Documents déposés à la Cour après le dépôt de la demande en indication de mesures conservatoires

INTERNATIOCOUROF JUSTICE

PLEADING,RAL ARGUMENTS, DOCUMENTS

CASE CONCERNING UNITED STATES
DIPLOMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

IN TEHRAN

(UNITESTATESOAMERlCAWIRAN)

COUR INTERNATIDEJUSTICE

MEMOIRES,PLAIDOIRIESET DOCUMENTS

AFFAIRE RELATIVEAU PERSONNEL

DIPLOMATIQUE ET CONSULAIRE

DES ÉTATS-UNIS À TÉHÉRANDOCUMENTS SUBMITTED TO THE COURT
AFTERTHE FILINGOF THE REQUEST FOR
THE INDICATION OF PROVISIONAL
MEASURES

DOCUMENTS PRÉSENTÉSA LA COUR

APRÈSLE DEPOT
DELA DEMANDEEN INDICATION
DE MESURES CONSERVATOIRES BECLARATION OF DAVID D. NFWM, UNDER SECRETAKYQF STATE, OF
6 DECEMREK 1979, WITH APPENDICES

1, David D. Newsorn,certify and declare the following:

1.1am Under Sacrctary for Political Affairsof the United StatesDcpariment
of State. 1have bccn vested by thc Secretaryof State wlth overall responsibility
within the Departmeni For matters relating to the crisis in Iran, and 1 am
thoroughly familiar with thc actions taken by the United Statin the coursc of
that crisis.
2. 1 understand that the Prcsident of the International Courtof Justice.has
askcd LheAgent of the United States to answer certain specificquestions and
supply copies of spcciiied documents. In the succeeding paragraphs of this
statcment 1set Fortheach of the spccificinquiriesand the responscof the United
States thereto.
3. The Prcsident ofthe Court hasasked" Whui, ifan)? exchangeshave taken
plucehc~ween theGovcrnmentsof the UnrtedS~urt. ~ndIrnn regnrdingrecoursetu
arbitration,conciliarionoranyothrrpacifiemeunsfiirlhesettlernen~nfthepresent
dzj'erences.?"he answer is as ~ollows:

On 7 November 1979, the Secrciasy of Statc inslructed Ramsey Clark,
Esquire, formcr Attorney-Gcncral of the United States, to travel to Iran to
deliver a mcssage from the President of the United States Lo the Ayütollah
Khomeini and to seek thc immediate rclease of the hostages. The Iraniün
Government initially agrccd to receiveMr. Clark in Tehrün. Shortly aftcr Mr.
Clark landcd inIstanbul, where he was to change planes, Iranian anthorities
reversedthernselvesand stated that Mr. Clark should not corneto Iran.Tchran
radio thai sameday broadcast a mcssage[rom Ayatollah Khomeini stating that
it wüs "not possible under any circumsiances for the special reprcscntatives to
mcct wilh him", that "the membcrs of the IslamicRevolutionary Council under
no circumstanccsshould meet with them", that "none ofthe responsibleoficials
has the nght to meet with them", and that, should the United States mcct
speçifiedIranian demands, "the way to lalkswould bc opened". Since thattirne,
Iranian aurhorities indicated that they would havc no direci contact with
representativesof the United States Govcrnment concerning the holdsngof the
hostages.
Thc United States Government has pcrsistedin itseffortstoopen communica-
tions with the Government of Iran and has tüken the rollowing sieps: The
United States has comrnunicated positions on various matters relating to the
crisisio the Iranian ChargédlA@diresin Washington. We have askcd him for
Iran'sçornments.At othcr tirnes, we havc put specificqucstions to theChar-gi.
d'Affaires.He has not been able to respond to questions relatingto the releaseor
the hostagcs.
The Unitcd States Govcrnment has also atiernpted to cstablish'comrnunica-
lions with thc Iranian represcntative at the United NationHe and the staff of
the Iranlan Missionhave reîused to havcctinlact with our representativcs.While
there had beensomehopc that Iran would rollowthrough on its pledgc EOsenda
represcntaiivefrom Tchran to participialein SecurityCouncil meetingsand thus
provide an opportunity for dialoguc, Iran did not doso.

' Seep. 499, infrü. DOCUMENTS 45

authorities evidcncingthe rnattcrs allegedin the Unitcd States Application or 24
Novembcr 1979. As indicatcd in paragraph 3, above, the United States
Government has reccivedno such cornmunicaliondirectlyfrom Iranian authori-
States Embassy in Tehran was seizcd,thc Iranian and world9press have carricd
many reports of statements by the Ayatollah Khomeini, persons idcntifiedas
mcmbers of the Rcvolutionary Council, and persons idcntified as holding
specifiç senior governrnental positions. ln addition, the governrnentally con-
trolled Iranian broadcast mcdia have carried stütcmenis issued in tname of
the group holding thc embassy, describcd as "îollowers of thc Imam", and
cxtcnsivecommentary. During this pcriod, il hasheen dificult for the Gavern-
ment of the United States to evaluale the accuracy, authosity and status of the
various rcported statements. Furlher, there has bacverylarge volumeof such
reported statcments. AppendixCcontains a collection of someof thcstatements
involved,but 1 canoot represcnt lo the Court that we have ben informcd of al1
such statcmcnts, or that this collation is complcte.
8.The Prcsident of the Court has requestcddetails of the numbcr or persons
includcd respectivelyin the diplornatic, administrative, technical, consular and
scrvicestaffwho arc thesubject of the Uniled States applicalion and requesi of
29Novemher 1979.At least 51pcrsonsare in these.catcgories.To the best my
knowledge,at lçast 28 of the United States nationals currently held hostage in
the embassyare diplornaticstaffand at least 20are membersof the administra-
tivc andtechnicalstaff'.The 3 United States emhassy oficials in custody at the
Iranian Foreign Ministry are membcrs ofthe diplornatislaff1wishto draw the
Court's attention to theact that, in addition, there are currently hoslagz in the
Ernbassy inTehran, to the best of rnyknowledge,2 UnitedStatcs nationals wha,
allhough they do not qualifyas "diplomalic, administrative, technical,consular
or servicestaff', are nontheless, likc al1other United States nationals in Iran;
nationals of oneofthe High Contracting Partieswithin the meaningof ArticleII
or the Treaty of Arnity, Economiç Relations and Consular Rights bctweenihe
United Statcsand rsan. Al1United States nationals Iran are equallyeniitled to
protection, including in the present circumstances, the right to depart.

David D. NEWSOM.

Washington, D.C.
6 December 1979.

Seepp. 503-50infrti. AppendixA

LETSER DATEU 9 NOVEMDE 1974 FROM THEPERMANER NTP~ENTATIV EF
THE UNITEDSTA.I,L%îAMERIC TO THE UNI~EIN) ATIONADDRESSE 1'0THE
PKFSIDEW OFTTHE SECURIT CYOUHCIL

On 4 Novembcr 1979the AmcricanEmbassyin Tehranwas occupicdand the
Americandiplomalic pcrsonnel on its premisesweretaken and held by a graup
of Iranians. Al1efforts to secure thcir release,including an offer of discussions
withemissarics,have so far been unavailing.
This actionand the support it has receivcdsttike al thc fundamental noms by
which States maintain communication and violate thc very basis for the
mainlenancc of international peacc and securofycomity between States.
We consequcntlyrequestthat the SeçurityÇouncil urgentlyconsiderwhat miglit
be done to securc the release of the diplomatic personne1being hcld and to
restore thc sanclity of diplomaiic pcrsonnel and cstablishments.

(Signed) Donald F.MCHENRY.

STATBMB NTAMBASSADD ORNAI,UF. MCHENRY U,NI^^ STATES
PERMANEN RIEPRESENTA'T TOITHE UNITED NATIONS I,TIIESBCURITY
COUNCIL UN THE SI+I.WATIONIKAN,1 DECEWH E97%

Mr. Prcsident:
Twcnty-sevendüysagn, 63Amcricansaswcllas personnel of other nationali-
tieswcrcseizedwhenan arrned.disciplinecigrQUpof demonsirators invadedIhc
United Statcs Embassy in Tehran. Eighteeof those capturcd have bcen
rclcascd. Aleast 59Americans rcmain captive.
As with diplomats everywhcrc, the individuals who wcre taken hostagc aie
entiilcd to the protection of ihe Govcrnmçni of Iran hy thc most solemn

corninitment natiocan give-thc sovereign pledge ofgovernments by trcaty
and international obligation.
Governments retain thrightto require that foreign diplornatic personnel
leaveihcir soil. Buteverystandard of intcrnational bchaviour, whcrcestablished
by practice, by cthbytreaty or by common humanity supportsthe principle
thal thepcrsonnda diplornaticmissionand diploinaticpropcrty are inviolatc.
Evcn in the darkcst moments of relationships betwecn countries, thc security
and wcll-beinordiplomatic personnel haveken respected.
Iran asks that ils gricvances be hcard and açtcd upon. Yct Iran, and the
authoritics who speak l'orit, are violating the most basicobligation of nations.
They hold hostagethe vcrypeoplewho facilitateLhosccommunicatiotlsthat can
rcsolvediîTerencand lead to underslandand agrccment arnong nations.
Nonc of US,whatever our differences on other issues, can ignore the
implicationsbr al1of us af this evcnt.
Nor can thc world ignorethat thescdiplornaticrcpresentativcsare beinghcld
under degrading conditions. They arc threatened, kept bound, isolated, not
allowcdtospeak, dcniedmail.Evcntheir whcrcabouts arc uncertain. Al1of us at
thislablc are also diplomatic represcntarivesoiour couniries, charged withthe
same dulies and protectcd by the samcandwrulcs of conduct as those now
Iicldcaptivein Tchra€isfor alofustospeak uptodemand thcir releaseand48 -UIPLOMATIC AND CONSU WR STAFF

thai includes, of coursc, respect for the Lcrritorialintegrily, political indepen-
dence and sovereignty of Iran. We respect Lherght of rhe people of Irata
determine their own future through institutions of ~heirown choosing. Al1of us
must açcept their dccisions.
Thc President or the United States, speaking foa unified and determined
nation, hasmadeit clearthat wcarc seekina peaccfulresolutioto thisconflict
sothat the woundsof the pst çanbc healed.In Lhisspirit, the United Statcs has
turned to LheSccurity Counciland the Swretary-Gencral in the search for a
pcacefulsoluliun. In this spirit, the Unitcd States has bcgun proceedings inthe
lntcrnational Courtof Justice.
Thcrc 1sin the Uniied Statcs a unity of purpadisciplincdsensitivityto thc
needs of pcace, a deteminütion to searcout al1peaceful means to bringthis
disputc to a just conclusion,and aasdelcrminaiion to do what must be donc
toprolecl our kllow citi~ensand the ruleZaw.That unity or purposisshared
by al1Amcricans. But make no rnistake. Benealh rhat discipline is a seething

ünger which Amcricans properly fecl as they witness on daily televisLonncw
lhreats and outrages against their fellowcitizens.
The hostages must be Frccd

STATEME~ DY AMHASSADD OORNALIF ~. MCHENKY U,NITEDSTATES
PI:KMANER NETPRESEN'~AT TIVTIIEWNI'I.ENDATIONS ,NTHE SEFURITY
COUNF~ ON THE SITUATIO NNIRAN, 4 DECEMBE1 979
Mr. President,

The 15 menibcrs of theSecurity Council in lheir action today havc given
unanimouscxprcssiononce more to their urgeniça11on the Governmcnt of Iran
Forthe imrnediale and unconditional rclease oc the hostages of our Embassy
bcing held in Tehran. Thcy have called on the Governmcnt of IraIoprovide
the hostagcs protectionand to allow lhem to lcavethe counlry. It isclear Êrom
this voteand from thedebaseofthclast four days, in whichreprescntativesfrom
al1parts or Ihc world have participatcd, that the Fdmilyof nations spcaks with
onc voice in calling fothe immediaterelcascof the hostÿgcs.WC are deeply
appreciative.
We hope thatthiscal1ofthe Security Councilwillbe hccded and çarried out
by the Govcrnment of Iran in a matter of hnurs. Whateverthe tirnerequired, we
urge the Secrctary-General, in the cxcrcise of his good offices,to provide al1
humanitarian support possible to thosç bcing detained against their will. We
rernain deepIyconcerned for Lhcirsafety, their wcll king and their hcalth on
this, their thiriieih day of sufferingand isolation.
The Unitcd States wishes to place on the record that the adoptiof this
resalutian by the Secunty Couiicil cIearEyis noLintcnded to displacc peaceful
cffortsin other organs of the Uniied Nations. Neither LheUnited States nor any
othcr Member intends that the adoption of this resolulion should have any
prejudicial impact whatevcr on the request of the United States Tor the
indication of provisionalmcasures of protection by the International Cofrt
Justice.
With the hostagcsreleased. the rcsolution calls on Governrnents of Iran
and the United Statcsto take urgent stcpto resolve pcaoefullythe remaining
issues bctween them in accordance with tticpurposes and principlesof ihc
Charter ofthc UnitedNations. Thc United Slatesisfiillyprepared 10CO-operate
with this call.
Many speakersin thisdebate havealso referredto thc grievancofthe pçople
of Iran-1 myself did so when 1 remarked that: "None of us is deaf to the
passionate voices thaspeak of injustice,that cry out against past wrongs andthatask Torunderstanding. Thereis not a singlegrievance allcgcd or spoken in
this situation that could not bc heard in an appropriate forum." The Security
Council has now also noted those grievanccs in its acknowledgement of thc
Iranian lctter of 13November 1979.
Neither thcUnited Statesnor the other mcmbcrs of the community of nations
hasa desire to isolate Iran. WCare al1Members of the United Nations. Let us
then, al1of us,be true tothc purposes and principles of thc Charter which we
have gledged ourselvcs to honour. The President mct with seniorforefgnpoliçy advisers khismorning to discuss
thc sitiiatiinIran.
The US has bccn given assurances by the authorities in Iran that the safety
and well-king of Americans will be protectcd.
The US expcçtsthat these assurancewiI1bc honoured.
In thc meantirne,wcare doingevcrythingpossibleta securethc releaseof our
embassy staff. We do not considcr public commcnt on thesc effortto be
appropriatcO: helpful whilethey are in progress.

STA'TEME ATTSPECIAB LRIEFMC-WEDNESD7 AYC, ~VEM~1B 979-5.02 P.M.
ON THE RFCORD UNLESO S T~RWISIN .:OTED
Mr. Cr~rtu:As 1 said earlier today, lranian authorities ligrccdto receivcour
emissaries.Howevcr,we wereinformed this afternoon by Lhcauthorities in Iran

thakMr. Clark and Mc. Millershould not proceed to Tehraatthis time. Thcy
willremainin Istanbul pcndingclarifiçation ofthe positionof theGovernmenkof
Iran. 1t is our hope ihas thcy will be ablc to proceed with their missionat the
carliest opportunity.

S'I;~~TEM DYNSECRETAR YF STAT EYRUS R. VANCE-THURSDAY,
7NOVEMBE 1979, 3.2P.M.

Sccrctary Vance:Cood afternoon, I'm sorrto have keptyou waiting.
S~ncethe firstwvrd that our ernbassy had been taken over in Tehran, thc
Prcsident aidedby hls seniur advisers, has been dirccting the efforts of aur
Government to securc the saferelcasc of our pcople. We havc, been assurcd
rcpcatedly Iliat those being hhave no1 bccn physiçallharmed. WCcxpect
those assurances10bc observed.
The situation 1sextrernelydificult and dcli1am surc that al1Amcricans
understand the efforts we are pursuing çannot take placc in the glare of
publiciiyLet me assureyou, howevçr,that we are pursuing every avenue open
tous tosecurethc safeand eürly releaseofour people.Our actions willcontinue
to he guidcd by ihis ovcrriding objcctivc.
Let me say in particultothe familiesof those being heldin Tehran twet
understaridFullyynur anguish and wewillcontinue to work around thc clack to
achievetheir rclcase.
WC have announced our readiness to havc personal reprcsentatives of the
Presidcnt goto Iran to diseuss with the lranian authorilies tbe release ofour
embassypeople. Many governmentsand others have been helping.We appre~i-

ate thosc efforts.
We necd the continucd support of the American peopIe aWC pursue thesc
cflartsIIisa.time not for rhctoric but for quiet, careffimandiplomacy.
In this situation, theed Stateskasno higherobligation than to do al1thal
it cantuprotecl the livofAmerican citizens.Wcwill honour that obligation.
Thank you.
*** DOCUMENTS 5 1

STATEMEN BT THE HONORABC LYERUS R. VANCE S,ECRFTA OKYSTATE,
CiisCERNiNG THFSI.I.VATIOINNIRAN8 , NDVEMBE1R 979

Since the first word that aur Embüssy had been takcn ovein Tehran, thc
Prcsident, aided by his senior advisers, has been directing thc cOCoour
Government to securethe safe rclease of our wople.
We havc been assured rcpcütedly that thosc being held have not been
physicallyharmedW . c cxpect thosassurancesto be observed.
The situation is ex~remelydifficultand delic1am sure that ai1Americans
understand that the efforts arc pursuing cannot take place in the glare of
publicity. Let me assureyou, however,thaWC are pursuing everyavenueopen
to us to sccurethesafeand carlyrelease.Our actions willcontinue to bcguided
by that overriding objectivc.
Let mcSay, inparticulartothe familieofthose beingheldin Tehran that we
understand fullyyour anguish and wewillcontinueo work around thedock to
achicveiheir release.
WChave announçed our readiness to havc the persona1reprcscntativesof the
Prcsident goto Iran to discuss with thc lranian authorities the release of our
embassypeoplc.
Many govcrnmentsand othcrs have beenhelping.Weappreciate thosccfforls.
We nccd the continued support of the Arncricün people as we pursue these
efforts.Ttis a time, not for rhetbutcfor quiet, careful, and firm diplomacy.
In thissituation,the United Stateshas nohigherobligationttodo al1that it
can to protcct the livesof the Americancitizens.WCwillhonour that obligation.

TIE WHITE HOUSE , NOVEMR E979

Thc seizure of morc than 60 Americans in our embassy in Tchran has
provoked strong feclingshere at hornc. Therisoutrage. Therc is frustration.
And Lhereis deep ünger.
Thereisalsopridein,thecouragcof hose whoare indangcr and sympathyl'or
lhem andfor thcir families. Butthc mosl important conccrn for al1Americansat
thismomcnt is safety of our fcllowciiizensheld in Tchran.
The President sharcs these reelings.Hc is pursuing everypossiblc avenue in a
situationthat is exiremely volatile and dificult His cfforts involve many
countricsand individuals. Manyortheseeffortsmust of necessitybe çonductcd
without publicity, anal1rçqurre the calrnestpossible atrnosphere.
The Presidentknowsthat no matter howdccplywemayfeel,none of uswould
want to do anything that would worsen the dangcr in which Our fellow
AmHecallson al1Americans, publicofficiaisand privaieciiizensaltoccxercise

and hearts.Members of the Fainiliesof rhe Americün hoslages wiih whom ihcminds
Prcsidcnkmet this rnorning have asked to join with him in this appeal. The
PrcsidentexpectscvcryAmericanto refrain from any action thüt rnight increase
the dangcr tothe American hostages in Tehran.

Thc Presideni has dircctcd the Attorney-Gcneral to gentify any Iranian
studcnts in the United Statwho are not in cornpliancewith thc ~cmsof theis
ciitryvisas,ndro takctlinscejsary sicptoconimensedeportation procrediiigs
agürnsrthosc who have violntcd iipplicableimmigr:itioiilaws and regiilntions52 DIP1,OMATICAND CONSULARSTAFF

As an initial mcusure, the Immigration and Naturalization Service of the
Department of JusLiccwillissuea noticerequiring al1Iraniaa studetosreport
theirpresent location and status irnrnediütclyrothe ncarest INS oficc, and will
takc additional stcps to locatc and identify such students to determinc legal
status. For studenis Eoundto be in illcgalstatus,dcportation proccedingswillbc
conductcd in accordancc with conslitutiona1due process requiremcnts.

Tm WHJTE MOUS E ,NOUNCEME NYTTI.IPRESIDENT,
THE RRIEF~N RG OM1 ,2NOVEMBE 1979

The Presid~nr:Thank you verymuch. Wecontinuc to face a grtivcsituation in
Iran, wherc our embassy has been seized,and more than 60 American citizens
continueto bc heldashostagcs in an atlcmpt to forceunacceptabledcmands on
our country. Wc are using cvcry availablc channel to protect the safcty of the
hostags, and to sccure their rclcase.
Alongwith the Carnilieof the hustüges1have wclcomedand 1appreciale thc
restraint Lhatkas been shownby Americansduring thiscrisis.We must continue
toexhibit suchconstraint, dcspitethe intcnsofour cmotions.Thc livesor our
pcople in Iran arc at stake.
1 must emphasizc the gravity of the situation. It istothe United Stütes
and to cvery other nation that thc lives of diplomatic personnel and other
citizensabroad be protected, and that we refuse to permit the use of terrorism
and the scizureand the holding of hostages io imposc political dcmands.
No one should underestimate theresolvc of the Amcrican Governrncnt and
the American people in this matter. isncçcssaryto eliminate any suggestion
tbüt economicpressurescan weakenour stand on basicissucsof principlc. Our
position mustbe clcar1 am ordering thalwediscontinue purchasingorany oil
rromIran for delivcryto this country.
Thesc cvcnts obviouslydemonstrsiiethe extreme importance of rcducing oil
consumpiion herc in the United State1.urgecveryAmericancitizenand cvery
American business to rcdouble efforts to curtail thc use of pelrolcurn products.

strength and of our dctcnninatinn.enge to our country. 11wbc atest ofoiir
1 have directcd Secretary Duncan twork with the Congrcssand withothcr

addilional measurestoconserveioilandntocope withthisnewisituation. We will

insure a minimum oi"disruption oi"our nation's economy.oleum prodticts and to

TheseAmçricanrneasurcsmust be part of an effectiveintcrnaiional effortand
we will consull wi~hour allies and with othcr oil-consuming nations about
further actions io reduce oil cansumplion and oil imports.
America docs face a difficulttask and a test. Our rcsponse will mcasure our
charactcr and QUrcourage. I know that we Amcricans shallnot fail.
Thank you very much.

IMPORI'SCIFPETROLBUM AND PETKOLEUMPRODUCI3

The Sccretary of thc Treasury in a rnemorandum dated 12 November 1979,
and thc Secretary ofEnergy in consultation with the Secrctariesof Statc and54 DIPLOMATIÇ AND CONSULAR STAFF

branches, and suhsidiariesin rcsponseto reported instructions that the Govern-
incnt of Iran is about to withdrüw its funds. Thc purpose of this order is [O
insurc that claims or the United States and its citizens in Iran are settled in an
arderIy manncr. The order docs not afïecl accounts of persons other than thc
Governmenlof Iran, the Central Bank ofIran, and othcr controlledentities.The
prccisc amounts involvcd cannot be asccrtained al this time, but thcrc is no
reasonfor disturbancein thc foreignexchangcor other markcts. The Presidentis
taking this action pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powcrs
Act whiçh grants the Presidcnt authorily "to deal with any unusual and
extraordinary threat to the national security, forcign policy,or economy of the
United States".

Following isun cxcerpt reluring IOJororeigpolicy from Pr~sident C~rter's
crddre.~bcfi~re.theAFL-CIO in Wush~rigion ,C, on15 Novcmber 1979.

