(Combating Terrorism Center at West Point) Dr. Matthew Levitt - Over the past 40-plus years, the Islamic Republic of Iran has targeted dissidents, Western opponents, Israelis, and Jews in assassination plots, abduction plots, and surveillance operations. This study, based on data from 98 Iranian plots from 1979 through 2021, maps out key trends in Iranian external operations plotting. Iran continues to engage in such activities because it can. Western states should ensure that Iran faces consequences, including diplomatic isolation, for abusing diplomatic privilege and sending its representatives abroad to participate in attacks and assassinations on foreign soil. The writer, a former counterterrorism official with the FBI and Treasury Department, is director of the Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
2022-02-28 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive