New York, May 26: The United States has sent a message to Iran seeking cooperation in investigation into the recent bombings of foreign compounds in Saudi Arabia and to hand over Al-Qaeda operatives believed to be working on Iranian territory, Bush administration officials have said. The message demanding the turnover of Qaeda suspects was delivered this month, shortly after the Saudi bombings and after American intelligence picked up indications that Qaeda members based in Iran might have been involved, the officials were quoted as saying by a leading American daily.
The attacks on May 12 killed 34 people, including nine Americans. Since the war in Afghanistan that followed the attacks of September 11, 2001, the Bush administration has held a series of secret meetings with Iranian officials, said the report. The meetings have taken place in Europe and New York and were not discussed openly by American officials until recently, it added.
"We passed them a message instead of meeting them face to face," a senior administration official was quoted as saying. "The message was that this Al-Qaeda link is very serious. We and others concerned about the Saudi bombings have made clear that Iran needs to cooperate with the Saudi investigation, and there's no reason to allow Al-Qaeda on Iranian territory." Iranian officials have repeatedly denied any involvement with Al-Qaeda and maintain that if there were members of the network operating in Iran it was without the government's knowledge or beyond its control. Bureau Report