For a btief tirnethis afternoon 1want to speak with you and al1Americans
about some fundamcntal principles upon which QUrnation was foundcd and
which WC must never forgct.To some, thcscideals may sccmat times to bc old
fashioncd or outmoded. But we've been clcarly reminded in recent days that
theseprinciplcsmeanjus1 as much to us now as theyhaveevermcantduring any
time of critical dccisiointhe history ofour nation.
These fundamcntals have old namcs to which WC must continwallygive new
meaning-names likc strength, courüge, patriotism, independence, thc love of
freedom, human rights, justice,conccrn for the common good.
This is the 12thday that more than IO0innocent human beings,somc 60 of
whom are rnernbcrsof the USdiplomatic mission,have beenheld hostagcin aur
cmbassy in Iran. For a rare time in hurnan history, a host government has
condoncd and even encouraged this kindof illegalaction ügüinst the sovereign
territory and oficfal diplomatic relations of another nation. This is an act oT
tcrrorism-totally outside the bounds of international law and diplomatic
tradition.
In this timc of trial, our dccp concern is for the livesof these brave
hostages-our nation'sloyal citizensand Füithfulrepresentativcs.Every Arnen-
can fccls anger and outrage al what is happening to them-just as evcry
American fcclçconcern for thcir safety and pridc lntheir great courage. This
crisis calls for firmness and it calls Tor rcstraint. And I'm proud tbal this
situation has brought forth ~alm Icadership by officialsand privatc citizens
Lhroughoutthfs country.
Firmness dues require paticnce and it requires perseverance. Firmness also
mcans measuredaction4eliberatc actionsthat clarifythe real issues,rcducethe
likelihood of'violence, prntcctour interests and insurejusticc.
The United Siatcs has done nothing and willdo nothing that could be used to
justifyviolentor imprudent action hy anyonc.Whilewearc pursuingal1avenucs
of ,diplornatic resolution, wc'rc also acting unilateralas appropriateilfith
restraint. yes, 'butwithout hesilation.
Fm!, inorder isdiscourageviolenccand possiblebloodshed here,which when
leleviscdand transmittcd back to Iran might threaten the safetyof the hustages,
I'vediscouraged theissuingof pemils Tordcmonstralions on federalpropertics
here in Washington, consistent with our lawsand pursuant to my own powers
and responsibilitics.1 have also cncouraged local and staie officiais to take
similürlegal action.
Second,I'vedirected our immigralion üuthorities to rcvicwthe visas of sorne
50,000Iranian students who are guesis hcre.in our country. Our nation is fully
comrnittcdto the protection of legalrighls, and the enhanccmentof çiviIjustice.
Al1provisions of rhe US Constitution will bc honoured. Al1 foreign nalionals DOCUMENTX 55

who arc hcre lawfullymay continue hcrc with their work or their studies. But
thosc who are hcrc illegally will be processed prurnptly and lawîully for
deportation back to their own country.
Third,I want to rcmove any question that our prznciplesmight be cornpro-
misedby our supposed nced TorIranian oil. Earlythis wcck,therefore, 1ordcred
an immediate hall to any purchases or shipmçnts or Iranian oil tu the United
States of America.
I'mdetemined to make clear that wewillnever allowany foreign country to
dictale any Arnerican policy.
Fourrh,in order to protect Ourcconomic intercstsand to insurethat claimson
Iran by thc United States or by US citizens are settled inan orderly manncr,
we'velcgallyCrozenofficia1lranian prapcrty and financialüssets.The order docs
not affectany accounts other than thosc of the Governmcnt of Iran, thc Central
Bank of Iran,or othcr government-controlledentities.
And yesterday 1further instructcd Sccretary ofState Vance and Ambassador
[tothc United Nations] McHenryto opposeany discussionof Iran's problemsin
thc UN SecurityCouncilas longas Americanhostagesare beinghcld, Onlyafter
the hostagcs >irereleasedwill we be willingto address Iran'sconcerns and th~n
under thc provisions of inrernational law and under the charterof the Unitcd
Nations. The membcrsof the Unitcd Nations SecurityCouncil, 1am plcasedto
announce to you, have agre~dunanimously withOurown proposal.
It's important for al1of us to remembcr rhat we will not compromise our

fundarncntalpnnciples of justice no mattcr how grave thc provocation nor how
righteaus our indignation. At the same time, we will continue to use our
influencearound thc world to obtain the samekjnds of human rights for people
cvcrywhere.
In this instance, we are upholding an important principlc on behalf of thc
cntire world çommunity. It's aclear tenet of international law and diplomatic
tridilion that the host govcrnmeni is fullyrcsponsible for thc saïety and wcll-
bcingof the property and thc lcgalrepresentativesoranother country. Lessthan
a year ago-and this is a Fücnot generally known or rccogniled-less thün a
year ago, 70,000 American citizens wcrc in Iran. As you know, thousands oT
pcople were killed during the upheavals therc but almost miraçulously, and
becauseof the good work of Cyrus Vanceand others, our pcople were brought
home safely, and 1 thünk God For it. Despite thc turmoil, each succwding
Irünian Governmcnt-and they were being changed, as you know, quite
rapidly-protccted the citizcnsor other countries.
Foreign vis~torsare oftcn vulntrable toabusc. An embassy is not a fortress
Therearc no embassiesanywherein the world that can long withstand thetittack
of a rnob, if the mob has thç support of the host government itself. We had
reccived repeated assurances of protection from the highesi officiais in the
Iranian Government, even a düy or two beforcthe mobwasinçitedhoatlack and
before that protection was withdrawn at the last minute. The principle of
inviolability of embassies is undcrstood and acccptcd by nations cvcrywhere,
and it's partiçularly importantto smaller nations which havc no recourse to
cconomic or military power. This is why the Unitcd Nations Security Council
kas also unanimously supported our demand for the release of the American
hostages.
In accordance with this principlcas recognized and observed by al1civilixd
countries, the Iranian Governmcnt and its leadcrs are fully responsible for the
saretyand wcll-beingof our representativesin Iran, in Tehran, and Lhey willbc
held accountable Torthat rcsponsihility.It is unthinkable that any responsible
govcrnmentin today'smodern world could regardthc seizureand the holdingof
thc diplomatic oficials or another nation as a realistic means to advance any
cause whatsoevcr. Terrorism is not an acceptable means to resolve disputes
between individuals or betwecn nations.56 DlPLOMATICAND ÇONSULA R S'I'AFF

No aci has so galvanizedihc American publictoward unity inthe last dccade
as has the holding of our peopleashostagesin Tchran. We stand today as one
people. We arc dedicated to the principlesand the honour of our nation. We've
taken no action which wouldjustify concern among the people or amang the
Govcrnment OCIran. We have done nothing for which any American nccd
apologize.
Tticactions of Iranian lcadersand the radicalswhoinvaded our crnbassywere
cornpletelyunjustified.Thcy and al1others must know that the United States of

America will not yield to international tcrrorism or to blackmail.
These difficvl~days have reminded us of basic facts and principleswhichare
fundamen~al tothe existencof us as a peoplc.Wewillhonour al1Constitutional
protections and intcrnational law and custom, and we will not let Ourfreedom
and our sccurity bejeopardized.

US DEPENDENCE ON FOKElCiN01L

The devclopments in Iran have made it starkly clear to al1or us that Our
cxccssivedependcnce on fomign oil is a direct, physical lhrcüt to our îrecdom
and securityas Amcricans.
That is why we must al1join togcther in Lhc battle Tor an cnergy-securc
America.This strugglc dcrnands the dcliberate and thc conscientious participa-
tion or evcry single citizen.Unfortunatcly, our depcndence on farcign oil has
bcen growing for the las1fivcor sixyears, cspecially,whcn it should have heen
diminishing. As a nationWC have hecomc dependen1on the undepcndable and
addicted to the unaffordable.At Camp David this surnrncr,one man surnmedup
the signifiçanccof Our energy prohlems better than any other persan. It was
Lane Kirkland. Hc said to nie, "Mr. President, the issue is frcedom".
That is exactly thc issue today. That is why 1 have been calling on the
Congressand encouragingthcArnericanpeoplefor the last two-and-a-half years
to rccognize the danger of excessivedependcncc on forcign ail. That is why 1
hüvc ordered phascd decantrol of oil prices to mnke conservütion pay and to
çtimulatcdomestic encrgy sources.
This isan cxtrernely important, vital issueDo not be rnisled by political
dernagogucry. 1and everyother publicofficia1in thiscountry havean obligation
to speak thc truth and to dcal responsihwith the hard facts.and ihey arehard
facts.We cannot closedown al1nuclear power plants, burn less coal, refuse to
build oil refinerics,refuseto cxplore for newoil sources,oppose the prciduction
of synthctic fuels, and at the same tirne encourage the waste of cncrgy by
artificiallyholdingdown its pricein order to cncourayemorc consumption. This
is a ridiculousconibination oproposais which cauld only be puLforward in an
election campaign. America knows bettcr.
1am verypltascd that our national energyprogramme isnowmovingsteadily
thrnugh thc Congress, aftcr cnorrnaus dificulty ihere and sharpQebatc. Now
morc than everbcfore:it isessentialthat wehave an energysoc~iritycorporation
and ü windfall profits taxin ordcr to take care of the poor, encouragc
production, build a better transportation systcm. Amed with these ncw
progranimcs,our technology,our creativity,Ourabundance, our vision,and our
tirmwill,Amcrica can finallycontra111sown resourccsand wecan continue to
control our own dcstiny.
Our love of freedom will no1 bc auctioned offfor rDreignoil. Hundreds of
thousands of our forckürs gavethcir vcryIivesfor our freedom. Our freedomis

not for sale-now or evcr in the future.
Evcry important victoty that this naiion has ever won-with Amcricans
struggling ~ogthcr-has made us stronger as a nation. So will it be with the
energyproblem. Thcrc is a cIear çhoicc for Amcricans to makc. We can eithcr
keep pouring out billionsand billionsand billionsof dollars to foreign countries DOCUMENTS 57

to irnporl 011-which also buys us inflation, unemploymcnt, and national
dcpendency and insecurity-or wecan takc some of that money and invest it in
Amcrica to hireAmcrican workers, to unleash Ameriçan ingcnuity, io devclop
American rcsourws, 10promote Amerifan energy that Americans own and
conlrol. That is thway to approach thc cnergy problcm and ihai iswhat we
must do togethcr.

There are rnilliuns and millions of peoplc who can hclp directly with this
challenge and there are liundreds of thousands orjobs invofved. Ncxt yeas we
anticipate thaWC willsend overseas $70 billion to pay ForForeignoJustthink
of how many fine things we could do in Amcrica with that much money.
Soin thc last fewdayswe have been remindcd once again of our essentneed
of energy security so that we çan continue io protect the basic principles of Our
country, and togcthcr that iswhawe must achicve, both for ourscives and evcn
inore importantly, lor our childrcn and grandchildren. Amcrica must always be
militarily strong and economiçally srrong, and that Amcrica will alwbe.

US COMPASSION AND GGNEROSITY

Onc final comment 1 would Iike to make. Amcrica must also mainiain its
nioral and its cthrcal strength. WCare not a çelfishpeople. History has recordcd
many timcs America's great generosity, as it does today in Thailand and
Kampuçhea, formcrly known as Cambodia. Even as we face problems of great
cc~nomiç conccrn In our own country, we arc sparing no cffori Io help those
who arc suRering and starving in every way we can.
Compassion enhanccs American strength. It is one of our decpest values, onc
to which we will aIways cling and remain true. Concern for human lifc and
justice is as viaslmilitary pewer to our specialglace in the family of nations.
Human rights rsa compelling idea of olrr lifetrme. Our hearts and our aid will
çantinuc te gotothose who are suffering, who are starving, or who are deprived
offrccdom. In this time of tension and iurmoil I am proud that our cornmitment
to American strength and to Amcrican principlcsisunshakablc. .

Novembcr 1979.
Bureau of Public Affairs,
Oficciof Public Communication,
Editorial Division.

'l'HWHITE HOUSE, 17 NOVEMRkK 1979

We welcorne this announcemeni that sorne of the Amcricans held in the
Embassy in Tchran will berclcased. We arc thankful the ordcal maybe over For
them and ihat they may besoon reunitcd with their families.
Weçtrongly urge that theauthorities in Iran now move to secure the saferelease
of al! those still being held. Thcir ordeal is not over. The United States
Covernment willcontinue to work ineverychannel open to it to achrcvethat end.

T~EWHITE HOUSES,TATEMEN HT'TIIEPRFSIDEN1 T7,NOVEMBEK 1979

Aswe approach our traditional day of national Thanksgiving, the hearta of al1
Americans are heavy with concern for the safery of those held hostage Iran.
We join with people of al1 faiths ihroughout the world whu adhere to
fundamcntal principles of human rights and iniernational law. We are united
with lhem in seeking an end to acts of terrorism against innocent people.
On Tbankagiving Day and during the holiday weekend,1askal1Americans to
makc a special prayer at churches and synagogues and places of public meeting.58 DIPLOMATICAND CONSULARSTAFF

Let uswk God'sguidance:in aur search for geace and human brotherhood,
and pray for the safe return of those whosclives are threatcned. May we corne
with gratitude for Ourabundani blcssings, and huMaretyihc heavy burden
of world responsibiIity that Our blessings and powcrhave brought.

Tbree ofour hostages in Tchran have bccn released and haveleft Iran. After a
briefperiod of rest and care they will bercunited with thcir families herc in the
Unitcd States.
The remaining hostages must also be released. Their detention is without
justificatiThc Government of Iran isresponsibIefor achieving their irnmediate
and safe rcleaseand the United States has thtoexpect that Iran willdo so.
The spectre has been raised of othcr American diplomartc bostages king
placed on trial. Suchstepwould bea further flagrant viotation of clcmentary
humün rights, religious precepts and international law and practice.
Worldwide outragc at the deiention of these hostages wouid be greatly
hcightened hy any attempt to put these diplornatic personnel on trial.

STAI- MEN DY THEVICEPRESIDEN AT PRES S ONFEREN ICNBLOOMINGTON,
MINNLWTA, AT MINNFSOT FARMEH UN'IONCONVENTI O9NO:VEMBE 1979

"As you al1know, the Prcsident anand the senior foreign palicy adofsers
our Gaverriment have been working literally around the çlock to sccure the
release of our peoplc being held hostage tonight in Iran62 people lcss a
few thathavc been releascd.
Wc'reespecially proud that the chargéd'affaires, the lcading officialthcre is a
Minnesotan-Bruce Laingen-who isdischarging his responsibilities with cour-
agc and with grcat ability.
The supportand understanding that Americans have given to Ourefforts have
been truly rnagnificent Our counhasstood togethcr in these days almost
Iikcü family-unitedin our concern for fellow Amencaindanger and unitcd
nations and millions of other peoplc throughout the warld,y scorcs of other
Thankfully, the first hostages released willsoan bercunited with their families.
We are thankful that some are free. But al1of us rccogniwc cannot rest
unt~leveryonc of the hostages has returncd home-safand unharmcd. Our
effortto secure ihcir release must bc conhnued and intensified.
We hold thc Iranian Covcrnment fully rcsponsible for the safety and welE-
being OFthc remaining hostages. Weand the rest of the world havc every righi to
expcct the Iranian Government ta honaur its clear obligations under interna-
tional law to secure the release-ansafe rcturn-of ait hostages. The Zast
hostage is as important as the first hostage.
Thc Iranian pcople must undcrstand the firmness and resofvaur people
and Our nation, and that we stand as one.
America will continue tact asa great nation acts-witha sobcr sense of
responsibility, with determination and with unity."

Thereare reports that the American citizens being illegsillyheld as hostages in
Tehran with thc support of the Iranian Government msoon be put through DOCUMENTS 59

some sort of "trial". This wouid aeflagrant violationof international lawand
büsicreligious principles,and the Govcrnment of Iran would bear fullrespoiisi-
bilityTorany ensuing consequences. The United Stütcs is seeking a peaccful
solution to this groblem through the United Nations and everyother available
channel. This is Carpreferablcto Lheother rcrncdies available to thc Uniled
States. Such remedies arc explicitly recognized in the Chartcr of the United
Nations. The Govcrnment of Iran must recognizethe gravity of the situation it
has created.

On the eve ofthe rcturn toArnericaof thc first group of releascdhostags1
would liketo share with al1Americansa messageta us from BruccLaingen,our
charge d'affaires inTehran:
"ln our praycrsofthanks for the safe return ofthe firstof the hostages,of
hope for thc eürlyreleaseOFthoscwho remain, and Forstrength in standing
firmfor what webelieveis right, lusalsopray thala processcan beginthat
will ultimately permit theresroration of thc traditional friendship bctween
the American and the Iranian peoples. Lei us ask God's guidance that the
two colintries,inal1theydoand say,willacton that basisand [roma posture
of humaniiy and restraint, so that both our pcoplesand Governments can
agam look to a futureDT restored undersianding and CO-operation.
Letthe Nation's church bells ring with that messageand ihat hope."

DEPARTM~ OF TUSTICE2,7 NOVEMBE 1979

Attorney-General Benjamin R. CivilcttiLoday issuedthe:followingstatement
on the rights of Iranian siudents in thc United States:
Amcricansand the pcople of other civilizcdcountrles condemn the laking of
hostagesin Iran. This action violatesbasic principles ofinternational law. Tbat
fundamental illegalitypoints up, however,the rcstraints wemust obscrvcin the
Unjtcd States. Here constitutional Iiberties and due process protcct everyone,
even sometimesintemperate gucsts and visitors who have overstayedtheir Icgal
rightta remain in thiscountry
Despiteourjustifiableanger atthc students and othcrwho make prisoncrsof
our citixns, we al1must restrain our actions and behave with a considered
regard forour ruleof law.Crisestest our adhcrcncc to our basicprotections; in
theseprotections wefind the preservation and promolion of our berier instincts
and collective values.
Recent ncws accounts havc reported that somc fcw American citizcns have
taken thcirown action agüinst Iranians in this country. According to the news
reports, some Iranians have been firc[rom their jobs, cxpelled from univcrsi-
ties, and dcnied public accomm~dations.This cunduct is not propcr. A variety
of fcderal laws prohibit discrimination based on national origin. These laws
forbid treating pcopledifferentlyinsuch areas asemployment,publiceducation,
housing, crcd~t,and public accommodations likc rcsiaurants and hotcls. These
lawsiwhich do not involve the immigration lawscgenerally prolect both
citizensand non-citizcns.
It is the role of the Justice Departmcnto go to court, when necessary, ta
prevent and to rcrnedy illegaldiscrimination. In the currenl situaWConmusi
do no less. The Department will continue to enforce these laws both here in
Washington and through the US Attorneys' officesaround the country.Governmcnt ofIran mushrecognizcthe gravityof the situation which ithas itsclf
creatcd, and the grave consequcnceswhich will result if harm comes to any of
the hostagcs.
I wlint the Amcrican people to know, and 1want the world to know, that we
willpersist in our efforts, Lhroughcvcry means available, until cvery single
Amcricrinhasbeen freed.Wemust aiso recognizenow, as WC never havebcfore,
that it isr entire nation which1svulnerablc,becauseof our overwhelmingand
excessivedcpcndence on oil from forcign countrics. We have got tu dccept thc
ractthat this dependenccisa direct, physicalthreat to our national security.And
we must join together to fight for our nation's cncrgy Freedom.
We know the ways tu win this war: more American energyand the more
efficient use of what we have. Thc US Congrcss isnow struggling with this
extrcmelyirnportünt decision. The way to victory is long and diflicult,but we
havc the will, and we have thc human and the natural rcsources ofour greai
nation. Howevcr hard ~tmight be to see into the future, one thing tonight is
clear: we stand together.
We stand as a nation unified,a pcople determined io protect the lifeand thc
honour orevery Arnerican.And weare detcrinined to make Arnericaan cncrgy
secure nation once again. lt is unthinkable that wc will allow oursclvto be
dominatcd by any form of overdepcndenceat home or any brand of ierrorism
abroad. We are dctemined that the freest nation on earth shall protect and

enhance its frecdom.
1 will be glad to answcr questions.

[Question] The Ayatollah Khomcinisaid the other day, and 1 am using his
words,that hedoesn'tbelieveyouhave the guts to usemilitary force.He pub no
credibilityin our military deterrcni. 1am wondcring how do WC get out of this
mess in Iran and still retain crcdibilitvwith our alliesand with our adversaries
overscas?
[Ansizzer]WE have ihefullsupport of our allies,and in thispariicular instance
WC have no advcrsaries overseas.There is no civilizedcountry on earth which
has not condemned thescizureand holdingof hostügcsby Iran. It would not be
advisable forme to explode publicly al1of thc options open to our country.
As 1said carlier,1am dctemined to do Ihe best I can lhrough diplomaiic
meansand through peaccfulmeansto insurethe safetyof our hostagesand their
releasc.Orher actions which I might decide to take would comc in the future
after those peaccfulmeans havc been exbausted. Rut 1belicvcthal the growing
condcmnation of thc world comrnunity on Iran willhave a beneficialeffect.
[Question] Whydid you revcrseyour policyand permit the Shah to corne into
thiscountry when, 1,medicaltreatmcnt wasavailablcelsewhere; 2,you had been
warned by our Chargéthat thc Americansrnight be endangcred in Tehran; and
3, the Biargan govesnrnentwas so shaky that it was questionable whether hc
could cleliveron the promise to proiect oui-crnbassy,and, last of all, inofiew
the consequencesdo you regret thc decision?
[Answer] No, thc decisionthai 1made personally and without pressure froin
anyone to carry out the prinçiplesof our country, to pruvide for the mcans of
givingthe Shah neccssarymedicalassisiance to save his lire,was proper. At the
süme Lime WE notified the Government of Iran. We werc assured by thc Prime
Minister and the Foreign Minister that QUrernbassywould be protccied, and it
was protccted for severaldays in spitc ofkhreatsFromoutside.
Then pcremptorily,after Khomcinimade an aggravalingspecch tothe crowdç
in thc street and withdrew pro~ection frrirn the embassy, il was attacked
succcssîully.Thc ernbassywas protected by our peoplc,for the length of tiine
possible withoui help from the host government. No embassy on carih is a
fortress that Ganwithstand constant attacks by a mob unlessa host government
cornes te the rescue ofthe peoplewithin the embassy.62 DIPLOMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

But I took the righi decisio1have no regrersabout il nor apologiesto make
bccause iidid hclpto savea man's lifcand ilwas compatible with the principles
of our country.
[Quesrion] We appcar to be in a rather dangeraus period of international
tension and volatilily, cspeciallyin the lslamic world, and it cornes at a time
when we arc about to embark on our quadrennial election carnpaign, with al1

that thatwiH bring. Have you givenany thought to whethcr followingcxamples
of ather national emergenciesit rnaybc wiseta try to mute the politicalfülloutor
this by trying to bringopponcrits in and outsideof yourparty into somekind of
emcrgencycoalition for ihis purpose?
[Ariswer] We have attemptcd to keep the political leaders in our nation
infomcd, both publicly and through other channels. Wc have givcn Frequent
briefings,for instance,on the Hill, both to the mc~nbersof thc Senateand to the
House. We havc encouragd al1of thosc who havc becomeannounced candi-
dates for presidentto restrain their commcnts which might be misconstrued
overseasand to havea maximum dcgreeof harmony among those whomighbbe
spoke~menfor our country.
1myçelr,in order to stay close to the scene hcre where constantly changing
evcntscould bc handled by mc as Presidcnt, have clirninatedthc major portion
or political oriented activities.
1don't think the idcntity of thc Islarnicworldafactor. We havc thedeepest
respectand reverenccfor Islam and for al1those wbo share the Moslemfairh. 1
might say that so far as I know, al1or ~hcIslarnic nations havc joined us in
condemningthe activitiesand rhcactions of thc Government of Iran. So 1don't
think reiigiousdivisionsare a factor here at al].
But 1willhave tu continue to restricmy own political activitiesand calon
those who might be opposing me in the futurc for presidcnt io support my
position as PresidcntandLo provide unity for our country and for our nation in
the eyesof those who might he looking Forsomesignof wcaknessor divisionin
order to perpctuate their abusof our hostages,
[Quesnrin] Whst can Ihc United States do nQW,what can it do to prevcnt
futurc incidents ofthc naturofIran? Hçiwcan yausatisfythe publicdemand to
cnd such cmbarrassment'!
[Ans~wrj This is an unprecedentcd and uniquoccurrence. Down lhrough his-
lors, we havc had linicswhen somc oi'our pcople werc captured by tcrrorists
or who were abused, and thcrc have obviously bccn instances of international
kidnapping which occurred Torthe discomfitureof a peoplc or a governmcnt.
So far as I know, this 1s lhc first timc that such an activity has been
encouraged by and supportcd by the govcrnmeni itsclt And 1don't anticipütc
this kind of thing rccurring.
WC have taken stcps already in view of the disiurbances in the Middlc East
and the Persian Gulfregionsto guard our peoplemorc closely, to provide thcm
with a highcr degree of security, and to makc arrangements wich the host
govcrnment tu provide assistarii fciteis nceded inthc fastesl possible way.
Many other natiorls have reducedseverçlythe number of peoplc overseas.1
think that one of thc points that should be made is that a year ago,we bad
70,000Americansin Iran-seventy thousand. There wercliterally thousands of
people who wcre killed in the Iranian revolulion, from al1nations.
It was a superb
We were able to exlract Americans from Iran safely.
demonstra~ion of CO-operationand good conduçt on the part af the State
Department and othcr American officiaisSo, there will be disturbanceinthc
future, but 1 think we are as wcll proiectcd as we possihly can be without
withdrawinginto ashcllFromprotccting Amcricaninlcrcstsin nalions overseas.
My own experiencc, so far hüs been that the leaders of nations have
rccommitled themselves to providc security for embassies ofal1countries. 1
think we have lcarned a lcssonfrom this instance. Butbecauscit isso unique, in the high degree of irrcsponsibilityof the Iranian Covernment leadcrs, 1don't
believcthat we will sce anoiher reoccurrence of it üny timesoon.
/Qucisrion] Former Secretary Kissingerkas criiicizedyour Administration in
handling the situation in Iran. He hüs suggested that ilcarne about because,
partly becauscor the perccivcd weakness inAmericanpolicy and thar you have
rurther damaged Amenca's image as ü result. How do you respond?
[Answer] I would rakhernot respond. There is no reason for mc to get into a
publicdebate at this timewith formerSecretary Kissingerabout whoisor who iç
nol responsible for the evcnls lhat took place in Iran. Obviously what has
occurred cannokhave been predicted.
And, for 30 years, our country has had a relationship with a fairly stable

governmcnt Ihere.The changestook placeveryrapidly. SoTaras 1know, no one
on thiscartk predicted them
And, 1ihink it is not becomingat this momcnt, and not conducive to better
, Amcrican understünding ito get involved in ünswering allegations that 1 or
someoneelscmay have becn culpable and may have causcd a further aggrava-
tion of avcry dificult situation.
[Quesrion] What rolcdid the fermcr Secretaryplayin your decisionto permit
thc Shah to enter the country?
[Answerj None. 1 did not hear at al1Fromthe Secretary, former Secrctary
Kissinger,nor did he contact SecretaryVanceat any time during thc days when
we weredcçidingthat the Shah should corne into thc Uniied States for medical
care to savehis Iife.In previouswccksand months, sincethe Shah was deposed,
Sccretary Kissingerand many others let it bc knoivn that they lhought that we
should provide a haven for the Shah. But Secretary Kissingerplayed no role in
my decision to permit thc Shah to corne in for medical treatment.
[Ques~ion]Speakingof the Shah. if hciswellenough to travel,wouldyou like
him to leavcthe country?
[AnswerJ That is ü decision to bc made by thc Shah, and by his medical
advisers. When he dccided to corne to our country, with my permission, 1 was
informed then, and 1 have been inrormed sincc, khat as soon as his medical
trcatment was succcssrullycornpleted,that hisintention was to leave.1have not
encouragedhim ~oleave.Hcwasïree to corneherefor mcdiçaltreatment, and he
will leavcon his own volition.
[Questiun]. Thc consequenccs of the crisis in Iran are drifting the United
Staies into almosta cold war with theIslamiccounfries. WatchingTV newsfor
25 days, Amerleans soon will believcthe whole Moslcm wotld is hating hirn.
Moreover, they arc not told thatthc Shiitesare veryminor minority among the
population of the Islamic world, becausethe müjorityis Sunni.Don'i yau think
you gct any help from any lslamic countries, and what will your policy be
toward Islarniccountries iindcr thesecircumstances?
[Ansiver] The premise of your question is complercly wtong. We: are not
approaching any sort orcold war with the Islarniccountries. So far as Iknow,
cvery Islamiccountry has condemned Iran for its capturc of our hostages, and
has becn very supportive.
This includes Moslem nations which,in thc pasi, have no2ken closefriends
of ours: Iraq, Ljbya, and others So 1 don't see rhis as a conrrontationat al1
betwccnoui nation and the lslamicworld. It isccrtainly not part of the lslamic
faith tocondone, as 1 said earlicr, Glackmailor the persecution or harm of
innocent peopleor kidnapping or terrorism.
So 1 think that we havc a very good relationship with the peoplc and the
governmentç or the Islarnicworld, and 1don't think it has deterioratcd in this

