Iran To Safety

An Iranian nuclear scientist has surfaced in Washington DC, saying he was kidnapped by US intelligence agents.  He has made his way to the Pakistani embassy and is requesting a trip back to Iran.

An Iranian nuclear scientist Tehran claims was abducted by US intelligence agents has taken refuge in the Islamic republic's interest section in Washington, state media reported on Tuesday.

"Shahram Amiri, the abducted Iranian expert, took refuge in Iran's interest section in Washington hours ago," state television's website said.

In a separate report, Mehr news agency said Amiri who was "abducted by Americans went to Iran's interest section... and asked for a quick return to Tehran."

Iran's interests in the United States are managed by the Pakistan embassy as Tehran and Washington have had no diplomatic ties for more than three decades.

Iranian officials have long maintained that Amiri was kidnapped by US agents from Saudi Arabia last year where he had gone for a Muslim pilgrimage.

The problem is the Pakistani Embassy in Washington says they don't have the guy according to Spencer Ackerman at Danger Room.

As if the story of Iranian nuclear scientist Shahram Amiri wasn’t weird and complicated enough. Both the Pakistani and Iranian governments claimed this morning he’s taken refuge in Pakistani’s Washington embassy and is trying to get home. But a spokesperson at the Pakistani embassy flatly denies to Danger Room that Amiri is there.

Amiri, you may recall, was abducted by U.S. spies last year during a trip to Mecca (at least, according to Tehran). Or perhaps he defected, and is now studying for his Ph.D. of his own free will in the States (according to American press accounts). Last month, a pair of videos surfaces supporting both versions of Amiri’s tale.

The embassy is a pretty ideal location for intelligence-borne intrigue. It’s tucked away in a tony, bucolic area behind the University of the District of Columbia off of Connecticut Avenue NW. After Washington and Tehran severed ties following the 1979 revolution and hostage crisis, the embassy maintains a section representing Iran’s interests, so it’s a logical place for an allegedly-kidnapped Iranian to go.

But a Pakistani embassy official tells Danger Room that the reports of Amiri turning up in the embassy are ”incorrect information” and “we have no one here” matching his description. That’s from an individual at the press office who didn’t identify herself and said she could not speak for the record. She added she couldn’t explain why a spokesman for the Pakistani Foreign Ministry in Islamabad told reporters that the scientist is at the embassy’s Iranian interest section, about two miles away from the main facility in D.C.’s Glover Park neighborhood. But she also didn’t split hairs: “He’s not in the embassy at all.”

So, this is getting really weird, almost as if Pakistan is trying to not get involved in this matter between Iran and the US and don't want to anger either side.  It's turning into a huge mystery.