Iranian scientist's murky tale

WASHINGTON - Shahram Amiri sounds like a contented man in one video, nestled in a leather chair, assuring his audience that he is free and safe to continue his education in America.

But in a second clip the Iranian scientist warns in stilted phrases that the CIA kidnapped him, brought him to the United States, and tortured him with the goal of "proving lies" about Iran's disputed nuclear program.

The two online videos sum up the murky and contradictory narratives at the heart of Amiri's tale, which took a surprising turn late Monday when the 32-year-old scientist presented himself at the Iranian consular office of the Pakistani Embassy in Washington, saying he wished to go home.

Iran, locked in a standoff with the United States over its nuclear program, quickly resumed its allegations that the United States abducted the former researcher for the Iran Atomic Energy Organization. U.S. officials insisted Amiri, who disappeared in Saudi Arabia in June 2009, had come to this country of his own free will.

But with many details still unclear, the tale began to look like a defection gone wrong that could yield a propaganda windfall for the Islamic regime.

The affair has at least temporarily shifted the focus away from Iran's nuclear program and revived its decades-old claims that the CIA is secretly meddling in its affairs in an effort to bring down the regime.

U.S. officials, who had said nothing official on the Amiri case until Tuesday, acknowledged that they had remained in touch with him during his stay in the United States - suggesting that Amiri had shared his knowledge of the Iranian nuclear program. They also offered a possible motive for Amiri's abduction claims, saying that perhaps Iranian officials may have threatened the family that he left behind.

Amiri's mysterious tale became more confused June 7, when two conflicting videos hit the Web. The first, released by Iran, appeared to show Amiri on a webcam, speaking in Persian and saying that he had been kidnapped by the CIA and Saudi intelligence while on a pilgrimage in Medina, Saudi Arabia.

In the video, which Amiri said he recorded April 5, he claimed that after being kidnapped, he received an injection, and when he later woke up he was on a plane to the United States. Amiri said he was recording the video from Tucson, Ariz.

But in a second video released on YouTube the same day, Amiri said he was free and safe in the United States, working on his Ph.D. Amiri said on that video that he had no interest in politics and knew nothing about nuclear-weapons programs. Two other videotapes also apparently produced by Amiri appeared later in June, returning to the original theme that he had been abducted.

The videos raise questions, including whether the CIA mishandled his case in its eagerness to acquire new information about Iran's nuclear program.

Several U.S. officials were scathing Tuesday about Amiri, whom they portrayed as naive and impetuous. His decision to defect, they implied, had been made without thinking through the implications, including the possibility that his family could face reprisals.

But the officials were unwilling to address in detail the U.S. government's role in facilitating his entry into this country, which would have required a visa and in all probability interviews with intelligence officials.

"Amiri made the decision to come to the United States, and he decided who would come with him," said a U.S. official who requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature. "He left his family behind. That was his choice."

Amiri mentions his family in several of the videos, notably in the final one, which was posted on YouTube on June 23. Addressing his wife and son, he says: "I wanted to inform my dear family that I am doing well, and not to be worried about me. God willing, I will be returning to my dear country Iran in the next few days."

Amiri's claim to have been kidnapped by the CIA was preposterous, several U.S. officials said, noting that someone being held against his will would not have been given access to a computer and a video camera.

His first video claiming to have been kidnapped was his own idea to mislead the Iranian government and protect his family, but he later had second thoughts about saying he had been kidnapped, a U.S. official said. That prompted the second video posted on YouTube.

"He might at one point have regretted the lies he told about the United States, but that - plainly - didn't last," the official said. "Now he thinks he can snow the goons in Tehran. He's taking a real chance.

To rebut Amiri's claims that he was kidnapped, U.S. officials for the first time Tuesday suggested he had provided information about Iran's nuclear program, a move apparently aimed at undermining Amiri's efforts to say he had provided no useful information.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told reporters Tuesday that Amiri had been kidnapped, and demanded that he be allowed to return home "without any obstacle."

In Pakistan, foreign office spokesman Abdul Basit said Mustafa Rahmani, head of the Iranian interests section, "is making arrangements for [Amiri's] repatriation back to Iran."

Iranian state television said Amiri had been in contact with Iranian news organizations in New York, and quoted him as saying he had been imprisoned and under extreme psychological pressure for 14 months.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton insisted Amiri had always been free to go. "These are decisions that are his alone to make," she said.

"In contrast, Iran continues to hold three young Americans against their will, and we reiterate our request that they be released and allowed to return to their families on a humanitarian basis."

She was referring to Shane Bauer, Sarah Shourd, and Josh Fattal of Elkins Park - held by Iran since July 2009, when they hiked across the Iranian border from Iraq.

The scientist's appearance at the Iranian interest section may prove to be awkward for Pakistan, which receives billions of dollars in U.S. aid but also has close ties to Iran.

Pakistani officials in Washington sought to put distance between their embassy and the Iranian office, a storefront offshoot of the Pakistani Embassy. "It's miles away," said one Pakistani official who asked not to be named. "I've never even been there."