instance. In somewayswe have kcn drawn closer to thesepeople, bccausethey
seewhat hasoccurrcd iinIran as someihingof a disgracefor thcir ownreligioiis
faith, and they don'tsee this as typical of what Moslems believe.
1 might add also, that this is not typical of the Shiite faith cither. It64 UIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR STAFF

is the misguidcdactions of a few people in Iran who are burning with hatred
and a desire for revenge, completelycontrary Io thc teachings of the Moslcrn
faith.
[Question] There isa feelingof hostility ~hroughoutthc country loward Iran,
because of the hostages. Senator Long said that the taking of our embassy in
Iran, in his words, is anct of war. Thcre are rurnours, sincedcnied, that our
Navy has been called up for scrvice.1ask you,as our Commander in Çhief, is
war possible,is war thinkable?
[Answer] Jt would be a mistakcfor the pcopleorour country lo have araused
within thcm hatred toward anyonc; no1againtitthe peoplc of Iran and certainly
not against Iranians who may be in our country as our guests.We certainly do
not want to bc guilty of thc same violation of human decencyand basic human
principlcs that have proven so cmharrassing to many of the Iranian citizens
themsclvcs.
We obvioiisly prerer to see our hostages protccted and rcleased completely
through peaccful means. That is my dccpest comrnitment, and that will be my
goal. The United States has other options availablc to it which will bc
considcrcd,dependingupon the circumstances.But 1think it would not be well-
advised for me to speak to those spccificallytonight.
[Queytion] WC have had 55,000 Iranian students in this country, WC have

bççn verygoud to them, vcry hospitablc. Even the new Financc Minister of
Saudi Arabia was a studenl who once deinonstrated in Washington againsl law
and ordcr. Shouldn'twe be verycareful in Icttingany of thesesludcnts cornein
herc?Shouldn'Lwescreenthcm in the future, and makethem agrccthat they will
not demonstrate?
/Ansiver] Jtisvcrydificull for an Iranian citizenor a studenl to get a visa at
the AmcricanEmbassyin Iran aittiistimc./Laugiifer]And 1think the influxof
Iranians to Ourcounlry now would be minimal.
1 am detcrmined LQ cnforce the law in regard to Iranian students. Some of
thcm have viohtcd thehw; thcy are now being screcncd,they arc being.asseçscd
in Lhcircornmitmcnt and LheIcgality of thcir presencc here. We have already
finishedLhisprocedure with more than 22,000.About 17,000have provcn to be
hcre cornplctely legally and are indeed full-timc students. Among rhc other
5,900, about scvcral hundrcd have alrcady departcd. Others arc now having to
prcivelhat, corztraryto thc earliestcvidence,thcy do indccd haaeright to be in
our country If thcy are hcrc illegally, they will be expelled. There is one
exceptionto that rule: If a citizen ofIran cari prove thal if he or shcrctLOned
Iran that they wouldbeexccutedor abuscd becauscof their politicalbeliers,thcy
can seekasylum hcrc. And ii"that asylum in our judgincnt isjustificd, we will
provide it for them. Hut this procedure is going forward in accordancc with
Americanlaw, in accordance with Ameriçan fairness,in accordanccwith Lhefull
principlesofthe US Constitution.
[Quesrion] Cün this crisisgo on indefinitelyor ought the Ayatollah Khomcini
to undcrstand that at some point the Amcrican peoplc may dernand and other
nations may cxpectthat you movcforward to rcsolveilby whatevermeans you
find necessary?
[Answer] It wuuld not be possibleor cvcn advisablc for me to sea deadline
about whcnor if 1 would takecertain action in the ruturc. This isan cver-present
consideration on rnyminci.1 am rarrying out al1the duticsthat normally FaIlan
a President'sshoiilder,whichare adcquate, but I neverrorgctone moment thal 1
am awakeabout the hostagcswhoselivcsand whosesafetydcpend on mc,and 1
am pursuing cvcry possible avenue to have the hostages released.
Anyexcessivethrcats or anycxcessfvcbcliefamong the Jranians that the) will
be scvcrely darnügd by military action as long as thesc negotiations are
proceedingand as longas legalitiescan bcfollowed,mightcausethc death of the
hostageswhichwearc commitlcdto avoid. Sothal isone of the questions that 1 DOCUMENTS 65

cannot answer,to sctdown a certain deadlineheyondwhichwewouldtake extra
actson that mighl result in thc harm or the deatof the hostages.
We are proceeding, 1 guarantee you, in every possible way, evcry possible
moment, to get thc hostages frccd and at the sametirneprotact the honour and
the intcgrity and the basic principlcsof our country. Thal is 1can do. Hut 1
am doing it to the best of my ability and 1 bclicvewe wilbc successful.
(Ques!aon]Many Americansviewthe Iranian situation as one ina succession
orevents that proves that this country'spower isdeclining.Wowcan you assure
Americans tonight that our power is not declining abroad and how are you
rcassessingprioriticfor the 1980sin terms of forcign policy?
[Answer] Thc United States kas neither thc ability nor the will to dominatc
the world, tointcrfere in the intcrnal affairsof other nations, to impose our will
on other people whom wedcsire lo be free,to maketheir own decisions.This is
not part of thc cornmitment of the United States.
Dur country is the strongest on earth. We are thc strongest militarily,
politically,econornically,and 1think weare the strongcst morallyand cthically.
Our country has made great stridcs, evensince1have beenin officc1have tried
to correct somc of the defects that did exist. We have strengthenedthe military
alliances of our country, for instance. NATO now has a new spirit, a new
confidcnce,a newcohcsion, improving its rnxlitarycapabilities, much more able
to withstand any threat from thc East, frorn thc Soviet Union or the Warsaw
Pact, than itwas before.
We have espoused again the principles that unitc Americans and make us
admirçd throughout theworld, raisingthe banner of human rights.WC are going
to kccp it high. We have opened upavenues of communication, understanding,
trade with people that formerly wcre our encmics or excludcd us-several
nations in Africa,the vast people and the vast country or the Peoplc'sRepublic
of China. In doing so we have not alienated any of our previous fnends.
1thirikour country issirong withinitsekï.Therc isnot an embarrassrnentnnw
about out Governmenl whichdid exisi in a fewinstancesin years gone by.So 1
don? see at al1that our country has become wcak. We are strong and we arc
getting strongcr, noi weakcr. But if anybody thinks thWC can dorninat~otlier
people withour strength-military or political strength or economicstrcngih-
they arc wrong. That is not the purpose of our country.
Our inner strcngth, aur confidence in oursclves, 1 think, is completely
adequate. 1 believethat the unriythat tlic Arnericanpcople have shown in this
instance, their paticnce, is no1 at al1a sign of weakness. It is a sior sure
strength.
fQue.~tion]Scriouscharges have been placed itgainsthe Shah concerning the
repression of his own pcople and the misappropriation of his naiion's fund1s
thcre an appropriate vehicle to investigate those charges and do you foresee
a time whenyou would direcl your Administration to assist in that invcstiga-
tion?
[Answer] 1 don't know of ang international forum within whichcharges have
everken brought againsi a deposcd leader whohas lcfi hiscountry. There have
bccn instances of changing govcrnmentsdown through the centuries in history,
and 1don'tknowofany instancewhcrcsucha leaderwhoIcrthiscountry üfkr his
government fcll ha$ been tried in an international court or in an international
forum.
This is a matter than can be pursued. 11 should be pursued undcr inier-
national law, and if therrs a claim against the Shah's financialholdings therc
isnothing to prevcnt other partics from goinginto the courts in accordancewith
a law of a nation or internationally and scckinga redress of grievanes ivhich
they clairn.
But as I said earlier, 1 don? think thcrc 1sany forum that will listcn to
the Iranians make any sort of claim, justified or not, as long as thcy hold66 DIPLOMATIEAND CONSULAH STAFF

against their will and abuse the hostagcs in complete contravention to cvery
international lawandeverypreccpt or evcrycommitmcntor principleof hurnan-

kind.

Dcccmber 1979.
Burcau of Public Affairs,
Ofice of Public Communication,
Edilorial Division.

T~E WHITE HOUSE STATEME RNYT1.EVICE PRSIDENT 5 DECEIUIB1E 9R79,THE
BKIFFING ROC)M

ViccPresident Mondole:Over the past severalwccks we have been hcaring a
drumfire of propaganda out of Tehran, some of it from pcople calling
theinselves students, somc ofit fro~n the govcrnment-controlled radio and
televisioninIran, and somc of it from various oficials or pcople in authority.
The messageis veryclcar. It saysover and over that the woand the Amcrican
pcopleshould ignorethc hostagcs, forget about the innocent peoplebound hand
and foot,overlook the continucd oulragc to law and standards of human
bchaviour. We are toldto Forgetal1that and Focuson the hakrcd ofone man.
Wearc not going to Forgetand the American peoplcare not goingto gcttheir
priorities confuçed.How are our hostages bcing treatçd?The racts are there for
al1to see,and the simplcfactis th50 human beingsarc beingheldin inhuman
conditions, contrary ~oal1civilizedstandards, in order to prove a politicalpoint.
They are not pcrmitted rcgular visiiors. They arc isoIated and notallowed Lo
speakcxcept totheir caplors. As rar as we know,the hostages have not been
allowed to receivc mail Qr messages. There kas never bccn a systematic
accounting of the nurnbcrs and wclfare of the hostagcs.
Tbc so-called"studenu" have not permitted any outsidc observerscvcnto see
these pcople for ecndays. They are refusing to let international organjzations

organizatioi~s.They rcfuse reprcscntatives of neutral States Evcn prisoncrs of
war are guaranteed certain standards of human treattncnt. But thcsc standards
are being dragged in the dirt cvery day by a group of kidnüpyers with the
acquiescenccof the govcrnrnenl.

WC are hearing dally propaganda about the allcged crimes oour pcaple in
Tehran, most of whom volunleercd to servc their country at ü difficull and
dangerous timc. We are not and willnot respond to lhat propaganda. I would
note ihat one of Lhoscbeing hcld as a so-called "spy"in Tehran is in fact a
private Americnn citizen who sirnpIyhappencd to k visiting the einbassy on
business at theinic of the atiack 4nNovembcr. It was many days bcfore we
evcnlearned, indirectly, thatwas king held.That man, Iikethc rcst, has now
been hcld for31 days, titd up, denied contact with hiç hmily, denied exercise,
denied acccsseven tolthe comfort of religion.
We hear a great deal about Lhccrimes of the Shah, but that is not the issue.
Thc issue whichdisturbs the Arnericanpeoplcis rhat 50ofour fellowcitizen5are
being abuscd in violation of intcrnational lüw. Thesc are our brothers and
sislçrs.
Yestcrday the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution which
called as thc first rnost important priorily, as it çhould, for thc release of the
American hostages.That isthe issue. It isthc only issuc,wedare not goingto
forget they musi be sct free. 1.Khomeini Telcphone Cal1

NC041745 Paris AFP in English, 1736 GMT, 4 Nov. 79 NC.
rext] Tehran, 4 Nov. (AFP+Pro-Khomeini students holding ai least 49
people hostage here in the American Embassy today said they would not be
rcleased until the country's former ruler, the Shah, was returned to Iran.
At a press conference heldin the embassy,a spokcsman for thc "occupation
coordination council" added that Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomcini, acting as
"guide of the Iranian revolution", had telephoned the embassy to express his
agreement with ihe studcnts' action. The Shah, who was oustcd by the.
Khomeini-Iedrevolution in Iran last Fcbruary, is currcntty in the United States
undergoing treatrnent hr cancer.
A band of 100 students took the embassy by storrn here today, and have
claimed ta have taken 100American hostages.
Weexpressour supporl forthis braveand decisiveact by our student brothcrs
and sisters.
US impcrialism, the biggest enemy of the Muslim people of Iran, is daily
engaged in plots againsi our Islamic revolution. It bas givcn reruge to thc
deposcd and criminal Shah-one or the grcatest criminals inhistory-thus
helping the lranian counter-revolutionaries.
Whilc expressing our hatred For the actions of US imperialism against the
Muslim people wc cal1on the Carier administration to take irnrnediateaction to
rcturn the deposed criminal Shah and hiscollaborators to lran, so that theycan
be puton trial in lslarnic revolution courts.
Longlive ~heIranian lslarnicrevolution,ledby ImamKhomcini, LongIivethc
solidarity of the oppressed peoples of the world.Down wrth US imperialism.

2. Council of Experts Prcsident'sSpccch
LD041830Tehran Domestic Servicein Pcrsian. 1630GMT, 4 Nov. 79 CD.
[Report on speech by Dr. Mohammad Beheshti, presidentof the Counci o f
Experts, ata meeting of the Council of Experts on 4 November-read by
anno~nccr.1
[Text]While referring to theoccupatiun of thc US Embassy in Tehran hy a
number of youths, Dr. Beheshtisaid:
A number of faithîul and dcvoted youtl~swho çonsidcr the admission of the
criminal Shah by ihe United States asa great humiliatioto our rcvolutionand
oui-Muslimnation, no longer could talerate this and as a protcst haveoccupied
tlicUSEmbassyand iaken scveralof its staff as hostagcs. Aspeoplewho have a
Feelingof responsibility,wehave toldArnericaand thccolanialisworld: You not
anly take sides against right; you not only take sides againsl the person of the
Imam and againstihe Revolution Council andthe provisionalgovernment ofthe
Islamiç revolution; you are taking srdesagainst a nation. Therefore, you must
understand ourposition and rcalizethat thcIranian nation hasrecognizcdtheline
ofits revolution.Andnow,Loo, we must say:You should not expectanyone to bc
able to harncss our nation, which is awakened agüinst your unbccorningdecds.

' The contents uf thappendix aretnken [rom the Foreign Broadcasi Information
ServiceDaiS Rep(ir1,a United States Governmcnt pubiicdtion.68 DIP1,OMATIC AND CONSULAR STAFF

Dr. Bcheshticontinued his rcmarks by adding: It is as if Amcrica and other
world powcrs anly know the language of diplomacy and have not yet become
acquainted with the languageof rcvolution. But our nation has becomeFamiliar
with this language thanks tothe rcvolution and understands the mcaning of
every word in the context of thrs revolution.
Whilcweacccptthat a country'sernbassyand nationals should enjoysecurity,
and whilethe lawof Islamguarantees such security,we seelhat the languageof
the revolution is an upright, clear and cxpressivelanguage. (?It ought to) be
added: EfArnericahas not yellcarned the languageof the Iranian revolution and
cannot understand it, then it would be wcll for it to corne to its senses and
understand it.
America should have known at the time it admitted the deposed Shah as a
patient that doing so would be foliowedby difficultconsequences.Dr. Beheshti
addressedAmcricaand said: Are yolistill unableto undcrstand ehatthe deposcd
Shah is the bloodthirsty enemyof the pcopleand should be handed over to the
RevoIutionCourt? Hcnce,the country's youthsare Forcedto talk to you in this
way; 1 hopc that you will learn to listen as a result of this issue, so tOUT
youths no longer wiI1use rhis method to speak to you.
Dr. Rehcshtiadded: The humanitarian duty ofAmerica,ifil recognizesthis, is
to hand over this enemy of the people to the Islamic Revolution Court and
create no morc lieadaches for itselt

3. Qom SerninaryStatcment
LD041902Tehian DomesticScrvicein Pcrsian, 1630GMT,'4 Nov. 79 LD.
[Statement issued 4 November by the Qom religious seminaty-read by
announcer.]
[Text]In thc name oîGod the compassionsic, the merciful:America,deafh to
your intrigue, thc blood of our martyrs drips tbrough your claws. Death to the
corrupt trio-Carter, As-Sadat and Beginand hundrcds of olher slogansagüinst
Itmcrica, the leadersof Amerzcaand its associates.This is the thundcring cry of
the nation against America. This has ken and conlinucs to be the anli-
imperialist roar of the opprcssed peoplc ofIran in al1its marches. This is the
anger of thc rn»thers, faihcrs, brothcrs ansistcrwho havc been lhe targct or
the hailofbulletscoming from lheShah and Carter, Thisisthepoliticalposilion
of tbc nation.This is the Iincthat the Imam hasset out When the idol-smdshing
Khomeini crics out dccisivelyand fearlesslythat it is the duty of the valiant
nation ta prevcnt US and lsraeli interests bcing pursued in Iran, and to attack
them, evcn if Lhisaction leads to their destruction. Again the Imam crics out:
Thc world must know that whaievcr probicms the Iranian nation and Muslim
nations face ernanate from foreigners, particularly from America. Again the
Imam roars that yesterday,thc Muslimnations wcre inthe grip of Britainand its
agents, and thattoday they arein the grip of Amtricü and ils associates.
Andhe cries:A11our problems stem from Amcrica whichstrenghhenZionism,
enahlingit to massacreour brothers in thcrr multitudes.Again the Imam warns:

It is Arnericathat regards Islamand the glorious Koran as harmful to itand is
trying to eliminateit. The Imam has also said: Whai do we want with relations
with Arnerica. On yet another occasion, hc said painfully: Relations betwcen
Iran and Arncrica are akin to relations betwcen a lamb and a wolf. On yct
anolhcr occasion, he said: Our nation has tested the bitter experience of
domination by foreigncrsand oil-plundering free-loaders,particularly those of
America. On yet anothcr occasion, the Imam cried: lct us unite and çut off the
leftistand rightist hands, led by America.Again he cricsthat the lranian nation
should fearlesslystand against ils cnemies, particularly Arnerica and interna-
tionalZionism. Yet anothcr cry: Jranian nation, do not submit to injustice and
exposc with awarcness the cvil plots of international world-devourers, led by DOCUMENTS 69

Amcrica. Yet anothcr çry is that today Muslim African countrtes arc sutTering
under the yokc ofAmerica and oiher foreigncrs and their lackcys.
TheImam again roars thai, generally,today the worldof Islamisinthc grip of
Amcriça.Andyetagainhecriesthat it islhedutyofthcsiudentsand thoseseeking
religiousknowledge ioincrease theirattacksagainst Amcrica and lsracl with ihe
utmost strength and to forceAmerica ta extraditethis cr~minaland ousted Shah.
And therearc hundreds upon hundreds ofothcr suchattacks, and yet thousands
moreattacks which in thcinsclvesconstitutca hugevolumcof writing.Thisisihe
positionof thenation andthat ofrhclcaderofthenationin the faceof~henaiion's
unqiicstionableenemy.Suddenlyonc hears out of the blue that thcrc has been a
mectingwith Brzezinskl,Carter's assislant for national securityaihirs. Then we
discoverthat thismcctingtook placcwithout the Imam'spermissionand that two
policieshaveerncrgcd:The policyof Americaand the policy of rclcntlessenmity
toward Arncrica, whichclarifiesthe perspectiveorthe Imam'sforeignpolicyand
which proniptsthe sinccrc alliesofthc Imam totake ovcr thespynestof America
and makc al1itsoccupanls surrender,and provethat suchmeetingscan inno way
diminish,cvenby an iota, thenatron'srevolutionaryrancor and angcr and that of
the leadertoward America.
Thc Qom rsl~giousscminary expresscsdisapproval OF lhis meeting and, wiih
al1its force, strongly supports thc Msslirn brothcrs and sisters Followingihe
Imam's policy, who declarcd io the whole world, by their occupalion of this
(?CM), the protest of aYILhosewho support the Imam's policy.
/Signedl The religiousseminary of Qom.

4. Rcvolutinn CouncilAssumesGovernment Funclions

LI3062314Tehran Domestic Scrvicein Persian, 0030GMT, 4 Nov. 79 LD.
[7 Novembcr statement by the RevvlutionCouncil of the IslamicRepublic of
Iran-read by announcer.]
[Text]Dear strugglingnation of Iran: Thc Rcvolution Councilof the Tslamic
Republicof Iran, dictated by the necessityof thisphase in your great revolution,
O heroicnation. and aithe bchest ofthe Imam, has shouldcrcda heaviertask in
the continuation of thc rcvoluti~n and in administering thecountry's affairs.
Thecouncil,withdivincsupportand with thehacking,confidenceand trust of
thc overwhelmingmajorityof thc Iranian nation, has acceptedthis heavyburden
and, in step with the nation, has accepted thc Imam'scommand.
During the limited timc ilhas been given ta take ovcr the administration of
affairs,the council is delerrninedto carry out thc Followingmeasurcs:
1.Ta carry out a refercndumon lhe constitutionthe electionof the rnernbers
of thc National Consullative Asscmblyand thc prcsidency.
2.To make increasing use of elemcnts faithful to the revolution, and
pasticularlyof the vast forceof the younger generation,who by their revolution-
ary sincerityand the~rbloody jihad and self-sacrificein bringing the struggle to
rruition haveplayed their worihy role, so that they may ÇQ-operatein adminis-
tering the country's affairs,turning the wheelsof the realm and bringing about
fundamental cconomicand social changes.
3.To purge establishmentsand ministriesof rottcn and subservientelements
until stability isreached, in order to set up an administrative sysiemsuitable to
the rcvolution.
4. To work and carry out thc appropriate crüsh programmes for the irnprovc-
ment of the lifc ui"the deprivcd with theassisranceof the pcople.

5. Khomcini'sSon Arrives

LD050842 Tehran DomesticServiccIn Persian, 0830 GMT, 5 Nov. 74 LD.
ITcxl]Followingiheinvitation extendedby the student Followcrsof the Imam
to SeyyedAhmadKhomeini[Khometni'sson]to investigatethe situation in the79 DIPLOMAITCAND CONSULAK STAFF

US Embassy in Tehran, he has jus1arrived inTehran in order togo to the US
Ernbassy.
Tubrizsrudenrsnccupyconsulute,dernandbreukwith US.

LD051142Tehran Domcstic Servicein Persian, 1030GMT, 5 Nov. 79 Ln.
[Excerpt]The central ncws bureau rcports thal thc US Consulatc building in
Shiraa wasoccupied thismorning by the young people,accordingto thc Imam's
policy,Thc Revolution Guards Corps of Fars Province cxpressedits support for
the action and announced that they would always striveto carry out the
commands of his cminence,the Imam Khomcini. Similarlythc ES Consulatc in
Tabriz was occupied by Student Followers of ihe Imam'sPalicy.Hcreis a report
from our correspondent:
Followingthe occupation of the US Embassyin Iran by Studcnt Followersof
the Imam'sPolicy,af I0.30 this morning the US Consulate building in Tabriz
was occupied by Muslimstudcnts. The same group Casheard] ihen marched
[rom thc consulate building to Tabriz University. A statement issued by thc
Muslirn Studcnt Association of the University or Tübriz says in part: While
supporting the rcvolutionary move to occupy the US Embassy-this nest of
spics and criminals-and in compliance with Imam Khomeini's revolutionary
demand, weshalI,havingoccupiedthc USConsulatc, march to thcUniversityof
Tabriz. Thc statement continues: WC cal1 upon linam Khomcini, in the
irnplemcntation of his dcmand and that of the Irünian people rclating to thc
destruction and eliminakionof imperialisrn,to continuc to remain dcçisiveand

uncompromising.We cal1upon the hetoic pcople of Irantosupport and assistus
in this matrer.WC demand:
1.Abrogation of al1military and oil agreements with imperialish;
2. Confiscationof assctsand capital associaied with imperialistsin Iran the
interest of thc oppressed pcople of Iran;
3. Expulsion of al1 CIA officers in Iran and [words indistinct] and al1 its
documents;
4. A complctc break in relations between Iran and the United States until the
dcliveryof the trcacherous Shah to Iran.

