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Colonel Mohammed Jalali was the Defense Minister of Iran. |
Colonel Mohammed Jalali was the Defense Minister of Iran. He was a key figure in the Iranian government's arms procurement during the Iran-Iraq War and had direct dealings with Israel and United States officials.1
According to Ari Ben-Menashe, Jalali worked with the Iran-Israel Joint Committee and was involved in negotiations for arms sales to Iran, and in July 1987 he met with Robert Gates in Kansas City to seek assurances that arms supplies to Iran would continue despite the Iran-Contra Affair scandal. He also expressed concern about the U.S. supporting the supply of chemical weapons to Iraq.1
In late 1985, Jalali was part of a faction within the Iranian Supreme Council that was loyal to Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. He opposed the Oliver North-Amiram Nir second channel for arms sales to Iran, and Rafsanjani assured Israel that there would be no sales through these new people.1
Jalali was involved in the deal concerning the three C-130 aircraft. He requested these planes in exchange for the release of three Israeli soldiers held in Lebanon. He also pushed for the payment to Chile for F-5E Tiger-2 aircraft and was in favor of leaking to the press that Iran was in business with Santiago.1
Jalali is mentioned as being retired and living in Iran with a second home in London as of 1992.1
Footnotes
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Ben-Menashe, Ari. Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network. Sheridan Square Press, 1992 (TrineDay reprint, 2015). ↩︎