On disappearance of Terror-linked General Askari

NYpost: A retired Iranian general linked to the killing of five American soldiers in Baghdad vanished mysteriously in Istanbul last month, Israeli media reported yesterday.

Arab newspapers are hinting the CIA and/or the Israeli spy agency Mossad are behind the disappearance of Gen. Ali Reza Askari, the reports said.

Askari, a former deputy defense minister, arrived in Istanbul on a flight from Damascus on Feb. 7, left his luggage in his hotel room - and vanished.

The missing general was in charge of Iranian undercover operations in central Iraq, said the Debkafile, a Web site that often reflects the thinking of those in the Israeli security forces.

Askari is believed to have taken part - or have links to - the armed group that stormed a U.S.-Iraqi command center in the holy city of Karbala on Jan. 20 and killed five U.S. troops, the Web site said.

The attackers wore military uniforms and used vehicles often driven by foreign dignitaries in an attempt to impersonate Americans.
A Middle East intelligence source said the United States could not let the outrage stand and had been hunting the general ever since, the Web site said.

On Feb. 6, two non-Turkish citizens made a reservation for Askari for three nights at the Istanbul Ceylan Hotel, paying cash, the site said.

But after the general arrived, he booked himself into the cheaper Hotel Ghilan. He left his luggage in his room, walked out and disappeared.