6. Student Interviewed
Li3030612 Tehran Domestic Service in Persian, 0015 GMT, 5 Nov. 79 LD.
[Unidentifiedcorrespondent'sinterviewwithunidentifiedstudent whopartici-
pated in occupation of US Embassy in Tehran-recorded.]
[Excerpt] {(?ucsK~o~D] ear listeners, now it is01.39Qn3 November and Iam
hcrcwith one of the students whozittemptedihis revolutionaryact and occupied
the US Embassy.
In conne~tionwith this issuc,we thought it useful io discusssomepoints with
him about the lime whcn first Pheythought afthis action, what was the cause
and how havc theyexecutedthcir plans up to nowand what istheir general aim
in this operation?
[An~iver] Basically,in connectien with this planitshould bc explained that
recenttvcnts inour socictyhave caused us to feellhat the main direction ofthe
revolution is bcinglost and thc movement is being diverted to other channels,
espcciallyinconncction with reccnt eventsin a society which shows tracesof US

interfcrcnce. Documents discovered after we took over the ernbassy, which our
friends have studied, confirm this füct, the most important point king thc
Shah's trip to the United States and America's disregard Tor the crimes
cammittcd by the Shah in Iran, not taking any noticc of the revolution in lran
and accepting the Shah. The need Lo do something was felt more than evcr,
which is quitc cvidentinthe spcechesof thc Imam in thepast weekor couple of
wceks. The Imam during this period has talked Io al1those received by him DOCUMENTS 71

about thc prohlcm or America. In his last message on thc occasion of 4
Novcrnber he addressed a message to students and al1thc stravaof the people,
especiallypupils, studcnts and iheological studcnts, and askedthem to cxtcnd
and strcngthcn therratiacks againsttlic United States.That waswhythe Muslirn
studeni believerin thcway or the Imam dccidçd,with regardto atl the abovcto
takc ürevolutionary step in thc righi channel, thaï isto say againstAmericaand
itsinterestsand in thc intcrcstsof the oppressmasses or society.Thus thc nccd
to do something wasEellsimultaneouslyin twu universities,and studcnts [rom
severalFaculticsagrcedon the plan to occupy theUS Ernbassyand takc the staff
of the.ernbassy ashostage. They workcd on Lhisplan Forabout tcn days and
decidcd that thebest and most appropriate day Torit was 4 Novcmber on the
occasion of the Imam'sexilefrom lran and the mass slaughtcr or 4 November
last ycar whichmarked the bcgianing or the military rulc ofthe Shah
This washowthe plan wasmade. At about 10.30thc dcmonstrators started to
march along thc cast wingof the embassyand about 10.45entered the crnbassy.
After somc rcsis~ance[rom inside tlic crnbassy by Fessons not willing to
surrcndcr-mainly because thcy wünled Lodestroy d~cumcnts and ihey even
thrcw several lear gas bombs-at about 12.30 to 13.00 the embassy was
çompleiely occupicd by my rriends. The pcrsons who had been arrested wcrc
takcn toa safeplaceand are bcing kcpttliere. What isimportant at thisjuncture
isthat in theembassy'sbuildingNo. 1,whiçhrsinthe soulh wingof the embassy,
my friends Eounda door, a vaulted door, whiçh they could not opcn. About 90
minutes Ilitcr,lhedoor wasopencd and severalpeople surrendcrcd.The door led
to four or Lverooms whcrc cornputer documents and tapcs wcre bundled. The
staff had destroycd as many of the documents as possible. We were vcry
interested in having these documents bccause we might have been ablc to
discloscsomcof thecrimescommittcdby America inIran and othcr çountries in
the rcgion. Then they took al1thc hostages to a safe placc in thc embassy, and
thcyarc aIIsaFe.About nincto tcn svalementshave beeniçsucdwhich have been
given 10 the radio. Al1mattcrs pertaining to pcrsons taken hoslage and the
rcasons Torthe action hüvcbeenexplained. Youçün obtain them fromthe tiews
unit and broadcast it Torthe listenersoutsidc the country.
[Question] Would you tell us how many people you have takcn hostage and
how many of you attemptcd this acLion7
[Ansiver] The number or rny friends who stiirted the attack-1 should
mention that my Friendsentered thc crnbassy as demonstrators and not îor a
military takeover,iiwasa politicalmatler from the bcginning.Ofcourse, atthe
beginningthcy had the ideathat thcy should stageit as a rnilitaryoperation, but
thcn theyihought it bcttcr lo enler anpolitical fashion and thengo on from
there.
This needed a large forccand in lheory they had rnobilizedabout 500 to 600
universitystudcnis. The hostagesnumbcr übuut 100,some are Iranians who arc:
king intcrrogatcd [words indistinct]and about 70 ta 80 of them arc foreigners
with 60 to 65 beingAmcriçans.The important personnel are al1thereexcept For
thechargé:d'affairesIIisprobable that thechargi:d'affaireswillk askcd tojoin
the orhcrs as well.
[Qucs~fon] Hnvc you decided whai to do during the next few days, bccause
obviouslyyou haveforeseenwhat thcir rçactionswillbeand what your reactions
will be to that, and how Fdrare you prepared to go? Has your aim been as a
whole a sort of exposition, and do you intcnd to achieve a result from your
action?
[Answerj In addition to an exposition,we awaita result as wcll.With regard
toour ncxl steps,it isnot wcwhowiildecide,ihis isa dccisionlo be taken by the
pcoplt and the mosi important reason for this isthüt now, abouF3 io 14hours
afier the occupation of the emhassy, WC scc that more than one-third of the

country has announcecisupport for us, Fromdiperent parties and cvcn different DOCUMENTS 73

The act of tlic dear students, followers of the Imüm's way, has lighted new
sparks of hope in the hcarts of our oppressed and revolutionary nation.
From this hour, in order to air the reflectionson this rcvolutioact,which
is about Loroot out the domination of imperialisrnfrom this dear soil, we will
inform you of mcssiigcsand reports about this act. McanwhileWC willbring the
voiçe or our nation's Imam Khorncini to your ears, greetings to the Imam,
greetings to the dçür students and greetingsto you Muslim pcoplc of Iran.

IO.Rhomeini Representajivc'sRcmarks

!.,DO50806 Tehran Domestic Scrviccin Persian,0730GMT, 5 Nov. 79 LD.
["Text" or messagefrom HisGreat EmincnceAyatollah HajSeyyedAholfazl
Kliansari, Imam Khomeini'srcprcscntaiive, to the US Embassy-rcad by
announcer.]
[Text]The Soviet Union is worse than America, Amerlca is worsc thün the
Soviet Union and Britain is worse than both. al1arc more cvil ihan the others.
However, at prescnt WC are irapped by ev~lAmerica. This was Khomeini's
rcrnürk in 1963.The direction taken by thc student followers oftheimam is
cxtremely praiseworthy. The harbouring of the deposed Shah and the plots
hatched agüinst Iran, especiallycarried out in dear Kordcslan, prove the point
thütWC must uproot the rotten roots of this world imperialistand ihrow themin
history'sgarbage can.
1,on my own as wcllas on bchalf of the people of Arak, praisc this act and
express my support for this revolutionaryact.

11.Yazdf Gomments

LD052255 Tchran DomesticService inPersian, 2030 CMT, 5 Nov. 79 LD.
[Tcxt] Dr. Ebrahim Yazdi, Minister for Forcign Affairs of the lslamic
Rcpublic of Iran, Lodayin a press interviewattcndcd by a number of local
corrcspondents explained the view of the Govcrnment and the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs concerning the occupation of the US Ernbassy in Tehran.
Conccrning thc Shah'svisit to America, Dr. Yazdi said:
The US chargi d'affaires had informed Iran's prime ministcr that thc Shah
had dccidcd to travel tu America due ta serious iilncss,and ihal Arnerica had
agrçedto this trip on humanitarian grounds. In thc samemeeting,the USchargé
d'affaireshadconfesscdthat thisaction mayno1passwithout havingsomccffect
on relations betwecn Iran andAmerica. Yazdi added: Erom the beginning, the
Iranian Governmeni expressed its serious opposition to the Shah's irip io
America
The Foreign Ministcrof Iran then referredtothe subscqucntcvcnts,and said:
Twcnty-Tourhours after ihe first meeting ofthc US char@ d'affairesand Mr.
Bmargan, the US Embüssydciivereda report concerning thearriva1of'thcShah
to Amcrica, and once again the Iranian Governmcnt strongly protested.
Following this, the Ministry of Foreign Afdirs requested that Iwo Iranian
physiciansbc nllowcdto go to investigatethe truth concerningthe Shah'sillncss,
a rcqucst which was initially accepted. Howcvcr, thcsc two doctors were
prevented fiom visiting the Shah to carry out a medicalexawination.
On 30 Octobcr the Ministry ofForeign Affairssent anothcr protesr to the US
Govcrnment, rejecting itsexcuses for adtnitting thc Shah and Torrailing to
rcturn him and his wifeio Iran.
The Minister for Forcign Afairs addrd: During the tri1 made to the States
in order to takc part in thc United Nations General AssernbEysession, 1 nict
Cyrus Vnncc and talked to him concerning the extradition of the guilty
individuals who had taken refuge in America. Thc US Foreign Secretary

promiscd that if hereceiveda Iist of the guilty indjviduals with the verdicts by74 DlPLOMATIC AND MNSIJLAR STAFF

American courts, he would takc stcps to extradite the guilty individuals. The
Ministcr for Foreign Affairs said: For instance, WC fosmally requestedfrom
America the extradition of BrigadierGeneral (Razmi) who wüs rcsponsiblefor
thefirein the RexCinemain Abadan, who travelled to the United States under a
false name and îorged passport, and whose address we have obtained. The
Ministry or Foreign AEairs has also acted through the international police,
INTERPOL, Torthe arrest and cxtrüdition of BrigadierGeneral (Rami).
Mr. Yazdi çaid:On the samedate, 30 Octobcr, that we submitted a request to
thc US Governrnent for the extradition of thc Shah and his wifeand al1his
property, wealso senta note to Spain requcsting thern to return tproperiyof
the formcr Shah in those countries. MT.Yazdi cmphasizcd: Despite al1these
steps by the lranian Government, the United States did not give a positive
response, and now whatever is bang said about the neglectîulness of thc
government is very unjusi and unfair.
Conwrning the occupation of the US Embassy, MF.Yazdi said: Although
accordingto international rcgulationsthe Iranian Government isduty bound to
safeguard the lire and property of forcign nationals, and allhough WC as a
government express regretsand willtry to solvcthe problem in a peacefulway,
nevcrthclcss,the responsibility for this incident lics with the US Government,

because it did not püy üny attentionitthe notes concerning the extradition of
the Shah and his wifcand the returning of bisproperty and, conscqucntly, the
people showed such a reaction. Yazdi added: The actionofthe students cnjoys
the endorsement and the support of'the government, because America herseIris
rcsponsiblefor this incident.
In response to another question, Mr. Yazdi said that he has received
assurances from the students who have occupiedthc US Embassy that the Iives
of thehostages are not in danger.

12.Khorncini on Occupation

LD051232Tehran Domcstic Servicein Persian, 1030 GMT, 5 Nov. 79 LD.
[Excerpts]Today the employeesof the lran Ccntral Insurance Company wcrc
reveivedby Imam Khomeini in Qom. The Imam madc somc remarks and then
said:[reüd by announccr]
In ihis sevolution, the big SatanisAmerica, which isclamouring to garher
othcr Satans around it; this includes both the Satans inside and ouisidIran.
You know that during the rule of thcsc two devils[presurnablythe Shah and his
father],whose rule was incontraventionof the liiw,Iran was in turn enslaved by
Britain and then Arncriça. This great Satan-America-is clamouring and
gathering around it other Satans bçcaiise its hand has been cut of from our
resourccs. It is afraid thisamputation may bccomcpermanent. Therefore, it is
plotting.
As for that centre [the US Embassy] occupiedby our young men, 1have bçen
inforrned that it has beena lair of cspionage and plotting. America cxpccts to
take the Shah there, engagein plots, create a basein Irantheseplots, and our
young people are expectedsimply to rcmüin idle and witness al1these ihings.
Thc rottcn roots have become active, hopmg we would mediate and tell the
young peoplc ie Iczivethis place. Our young peoplc rcsorted to this action
beause they saw tbat the Shah was allowed in Arnerica.
America expects our nation, Ouryoung people, our universityand our young
religieuxpeople to sit idle and seethe blood of the nearly 100,000martyrs shcd
in vüin.Obviously,had it not been for the plots, sabotage and al1these corrupl
ücts,everyone could have remained hcrc in freedom. However, when we CC
plots, our young peoplecannot waitand seethcir country return to the past and
cvcrythinggo with the wind.Our young peoplc must foi1al1these plots with al1
their might. TodayWC cannot sirnplyremain idle and watch things;today weare76 DlPLOMATlC AND CONSULARSTAFF

15. Studcnts Threaten To Kill US Embassy Hostagcs
LD061742 Tehran Domestic Servicein Persian, 171 0GMT, 6 Nov. 79 1-13.
[Statcment No. 15 of the Student Followers of the Imam's Policy-read by
announccr ]
[Text]ln the name of Cod, the compassionate, the merciful:O Muslimnation
of Iran, until a final outcome is reached, thc US centre of plots and espionage
will remain undcr Our occuuation. and we wiI1stronnly and solidlv hold Our
positions. ThcUS mercenaries and spies, who are hoGigcs, are bei& watçhed

most closely.
With you as witness, O nation, we sharply warn the criminal Un~tedStatcs
and its damestic agents to &iveup thcir futile attempts. And should the United
States and itsateful agentsin Iran resort to the least çonspiratorial movement,
miIilary or otherwise, to rclcasethe hoslagcs, al1the hostnges beldcstroyed
and the responsibility for this will lie directly with the US Govcrnment.
[Signedl The Muslim Studenr Followers of the Imam's Policy.

16.Clcrgy Supporl for Takeover
GF070516 Shiraz DorncsticServicein P~rsian,1500GMT, 6 Nov. 79 CF.
[Text] Eollowing thedelaration of affinity with, support for, and approval
of the revolutionary action by Muslim Student Followers of the Imam's
Policy regarding the occupation of the US Embassy, oncc again messages

and announcemcnts were reccivcd today at Shiraz Radio From variouç
groups.
Also, His Exçcllcncy Haj Seyycd Ahdolhoscin Dastgheyb hüs issued an
announcemene with regardto the admirable and courageous act of the Student
Followers of the Imam's Policy.The tcxt of his announcement follows:
In thc name of God ~hcmercifuland compassionate: It has becomc known to
al1brave and struggIingpeoplc of Iran that the only way for the countrto be
rcscued and salvagcd from the evils of imperialism and Zionism and the only
way toward the liberation and happincss of the nation is through ohdience to
hisexalied cminenceHis ExccllcncyImam Khomeini.The Imam has repeatcdiy
declared the Unitcd Statesiobc Iran's mosi stubborn and hardhcaded enemy,
and has heen asking for continuous struggleagainst US plots and conspiracics.
But thc United Siaieçlias not givenup its conspiracicsagainstout-rcwolu~ion,
and it has, in fact, recentlyprovidcd shelter for the deposed Shah. It is acting as
hi5host by completelyignoring the Iraniün nation's dcrnand for his cxtradition
to Iran.
Apparently, itdocs not consider thc Iranians to bc human beings.Otherwise,
oui ofits so-calledsenseof hurnanity-which it clairnsto have-it could provide
rclicf ta lhousands of bereavcd fathers and mothers by delivering to them the
murdercr Shah-the bloodthirsty criminal. The Unitcd States considers only
Mahammad Reza, its hireling, to be a human being and shelters him for
humanitarian reasons!
Inasmuch as our bclovcd students and bravc hilusl~rnsexhaustcd their
tolerance and patience, îollowing the policiesof the Imam, they look over the
ccntres or plots and espionagc-the US Embassy in Tehran and US Consulates
in Shiraz and Tahriz-and are holding its employeesas hostages. This courü-
geous and God-Ioving action by you, the beloved youth, 1sappreciated and
supportcd by the entirc nation.
1pray and wishforyour successand for solidarityof theentirenation witlithe
Imam and for the abjcctncssand perdition of imperialism.Greetings upon alof
you and upon al1decenl subjects of God.
[Dated] 6 November 1979.
[S&ed] ScyyyedAhdolhuscin Dastgheyb.78 DlPLOMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

In rcplyto the qucstionas to whether the cabinet ministcrswho are mcmbers
of the Rcvolution Council would rernain, Ayatollah Dr. Beheshti said: The
nccessarydeeision has not yct been taken on this, and yuu will bc informed in
time.
Dr. Beheshti üdded: AI1my friends and 1 are confident that thanks to the
succour of the nation and hhcpowerful solidarity betwccnthe nation, the Imam
and the Revolutinn Council, which is part and parcel of the nalion and 1s a
cornpanion of the Imam, we will be able to pass through the next one or two
months and to bririg our nation as soon as possible to the state of atfairs
envisage$by the constitution.
Dr. Beheshtiadded: For the timebeing wewillnot havea primc minisler unth
thc elections.

20. Khorncini Forbids OfficiaisTQ Mcct US Reprcscntatives

LD071750 Tehran Domestic Scrvice in Pcrsian, 1630GMT, 7 Nov. 79 LD.
[Messagefrom Imam Khomeini,lcaderorthe lslarnicrevulutionof Iran-rcad
by announccr.]
[Text] In the name or Gad, the compaçsionate, thc rnerciful:
Accordine to our information. Carter's swecialre~rcscntativesarc on their
way to 1ranand they intend to corneto ~oi in orde; to meet me. Thcrefore, 1
deemit neçessaryto recallthat as the USGovcrnment, by kçcpingthe Shah,has
declared its open opposition to lran, and on the other hand-as is bcing
said-thc US Embassy in Iran isour enemies'ccntre of espionage against Our
sacred lslarnic movemcnt, it is thercfore not possible under any circumstançes
for Ihc special reprcscntatives to mcet us.
Furthcrmore:

1. The mcmbers of the Islamic Revolution Council under no circumstances
should rneet thcm.
2. None of the responsible officlalshas the right ta meet them.
3.Should the Unitcd States hand ovcr toIran ~hcdeposed Shah-this encmy
nurnber one of our dear nation-and giveup espionageagainst Ourmovement,
the wayto zalkswould beopcned on theissucof certainrelationwhicharein the
interestofthc nalion. [Signe4 RuhoElah Nosavi Khorneini, 7 Novembcr 1979.

21. Students ReaffirmDernand
CO071913Tehran Domestic Servicein Persian, 1630GMT, 7 Nov. 79 LD.
[StatementNo. 19of the Muslim student followersof the Imam "occupying
the US Embassv inTchranU-read by announccr.1
[Text]In thc nameof God, thc compassionate, the merciful:Peacebe unto al1
the Muslimsistersand brethren throuehout lran and the world who. with thcir
unstinting acts of support, arc strengihening our raith in the action which we
havc iüken. Peaceand a salute, which emanates from our very existence,to thc
leaderof the revolution, the Imam orthe nation, thc great Khamcini, who with
his messianicbrcath is everymoment breathing a newlife into the body of ihe
nation so that itmight rise in battle against the biggesl infernal powcr of the
arch-Satan of the rra, thc criminal United States, through relianccon and hth
in God and through thc unity of word.
The world-dcvouring Unitcd States imagines that it could resist the greai
nation of Islam. As the Imam has graciously said, thc United Statcs has the
temcrityto think that it could resistthe entireworld. O lranian nation, from this
nidus of espionagcand the centre of US plots your sons have proclaimcd your

dcmand, O heroic people, to this barbarous beast of prcy and have aften said
thal the United Statcs should return tu Iran thc deposed and traitorous Shah.
This is quite clear and does not necd any negotiation whatsoevcr. DOCUMENTS 79

Today, however, WC havelearned frornthc oficial agencicsthat Lbearchcrimi-
na1Carter is fcvcrishly striving inorder to extricatc hirnselfïrom this political
impasse whichhas comc aboui followingthe great Iranian nation's revolution-
ary wrath ForLheextradition of the deposed Shah and followingthc occupation
or the US spics' plolting centrc.Toward this end, the two US Senators, [as
heard] Ramsey Clark and William Miller, are to negotiate officiallywith the
Iranian authonttes and the religiouslcadcrsabout the condition of the hostagcs
and lranian-US relations. It is incrcdibleihat Cartcr and his hateful agents are
stili planning to Lnd out about Ihe hostagcs and Iran'srelations through
negotiations.Have not Castcr and ihe world-dcvounng US big shots learned a
lesson frum the lranian rcvolu~ionand thc faIl of the 2,500-ycar-old Shah's
empirc üt thehands of thc Iranian nation, Icdby Ihe Imam Khomcini?And have
our resolute demand is for the cxtradition or the traitorous Shah? Are: WC
forgetting that al1thc USagents arc ümong the worst anti-Cod and anti-pcople
criminals and thal their solutions whaiever thcy may be. will ultimaiely
culminaiein blood-suckingand cünnibalism,let alonc the fact that this mission
has bcen entrusted to thc filthiestindividuais,that is, William Miller, the high-
ranking member of the US Zionist scnaie's counterintçlligence [as heürdj
committcc,and RamseyClark, the formerUS attorney-general?Morcover, with
whom do Lheywishto cntcr into negotiations'?11 isio be with thc grcat leaderof
thc rcvoluliun,ihc Imam Khomeini?How slrange and what 1ishallowthought.
Do they not know whahthe spirit of God [Ruhollah, part or Khomeini'sname,
means spirit of God] rneans?Do they noi know thüt the Imam is the universal
consciencc of the nation who, inspired by thc monotheistic school of the
apostlcs, iso1 preparcd to have ialks with üny traitorous big shot?
Then who else is Icît'?Could they poss~blywish to havc Lalks with thc
chüiman of the Rcvoluiion Council?How wilt the çhairman ulthe Revolution
Çouncil then answcr the nation? This is the nation that did not forgivc tbc
former primerninistcrTorhismeetingwilhone of thcscvcrycriminals.Howthcn
çould it brgivc the chairman of thc Revolution Council forsuch a scündalous
meeting?Ncvcr. What need is thcre for such ncgotialions? 1snot thc Eranian
nation's dcmand clear to Carier? How prcposlerous to expcct suchrrom evil
thoughts and rnalcvolcnçc.
You criminüls, we sharply warn you to give up ploiling and political garnes.
Our nation'sdemand is veryclcar.Tbat iç,thccxtradition of the ~raitorousShah.
(Slgned/ The Muslim student followersof the course of thc Imam,

22 Khorncini's Refusal To Dcal With US Comrncnded
LD091242 Tehran Dorncstic Service inPcrçian, 1030GMT, 9 Nov. 79 LD.
[Station commcntary.]
[Text]The Iranian natzon has once again sccn his word proceeding from the
mouth or the Imain. The Imam rcjccted the possibility of any kind of
negotiations with Carrer's cnvoys and fitmly in a command, in which no
ainbiguily or forgivcncss[eghmaz]could bc discerned, banncd al1meetings or
ialks betwccn lranian officiais iindUS envoys. A man who, relying on the
Muslim Iranian nation and afier 16 ycars of releniless strugglc, has hrought
down one of thc greatest despots of world historyfrom the throne of a rcign or
execiition-a man wtlo has always been and continues to be conscious of the
opprcsscdpeople of thc world, aman who deriveshis strength from millionsof
faikhfuland comrmittedIranians, a man who is one of thc descendants of thc
most noble and Lhemost modcstmenof history fthcprophet] has oncc ügain, by
his dccisivc word, rendcrcd null and voici al1 the plans of thc mercenary
politicians of the world. The Imam, who only yesterday inhis simple room in
Qom iold a group of Iranian youngsters with sincenty: 1am your servant, hüs
declarccithat hc would never reccivcthe cnvoys of the US President.80 DIP1,DMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

Hereisa man standing fast whodoes not givea dimefor the politicalgames,a
man who wrestedihc most important bastion ofthis supcrpowerfrom thc claws
of the most bloodthirsty character of history and entrustcd it to the Iranian
people. Thc rcstoration or thc Iranian peoplc'ssovereigntyover their destiny is
the Imam's gift to Iran's sons, and it is for this reasan rhat when the Imam
spcaksir is the pcople'sword which proceeds from the mouth of the Imam.
Arnerica'sblind and wild dipIomacy has once again resorted to a ludicrous
game which onlyprovcs the giddiness and the panic of American politicians.
Carler has dispatched Iwo cnvoysIO Iran to resolvewith the Imam the issueof
the occupation of the US Embassy. American dipIomacy is blind becausc it
cannat see that the Imam is a manifestation of the deep-rootcd and proround
hatred of the pcople who have sufered the scvcrest blows from bloodthirsty
Amcrica.American diplomacyis wildbccause it does not realizerhat the word
of the Imam is the word of 36 million Iranians. America'sdiplomacy is pailic-
stricken becauscit has yet Io realize that the lmarn is absolutcly firmin the
mcssage that uniil thc deposed Shah of Iran has bcen extradited hc will noi
negotiatc with American cnvoys.

23. Ayatollah Beheshti Interview
LD 111401Tehran Domcstic Service inPcrsian, 1030GMT, 11Nov. 79 LD.

Revolution Council,revealed inan interviewwith Newsweek,whichispublishcdn

in New York : Cwilltry to avoid killingthe staffof the USEmbassyin Tehran.
Ayatollah Beheshti then stressed that talks concerning Ihe rclcase of the
Amcricanhostagcswillstart only whcnthe deposed Shah isreturned to Iran. He
poinied out that the Unitcd Stateshas bccome Iran'sbiggcstenemyby acccpting
the Shah and therefore should haveexpectcdsuch a reaction from Tehran.
In the interview, Ayatollah Bcheshti warned the United States against any
rormofresorting lo forceforthe releascof the Americanhostagesand üdded: In
such a casc, al1relations would be severcdfor a long timc, perhaps rorevcr.
Ayatollah Bchcshtisaid in conclusionThe Rcvolution Council has issuedno
ordersto the1ranian studentsconccrningthe occupation of the US Ernbassy. He
thcn stressedthatthe possibilityof cutting oii suppliesto the Unitcd States stili
exists.

