List of Iranian defectors
Appearance
This is a list of individuals who have defected from Iran.
Name | Occupation | Year | Notes | Ref. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kimia Alizadeh | Athlete | 2020 | First woman from Iran to win an Olympic medal (Taekwondo) | [1] | |
Saeid Mollaei | Athlete | 2019 | Olympic judoka and 2018 world champion | [2] | |
Pourya Jalalipour | Athlete | 2019 | Para-archer who qualified for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan | [3] | |
Farzad Farhangian | Diplomat | 2010 | Former press attache at the Iranian embassy in Brussels, Belgium | [4] | |
Mohammad Reza Heydari | Diplomat | 2010 | [4] | ||
Hossein Alizadeh | Diplomat | 2010 | [4] | ||
Shahram Amiri | Nuclear scientist | 2009 | Returned to Iran in 2010; executed by the Iranian government in 2016 “for revealing top secrets to the enemy” | [5] | |
Ahmad Rezaee | 1998 | Eldest son of Iranian conservative politician and senior military officer Mohsen Rezaee; found dead in 2011 at a hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (possible assassination) | [6] | ||
Abdolghassem Mesbahi | Intelligence operative | 1996 | [7] | ||
Marzieh | Singer | 1994 | [8] | ||
Mehdi Rezvani | Athlete | 1986 | Weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea; won the bronze medal at the 242-pound class | [9] | |
Samad Montazeri | Athlete | 1986 | Weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea | [9] | |
Siamak Bajand | Athlete | 1986 | Weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea | [9] | |
Ardhir Bahmanyar | Athlete | 1986 | Weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea | [9] | |
Ali Akbar Mohammadi | Pilot | 1986 | Former pilot for the speaker of the Iranian parliament, Akbar Rafsanjani; assassinated in Hamburg, West Germany, in 1987 | [10] | |
Iraj Fazeli | Pilot | 1983 | Due to his opposition to the Iranian regime, he first flew to Van in Turkey in a Northrop F-5 (the plane returned a week later). He later went to the U.S. before disappearing there in 1989. | [11][12] | |
Parviz Khazai | Diplomat | 1982 | Chargé d'affaires at the Iranian embassy in Oslo, Norway | [13] | |
Reza Abedi | Athlete | 1982 | Wrestler | [14] | |
Ardeshir Asgari | Athlete | 1982 | Wrestler | [14] | |
Keyhan Jahanfakhr | Pilot | 1982 | Iranian airline pilot; applied for political asylum in Austria after piloting his Iran Air Boeing 727 on a flight from Tehran | [15][16] | |
Seyyed Jabbar Mehdiyoun | Athlete | 1982 | Wrestler; defected during the 1982 World Wrestling Championships in Edmonton, Canada | [17] | |
Mohammad Hossein Naghdi | Diplomat | 1982 | Charge d'affaires at the Iranian embassy in Rome, Italy; assassinated in Rome in 1993 | [18][19] | |
Javad Hussain | Military | 1981 | Iranian Air Force colonel | [20] |
References
- ^ "The only woman to win an Olympic medal for Iran just defected". The Washington Post. January 12, 2020.
- ^ "Judo world champion granted Mongolian citizenship after fleeing Iran". NBC Sports. 2 December 2019.
- ^ "Another Iranian Athlete Refuses To Return Home; Applying For Asylum Iran". Radio Farda. 5 September 2019.
- ^ a b c "Iranian diplomats' defections signal fissures in Islamic Republic leaders over election unrest". AP. September 14, 2010.
- ^ "How an Iranian's Spy Saga Ends, 6 Years Later: He's Executed". The New York Times. August 7, 2016.
- ^ Sciolino, Elaine (2001). Persian Mirrors: The Elusive Face of Iran. Simon & Schuster. pp. 287–288. ISBN 0-7432-1779-9.
- ^ "Iran Blew Up Jewish Center In Argentina, Defector Says". The New York Times. July 22, 2002.
- ^ "Marzieh, Iranian Singer and Voice of Dissent, Dies at 86". The New York Times. October 16, 2010.
- ^ a b c d "Iranian Weightlifters Missing, Reported Defected to Iraq". AP. October 3, 1986.
- ^ "Former Pilot for Iran's Parliament Speaker Slain". AP. January 16, 1987.
- ^ "Перебежчики "холодной войны"". www.airwar.ru. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
- ^ "Быстрое изучение английских слов. Мнемотехника". mnemoenglish.ru. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
- ^ "Iranian Aide Defects in Oslo". The New York Times. Reuters. October 8, 1982.
- ^ a b "Reza Abedi's Greatest Escape". OC Weekly. May 12, 2011.
- ^ "Iran Pilot Defects in Vienna". The New York Times. Reuters. October 18, 1982.
- ^ Iranian Air Pilot Defects. Associated Press. The Victoria Advocate 18 October 1982: 7A.
- ^ "An Iranian wrestler who defected during the World Wrestling..." UPI. August 18, 1982.
- ^ "Iranian official quits over Khomeini rule". UPI. April 19, 1982.
- ^ "Iranian Is Killed in Rome By 2 Gunmen on a Scooter". The New York Times. March 17, 1993.
- ^ "Turkey Weighs Asylum For Iran Air Force Defector". The New York Times. March 18, 1981.