The Iranian regime is actively aiding the Ba’athist regime in Syria to spy on cell phone calls, text messages and Internet communication of protesters and other dissidents, the US says, citing intelligence reports.
“We believe that Iran is materially assisting the Syrian government in its efforts to suppress their own people,” an Obama Administration official tells the Wall Street Journal.
“At the same time, communications intercepted by U.S. spy agencies show Tehran is actively exploring ways to aid some Shiite hardliners in Bahrain and Yemen and destabilize longstanding U.S. allies there, say U.S. officials familiar with the intelligence. Such moves could challenge interests of the U.S. and Saudi Arabia and inflame sectarian tensions across the Middle East,” according to the Journal.
“So far, officials said, Iran has begun transferring to Damascus equipment to help security forces put down protests. This includes providing Syrian authorities with equipment, advice and technical know-how to help curtail and monitor internal communications, including the email and online postings that opposition groups commonly use to organize their protests and report security excesses, officials said. Some deliveries have been made and others are believed to be in the works, they said,” according to the report.
The Islamic Republic of Iran is also sharing with the secular Ba’athists of Syria its “lessons learned” from the systematic repression of mainly young protesters following the fraudulent 2009 reelection of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The Iranian regime officials “know the best practice in this kind of situation – they’ve had lots of experience in this sphere,” an American defense official tells the Journal.
[IranChannel Editor's note: Before we get too caught up in Iran regime involvement in suppressing the Syrian opposition, we must keep in mind that, because the Syrian regime is secular, many of its opponents are Islamist extremists - including Salafists and members of the Muslim Brotherhood. A Bahraini Salafist group reported today about how Iran is helping Syria go after the Salafists in Syria.]