24. Bani-Sadr Lcttcr to Waldheim
LDI31518Tehran Domestic Service in Persian,1030GMT, 13Nov. 79LD.
[Tcxt]Mr. Abolhaçan Bani-Sadr,supervisor of our country's ForeignMinis-
try, has dcscribed inan opcn lctter addresscto Mr. Kurt Waldheim, Uniied
Nations Secretary-Gcncral, thecauses and faciors leading to the current crisis
between Iran and the Unitcd States. In his lctter addressed to the Unlted
Nations Secretasy-Gencral,Mr. Bani-Sadr says:

Dcar Secrerary-Gencral, your proposal to comc to lran givcs me an
opportunity, through you, to draw the attention or the representaiivcsof worid
countries in the United Nations to a fact which the US Govcrnment is trying in
any way possihlcto keep US and world publicopinion ignorant of, that ithat
Iran is a country which,siincethe coup d'étatof 1953until the fa11of thc Shah's
rkgime,has under the dircct administration of the US Government gonc a long
way toward political, cconomic, social and cultural decline. Our people's
awarencss saw that the time of coIIapsc was approaching, and with their
revolution they diverted thc courstodeath to a course toward lice.
There are hundreds of documents and cvidence proving the continucd
administration of the country by the Uniied States under covcr of'the former
Shah's reign. From among al1thcse 1 would remind you of thc mernoirs of DOCUMEKTS 81

Eisenhower,US Prcsident at the timc;Dulles,director of the terribleCIA at the
time;of theCIA agentsand ofEden,theBritishprimeminister. Eisenhowerrefers
to a change in the Iranian people's psychology-From being determined to
bccurninghesitant-as a decidingfactor in the successof the ÇIA coup d'état
against the legal government of Dr. Mosaddcq. In ihese crucial days the US
Governrnent isonce again trying very hard, in conne,ctionwitha crisis whichit
itselfhasprccipitated,tu createwar hysteriainthe United Statcsand al1theWest.
What has happened? Why isit that the United States ishiding the truih from
its own public? Whenhave our peoplewanted to humiliate the great American
nation or hurt itspride?Itsbeingsaid, and they are quoting USofficialsin this,
ihat USpublic opinionhas been provoked and excitedfar more than at the time
when the United States entered World War II. In thepast,too, the history of
man has witncssedmany great calamitieswhich rcsultedfrom sirnilarprovoca-
tions. This time the availabilityf mass media has made it possible io make
provocation effectivewith unprecedentedspccd,and on an unprecedentedscale.
Itisamazing ihat Iranians and our consulatesare attacked in the Unitcd States;
lranians arc arresied and deported; and the US Government not only iakes no
action te prevent such behaviour but it itself also ernbarks on military and
economicmeasures.
Mr. Secretary-General, 1believe that you also have no doubt that, having
created the prcsent atmosphere, the United Staies would havc no objection to
waging any kind of war. In other words, the US Government has crcated the
psychologicalatmosphere for waging such a war. What does thc US Govern-
ment need from sucha war?Whydid this Government not hccd our warningsat
the time, and why did it allow theformer Shah into its country? Now that we
have rcquesied his extradition, why is it that the US Covemrneni makes this
legitimatc rcquest look in the eyes of thc American nation as if the Iranian
nation wantsto humiliateAmerica?Apart from the Nuremburg court, are there
not dozens of cases of extradition of crirninals, particularly crirninals whose
extradition has been dernandcd by the nation?
Mr. Secretary-General,now that ccnsorshipexists in a country wliichclaims
to be democratic and the American nation is not allowed to hear the voice of
truth. you should echo this voicein the world. We do not ask if the US chicf
executivchad plundered theriches of that country, brought them to Iran and
kcpt them in Iranian banks, if thc Americanchicf cxecutivehad ordered troops
io fireon thc people and on a day such as 5 .lune 1978 had killed several
thousand people;and if in answerto the question of whctherhe had ordcrcd the
shooting he had repliedin the affirmativeand had snidhe was proud of it; ifhe
hadturned prisonsinio a placefor executionor torture; if in the last yearof his
rule he hadembarked on massacresin al1the citiesof the country and then had
corne to Iran; if thc US chief executivc had made himself a psotected pcrson
under the Iranian Government and had put the control of the US Army, the
poliiical police, thc ccanomy and the legislativeapparatus and so fortb in the
hands of that government, and if he had then fled to Iran or were brought to
Iran-would the Arnerlcan nation have accepted that the extradition of the
criminal,treachcrousand corrupt çhiefexecutivewould hurtOurnational pride?
Mr Secretary-Gcneral, is not thc Amerrcan Govcrnment guilty? Through
falsc propaganda America wishesin thc [word indistinct]of huma? civilization
tu arousea nation in support of an iniernational crirn~nal.1sit right in your view
iflt isrecordcdin history thaagovernmentlikethe AmericanGovernment with
the aid of a propaganda machine succeeded in making a great nation iurn
ügainst an oppressed nation-to say more properly, agalnst al1 oppressed
nations-and sidc wiih an international criminal?
Does the true prestige and pride of thc American nation not consist of
defending the rights of oppressed humanity? Every free consciencc and, of
course,cveryaware conscienceexpectsthe American nation to arisc united and82 DIPLOMATIC AND CONXULAR STAFF

impeachits Governmcnt becauseit has allowedthe agent Torthc murder of the
Iranian people, the agcnt for the decadencc of the region and thc agent of
corruption and plunder to sct foot on Amencan soil.
The cxpcctation of the secret conscienceor the civilizedhumanity was that
you, personally, and international organizations and leading religious,political
and scientificpcrsonalities would impcach the Amet-icanGuvcrnment. Do not
hesitate to believcthat our nation by no means intends to takc revenge onone
person. We wishto clcvate the spiriluality of the oppressed humanity.
Mr. Secretdry-Ceneral:Rest assured that if the Amencan Government had
not tried to humiliateour nation anddid not even rejectthe Iegalprosecution of
thusc pcople who have comrnitted many cnmcs against this nation and if it
admitied its guilt insupporting the bloodthirsty, tyrannical, illegaland destruc-
tivegovernment,the two nations of Iran and the United Statcswould now enjoy
the best of relakionswith each other.
Now youare proposing to cometo Iran. The problem and its solution 1sto be
found in thc United States. As suon as the American Government admits the
elementary right of a nation and thus tries to compensate for the humiliation
which ithas afflictcdupon our nation, thc problem willbe automatically solved.
Mr. Secretary-General: 1 believethat you agrccwith me that daily increasing
incitcmcntis not the proper solution to the crisisin whosecreatiWC have had
not the slightest share. The Amcrican Government, which in the past çpoke so
vehemcntlyagainst the useof thc oil weapon, last night decidednot to purcliase
Iranian oil, and Mr. Carier askcd the countries which buy lranian oil to follow
America'scxampie.
Do you noi think ahatthe people in Muslim couintries,whose oil is plaçed ai
rhcdisposal ofindustrializedcountries for a pittance,would uscthisopportunity
ro show their dissatisfactionand anger and that thc gneral culoff of oil would
turn this crisis into a world crisis'!
Mr. Secretary-Gcneral,due to my own socializedscicntificresearch, 1know
full wellthat the sickcricaneconomyand the unstable situation of thedollar
have inflictcd a severe politicaland oconomlccrisis on the American Govcrn-
ment. DoesAmcricareallywishto stabilizethe position OF ithedollar at the price
of endangering world pcace? ln that case, is your duty as United Nations
Secre~üry-General to come io Iran or to take some steps in rclation to lhe
AmeriçanGovernment? Lei us hopc that you willacccpt the legitimaie dernand
of a nation which does not wish 10be humiliated.
Our nations have nothing to lose exccpt their locks and chains and theis
povcrty, but your heavy rcsponsibilitydernands that, at any price,you will
prevent an atmosphere of war from castirig its shadows ovcr the world. Our
proposai is simple and very practical.The Amcrican Government should, at
least, accept thc investigation of the guilt of the former Shah af Iran and its
consequences. The AmcricanGovernment çhouldreturn to the Iranian Govern-
ment thc wealth and property which the Shah, his familyand the leadersof the
former régime have transferred to the Unitcd States. Are thesc two proposais
not just, and are thcy not in the interest of the spiritual elcvation of the
American nation and al1humanity'!
Bearingin mind that the Amencan Government isimmcrsingthe world in a
clirna~eof war and the Government of thc Islamic Regublicof Iran seesits own
peaceand the pcaccof the regionand of the whole worldendangered,it requests
the convening ol'asessionof the SecurityCouncil. We hope and expectthat the
rcspectedUnited Nations Secretary-GencralwilIsupport the legitimaredemands
of a nation vis-a-vis the American Govcrnment and will insurc that the
Govcrnmcnt will renounce itshostile attitude and açcept our rightful demand.
The Covcrnmeni of the lslamic Republic of Iran isgrateful Torthe stepswhich
you may takc.
With friendly feelings.[Signedl Abolhasan Bani-Sadr. DOCUMENTS 83

25. Gotbzadeh PressConfcrence

LD131338Tehran Domestic Scrvicein Persian, 1118GMT, 13Nov. 79 LD.
[Text]Sadcq Gotbzadeh, supervisor of the Volcc and Profilc orthe Is!ami~
RtpubIic of Iran, hekda press conference with Jranian and fore~gnreporters
today.
During this interview, whichtook placein the radio and tclcvisionheadquar-
tcrs, Gotbzadeh answcrcd variousquestions fromthe reports about thc occupa-
tion of the US Embassyby thc Muslirn student followcrsor the Imam'spolicy,
and ah~oil embargo imposed by Iran on thc United States.
Herc are parts of Lhisinterview:[beginrccording].
[Question] Mr. Go~bzadeh:In your prcssconferenccroday you have spoken
of powcr.Thdt is, youhave not spoken as the supervisorof the Yoiçeand Profile
of thc tslamicRcpublic.It isthereforesurrnisedihat youare includcd in the ncw
combination [as hcard] of thc Revolution Council.1sthis true'?
{Ans~iwr] There is cnough powcr attached to the post of supervisor of the
Voiceand Profileof the IslamicRcpuhlicoFIran, so 1do not have to speakas a
membcr of the Rcvolution Council. 1spoke of [words indistinct] inconnection
with Lheaction and feelingsor the peopleoT1rantoward US impcrialism.Evcnif
1 had no position, rwould say thc same.
The Rcvolution Councilwill make an announcemcnt in the ncxt 48 hours
about my part in the ccruncil.Nalurally, there can bc no confirmation or denial
until then.
[Que..srion]About the decisionof the IraiiiünGovernmenl on ihc oil embargo
on lhe Unircd States: It is riimoured that Ihe United States has boycotted
Iranian oil, and the council reachcdits decisionafter thc decisionby the United
States. 1sthis not so?
[Ansiver] No, it 1snot likc that. A fcw days ago, Mr. Mo'infar, the oil
minister, did al1the necessary research about thc possibility of cutting off oil
exports to the United States. Naturally, the news about itwas circulating. He
lalcr reportcd lhis to thc Revolution Council.
The dccision of the Revolution Coiincil on this was that it should be
implcmcntedin two stages. As weare a rncrnberof OPEC it wasügreedthat Mr.
Mo'infar should firstannounce this dccision by the lranian Government tu the
oil ministcrs or thesc countries-so that they would not say that thcy did not
know-and thcn it should bc announccd Lothe u~orld.
Then, Mr. Carter announced this decision-hc knewivhat we weredoing-in
order to takc advantagc of this situatioand to [wordsindistinct]the USpublic
opinion.
In any case,wehave a mutual problern:WCdo not wani tu seIloll and they do
not want to buy. Thereforc, tliere is no cause for anxiety.
/Que,stiotilDo you not supposethar the buycrs or iranian oilmight cxport the
oil tothe Unitcd Çtales?
[Ansiver] No. We will stop this; guarantees can be obtained. Of course, the
questionof lranian uilguingto the UnitedStaies isnot [ashtard] and zheyknow
that thereis no [word indistinct] for us this way.
They want Lo involvc olhcr counlries in this-they know very wcll that
Muslim countricswillmost likely takc our sideon this issueand oil exports to
thc world miglit be intcrrupted-and thus, thc United Statcs might bc rcscued
frorn this scvcrecrisis.
Webclicvethat taking the Shah lo the United Stateswas done müinlyfor this
purposc [*asheard].They knewwhat the relictionof the Iranian nation would be
and wünied to takc advantagc of it.
Obviously,you might sayihat wearc ihus helpingthem.No, whateverstcp we
takc on this issuc is to our benetit bccausewe inusponce and for al1cure this
infcrjoriiy complex thatthc oppresscd peopleof the world have concerning the
invincibilityof Arnerica. DOCUMENTX 85

Yesterday ai-ternoanAkrireli managcd to makc contact with a leader of the
studcnts who havc occupied thc US Embassy in Tehran and who hold 59
hostages, including 1 Italian.
The studcnt refusedto givehis narne."r am a Muslimstudenl and a Follower
of Khomeini." Calmly and steadily he desçribed the situation in the US
Embassy. He wantcd very much to emphasizc that al1the hosrages are wcll,
Nobody is il1 and al1are receiving Lhenecessary arnount of food. "But our
patience1srunning out", hesaid. "The Shah'sallegedillncssisa trick and today
thc cornmitteewilldecide how long our patience will last."
[Question W]hat will happcn when paticnce runs out?
[Ansti~er]That is something 1cannot disclose.

[Que~~imt]ScveralEuropcan newspapcrsmaintain thai you have mistreated
the hostages.
[Atl~werj Thai is a lic. Everybodyisfine and trcaied as wellas circumstanccs
permit.
[Question W]hat will happen io the Shüh ifhe 1shanded over to you?
fitnscilerHe willbe tried and LhenkilledHe is rslam'schierenemy.If he dies
inthe United Staies it willbc the work of tÇIA. The only thing thal can halt
our occupation of the cmbassy is for the Shah to be handed ovcr now!We will
not ncgotiatewith thc United Statcsor any mcdiaiars. The Amcricansknow our
ultimatum-the hünding over of the Shah.
[Qutislion] Could not thc situation culminate in war against thc United
States?
[Ansii;erJNo, the entire world supports usin our lcgiiimatedemands to bave
the Shah extradited [answcrends].
The telcphone ïnterview withthe US Embassyin Tehran was then cut off.

27.Military Personnel March

GF140730 [Editorial Report Gq Tehran Domestic Television Service in
Persian at 1700GMT on 13November,relayedby Abadan, reports thai "Army
Green Berets and navy personnel of Iran's lslarnic Rcpublic,during a march in
front of theUS 'cspionagenest' today, declarcd their support and readincss to
sacrificefor the revolutionarynd anti-imperialisticgoals of Imam Khomeini,
leader of Iran's Islamic cevolution, and the Studçnt Followers of the Imam's
Policy". The Grccn Berers,thc announcer adds. declarcd rcadiness "to figbt in
any and al1parts or the world against US imperialism".
"Grcctcd warmly and passionaielyby the crowds gathered and stationed
arriund thc cmbassy, thc representativcs of the Grccn Berets, during their
announcemcnt of support for ibe Islamic students, statcd thai if thc Imam
shoiild wish and so ordcr, they werc prepürela takc ovtr the rcaponsibilityof
guürding and protecling the US 'espionagc ncst'. Soldicrs who were being
carried ondcmonstrators'shoulderssaid that ciuryauth rnay rest assurcd in the
certainty that the United States cannot take nny irresponsiblc action against
Iran."
At this pointthe announcer draws viewers'attention to certain scenesof the
demonstration by army and navy personnel. The i-ollowingslogans are hcard
chanted by dcrn»nstration leaders and are repeated sevtral times by the crawd:
"This Carter must bc killed." "Godisalmighty." "Deaih to America." This lasi
slogan isrepeatcd at least a dozen iimes.
An unidentificd speaker is heard dclivering a short speech that includes:
"Greetings to these bravc cçornpatriotswho have once again discovered the
conspiracics and plots of this world-devouring imperialism and iis espionagc
nest and destroyed it in its womb," Once again slogans are uttered by leadcrs
and the çrowd is heard shouting lhern ovcr and over: "Dcath to America."
"Grcctings to armcd forces brothers." "Armed forces brothers, may God DOCUMENTS 87

betwcen reporting facts and persona1interestsWe hopc that you maj, always
bcar in mind the human issue. Sani-Sadr was then asked about Iran's policy
toward Afghanistan and the conscquences of the Iranian revolution in other
counlries.
He pointed oul: Wehave a joint h~storywith Afghanistan.The pcoplesof thc
two countrics share thc same religionand culture; tlicrerWCecannot witness
any intcrference in our neighbourhood and remain idle about a policy which
imposes a réglmcthrough inappropriate and Forcedpolicics.Irindepcndenceis
good, lhen WC musi wish ir for evcryone.Wc do not consider such issues as
interna1 ones ünywhere in the world. Cnnscquenily, ours is not a revolution
whiçh cauld beconfincdwitbinborders. Whcther wewünt it or not, what ought
to be learncd is that contemporarman will learn from ihis revolution.
The supervisor of the Forcign Ministry, Bani-Sadr, today answered CQPre-
spondents' questionsabout Iran's foreign policy:Ibcgin recording].
[Unidenig codrrespond~n~]Mr. Bani-Sadr, yesterday you rejcctcd a US
proposal in connection with theShüh'sextradition, the rctuofhis wealth and
his trial ancourt. Could you pleaseexplüinwhy?
[Ansiver] What the Unitcd States saidwas that he would bc deported;ildid
not say itould rcturn him to us. Othcrwjse,this would bewhat wearc asking.
Thcrefore, if it returns hiwe will accept this. We evcn said thüt his crimes
should bc investigatcd,and the United Statesshould acçeptthc outcorne,which
means rcturning him to Iran.
[Unideni$cd correxponllen~] You have writtcn 1w0 (lettcrs) making certain
proposals. Morcover, in thc course of the past couple of days, certain other
proposals have been madc by the United States. Does this show that you havc
modcraled your request, that you no longer dcrnand thc Shah's return?
(Answer] No, wehavc not moderütcd our dcrnands[wordsindistinct].We said
thüt sincethcre isno doubt of the deposed Shah's crimes, a tcam should in-
vestigatethe casc.Once it isproved that the Shiihisguilty then the USGovern-
rncnl should accept thc verdict; thal is, it should return the Shus.to
/Unid~nt$edc»rresponrlen~/ Ccrtajncountries, likcCanada and Mexico, have
closed thcir embassiesin Iran. What do you think is the rcason?
/Aris~i~~rSome embüssies werc under the impression that thcy haveno
sccurity. 1 lake lhis opportunity to cal1on my compatriots to Ireat forcign
nationülsresidingin Iran with utmost good will,friendshipand kindncssothat
othcr countrics may havc no excuscwhatsocvcr to turn this crisisintaworld
crisis. Thcy were uncasy aboui this situaiion. Some of the countnes were
çoncertlcd, bulthcir rinxietichave becn rçmoved, and they recipened their
crnbassicsas of today.1hopc the situation will improve further in the Future.
{Unidcttrijed corrc.spoildent]Thc United States has only called on students
with studcnt visasto rcport to the immigration olficc,having excludedthose no1
having student visasWhy do you think this is so?
[Ansiver] This issomesort of prcssureappliedby thc USGovcrnment. In my
messageaddressed to lranian students and lranians livingabroad, 1askethern
to staywherc they are and put up with the difficulties.

29. Rcvolution Council AddressesPcople

LDI 51408 Tehran DomesticScrvicein Pcrsian, 1030GMT, 15Nov. 79 LD.
[Statemcnl issued bv the Central Cornmitteeof thc lslamic rcvolution-rcad
byLannouncer.]
pcxtl ln hiscnalted namc. At this crucial rnomcnt when the den of Arnerican
esnionagehas bccnoccuwicdbv the Student Followersof the Imam'sPolicvand
when I& Iranian nation'has Asen toliberate itsclî frorn the domination of thc
East and West, Americaand its Puppet agents are planning to provoke naivc
and cmotional youngstersto occupyother centres,suchas theVatican Embassy, DOCUMENTS 89

shoiild be invcsiigated,tried and treated in accordancc withour own laws. As
Forwhat Carter has done, it is contrary to international laws;for a criminal-a
criminal who has actcd against a country-should corneto the country
concerned and be tricd. No country is cnti~ledto give sanctuary to a crirninal
and keep him therecontrüry to intcrnaiional norrns.It 1sCarter who has actcd
against intcrnalional norrns, not us.
[Question ] Mr. Carter has çlearly stated that hc will not return thc Shah to
Iran On the othcr hand, thcdiplomats and their fiimiliesarc lerriblyupset about
the situation.1sthere any room for ncgotiation'?
[Answer] Unlil he returns this criminal, anas long as Mr. Carter fails to
respcctinternational laws,wecannot return thcsespies. Evcn if wc rcturn thesc
spicsarter ihc Shahhas corne,it willbehecausewehavcbcenlenicni.Otherwise,
tliey should be tried and he dcalt with hcrc in accordance with our laws.
[Questiun] My olher qucstion was [wordsindistinct]is whal the Ayatollah is
saying is thc only condition is that the Shah be retusticd ta Iran beïore thc

hostages arc released.1sthis your only condition?
[Ans~er] Thc onlycondition liesin thc return of thc Shah, and this isbccause
we are being Içnitni toward them
/Qu~.srionj The United Statcs and Iran are involvcd in an cconomic and
politicalwar'which1sescalatingeveryday. And thc Ayatollah slillrefusestu see
any rcprtsentativcs whatsocver of Prcsidtnt Castcr. Why?
[drisiver]This is an economicand political war that Mr. Carter has brought
aboui, and WC areafraid neither ofhispoliticalwar nor of hiseçonomicwar. For
wc bclieve,rathcr, that the politicalwar willcertiibe:harmful to Americaand
thccconomic war willnul harm us. Neverthelcss, untilthe Shah isrcturned, until
the crirninal is returned to us, and until Cartcr bows to inlernational laWC,
cannokfind a way For negotiations.
[Queif/an] [Wordsindisiinct]has been rcported as süyingthat it is not in the
interesrof lran to havc rclaiionswiththe Uniled Statcsal all. ts it possiblaihat
sornepoint youwjllsimplybrcak al1relationswiththe United States then [words
indistinct]ncluding the hostages and cnd the mnttcr wirh the United States?
[Ansiv~r] It is possiblebu^this has to be studied.The rclalions thawe have
had withthc United Svatesup to now,and the kind of'crnbassythat Americakas
had in Iran, are not acceptable. Rut, if this spying den is transrortned inta
propcr cmbassy and if thc kind of relations tlie Unitcd States had with thc
former régimeceasesto cxist, and ifwe feelit suitahle thnt someof rclalions be
maintained, then 1do no1see any reason ivhy relations cannot bc rnaintaincd.
[Translatai. interxuptsWhat hc really wants to know is whcther or not the
hostages will be returned if relations betwccn lran and America are severcd?
[Answer] We should invcstigateand Cind out if the hostagesare diplornats or
pcople who carne herc to spy. Wc cannot reiurn spies and there are no
conditioiisor relations whichsüy lhat spics should bc returned. But ifthey are
proved to bc diplomats, and if relations are scvered, thcn there will nol be any
objections pasheardj.
[QuestirrnJ Imam, would you be willingio ineet Presidcnt Carter pcrsonally?
[Wordsi~idislinct]your persuasion on him, and if your answer iycs, would you
be willingto mcet him in üthird country, say France, whcre you spent pari of'
your own exile?
[Ansiucr] Such a mectiny would not aflect the issue. If Mr. Carter wants to
nlake us stcp down from our dcmands-i'rorn dernanding thc return of that
criminal,sorneihingthai he should do accordingro intcrnarional rcgulations-it
is out of the question. lf tShah is returned, then there willbe no point in our
meeting. Therefore, 1 am not willingto meet him.
/Question] 1 have talkcdLO manyofthe peoplcin front of the embassy.People
and siudcntsassurc me Lhatwhatcverhappcns the Amcrican hostages willncver
bc killed. Will you givcus that same assurance?90 DIPI~OMATICAND CONSWLAR STAFF

[Answd The issueisno dovbl as they put it, and solong as thc hostagesare
there, they are shclteredy Islam and they will not be harmed. They will be
stayingthere enjoyingcomplcteease, When QUr criminal is rctumed-although
according to regulations we should try those who are bcing kept in the
embassy-we are prcpared to grant them a degrec of concession and we will
rcturn them.
[Qumtion] Do 1iakc it that ihc answerisyesand that they willneverbc killed
undcr any circumstances?
[Trarislutur-in EnglishJNo, noi under any circurnstances.Thcy should be
tried and if the Shah is no1 çorning back . . . [herc the translater turns to the
Ayatollah and explains the point in Persian].Your Eminence,there isa delicate
point here. If the Shah is not relurncd, naturaasyyou have indicated bcfore,
they willdefinitclybe tried.
(Answer J If this is prolanged, they will definiielybe iried.
[Trunslaror-ln Persian]Thenwhatever thc court dccideswilIbe acted upon.
1% that so?
(Answerf Yes.

