Post #5: Iranian Authorities Arrest Sunni Militant Leader

Click here to read the BBC News Article "Iran Jundullah leader claims US military support", written on February 26th.
Iranian Stave Television has released a videotaped statement of recently arrested Sunni militant leader Abdolmalek Rigi, in which Rigi claims that he recieved support for his actions from the United States Government. Rigi was the leader of Jundullah (translated as 'Soldiers of Allah'), a Sunni militant group founded in 2002 to defend the Baluchi minority in south-east Iran. The group has been linked to a variety of attacks throughout Iran, including one in October 2009 that killed 31 people, including six top Revolutionary Guard commanders.
Rigi was captured on February 23, while on a flight from Dubai to Kyrgyzstan.
In the video Rigi claims that contact with the US was made after the November 2008 election, and took place in Quetta, Pakistan. Rigi alleged that the US promised to aid Jundullah through cooperation, as well as providing weapons, equipment, and a base, as well as freeing prisoners.
It is unknown whether or not Rigi made the statements under duress, but the US has denied any accusations of assissting Jundullah.
Iran, which is predominately Shia, has linked Jundullah to al-Qaeda, which is predominately Sunni, as well as to Pakistan, Britain, and America.
This relates to what we have been learning in Comparative Government because it deals with how Iran treats its ethnic and religious minorities, as Jundullah is a Sunni militant group in a Majority Shi'a country, created in order to bring attention to the treatment of an Iranian minority group. There is also the question of whether or not Rigi was forced to make his statements under duress, which relates to the country's treatment of its prisoners. Lastly, it deals with Iranian foreign policy as Iran has accused Pakistan, America, and the United Kingdom of working with Jundullah.


Image courtest of BBC News
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