has laundered the other $4 billion through various banks and received $200.000 wage for a well done job.
The CIA kept $4 billion to use in unauthorized "black ops" and other $3.8 billion in private numbered accounts which were controlled by the constructors of the funding operation.