32.CDSIntervicw With Khomeini
LI3191056Tehran Domestic Scrvicein Persian, 1820 GMT, 18Nov. 79 LD.
[Interviewgranted by Ayatollah Khorneini,Ieaderof the Iranian Revolution,
to a CBS Tclevision correspondent in Qom on 18 November-recorded;

from thc English unlessoihcrwise indicated.]slation; questions are transcribed

Fext] [passagc indistinct] [Khorncini]Yes, there is no ohjection. But Task
thcm nol to distorl my words. Some people have come herc for interviewsand
distorted our words and added some liesas well.This 1sagainst the morülity of
news rcporting, and 1 ask of you that thcsc words should bc broadcast .
üccurately,withoul any tampering and without your intecfercnce.
fQucstionJ Imam, 1 undersland perïectly what you are saying and 1 feeP
confident that when you sce the result of what is hroadçast in Ihc United States
you will be welIsatisfie1thank youfor receiving us and 1hope that your cold
isbetler. It ismy undcrstanding, Imamtliatyou havesccnthe questions that we
intend toask. Thcre may bc one or two follow-upquestions in regard toyour
answers, but basically there wilbe no surprises. You know what wewant to
know and the world is, actually, the worldis waiting fyour answers, Imam,
becauscthe answersare of verygreat importance to your country, tmy country
and to the world al large.
Do you still say, Imam, that if the Shah, the former Shah, is not rciurned to
Iran thatthoseAmcricanhostagcsin the American Embassycompound willnot
be frecd?
[Answer] In the name of Cod, the compassionatc, the mcrciful. This issue
depends on the nation; this isthe wisholour nation of 35million,and weought
to considcr why our nation wantsthe Shah's return and the hostages not to bc
releaseduntil the Shah returns. And whydoes Carter insistso much on keeping
the Shah? As to the questionor why our nation insists,the issue is not sirnply
that thc Shah should came to Iran; our nation regards the Shah as its cnemy.
What will it do withhim? Hc is not a gift for our nalion rneretokeep hcre.
There arc two aspectsto our nation wanting the Shah to corne hcrcon which
WC insist,andone of these aspcctsiofgreaser importance than thc other. One
aspect is this: arc a nation whose economyis nrit verystrong at the morncnt
and a great deal of Iran's wealth is in the hands of the deposed Shaand his
relativeswhich is accumulated in.US and other countries hanks, andal1oTit1s
the properly of the nation. The rcason WC insisl on the Shah's reLurnis to
ascerlain the whereaboutsof the properiy of the destitute which is in his hands DOCUMENTS 91

and in the hands of his agents, whcrc it is and how it can be returned Eothe
nation.
Another point whichisevcnmoreimportant isthat wewant hisrtturn sothat
we can digout the roots of the crimes this pcrsoncommittcdovernearly 37ycars
in Iran, the trcaçherieshe has done to Iran, thc massacreshe has cornrnitted;we
want to find out on whoscorders they wcrc cornrnitted.Whcn a person rules a
country, hedoesnoi cornmirso manycrimcswithout reason;hewasan agent for
others. Hc himselfalso said: 1was on a missionto mycountry. We want to find
the oneswhoordered him iocommital1thesecrimes inhishomeland, to fino dut
who thcy are.For this rcason, our nation insists that this man must corneand
thcst two points shauld he establishcdata trial; whütcver the court ordcrs will
bc acted upon.
Asfor Carter'sinsistencc that heshould not rcturn, weought to set whetherit
1sbccauseMr. Carter isa humanist, and whciheril isMr. Cürter'saltruism that
rnakeshirn so insistcnt,and makes hiin confront the Islarnicnation, intimidate
it, and causcal1theseissues20ariseand put thc rcgionin danger. 1sit becauseof
his altruism? We can sec no trace afsuch altruibm in Mr. Cartcr, for it is clear
from Iiisactions that hc does not thlnk in this way.Ttis not altruism if a person
keeps a criminal under his protection or causes so much crime and dcath in so
many countries. Thesearc not the acts of a hurnanist, and he has nul done this
out of allruism. IFhc had any idea of altruism, there wcrc 35 million human

bcingsin Iran, onc oTwhomwasMohammed Reza.Thcywcreal1from thc same
country and nation. Huw come al1this crime was pcrpctratcd upon us, and so
much killingwas reçenlly cominittcd by this person'?And this was during Mr.
Carter's administration, and yct his altruism ncvcr cven led bim to ask this
persan not to commit al1this. Accordingto whal we know, not only did he not
makc sucha requestbut hc instigatedal1this. When heisinsistent,and it isclear
that it is not because of altruism, lhIImust be becausehe docs nol want his
secretsand the secretsof Amcrican leaders to be known.
By thc Shah's prescncc here we shall cxpose the sccrcts of Carter and his
prcdcccssors,and wcwillshow ~heAmcrican nation whüt sort of presidcnt they
are dealing with, how theseprcsiden~s have playcd havoc withtheir nation and
disgraccdthcir nation among the Muslima.It is Torthis reason thal wewant hlm
to come. and Cartcr wants him not to come Torthe samc reason; his insistcnce
that the Shah not corneisbecaiiscof his rear that sccretsmay be revealcd,for he
willnot bc üblc to lead a normal lirein his own country and hia presidencytoo
[wordsindistinct].
11"ihc Amcriçan nation is informedOC the issucs, and Ihe mass mcdia tellit
what has happened in this çounlry ihanks tothc Americanprcsidentsand other
superpciwerIcadcrs,irii understands thisir willnot supportCarter.1wouldeven
say that support for Cartcrprobably çomcsfrom a categotyof pcople who are
under his own supervision,like the support which used to be given to the Shah
hcrc, to the:depascd Shah. For example,whenevera US presidentcamc to Iran,
a large numbcr of people would bc brought out towelcomehirnin thc name of
thc nation, whereas thc nalion never had any proper knowledgeof such afiirs
and was ncvcrprepared to wclcomethe Shah and his guests.But they had large
nurnbcrs of peoplewho would do thcse Lhings:Probably Mr Carter alao has a
large nurnbcr of people placcd, Torinstancc, in the security organization, and
peoplc who are attachcd to hirn, and thcy are: the ones who humiliate our
studcnts abroad aiid treat ihem harshly. Mr. Carter himselr,this Mr. Altruist,
also treatr;our studcnls there Iikcthis; and causes thcm 10be persecutcd, causes
dogs to be sct on (hem and other similar crirncs; thisMr. Altruist is like ihai.
And wearc an oppressednation; we want thc pcrson who wastrcacherous to us
to be invcs~igaied,to gct to Lhebottom of what he did.
[Question] Rut that is not an answcr to whether the hostages will be freed.
[Ansiver] That was an answer T1.i~ni~tiondoes not wünt to (?releasethcm).92 . DIPLOMATICAND CONSUI.AR STAFF

[Question] Then the hostages will remain therc, in the American Embassy
compound, what, for life?Forever?
[dnswer] They will until the Shah rcturns. The Fatcof the hoslages is in
Carter'shands. Thcsc hostagescan bc rcleased by Cartcr; when he delivcrsour
criminals to us,we will (?release)the hostages. '
[Quesrbn] And only if Mr. Carter, thc President of the United States,returns
the Shah, only then will the hostages be rrecd'!
[Ansiver] [Words indistinct]that is il, ihat is it [passage indistinct].
(Question] Imam, President Carter accuses your Governmenl of practising
tcrrorism and says that your rkgimc will be held accountahIe iTLhoscUS
hostages are harmed.
[Answer] A nation oT35millionterrorists?Mr. Carter must bc asked whether
thisis yourdiagnosisin politicalmatters too. Thc cntire nation or35million has
supported them, ycttheyare terrorists?1havenoticedthat hiswords, regrcttably,
werenotjudicious whenhesaid:Theyarenot students,theyarc not even tramps,
theyare Lerrorists.Inyour logic,studentsand Irampçare thesame; do youregard
trampsand hooligansand studentsas al1thesame?1shumiliationofstudcnts inal1
the countries of thc world not tantamount to this? Do you regard our natioas
tcrrorists?1sYQUdriagnosisinpoliticalaffairslikethistoo, to regardour natias
terrorist? You may bc assured that our nation is Muslim, and Muslim is not
terrorist,nd theytreal thcmwith corn pleteclcmency,better than your treatn~ent
of our sludentsabroad. 1syour pcrsmution of our students, settingdogson thern,
terrorism?Or keepingpeoplcina safeplace,whichwastheir ownplace, whereal1

(?services)arc availableto them?Theyhavereccivcdvisitarsand WC havealloaed
them to be visitcdeveryday. 1sthis aterroriact or a humanilarian act?The acks
which you commit are the ones that rcsembleterrorist actions.
[Quesrion] Imam, Prcsident as-Sadat of Egypt, adevoutly religiousman, a
Muslim has said thai what you are doing now isadisgraceto Islam,and he calls
you, Imam-Torgivc me, his words,not mine-a lunatic. 1know that you Iiave
heard that comment. 1havc heard Presidentas-Sadai sayon Americantelevision
that iheImam is a disgracc to Islam and, in his wordsa lunatic.
[An.r~i;t'r]Thc Islam practised by Anwar as-Sadat is different from that or
Muslims.Islam, according to Anwar asSadal, cornes to tems with contradic-
tions iothe esscnccOC Islam. ln thc Koran ilis said: Do not make fricnds wirh
the encniics of Islam. But hc has made friends wilh Carter and Begin in
contradiction orIslam.
It is clear that his words have kcn interpreted diffcrcntlybyou, sinçe you
consider him a devoutly religiousman and a proper Muslim.The Koran statcs
that thoscwho makefriendswith theenerniesofIslam arenot Musli~ns. As-Sacfat
claimsta be aMuslim,but togelherwiththeenemiesof Islam heatiacks Muslirns.
Does Mr. as-Sadat know what Israel is doing in southern Lcbanon and what
Palcstine suffersfrom this criminaïHc makes friends with them and considcrs
hirnselfa Muslim.Hiswords shouldbejudged accordingto thestandards of Islam
to ascertain whethcrhc has graced Islam by his actions or not.
Thc work of our nation should be judgcd accordingto Islarnicstandards to
determinc whether ithas comrnitted treason against Islam and has disgraced
Islam. What has beendone by asSadat, as I have said, and olhers likehirn, even
his own nation does not agrec with, and Muslims have condernncd him. But
what we have donc is as follows:WE were a nalion under pressurc from the
United States and other superpowers. Our indepcndence was lost and our
frccdam was lost. Our resourceshnd bccn plundersd.We rosein order io restnre
Our freedom. We rosc to gain our indcpcndence.Does Mr. as-Sadat consider a
rcvolution tomaintain independencc,a revolution to protect Islam, a revolution
to realizethe Islarnicrepublic, to bc against Islam?Doc11threaten thc honour
or hlam for a nation to climinate the opprcssors and the monarchic régimcand
replace it witli an Islarnicrepublic? When wewiint 10 puta criminal on trial,a criminal who has berrayed Islam,
betraycd thc glorious Koran, bctrayed the Muslim nation, is it a threat to the
honour of Islam whcn WC want to try hirn? Or is the person whu says: My
aircraft isrcüdyto welcomesorncone-is hetraitorous Io Islamand the Muslirn?
Has he betrayedIslam and the honour of Islam.or aur nation, which wants to
bring this criminal back and put him on trial and cxpose his crimes and
treacheries? It appears that thc words Islam and trcaçhery mean sorncthing
difïerentto Mr. as-Sadat. Thcrcforctheyought to bc invcsiigatedand eaçh word
should correspond to its truc mcaning.
[Qucs'srionT/ hen he is a traitor to Islam, as-Sadat?
[Answer] He is a traitor to lslam andthe Muslims.When he signedthc Camp
David agreementwith Carter and Beginand did sa against the intcrcçlsof the
Muslim, this was trcason to Islam. The fact thal he supports thc traitor to the
Muslimsistrcason to Islam and as-Sadat 1s atraitar to Islam, and the Egyptian
nation ought to dismissthis traitor just as wedismisscd that.orher traitor.
[Question] He [interviewerprcsumablyaddressing interpreter]calls upon the

Egyptian people to ovcrthrow as-Sadat the way Ihe Iranian people overihrew
the Shah, 1sthat right?
(Answer zndisiiti~~]
[Question] We(?hear),Imam, that today, pcrhaps today,same blackhostages
and some femalc hostages witl be rclcascd from the American Ernbassy com-
pound. Is !kat true? And then thcrc 1sa îollow-up question [words indistinct].
[Answer] Wt have freed women and black hostagcs bccause women enjoy
special rcspect in Islam and blacks have heen supprcsscd by the United SEütcs
and havc beensubjectedto cruclty, and wedo not considerthem to be so guilty.
Thcy might have comc hcre under pressure. Thcrerore, in order to follow the
ordcrs ofIslamand God, WC havedone this, and wedo not expectanything rrom
Mr. Carter and wc du noi want a reward. The only [words indistinct]rrum
Carter isthat hc should reiurn this criminato us. Allinternational laws indicate
Lhata person acçuscd of having comrnihtedcrimes in a country should be
returncd to Lhatcnuntry, and he has acted in contradiction to al1principlcs of
logic and international law
[Quesrion/ [ask you as an Arncrican and a humün king, talking to an
Ininian and another hunian being.istherc no rooln Tor compromise? Or is lran
now in emect at war withthe United States'?[Pcrsiantranslation of this qucslion
isas follows:You have a holyface, a füccor someonecaring about the people,as
iiwere.Asa human being 1onlyhopc, Ipray, that, God forbid; thereshould not
bc any hürm done ia rclaiions between ihe iwo couniries, or someihing
extraordinary to arise.]
[AnswcrJ 1, too, pray to God that Cartcr will bear in mind his country's
interestsand thosc or our country and relurn ihecriminal to Ourcountry. Once
thisis donc, there will automatically be no problcms.
[Question-trunscrib~d~from fersian ~runslation as Englishis indisrinct1have
mei your grandchildren here,1,too, havechildren and grandchildren.Truly and
from the bottom of my hcari I hope therc will not be any troublc.
/ At~swpr indistinc.t]
[Qucsti(~n] Imam, arc you or is Iran in cffcctal war with the Unitcd States
now?
[Answer] War?What ismcanl by this? Ifit mcünsthat the Iranian military is
engagcdin a warwith the LISmjljLary,this isnot so. IfilisaquestionoFüwar of
ncrves, Mr. Cartcr kas brought ahout a war or nerves. Weialways avoid any
furm of war; we arc a Muslim nation and believein peace for al1nations. It is
Mr. Carter whodoesnot allow pczicclo exist.The continuation of ihis peace for
us and for thc American nation and Torthe nations of the region requires that
Mr. Carter sctasidehishumanitariünism a littlebit,givcback the Shah,who hüs
çommitted al1kindsof crimes, so that our prohlems will bc solved. Dr)ÇUM ENTS 95

[Text][Announcer] In Tehran my collcague Adrian Porter has becn ialking to
the minister Tornationalguidance, a member of the Revolution Çouncil and the
Ayaiollah's chosen link with the English-speaking world (begin recording].

/Quesrron] You do no1 accept that the Shah is in the United States and ihe
United States allowcd hirn tci stay there on purely humanitartan grounds
becausc he is suffcring from cancer?
[Answer] This is ridiculous, ~hisis absolutely ridicuious, this humanitarian
purposc. He could go anywhere clsein the world And after hegot to New York,
Kissinger met hirn for one-and-a-half hours. That is ridiculous, it is an excuse.
You don'i believe it 1hope.
[QuP.srionJDo you mean that you don't beltcve thai the Shah has cancer?
[Answer] Well, we don't believe that he was as sick as they pretended bccause
our Government dcmanded two Iranian doctors go and cxamine the Shah. The
Unitcd States has rcfused ihat on[words indislinct] thar one al1am sorry, and
Kissinger had gone to secthe Shah for one-and-a-halr hours irnmediately afier
his arriva1 over thercSo therefore we do not believe that he is sick. We believe
that itisal1planned.
[Ques~ioil]You talk about ihis crisis, but isn'i it true ln Factthat Iran started
the crisis by seizing the American Embassy'!
[An~iiierjNo, on the conirary, the Americans havc started thC~~SIby having
the Shah ovcr there. For them nothing had happcned, and thcre was so much
Aagrani in this act that they deliberaiely, I think, insulted our people and our
revolution-tried to sort of crcate tension and international crisis-thcknow
how we Ceelabout ihat.
[Qurstion] You have mentioned that one of the rcasons why the Embassy was
rnvaded was because ~twas commitiing acts of csplonage, but how could you
knciwbcforc yolng into the Embassy that ii was commiiting cspionage.
[Answer] Let's havca very clcar answer-in two ways. You see, we know al1
the time. We havc talked about il for years chat the Amcrican Embassy is a
cenire of espionage, and (?a centre) of active espjonüge. After the rcvolui~onwe
were hoping that thcy cease this kind of action, and we gave them another
chance. But by having the Shah going to the United States, this action, to al1
lranians,it was absolutely clear that the United States continues to escalate its
provocation, ils sort of acis of interference in our affairs bwause the Shah's
rnoney is beingspenl everywhere, in Kordestan, Khuzcstan and al1that. From
thai time the people, I iman the young people, decidcd io go to ihEmbassy. It
never was sortof in doubt in anybody's mind in Iranthatthe American Embassy
was thccentre ofcçpionage But thc thing isthat [word indistinct] washoping
that theycease but they have not ceased that, they continuc10 do that and then
ihe Shah escalated that.
/Que,rtion] 1s there an ultimatum about this that unless lheShah and bis
possessions are returned to Iran somcthing may happen io the hostages?
[Ansiver] Well, from the studcnts ihey have not had any ultimatum or threat
but let usput it that wayWC cannot tolcrate the prcscnce of the Shah over iherc
and this type of Amcricanway oFdealing with us. So our relations get worse and
worse.
[Quesrion] But ifthe Shah isnot returned what might happen to the hosiages?
[Ansiver] Well, that 1 can'i say anything about at this time.
(Quesrion] Isthcrc danger that they could be killed?
(Ansiver] Only the ...a31 dcpends on the iime and place and the stress that
the people submii, and thc aiiempts, probably the Arnericans and Zionists, may
make to rclease them, you see.A number of Factorsare involved. We know that
they arc planning to attack and release thcm. In that caçc, iaway al1of them

will be killed.
{Question] You say you know that thcy are trying torelease thcm.
[Ansn:êrl WC have information rhat they havc made some sort of planning96 DIPLUMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

but that we may make it dificult for them to (?chrat} them, the guardians,
becausethe guardians have told us veryclearly that if thcrc is attempi thcy
willkill al1of the hostages.
/Quesrion] Are thcreany conditions for .. . is there any kind of negotiation
going on at the present moment over thesc hostages, ktwecn Iran and the
AmericanGovernment?
[Answer] None whatsoever.Therc is no negoliation.
[Quesri(~n]IL sccmsthat the Iranian Government condoncs the seizureof the
embassy and the holding of these hostages?
[Ansiver] The Iranian Covcrnment actually had nothing to do with the act,
but since ihis action has been acceptcd, supported and admired by the cntire
population and, well,the Iranian Government cannot go againsritçown people,
its own population. On thecontrary, accept the verdict,carry on the willof the
pcoplc.
[Question] Are you awarcof the enormity in wharyou have done in upsetting
the whole basisof diplomatic securitythroughout thc world?
[Ansiver] Wcll, this is another qucstion. Yousee , hcther zherereally (?has
bcen) any d~plomaticimmunity in the world, that ils basis has been shaitered
and threatened, thesekind ofthings havebeen alwaysforthe big powers.These
lawshavc been made toguarantce the crimesthat the representativesof the big
powers have committed inLhesmall countries.
[QuertivnJ But this immunity has been accepted by al1the nations in thc
world..
[Answrr] Well,al1nations whichhavenevcrbeenindependcntacceptedthem,
and Lhisdiplomatic lrnmunity does not guarantcc the act of espionage, the
crimes and whatcvcr you have. This was not the Amcrican Embassy, it was a
centreof the espionagcnot only in this country and in other countries, it wasa
centreof. ..1mean of ordcringthe Iranian Government what to do or what not
to do.
/Quesrion] Yes, but you discoveredthis after you seizcdthe Embassy;this is
not your rcason for going into the Embassy in the firsi place.
(Ansiver] Na, no, wediscovered&cause weknewit. Wewerehoping after the
revolution theyceasethis kind of things,thcywould forget,andwe gave thcm a
new chance,probably thcy would Corget,but unfortunateiy thcy did not.
[Quesiiun J So what was the reason for going intu the Embassy then; was it
kcause you knew they werespying, or because you wanted hostagcs for the
Shah?
[Answer] No, you seethe thing is, from after the rcvolution we wcrc hoping
that theShah will-I rnean,thc United Statcs willstop this kindlof interferenm.
But the intcrferencecontinued to have its symbols and reasons, and eventually
the Shah went to the United Statcs.That shows that the Unitcd States clearly -
and vividlytries to interfirc more activelyin the affairsof Iran, so the students
could not tolerate and acied upon it.
[Question] S-yes, but what ismoreimportant inyour view:the facr that the
US Embassywasresponsible,asyou say, for spying,although therehasnot been
much proof, or becausethe Shah 1sin the United Statesat the present marnent?
[Answer] Both were together, becausc that was thc centre of spics and the
Shahwent io thc United Statcs to utilizethis spycentrein thc maximumway, so .
both of them wcrc the reason for thestudents to have done that.
[Quesiilin]What isgoing to happen if the Shah does leavcthe United States
and goesto anothcr country?Are wegoing to scestudentsscizingthe ernbassyof
that Countryin Tchran?
/Ansiver] No, you see the Shah was in other countries before hc went to the
United States.The questionisno! that. But obviouslythere isanothcr thing: the
big powersshould reducethcir acts of espionagehere. And that isanother thing
that willnot happcn in the othcr embassy. That is for sure, but we will not98 DIPLOMATICAND CONSULARSTAFF

dcpends on thc decision of ihc nation, which will be announced by the Imam.
Hc was asked: Everybody saysthat you had foreknowledgeof the occupation
of thc cmbassy. 1sthat so? Have you known previouslythe brothcrs and sisters
who Followthe Imam's policy?
He rcplicd:1wasin contact with the organizinggroupbut 1strongly deny any
foreknowlcdgcof the revolutionary actby the brothers and sisters who fallow
the Imam's policy.
He was asked: Willthe political,economic, rn~litaryand cultural dependcnce
of Iran on the United States bc Brokeoffin thisevent, or willit continue in the
samc rnanner?
He replicd:The Imam hüs decided that the policythat cxisted for many years
bcfore the revolution and during the eight months following the revcilution
should be discontinucd.
He was asked: Do you agree or diszigreewith ihc issues that Mr. Bazargan
broughl forward in Hoseynich Ershad [mosquein Tehran]?
He replied:Hc has a bone topick with anuinber of clergymenbut he indudes
cvcrybody. Aclually,riothingçan bc solved this way.If we havc a cornplaini or
gricvance about snmcone, we should name them; evcrybody must bc frank so
that unity can he achicvcd.
He wasasked: Some say that a group has surroundtd the Imam and only tell
him their own cases.
He respondcd: What kind of question is that: It is absolutely not so. For
example,considcr thestand thc Imam has takcn against eheUnited States. Dici
the previousstatc aficials takc such a stand: Did the RevolutiCouncil hüvc
such a stand? nid thc Imam not say that a group came from the rottcn roots to
order rclcaseof the hostages?Has theImam not stood alone against America
and uttercd his historic "no"? Wasn't everybody in Cavourof the arriva1 of
Carter's special cnvoys?Why, thcn, did the Iman1 stand, on his own, against
Amcrica and not allow even one officia1or the Government of the lslamic
republic to contact them?
1 say this frankly: lf the Imüm listentoanybody he would have carricd on
with histeachings and discussionswhen he was in Qom and thcrc would noi
have bcen a 5 June [1963,when he opposed the Shah and was subsequently
cxilcd]and he wouldnot have beencxiledIo Turkey and would not havegone tu
Najai'[inIraq]. If he wercinfuenced by anybody rhe 15ycarsof absolutc silence
in Najaf would have aaffectedhirn and the disheartening words heard in that
country would havcchanged him. If anybody'swordsaffected hismind and sou1
he would stillbein Najaf and there wouldhave been no qucstion of his movc to
Paris. 1sa?ihat ifhe wereinflucnccdby anybody al1the religiousand polilical
defratists-who were eithcr agents or did not have a correct understanding of
Iran'spolitical evcnts-in Paris would have donc their job and persuaded ihc
Imam that only the Shah should leavc the country. If he were influcnced by
anybody, if he wcrcdistracted, evcryargument and policy heard in Iran would
succccdexcept the Imam's arguments and poliçics. Why have you forgotten?
Did everybody no1 say in unison thai thc monarchial rkgime would not be
changed and an alternative must be thouyht of! Why did hc say rhat the Shah
wuuld go, the monarchial régimewould Fall and wouId be rcplaced by the
Islamic Rcpublic?The Imam said thosc words in more than 100interviews. If
anybody's words affoctcd hirn and if a particular group implemented his
Ihoughts, you can besurc that our stand against America would not have been
such. Ifhcwereinfluenccdby anybody-when he decidcdto corne ta Iran, there
was nabody in favour and everybodyfromTehran and the provincestoldhirnto
wait. The Imam's insight is so magnificent that it awcs everybody. This is
extremelyunfair; it is obvious who has cngineered thcse:problems-those who
are açtually nicc people çould be influenced by these words and Say things
without considering other factors. DOCUMENTS 99

The representative of ihe Voiccand Profileof the lslamic Republic of Iran
said: Lct us,go backand ask anoiher question about the den of espionage, Will
al1that the student followersof the Imam'spolicy discover in the spy lair be
published?
BrothcrSeyyedAhmad Khorneini answcred:The answerio ihisquestionis up
io them.

