A wilderness of mirrors

Last November, there was a curious story that Iran was training Chechen rebels in Tehran. The story cited "Western intelligence reports."

It was an odd story because it was unclear why Iran would be actively supporting Russia's foes in Chechnya at a time when Iran was courting Russia's protection in the UN Security Council.

Indeed, since then Russia's relationship with Iran seems cozy, and at the time a Jamestown Foundation article cited several sources saying the story was false.

(And as Steve Schippert points out here, overlooked in recent stories about Iran's war games, designed to frighten away any military action against Iran, is the fact the weapons Iran is talking about are most likely Russian.)

One possible explanation for this story was that a Western intelligence service (I'd vote for MI6) was trying to stir up trouble for Russia, and drive a wedge between Russia and Iran.

The attempt didn't seem to go anywhere. In February, the Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said this:

FAZ: U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has said that Iran is the biggest supporter of terrorism.

Sergei Ivanov: This is debatable. In any case, the terrorist attacks against America on September 11, 2001, were not carried out by Iranians. Iran does not support terrorist activities in Chechnya, unlike other Middle East countries.

Today, in the Corner, Michael Ledeen points to an article in last Sunday's Mirror saying the following:

A network of terror camps has been set up in Iran to train insurgents to kill our troops in Iraq.

Spy chiefs say al-Qaeda experts are giving three-week courses in planting roadside bombs, sniping and avoiding capture before, during and after attacks against troops.

British Special Forces are thought to know where the desert bases are and may be tracking insurgents who come and go.

Last night a senior intelligence source said: "The camps have been set up by an al-Qaeda splinter group from Iran's Revolutionary Guards."

They are thought to be responsible for at least three recent deaths in Al Amarah in Iraq.

Lance Cpl Allan Douglas - the 99th soldier to die in Iraq - was shot by a sniper and two paras were killed last month by an Iranian car bomb.

Ledeen comments:

I don't know what to make of this (old) news, except to wonder why the "senior intelligence source" is leaking now. The Brits, and even our own see-no-evil spooks know full well that the Revolutionary Guards have long trained terrorists headed for Iraq, and they certainly know that there is no such thing as "an al-Qaeda splinter group from the RG." The important thing is that they are blaming the Iranians for the deaths of British soldiers in Iraq. Why?

It could be part of a (British) campaign to prepare public opinion for action against Iran. Or it could be the action of a disgruntled (British) intelligence service, enraged at the continuing murder of British citizens and endless dithering from Tony Blair and Jack Straw.

Take your pick. But it's interesting.

If this Mirror story is a case of British intelligence trying to direct events, it is akin to the possibility they were doing the same with the Chechnya story.

In which case, the prospect of British intelligence independently working outside the direction of its government makes for fascinating speculation.

Here in the US, we, too, have an agency, namely the CIA, that at times seems to work outside its government's policy. However, these factions in the CIA are opposed to Bush's foreign policy. (I refer primarily to leaks from within the CIA.)

If it is the case, British intelligence is working in favor of Bush's foreign policy. Again, if true, these attempts are designed to alert people to the threat Iran poses, and to spark action to do something about it.

As I wrote about here, there is also the possibility British forces are providing assistance to the rebels working against Iran in the southwest province of Khuzestan.

Western nations are not ready for open military conflict against Iran, but surely there is war going on in the shadows, and we ought to be cheering on our shadow warriors. Right now those shadows are the front lines.