35. KhorneiniSpccch

LW202309Tchran DomcsticServiccin Persian, 1730GMT, 20 Nov. 79 LD.
ISpeech by Ayatollah Khorneini dcl~veredon 20 November; venue not
specified-rçcorded .]
[Excerpt]This month of Moharram is verydifirent from formcr rnonths of
Moharram. Oneof ils diFerencesisthat during thc former month of Moharram
WC wcre raced with the oppressivcPahlaviestablishment,bccauseihat establish-
ment was a branch of the corruption of the mother of corruptions.
In this month of Moharram WC are faced with the mother ofcorruption; we
arc Fdced wlth those who have brought a!! the weak nations under their
domination and whoin evcry place havc appointed oneof their agcnrs io be in
charge of the nations so thai they can plunder them. Thanks to God, in our
battle with thatfilihy branch, as the result of the endeavours of our beloved
nation and thc cndeavours of you gentlemenwho are ihe people of the pulpit
and othcr preachers throughout thc country, espcciallyQom which has always
been thc source of blcssings, thanks to God our nation became victorious
through dependenccupon the almighty God and through the unity of expres-
sion.
Mr. Carter has süidsomewhcrethat if thcy wishto keep thesediplomats who
arc in thls den of espionage and if they wish to try them, it would create an
outrage in thcworld. In the eyes of theseoppressors the world is diKerentfrom
the real world.The oppressorssecihe worldthrough thcir ownarrogant outlook
and through the psychologicalillness from which they suffer.This diseasc has
caused themto regard the great masses of the world as not belonging to the
world.
Mr. Carter himselfand othcr people likehimaround the world, who number
lessthan 50,000 out of the 3 billioninhabitants of the world-it is theseleaders
of countries who encourage othcrs to indulge inoppression and rnischief.The
outlook of peoplc like him is ihat al1the nations are worth norhing. Those
peoplc are pari of the world and make up a small number of people likeCarter
and his clique, and some pcople in other places have, unfortunately, joined his
clique ioo. This is what they regard the whole world to consist of. This is the
outlook of the opprcsçors. Thcy do not see the oiher great strata of various
societieswhich are an oçcan compared to which Carter and the peoplelike him
are only drops. It means that ihis discase af self glorification has caused them
not to seethc people.
This 1swhy when on the throne of his presidency and looking at matters
through his sickoutlook and secing a few ministers and others who belong to
assemblicsor are his lackeysin other places, and seeingthat they get angry, he
rcgards them as the whole world and says that if you do anything to these
diplomats-he regards them as diplornais, thoçç whoseacts of espionage havc
ken proved on the basis of evidcnce, he rcgards thcrnas diplomats, and he
regards the world interms of himselfand these people. Mohamrnad Reza also
had this illnessto somcextent, and the same illnessled to his destruction-the

illnessonly toçeehirnselfand a few flatterers and a number of clowns around
hini,10see onlythesepeopleand not to haveany consideration forthc nation, to
understand that in everycountry the nation counts.
The governments are a minority whu should wark for the scrvice oF the DOCUMENTS 101

hc wcreio frightenIran, and if hc wereto saytha~weshall imposean economic
embargo on Iran and shall damage Iran's cconomy, his nation would üpplaud
him,and later hewould be madcprcsidcnt. But hemisundcrstood that right now
a vast section of thc society. namely the negrocs, have left him. Five hundrcd
black clergymenhave opposcd him and have dernonstratea. Latcr, others shall
join them, exmpt thosc whuni Carter regards as the world.
If thc world consists only of thnsc pcoplc who are Mr. Carter's fricnds and
associates,the11thc wholeiswiih Amer~ca.But if the world iswhat it is, and if it
consistsof thc oppressedpeople, if thc world realityisthat the oppresscd pcople
run thc world and the oppressors oRcrnothing exceptcorruption-if that is the
world, lhen Lheworld is not on your side. This world does not approve or a
prcsidentwhoclaimsta be a champion of human rights,but crcatcssomuch evil
for humanity and kills so many people. A person who clairns thal 1support
human rjghts will noEbc allowed to[does not complctc sentence]Iranians are
human bcings too.
FIow 1sit that during your rulc ovcr thepas1fewyearsand for 50yearsduring
the rule of.your prcdecessors, this nation cxpcricnccd so rnuch hardship, but
neither you nor othcrs who claim to be supporters of human rights, nor the
asscmblics that you have formedin ordcr tu playgameswith us, uttered not onc
word askingwhyMohaminad Rczawasdoing al1those things.On thc contrary,
you supported him. On the contrary, you tried to kccp him in power. The
ludicrous thing is thal when suppression wasat 11sheight in tran, some people
used to say that the Jranians are given too rnuch freedom, and thjs 1swhy alI
thoscvoiçes are beingraised.Thc pcoplcare shoutingwewant to bc frccbcçause
thcy have too much freedorn,thcy are suffcringfrom a surplusof frccdom. Such
thinking is due to the illncsswhich these people have.
Carter sholvldnot imagincthal wewilltake one stepback on Lhisissue,andon
what isOurright in the world. The wholeworld knows this,and accordingto al1
international rcgulationsa guiliy person should bc returned to the place where
he coinmittcd his offence, and should bc tried there. We demand that Rcza
Pahlavi bz (sied here. If'they rcturncd our guilty person [docs not cornplete
sentence].
We shall closedown the embassy. This centrc of cspionage will no longer
continuc hcrc in Lhename of the embassy, unless al1this spying busincss stops
and thcydcçide10havean embassy;not a placeof espionage.Ifthey rcturn him,
lhisis possible. If thcyclosc this placeof espionage and if they rcturn hitis
possiblethat WC might havc relationswhich willbc uscful to us. So long as that
person is there,WC shall not sever our relations, bccause we must keep these
people herc. Thcsc people who are now with usare spies,no1diplomats.
Howcvcr,it seemsthat due to the psychologjcaEillnesswhich Carter has and
whichpeoplelikchimhiive,theyalso regard the spicsas diplomats. Tbey should
ctiangc thcmsclves. The heads of countrics who act like this towards ihcir
nations, who act Iike this towards the oppressed peoplc in thc world, shouId
change rhc~rrninds. These thoughts will no longer have any customers in this
world. They belong to a tirnc whcn ~hcpeople had not awakencd. But now the
people everywhcrchave opened their eyes-andcürs. Wesee Lhatduring the past
fcw ycars, especiallythe past tlircc ycars, a Lransformationhas comc about in
QUrcountry. The pcoplc have changed. Theyarc thc same people, but their
thoughts are diBérentthoughts, thcir thoughls have changed. In the samc way
that the nations have changcd and thesenations are not thc formcr nations khat

you ruled overand that would completelysubrnit to you, so Loo,yourheads of
States,whcther American heads of Statcs or others, should also change. If thcy
do not chürigc Lhemselves, ifisnot in thcir interest, and they wilbc draggcd
towards destruction.
At limes 1have told the pcoplc who havecornefrom abroad thüt one of the
problems or governments is ihc problein which exists betwçcn thcm and iheir DOCUMENTS 103

[Tcxt] In Lhename of God the merciful and compassionate. How foriunate
you were to havc theopportunity to visilholy Mecca, thakcentre of inspiration
and shiningcity. May God acceprthis pilgrimügevisit of you brothers.
[Voicesin unison] Amen.
[Khomeini]Al1of us in the Muslim nations are brrithers.We share their joys
and sorrows, and wc do hope they share in our sorrows and joys.
Today, our nation is confrontcd with great satanic forces which,dursng the
last300 yfitrs,irnposedillegitimalegovernmentsupon us, upon Muslimnations,
upon nalions of the Oricnt. Andduring the las50 yearsit was thc government
of'Rcza Khan and Mohammad Reza that wüsirnposed upon this nation. They
bctrayed usand recentlythis betrayal and crimeoctheirs reachcdits peak. These
crimesweresupportcd by superpowcrs,cspeciallythe Unitcd States, so much so
thüt the patiencc and rorbearancc of our nation {words indistinct]. Thcy
toppled thc shahinshah régimewhichwasan illegitimatcrégimeand establishcd
the lslamic rcpublic hereAnd whilcweare engaged in rcconstructing thc ruins
and dcstruçtion inflictcdupon us during this period of terrifying rulc and reign
of roreigners,alicns and iheir parasitcs who ruled thesecountries. We are now
confrontcd with the United States. And wehopc that our brother nations, the
Islamic nations-just as wc were caught in the web of foreign tyranny and
iiggrcssion,just as our nation rase up against them-thatour brother Muslim
nations will alsorise against thcrn.
It isü cause ofjoy thai Pakisiah nas risen againsi them. Today, 1saw in the
papcr that al1 Pakistiin had risen against the United Statcs, Apparently al1
universitieshavc declarecia three-düy shutdown, and this isprornisingnewsfor
our nation and pcople rhat they arc not alone.

What should WC be arraid of! Should webe afraid of thcir planes?Shciuldwe
be afraid of thcir ships?We are the same peoplewhoconsidcr martyrdom tobc
happincss. Even now, our pcople keep asking rnc10be martyred. What could
possibly rrighten a nalion of people wliu wish to be martyrcd? (passage
indistinct].
Thcy wiuntto massacrcus. Theycannot do that.And suppose theycould. Our
pcople would dcstroy them with thcir claws and teeih. Our youth [students at
erribassy]havejust declared thalif'they evertry to do such a thing, thcy will
destroy theentire embassy with al1those people i? it. If it should comc to that
point,we could not control thoseyoung pcople, who are in the primeor their
youtli and pride and havc been oppressed in the pasi. We çuuld not control
them
WCcünnol control a nation ofpeople who wcrc oppressed for 50years and
subjccted to tyranny Forsome 30-odd years by an individual wtio rnassacred
a nation sirnplybecause the Uniled States might decide to act stupidly. Peopleh
will not simply sit idle and watch thcm Innd their paratroopcrs and so forth.
Why don't they just try and scc'!Idetus seehowthcy van do it. We willdcstroy
evcry one or them. WCmay al1be killedor WC will annihilate al1of thcni.

38. Bani-Sadr Address

LD221835Tehran Domcsiic Servicein Persian, 1630GMT, 22 Nov. 79 Ln.
[Speechby Abolhüsan Bani-Sadr, supcrvisorof the Iranian Foreign Ministry,
to a seminar of hcads of newscentres-read by announcer.]
[Texr]A correspondent askcd: What is this? Has anybody ever conductcd
diplomacy in this way?
Bani-Sadr rcplicd:This is newdiplomacy. Likeour sevolution, which is new,
lhisisalsoa ccrtain typeof diplomacy.WCdo not want diplomacy behindclosed104 DIPLOMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

doors. As yau scc,sincewe took overwe have been conducting a dialogue with
the people or thc world and explaining thingsto them, rather rhan explaining
Lhingsto their politicians. We have nol adoptcd a course or ncgotiation, rather
we havc adopted a course involving explanation. In orderto succced inthis
political course-the same course which we uscd in our triumphant revolu-
tion-we havchad to workdayand night; day and nightwork by al1thosc, both
within and without, who wanted to initiate a drastic cllange in international
relationsin having the deposed Shah cxtradite [sentenceas heard].
Bani-Sadr then askcd:Whereare wenow'!America isthrsatening us with war.
11wasreported las1night from Americathat thc USSecurilyCouncil has voted
ro declarc Tirasagainst Iran. It is said thal Carter is under pressure. Only
yesterday iwoincidents occurred; one in Islamabad and the other in the Grcat
Mosque, bath of which will further aggravate the climate.
As for the UN Security Council, it unanimously condemncd Iran and
demanded the release of thc hastages. When 1went to the [oreign ministry, it
transpired that forcign ambassadors in Tehran werc attempting Lo hold a
meeting in order to condemn Iran unanimously. The Arab foreign rninislers
council in Tunisia has prctended to havc condemned Iran. Consequently,
America was hoping to place us intotal isolation. Youmay not havc forgotten
that in 1967,following the attack on Our Arab brothers, they had crçatcd this
very same sort of climate.
Therefore,as 1 cxplained,weLookaction in linewilh thc policy1pointcd out.
Today, standing beforcyou, 1can be certain that America has not succeeded in
isolatingus,and despitcal1its atternpts to havc theinitial verdictrenewedby the
Security Council, America has nat succeeded;for out of the 14, 12have voted
ag~instit.
In the Arab world the numbcr of our supporters exceed those of our
opponents. InAîrica and Asia loud voiccssupporting QUr Icgitimacyare heard.
As TorEurope, althotigh it sympathizeswith Amcrica, there is no doubt that it
does not agree with America. ln prcparing for an all-cmbracing onslaught to
crush our Islamicrevolution, in Americüthe black minority, constituting20 per
cent of Amcrica's population, plus liberal ligures, have raised iheir voices in
protest to the effectthat we are righi. WCare not being unrcasonable;we arc
saying thatyou havc imposed a personon a country Lhrouglia coup d'état,thal
this person over 25 years has not sparcd oppression or crime. Now you havc
taken this person there, providing him wiih ail kinds of luxury.
If you daim that this person has no criminal record, thcn whyonla Tewdays
agu did the French Govcrnment extradite Iwo Italians Forhaving disturbed the
Italian peoplc'sconscienceby assassinatingAldo Moro'!1sit anly the Europcans
who have the right to have a consciencc'? 1sour nalion supposed to lack a
consçiencc? Has not this consciencebeen troubled by thedeposed Shah'scrimes
and tressons? IFyou claimthat the deposcd Shah'sassetscannot be returned, lhc
question thcn arises: Are you not the same govcrnment which rcturned the
Tsar's asselsto Russia? What regulaiions allowed you to do this thenq You
should adhere to the samc regulations.
As for our adherence lu lhc Vienna Convention, the question is: Who wrate
it?The conventionwhich issaid to be acceptable to us;wherewereweto accept
it? Jt was the Pahlavirégime[which accepted il]Do you not think thal if wc
were present at that convention we wuuld have stipulatcd that espionage and
transforrning an cmbassy intu a placc of espionage is not allowed, that ii is
punishable? WC,the oppressed pcoplc, wouId not havc proposed Ihis, evcn
supposingthiçwcrca right and, asit wcrc,nota camoufkagcfor crimes.This isa
right which has been violated; this is a transgression upon an inch of territory,

tcrritory on our soi1[scntenceasheard].
According to this sameconvention, the US Embassyis consideredto bepart
of US territory.Now wc tellyou that for 25 years you have vioiated everything DOCUMENTS 105

we have. Now, thc thing is,WC arc saying:You mus1accord us this biggerright
and, inreturn, wewillaccord you this smaller right. Ifitis a question of right,
then this is a right also. Aîtcr all, did these conventions and international
. agreementsauthorize you to conclude 25 agreements witha fricnd cnslavcd by
you during the final two ycars or his lire-agreements arnounting to $52 billion
which were of not the slightestbenefitto our nation'!Wcrcyou authorizcd to do
this in accordance with international agreements?
Mr. Bani-Sadr then answcrcd questions conccrning cconomiç and monetary
relations,s wcll as on Iran's relations with neighbouring counlries, and other
domestic and forcign issucs. .

39. Bani-Sadr Press Conference

NC221632Paris AFP in English, 1617GMT, 22 Nov. 79 NC.
[Text]Tehran, 22Nov. (AFP)-Thc Iranian people"will tîght to the last drop
of blûod" ifthc United States tries mililary action to free its occupiedernbassy
here, Foreign Affairs Minister Abolhasan Bani-Sadrsaid today.
Mr. Bani-Sadr also told a news confcrcncc thüt hc hoped "the world ioday
would not accepta grcat powcr likc the United Statesaltacking Iran to have 50
pcoplc" bcing licld hoslage.
Hc said only thecxtradilion or Lheformer Shah from the United Stateswould
Cm ihe Americans, who have been held captive 18days, and thc West should
not allow itself to becomcinvolvcd ina war "to dcîend a criin~nal".
Mr. Bani-Sadr also rcaffirmcd Iran's refusal lonegoliate lbe matter, saying
the pressure of public opinion would sulve the dispute andnoL diplomacy.

40. Gotbzadeh on Trials
NC221337 Paris AFP in English, 1329GMT, 22 Nov. 79 NC.
[Excerpt]Tchran, 22 Nov. (AFP)-The trialofthe hostages held in the US
Embassy here would begin "soon" if the United States continued to "play for
time" in rerusingto extradile the deposed Shah,the director of the Iranian radio
and television serviceSadcq Gotzbüdch said tnday.
Spcakingto ü French ielevisionslaiion, Mr. Gotbzadeh did not exclude the
possibilityor the death penalty beingimposed on any of the hostages.
He also told AFP that any contact bctween Iranian leaders and American
rcprcscnlativescould on!? be on an "individual" and not an oficial basis, ina
commenton reports from Washingtonthat a US Çongressman, GcorgcHanscn,
had succeededin tülking to thc Iraniün authariticç hcrc.
hlr. Gotbzadeh, a mcmbcr of lhc ruling Revolulion Council, recalicd a
council rcsoluiion ruling out any possibilty of contact hetween the Iwo
Governments
Mr, Gotbzadch joincd othcr lcading Iranians:in minimizing the lhrsat of
American military intervention, while Foreign MinisterAbolhasan Bani-Sadr
appealed "to al1Miislim pcoplc" to hclp in "thc viçtory of Islam in Iran".
In a broadcast rnarking Ihe siart or the Muslim 15th-centiiryreckoning, Mr.
Bani-Sadr accused the US of "using al1 its cfforts to isolatc us in ordçrto
cxtcrminütc us".
He calkedon Iranians to be like steel,"cold andinvincible",and not rcact to
"Amcrican provocations".

41 27November Developmentsconcerning US Embassy

Bani-SadrCommentonCrrsis
LD290923 Milan L'Unira in Italian, 27 Nov. 79, pp. 1, 16 LD.

[Siegmund Ginzberg undated interview in Tchran with Iran~an Foreign
M~nisterAb01has;inBani-Sadr: "From Unitcd Nations io US-Iranian Crisis".] 106 DlPLOMATlC AND CONSULAU STAFF

[Text] Tehran-For the first timeWC found Bani-Sadr optimistic. "Kes"hc
told us," I am optimistic, because now it is easier to rcsolve the ernbassy affair."
[Ques/ioil/ Easier? In what way?
[Ansiz,er]For onc thing, because it is now easiertomonitor popular reactions
than it was three weeks ago. Easier because Ihave answered a real aspiration of
our people in the field of foreign policy.
/Quesrioti] This is Qnc rcason. But perhaps it is insufficient to justify
optirnism. Are there no other reasons?
/Answer/ YES,there areothers, but ihey cannot be discussed yet.
IQucstion] Arc thcy dornestic or external reasons?
/Ansiv~'rr]Partly external.
/Question/ For instance?
[An.iii.cr]The fact that the UN Secretary-Ccneral has written to us-and 1
irnaginc hcdid so with lacit USconsent-that he is willing to form a committcc
of inquiry into the violation of human rights by the Shah's rcgime.
[Qucsrion] Whüt clse?
[Ansii*rr]The faci that it sccms thai the UScourts and administrator do not
inttnd to impede the restitution of cash and goads transfcrrcd illegally to the
United Staies.
[Qutsiion] Yes, but meantirne the airçraft carrieKirry Huwkis continuing ta
steam toward the Persian Gulf. . .
/Ansiii~r] The Americans havc Ict us knowthat thcy have no intention of

scttling thc affair by force.
/Ginzburg] Evidently diplornatic clïorts have continucd with a greater
intensity ihan was apparenr over the past fcwdays, and probably through many
channels. But to what cntcnt can one klieve Bani-Sadr's optim~sm?On othcr
occasions he told us onc thing, the Imam said another and the students
occupying thc cmbassy something else again. 1sit possible, WC askcd, that it is so
dificult to convince Khomcini of the dangers of thc situation?
"No," Bani-Sadr replied, "this isnot the point. 1belicvc that Khometni is
fully convinced of the dangers. The real point is that the impasse1snot just on
one sidc, but on both sides, Therc is an impasseon thcpart of the entire people,
for whom the Shah and America are syrnbols of a very prccisc and spe~ific
reality."
/Qzics/icin] 1not this kind of culOC popular spontaneity sornçwhat cxccssive?
[Ansiiier] The Bazargan govcrnmcnt's experienceshows that one must take
thc people's feelings into account in ihis revolution. Unless one takes thcm into
üccount, one can at any tlme cause a tcak which could threatcn to bring down
the entire dam.
[Quesriorz]A leak such as that of the US Embassy?
/ Answerj Precisely.
fQu~.~rinn] Are you not afraid of meeting the same end as Bazargan in viewof
the impulsive nature of the processcs involving the peoplc's masses and the
multiplicityof çentrcs of power?
[AnswerJ 1accepted ihe post in thc full awareness that al1these things exist.
That there arc rivalries, personal strugglcs, Factional thrusts. But this is the real
situation and one must üct within if.Bethat asit may, the afTairwhich began at
thc cmbassy is a great risk, but also a great opportuniry.
[QuesriotiJ In whar way?
[dnsn,erj An opportunity for a ncw revolution+conomic and cuftural. The
process begun in economic relations with the United Stiitcs is a historic
opportunity for breaking our dependence on other countries and for tw nsform-
ing Oureconomic systcm Torthe foundaiions up. Such thorough transformations
are aeither simple nor painlcss. Moses had to wander an Mount Sinai for 40
years with his people so thal thc generations corruptcd by subjection to the
pharoah would bc followed by generations capable of making the promised land108 DIPLOhIATICAND CONSULAR STAFF
throughout the world to adhere to thcir faith. roHowingtheir prophets who
arose,fron~among the oppresscd masses".
He added: "WCdesire tube friendly wiih al1peoples and to have friendly
relationswith thcrn."

43. Students Rcpeat Trial Threat
NC300556 Paris AFP in English, 0648 GMT, 30Nov. 79 LD.
[Text]Tehran, 30Nov. (AFP)-Iranian siudcnts holding about50 Amcricans
hostagcs heresaid today that the Arnericnnswould"inevitably" go on trial ii"thc
former Shah wasexpellcd from the Unitcd States without being extradited LQ
Iran.
The threatwas contained in amassage io Irünian students abroad.

44. No UN Rcpresentative

NC301352 Paris AFP in English,1336GMT, 30 Nov. 79 NC.
[Exccrpt]Tehran, 30 Nov. (AFP)-Iran's Islamicrégimewill not send a high
officialto the UN Security Council mceting scheduled tornorrow on the
occupation of the US Embassy here, Foreign MinistcrSadeq Gotbzadeh said
today in anewsconference.
He also rcpcated previousstatements by iranian leadersthat the country was
ready to fight"to theend"ifthe United States triesmilitaryaction Lofrccthe 50
American hostages held since4 November.

45. Gotbzadeh Press Confcrcnce

LD302350Tchran in English to Europe, 1930 GMT, JO Nov. 74 LD.
[PressconfcrcncebyIranian Ministerof ForeignAffairsS~ideqGotbzadch on
30 November, correspondents no1idcntified.]
[TextjThc IslamicRepublicof Iran's forcign rninisterand headOF thc Islamic,
Rcpublicof Iran'sradio and telcvision,SadeqGotbzadeh, hclda pressintcrvicw
ihisafternoon with Forcignreporters and correspondents. The following is thc
fulltexlof this interview:
[BeginGotbzadeh recording] Ladiesand gcntremen,thcrc'slimiiedtimc Wcll,
the announccment that I would like tomake is that accordingto thc dccisinn
made by the Rcvolutian Counçil, we are not attending the Sccurity Council's
meetingioniorrow. And obviously,wekecpour conlacts with the authoritier; of
thc United Nations For further discussion and deliberations of the Security
Council.This isthe announcement 1would like to make, and now1am open LU
any questions.
(Qu~srion indzstiricr] Well1 wclcome this dccision becausc with such a
policy was[wordsindistinct]ta gethim out of thcrcand to exposcthe Shah as hc
1skfore the international public opinion.
[QuestionindistinctJ
[Answerl (?Wemei with)the Mexicanauthoritirs and explainedOursituaiion
and our viewpoint.
[Queaion indistiriçl]
[Answer] Well, 1have heard thüt they arethere.and well.1reallydon't know.

I havc never talked to them.1don? know [passage indistinct].Well.aFteral],1
don't bclicvethatal lçast I hopLo belicvethat thescinternational instancesarc
not totlillyunder theinflucnceand order of the Arnericans.Secondly,1hope also
that thcydon't Lakesuch measures;and thirdly, if in spof al\thcsethings and
al1QUrIcgitirnatedernnndsthey go on wirhthe condcmnation, thc dccisionisnot
binding [a5heard] and we don't acccpt it.
[Question] If the Shah goes toEgypt, whai will you do? DOCUMENTS 109

[Ariswcr]Ir tiic Shahgoes to Egypf ive'llcontinue to demand his return from
Egyptand I'msureit'sgoing to be a greaidcal of troublc in Egypt to rcturn him
tn you.
[Question indistinci]
/Ansit.cr]At thc morneni we havcn't come,wc'll crossthe bridgc when we
come to ~t,we haven't cotne to (?that yet).
[Quesr ion i~ldzslinct]
[Answer] As far as wcare concerncd,[romthebcginningthe crisiswasstarted
by tlicUnited Statcsby taking thc Shah over thcrc, as wehelievenow, then they
havc lied over thc condition of his health and our request of sending two
physicians to examine if il's thc trullhas been turned down by the United
Statcs.Then thc crisisstarted. (?And)that prcciseopposition diffusedthis crisis
and it was escülüted.But iinforlunately thc Unlted States had chosen the hard
line and coniinued to escalate the crisisas they wantcd.
But Lhistime WC iirciîrm in our decision and arc not going to bc dissuaded
Froiilwhat we hüvc decided and it is Torthe United States to acccpl now and
acceptthaj whiitwehavedonc, as wewarncd[wordsindistinct]tu our revolution
and we don't back down [words indistinct]in argument.

[Querrionindistinct]
[Arnrwer]1 don't think that the qucstion or coinpromise arises. WChave
demanded the return of ihe Shah bccüuse we believc thal il is nat only Ihe

problem of the Shah himsclf.As the Shah actually himsclf has declared, if he
goeson trial it willbethe trial of the last fcwpresldentsof ~hcUnlted Statcswho
have interfcrcd in our &airs and havc kepi the Shah in power. [Words
indistinct] it'stremclyiniportant for us ta put on trial actually thc poliçy of
ioterveningin clurafairs by the Unitcd Statesover thc pasi25 years.Thcrefore,
it is thc (?distorted) history of Our country by the United Statcs, it isthe
plunderingness [as heardj of QUrcounlry by the Un~tedStates and it is the
torturcs and killings that happcned in this country by the United States
Governmeni which aregoing tobt on trial. Thcrei-ore,this isthe legitimaterighl
of a peoplc to go on,to investigatetocxplorethe crucltics,the rnisericsthawe
had and the victimsthat (?theyhad), to show not onlyto aur pcople but to thc
wholeworld thc (?point) ofthc injustice wbich(?he nation has)sufferedand I'm
sure ihaithc countries around the world have been subrnittingto the samc sort
or pressure and the govcrnrnental intcrvenlion by thc United Statcs [words
indistinct].
/Ques;N)i1] Mr. Foreign Minister, what did you think of the ehrts by
Congressman 1-lansenand FornierSenator Abourezk and would you accept any
discussion with an American in future?
[Ansii;er]Scnatur Abourczk is acting as a lawyer, thereforc he is not sort of
mediating anything and [words indistinct]. And Congressman Hanscn, well, 1
don't think that was or any good whatsaever, it was good for Mr. Hansen, it
wasn't good forthe (?cause).
/Quc.ytion]Would youacccptit if(?another Americanwashcrc) tcrdiscussthc
situation'?
[Ans~ver] [Word indist~nctl Officia1Amcricans but ccrlainly not of an
individual. Anybody can come here and discuss [wordsindistinct].
[Question] On what basiswould you havethe Unitcd Slates(?pursuingtalks)
in Iran?
[Ansiz:er] Well, (?when in doubt) 1 have to find a solution Forthe United
Stüies?You sec, wehaveproposed a solutiori,thal is to say the processby which
they can return the Shah to lran and 1havc rzpeated that. If the United Statcs
accepts this fact, Lhatthe Shah couldbe a criminal and immediately acccpt an 110 DlPLOMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

international hearing, a (?jury)accepiablc to us, of our choice,to invcstigatethe
case and the United States promised to accepting as binding [as heard] the
decision, at that time the United States could return the Shah casily, khat is
through the international (?influence).Now, evenwccan go furthcr and weSayif
the Security Council evcntually agrees to open up [words indistinct]to do the
job, 1 think that would be another (?prablem). But nevertheless,we'vegot to
have thc Shah here.
[Wordsindistinct]
(Queslion] IftheUnited Siatcsagreedla sucha forumat whichtheShah'sguilt
would be determincd,wouldthehostags bereleascdiftheUnited Statesagreedto
the forum or would you hold them until the Shah was eventually returned?
/Anx~ver]Well, youtakc itfor grantcd thaf the decisians and declarations of
the United States are (?trustworthy). Unfortunately, our past expericnccshows
that wecannol trust them. Thercfnre, the mcrc agreementdoesn't satisîyus. We
have to see the actual (?work) of this committce and if thc United Stütcs
evenlually bound itself as a result of this decision and the [word indistinct].
(Queslion indisrinct]
[Answer] Well,thosepeoplewhowerein thecrnbassy[wordsindistinct]taken
by the studentsovcr there,and among them arc a certain number of people who
arc much higher than the charge d'affaires inthcir activitiesand their relations
with the CIA. As far as thechargi:d'affairesisconcemed, he hascornehimsclfto
thc Foreign Ministry, and the Foreign Ministry at that timc decided to give
[wordsindistinct]asylumto them and [wordsindistinct]asqiumaccording to thc
promisc that the roreign minister at that time had givenand (?hc) honoured.
(Indislincrqueriions]
/AnswerJ [Word indistinct]are going to be in aposition to discussabout Lhe
further developments of this subject.
/Qwstion indisrinc]t
fdnswer] Well, thc Americans do not agree with our conditions. We do not
agree with thcir conditionscither. We are equal, and certainly thereis not, there
is not any date for the trial of the spies.
(Quesriot~indistincl] words indistinct] As Iunderstand you, yoii have becn
suggestingthat the Unitcd States might find a way 60cxtradite the Shah if there
were [words indistinct] internationaltribunal inthe United States that would
hear cvidcnceagainsr thc Shah. Thai would avoid ihe cxtradition problcm and
would permit the publication of [words indistinct].
[Anslver]Well, youarcconstantly confronted-and it 1soneof thoseironiesof
,our tirneyou are çonstantly confrontcd with such a nurnber of words Fromthe
Arnericanside,and it isnot onlyconcerningIran, it ispracticallyconçerningother
countrics around Lheworld.And that it, the.American publicopinion wants this
and thai. The clcctioneersrequirc that [wordsindistinct]that one residentwants
io beclcctedand the other shouldn't bcelected.Or the legalsystcmof the United
States penniis this or thai. That is to Say,the wholeworld shouId revolveon the
concepts and theway oflifcthat the Americanshaveiniposedaround thc warld.
Mypoint issimplythis:accordingto what lawthc UnitedStlitcshas interrerrcdin
Ouraffairs,have scnt spies here, have cornmittcd the crimes hcre? According ro
what law theyare trüined(?tobe)torturers and our country in the United Statcs?
According towhat law and regulations and whal (?process),proccssof law they
have made thesecontracts that they plundered our country. If they can find any
processOFlawto do al1(?thcscinjustice)1am sure they are intelligentcnough to
find a proccss of law to return the Shah.

[An.vwer] Wcll,the Shah isout of their hands. As 1 said before, firstof al1we
have not come to that, we haven't come to the bridge to cross ilyct, andcertainly thc crisiswillnot be totally dcfused at the time, and [words indistinct]
we'vcgoi to [wordsindistinct]go on to seewhat'syoing to happen. If the Shah
goes, definitciythe hostages wrllnot be rclcased immediately.

/Question] Ayalollah Khomeini yesterday said that Carter, Nixon and
Johnson should be tried, Mr. Minister. Could you comment?
/An.rwer] Well,it is-ccrlainly Ayatollah Khomeini has said (?it).The Shah
hassaid it bcforehim. He said: If 1should go on trial thc other presidcnts[words
indistinct]should be on trlal,toa.
[Quesiion indistinct]
[Answer] Well, as 1said, thc trial has not stürzedyet, and wewill seewhal's
going to comc oui of the trial.
[Question] Mr. Ministcr, why has there been such a [words indistinct]
turnaround in your attitude to the Unitcd Nations SccuriLyCouncil? Mt- .ani-
Sadr rwordsindistinct].Surelyyoii have nothing to loseby prcscntingyour casc
to the council.
[Attswrr] WeHour .. .[pause]. Let'sput i(that way.The manner in whichthe
Securiiy Council was called upon, or had decidcd to convene, crcatcd some
suspicion in our public opinion, bccause, ifyou rcmernber, we have asked the
Unitcd Nations that the Seçurity Council he convcned, and thai request has
heen turned down. And al1of a suddcnwefound ihat the Secretdry-Generalhas
askcd for the convcnrngOFthe.SocurityCouncil within 24 hours, LheAmericans
totally and immediateEyagreed upon. And that rnanner, frankly speaking, has
crcatcd some suspicion here, and accordingly the Revolution Council decidcd
not to participate üt ihis time.
[Question hdis[inct]
[dnsii'cr]That would be vcry good. 1 am sure that wuuld create a good
aimospherc betweenIran and LheUnited Staies,and 1 am sure the hostageswill
be released,aiidwe have already promised itisgoing to be (?an)open trial, and
even the representativc or Mr. Cartcr can participatc in the trial, and the other
representativcsoflhe press, and seewhat'sgoing on'and we are going 20 have a
good showfor thewholc world how thc çriminalscan do thejob, and with what
help,and whose hclp, for25 years.

/Question/ The hostagcsare beinghcld, inpart, [words~ndistinct]by whichto
havcthcUnited Çtiitcs return the Shah. Ifthe Shahleaves ithcUniled States,how
can the onus rcmain on Washington to have him returned? And what wuuld
then bc the legitirnatcrcason for holding the bostügcs?
[Ailsci~erWcll, let's put it tliat way: If youcapture a thief and tell hito
return what he has stol~nfrom you,and you say that ifyou don't that I'vegot tu
take you to triiil, and al1of n sudden the (?buy), his ïriend cornes,and he gives
the matcrial tohimand sayçwellgo away, and at thnt time (?hesays), welllook,
guy, Idon't haveyour matcrial with me.Now let me go. How do you feelabout
that'!
/Quc.rtion/ If the Shah went to iinother country [wordsindis~inct]the United
States [wordsindistinct] intcrfere inc aAairsof that country in ordcrto relurn

the Shah?
[Answer] (?Weil),it'ssimpleas tlrat. The United States has thpower to not
let him go. to nrevcnt iinow.
[~uesfion idistirirt
[Ansiver] Thisisthe responsibilityof the United States.The Shahis in United
Statcs, and I'msurc that the Unltcd States, who has the pnwer to destroy the112 DlPLOMATIC AND CQNSULAR STAFF

whole world in a couple of hours, has the power to Leep thc poor Shah over
there.
[QuPsrion] Mr. Minister, [words indistinct]Do you foresee a momcnt when
the RcvolutionCouncil('lshould)comc toa politicaldccision,becauseofcertain
cir~umstances[words indistinct].Could you foresee such a moment?
[Ansiver] At this time 1 don't rorcsee any such circurnstances. 1'mterribly
sorry that this has bt~n(?finished).

16.Students on Shah's Departure

OW021010Paris AFP in English, 1008 GMT, 2 Dcc, 79 OW.
pext] Tchran, 2 nec. (AFP)-The militant Iranian studcnts occupyingthc US
Embassyhere today told the AFP that the departurc of the deposcd Shah [rom
thc United Stales wiisgoing to spccd up to the maximum the trial of the
(Ameriçan hostages).
The sfudcnts interviewed byAFP refused, however, to discloseany firm datc
for the trial. "Thc trial maynot bc for riaway, but we are goingto stepup to
the maximum thc preparations, as wealready announced", asludcnt spokesman
said.
The studenls said ata press confcrenceyesterday that "letting thc Shahleave
the United Statcs would be a worsc mistake than letting him in".

47. Gotbzadeh Paris Radio Interview
LDD21410 Paris Domcstic Service in French, 1200GMT, 2 Dec. 79 LD.
[Interview with Iranian Foreign Ministcr Sadeq Gotbzadeh by Pans radio
reporlers Yvcs Mourousi in Paris and Yves-Paul Vincent inTchran-live.]
pext] [Mourousi] The Shah 1s now in San Antonio, and herc is the first
question, Mr. Minisler oFForeign Affairs:What wasyour reaction this morning
on Zearningthüt the former Shah of Iran had left the hospilal?
[Gotbzadch] First of al],hc kas left the hospital ia sense, as being in the
hospital does not mean that he was il].And from thc beginning we have been
sayingthat he was not il1at all. Now hc hagone apparcntly to another placein
thc Unitcd States,so hc is stiin the Unitcd States Cortunatcly.
[Mourousi] Lasi Sunday we were in contact-and 1 grcct you, we alrcady
know eaçh othcr-last week WC wcrewithyour prcdecessor,Rani-Sadr.Butsinçe
lastweek, sinceSunday, you havebecorncthe Tranianminister of foreignaffairs.
1 would also note that you have been very closeto Ayatollah Khomeini What
bas changed in Iran's foreign policy since your appointment?
[Gotbzadch] Oh, there is no major changc, because Ihavc knawn Ayatollah
Khomeini for 16ycars.1know the lincof bisthought and 1know exactlythe lfne
of lhought and policy of the Revolution CounciI, and my relations with thc
students are also good. The Revolution Çouncil ihought that under thc present
circumslanccs, 1 should takc charge of foreign affairs,becausc Mr. Bani-Sadr
had two very important portfolios for which hc dtd not havc enough Lime.1
bdieve that effcctivelyone has to followImam Khomeini'slinc of thought and
iry to maintaina good dialogue with the students.
{Mourousi] So ihen, you are with Yves-Paul Vincenttoday. Yves-Paul.
Vincent and myself are ternpted to put you the same questions we put to gour

predecessor last week.We arc sirnply one wcek later, one more week during
which the hostageshave becn in captivfty.What isyQUrposition, your pcrsonal
position, in the matter of the hostages of thç US Ernbassy?'
[Gotbzadch] Listen,the esscntialproblem whichwehavebcen faced withsince
thc crisis is that cverybody is talking about the problern of the hostages and
never about the cause of this affair-the Shüh and his arrivai in the United
Statcs. The essential problerissimply that the United States-a country thathas ruled Iran for 25 years, that brought about the coup that brought the Shah
to power, that committed cnonnous crimes in Ourcountry in the political and
human, cultural and economic field-now, following the Iranian rcvolution,
that country has taken the liberty of an extremely flagrant act by having the
Shah, the symbol of al1thecrimes in Ourcountry, stay there. At that moment we
could not take this insult, this humiliation ofrrevolution, and for this reason
peoplc have reacted in the manncr that they have.
[Mourousi] Mr. Minister, thcrc is nevertheless some contradiction in the
action of Iranian policy. First one asks for the convocation of the UN Security
Council, one asks that the United Nations get moving, and jus1when the United
Nations decides to makc a move, Iran says: WCare withdrawing, WC havc no
intention at al1of going to the UN Sccurity Council. Now, how do you explain
the ambiguity of this position?
[Gotbzadeh] Listen, it isnot rcally likethat.askcd for theconvening of the
UN SecurityCouncil down there in the United Statcs. After about 10days thcy
rejected Our rcquest, and then suddcnly we heard that in 24 hours the UN
Sccurity Council would be convcned by the Secretary-Gcncral of the United
Nations. Of course this affair, this ignoring ofurrcqucst, this rejection of Our
request has causcd an enormous feeling of suspicion in the population ihat
perhaps the Council will meet to condcmn us..At that moment, WC dccided not
to go, and let me make this very clcar to the people in thc United States: If
the linc of thought, the policy of the UN Security Council(?tiakesthe direction)
of a policy of equilibrium, indicating that there is the slightest little chance
from Our position, at that moment we shall reconsidcr Our stand on going to
Ncw York.
[Mourousi] Now then, the United States said, whcn the Security Council
session was suspended aftcr the meeting during the night: We believe that we
shall arriveat a satisfactory solution at the Council. So,what kind of solution
would satisfy both the Council and at the samc timc the Iranians?
[Gotbzadeh] WC do not think that the Sccurity Council can reach a
satisfactory solution under the conditions in which it is mecting. And 1 have
inforincd the Secretary-Gcncral of the United Nations, Mr. Waldheim, that this
dcpcnds on the manncr in which the Council expresses itself under the prcscnt
circumstances rcgarding Our very simplc and very clear request-thcre is no
ambiguity in this-for the return of thc Shah by the United Statcs, and then, of
course, the crisis would coinplctcly disappear. So 1hopc that the Council will
acquit itself inthis mattcr by seeing both sidcs at the same time-surrendcr the
Shah to the Iranian people for a trial for his crimes, and at the same time the
problcm with the United States will be over.
[Mourousi] So you are asking the Sccurity Council quite simply to confirm
what you wish, the extradition. To ask the United Statcs to extradite the Shah
and in rcturn there will be no morc problem regarding the hostagcs. Now are
you surc, you, Mr. Gothadch, that you are not going to have problcms with the
students if you try to thrust a solution on them, because apparently Mr. Bani
Sadr did havc problems.
[Gotbzadeh] Thc problem is simply that if Ourrequests are satisficd, 1do not
belicvcthat we shall have thc slightest diiliculty with thc students, because their
initial demand has bccn this, and is still valid. Evcn at the beginning of thc crisis
we tricd to propose certain proccdures for the extradition of the Shah, which
unfortunately have not bccn acccpted by the Unitcd States. The United States
has been trying tocscalate the crisis by frcczingOurassets, and the oil problcm,
and what have you, and so now wearc simply saying:Cive up the Shah,and the
affair will bc closed.
[Mourousi] So you are ready to wind up the affair if the Shah is handed back
to you. And tell me, are you going to hand the three diplomats who are at your
place to the students, so that thcyjoin the other hostages at the embassy?114 DIPLOMATICAND CONSULAR STAFF

[Gotbzadeh] As 1 said very clearly yesterday, they have come to us at the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and they are therc now. They are free.
[Mourousi] In their movements ...
[Gotbzadeh]Free to wait there; weare going to insure their safety, their safcty
there, but the moment they go away, the moment they leave the Ministry of
Forcign Affairs, we are no longer responsible. So thcy are there, they are safc.
[Mourousi] Mr. Minister, now as far as the trial of thc hostages is concerned,
is there no longer talk about it for the moment?
[Gotbzadch] WCdo not talk about it, bccause as we have said alrcady, if the
United States decidcs to continue the crisis and does not follow the rcason for
acccpting Our proposal, does not understand the reasoning and feelingsof Our
people, thcn the trial of the spies herc bccomes topical.
[Mourousi]And willthis trial startsoon, whilethe Shah is on US tcrritory, or
when the Shah leaves US tcrritory? This is a rathcr unclear situation. Arc you
controlling thissituation? Can youSaythat the trial of the spiesas you cal1them,
will start on tliis or that date?
[Gothadehl WCcannot set a date, bccause not the slightcst decision in this
connection (?can bc taken), and 1do not think that it can bedonc in the next few
days.
[Mourousi] Mr. Ministcr, the referendum is bcing held today. Wewcrc talking
about it before, at the beginning of the news. What is this referendum, which
has practically already been won by the Ayatollah, going to change in everyday
life?
[Mourousi] You have bccn very threatening to Prcsidcnt as-Sadat recently,
should hc welcome the Shah.
[Gotbzadch] Oh, there is not much diffcrence between as-Sadat, the Shah,
(?Hitler) and the rcst. They are al1the samc.
[Mourousi] You scc thcm al1as criminals?
[Gotbzadch] About the same, yes.
[Mourousi] But you do not request cxtradition as far as the others are
conccrned?
[Tclcphone link with Tehran lost at this point]

48. Careful Guarding of Laingcn

LD021256 Tehran Domestic Service in Persian, 1220GMT, 2 Dec. 79 LD.
[Statement issued by the Muslim Student Followcrs of the Imam's Policy
stationcd in the "spy den of AmericaV-read by announcer.]
[Text]In the name of Cod, thecompassionatc, thc mcrciful. From the formcr
embassy of thc United States to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the lslamic
Rcpublic of Iran:
As we havc informed you before, thc spying charge d'affaires ofAmcrica and
his two companions, who are in that minisiry, are the Iranian nation's hostages.
Now weemphasizc that with the new documents and evidenccdiscovered, these
persons are proved to bc the heads of spics of the embassy and should be
guardcd carefully so that thc nation of Iran can dccide about them at an
opportune time.
[Signedj The Muslim Student Followers of the Imam's Policy.

49. Students Threaten to Begin Trials

LD021502 Tchran Domestic Servicc in Pcrsian, 1430GMT, 2 Nov. 79 LD.
[Text]According to reports from news agcncies,the deposed Shah today left
Cornell Hospital in New York for Texas. The White House announced that the
dcposed Shah will be continuing his treatment in Wilford Hall, a military
hospital near San Antonio, Tcxas. DOCUMENTS 115

Mcanwhile, Reuter rcported that the Studcnt Followers of the Imam's Policy
who havc occupied the American spy den in Tchran and demanded the
extradition of thc deposed Shah, have threatened that if the deposed Shah leaves
America, they will put their Amcrican hostages on trial.
Reuter reports that the students, who were angered at the prospect of the
deposed Shah travelling to anothcr country, told this agency in a telephonc
conversation that if thc deposcd Shah lcaves the United Statcs for any
destination otherthan Iran, they will start trials of thcir hostages immediatcly.RESPONS EY THEUNITED STATES1,1DECEMBE 1979',TO UESnONS PRESENTED
BY THE COUUT ON 10DECE~IBE1R 9799

Reference is made in the Applicationto the seizure of two United Stutes
consuhtes in, respectively, Tahriz and Sliiruz. The Court lvouldbe grateful ro
receivesucliinformationas the UnitedStates Governnlentmay possessas roivhat
huppenedto thepremises andpersonnelof tlieseconsulatesand, ingeneral,to its
consulurstaff in Iran.
A. The operations of the US consular posts in Tabriz and Shiraz had bcen
suspendcd since February of 1979when our posts in several lranian cities wcrc
attacked by demonstrators. Therefore, no American personnel were at these
posts at the timethe incidcntsoccurred. The premises werescized bydemonstra-
tors in early November, and we have no current report on their status. Four of
the diplomatic agents held hostage since the seizure ofthe Embassy in Tehran
arc members of the consular section of the Embassy.
In paragraph8, that is. thefinal paragrapliof the declarationby Mr. David D.
Neivsorn,liefurnished certaininformationconcerningthe categoriesof persons
stated to be held in the UnitedStutes Enlbassyor elseivlterein Iran. The Court
v~ouldk,o,trever,begratefulgyou rvouldprovideit withmore details,making clear
the particularsratus of everyonein each category undspecifying the manner of
theiraccreditation.
B. Thc 6 Decembcrdeclaration of Under Secretary David D. Newsom idcn-
tifiedat least28of thosc personsheld hostage in the Embassyas membersof the
diplomatic staff.To the best of our knowledgethis includesfivcmembersof the
political section, three membcrsof the economic section,four members ofthc
consular section, fivcmembers of the administrative section,four members of
the cultural affairssection, and six3military attachés.6hDecemberdeclara-
tion also idcntifiedat least 20 membcrsof the administrative and technical staff
of thc Embassy Iicld hostage. To the best of our knowledge this includesa
medical officer, sixmembers of the communications section, five3members of
the military attachéstaff,andine marine securityguards. The membersof the
diplomatic, administrativeand technical staffswereaccreditedthrough theual
or customary procedures:Iranian diplomaticor officialvisas wereplacedin their
ofpIran by the Embassyin Tehran in accordance with cstablished practice, and
they were issuedproper identification by Iran cither as diplomatic staff or as
membcrs of the administrative and technical staffentitled to privileges and
immunities.This information as to accreditation is based in part on records in
Washington and in part on the understanding ofofficerswith recentknowlcdge
of thepracticcsof the post, but we,unfortunately, are currently unable to obtain
accessto that portion of our rccords in thc Embassy in Tehran.
Mr. David D.Nervsom,in responseto my reqliest of 4 Deceniber 1979 for
certaininformation,statedinparagraplr3 ofhis Declurationof 6 Decemher1979
tltutMr. RamseyClarkhadgone toIranon 7Novenlber1979inu vainuttempt "to
deliver a messagefrom the President of the United States 10the Ayrrtollalt

*SCCp. 37,supra..
'See pp. 503-504,infra. DOCUMENTS 117

Khnmerni and in reekthe immediate relt.u.ieoj'rhehosiages". HrJuriher srated in
~hafparugmph that ~heUnitedSrares Govcrnmeni hris"communicated pusitions
on v~irit~umatters relrrfing to rhe crisisIO ~heIraninn Charg.4d'Affairp.7in
Wushingtrm" and Irasulso 'but specgc questions to the Chorgi. d'AflarresM.
Would rheAgen[ of the UnitedSlates pieuse be good enough tu furnish rhe Court
wirh u ~opyofthe messugc intcnded tu be r/eiivc.rerly Mr. Ramsey Chrk and of
an-y thcutnenrs or questions comrnuiiicated IO ~heIranian Chargéd'Aflaires in
Wushington.
C. Dipluniatic efforts are still being attemptcd through many channcls,
including the good officesof thc Secretary-Gencralof the United Nations and
many countrics. We believethat thcse effortsmust bc carried out in confidcncc
and could be adversely affcctcdby the disclosurcof the contents of dimarches
carlier madeor intendcd. We iherefore rcgrct that circumstancesdo not, al this

tirne,permit the United Stales to enter thesecommunications into Lheproceed-
ingsnfthc Court. We wouldadviscthe Court in gencraltcrrns,however,that thc
messagcto bc delivered by Mr. Clark contained a protest or the actions of thc
Govcrnnient of Iran and a cal1for releasc ofthe hostages. Mr. Clark was also
auhorized to discusçal1avenues for rcsolution of the crisis. Thc çommunica-
lions ro thc Iranian Chargéwcrc of a similarnature and also included requests
for an irnprovement in thc condition of thc hostages. Should thc Court
dctcrminei t essentialtoany aspect or our rcqiicst presently before thc Courkto
rcccive additional information in this rcgard, we would apprcciate being
inlormed of the specificncedand the particular aspect of the rnattcraffeçtedby
it,so that we migh- bülance the considcra~ionsin the best intcrcsts of the
hostages.
Thefirri.iuhmissionofthe UnitedSraresreques~jor ~he ~ndicationofprovisional
meCrSurc. vswrirdedas,follnws

"Thur the Governnlenl i~fIran ~nimediateiyreleuscal! hostages of Uniied
Siulcs nazionalitj~andfucilirate rheprornpl und saje departurcfrom lrun oj'
ihesepersons and ail (iiher United Stores aficial.in dignified and humane
rirrumsrancer:"

WouM the Ageni oJ the United Sluieshe so good as to providejurther details
regarding the persons referredtr,herein as "al1otht'r United States oficial~"?
D. Thrs statcment was made in order Lo ensure that al1US oficials who rnay
bein Irariwould be permitted to Icave.Inaddition to thc United Statesokials
bclievcdta be held hostagc at the EmbassyinTchran, the United StatesCkargk
d'Affaires,political counsellor and Ernbassy first secretary, mcmbcrs of the
Embüssy'sdiplornaticstaff, are çanfined at thcforcign rninistryand arç unüble
io leavc. DOCUMENTS 119

"Attack on Embassy. WC receivcd on March 11 a letter from Prime
Ministcr Bazargan datcd March I expressing regrets for the Fcbruary 14
attack on the Embassy and COI willingness to reimburse us for the
damages sustaincd. The full text of the letter, completc with spelling and
other errors, follows: 'The Provisional Revolutionary Government of Iran
present thcir compliments to the Embassy of thc United Svatesof America,
and whilc cxpressing their dccp rcgrct at the incident which occurred on
Fcbruary 14, 1979,would like to statc thathc said regrettable occurrence
was instigatcd by anti-revolutionary elcmcnts. The Govcrnmenthave made
arrangemcnts to prcvent seriously the repetition of such incidents. It is
requestcd that the regrets of this Governmcnt bc communicatcd to thc
United States Government. Furthcrmore, this Government would like to
dcclarc their rcadiness to indemnify the damages caused by the abovc
incidcnt. The Provisional Revolutionary Government of Iran avail them-
selvcsof this opportunity to rcncwthe assurances of their highcst considcra-
tion.'(Signed M ehdi Bazargan, Prime Minister."
It is not known to thc Government of the Unitcd States at this juncture
whethcr the United Statcs protests rcfcrrcd to above expressly invokcd the
Treaty of Amity, Economic Relations, and Consular Rights with Iran or other
trcaty rights of the United Statcs which bore upon the incidents in question. As
noted, records of those protcsts are, to the best of its knowledge, in the filesof
the United States Embassy in Tehran and arc not accessible to United States
authoritics. In any event, ites not appear that the Government of Iran was
then disposed to contest its responsibility to thc United Svatesfor the attacks on
United States prcmiscsfor, whileattributing thcse attacks to "anti-rcvolutionary
elements", it expressed its dcep regret, gave assurances that it would prcvent
furthcr attacks, and declarcd itsadiness to pay for the damagc caused by the
attacks.