Hossein Taeb (Persian: حسین طائب) is an Iranian Shia cleric and senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps official who was head of the IRGC's Intelligence Organization.[1]
Hossein Taeb | |
|---|---|
 Hojjatol Eslam Hossein Taeb visiting university students at Shahed University, Tehran. | |
| Born | 1963 (age 60–61) Tehran, Iran |
| Allegiance | Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps |
| Years of service | 1982–2022 |
| Commands held | Basij Intelligence Organization |
Biography edit
According to a biography from the "pro-government" Iran Student Correspondents Association summarized in the website Iran Rises, Taeb was born in 1342 (1963/4). After his middle education, he went to seminary school and reached an advanced degree (kharej) in Islamic jurisprudence after studying in Tehran, Mashhad, and Qom. He had studied with, among others, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Taeb joined the Revolutionary Guards (which supervises the Basij) in 1361 (1982/3), beginning his work in Region 10 of Tehran and continued on to Qom and Mashhad. He was "for some time the Revolutionary Guards' coordinator with the Leader as well as the cultural commander of Imam Hossein College."
Under Taeb's command, the Basij played a key role in suppressing protest over the controversial 2009 Iranian presidential elections. The suppression saw the death of at least dozens of protesters on the streets or in prison.[2]
In public statements Taeb has cautioned Iranians that the United States was "hiring agents and mercenaries in an effort to continue its plots for a soft overthrow of the Islamic Republic," according to the Iranian Fars news agency.[3] Taeb has also stated that the post-election "anti-government riots" "killed eight members of the Basij and wounded 300 others."[4]
In 2022, he and his family members were sanctioned by the US Department of States for his involvement in human rights violations in Iran.[5]
Taeb was dismissed from his position as head of Intelligence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps in June 2022. This is speculated to be due to an incident where an alleged Iranian operation to attack Israeli tourists in Turkey was outed, resulting in the arrest of the agents and a diplomatic spat with Turkey, as well as other incidents that suggested successful Israeli spy operations that Taeb failed to prevent. The dismissal also coincided with the arrest of Brig. General Ali Nasiri on suspicion of spying for Israel.[6]
Offices edit
The list of his responsibilities includes:[7]
- Deputy Culture of Joint Staff of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
- Commander department of Culture of Imam Hossein University
- Commander of the Basij from October 29, 2007 to 2009[8][1]
- Head of the Intelligence Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from October 2009 to June 2022[9]
Personal life edit
He lost a brother in the Operation Karbala-5 during the Iran–Iraq War and is married with three children.[1]
International sanctions edit
Private property of Hossein Taeb is frozen by the European Union and he is not allowed to enter Europe[10] because "forces under his command participated in mass beatings, murders, detentions and tortures of peaceful protestors."[10] He has also been blacklisted by the U.S government.[11]
References edit
- ^ a b c Hosein Taeb Iran Rises. August 30th, 2009. accessed 23-September-2009
- ^ The Rise of the Iranian Dictatorship, GENEIVE ABDO. OCTOBER 7, 2009 accessed 13-October-2009
- ^ Basij Commander: US Hiring Agents for Soft Overthrow of Islamic Republic. farsnews Archived 2011-09-29 at the Wayback Machine 23 Sep 2009. accessed 23-September-2009
- ^ Iran opposition says 72 died in post-poll unrest Reuters. Sep 3, 2009. accessed 23-September-2009
- ^ "Report to Congress on Identification of, and Immigration Restrictions on, Senior Officials of the Government of Iran and Their Family Members, 22 USC 8727". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
- ^ Israel's Spies Have Hit Iran Hard. In Tehran, Some Big Names Paid the Price.
- ^ اطلاعات موازی رسماً جایگزین وزارت اطلاعات میشود Archived 2009-07-30 at the Wayback Machine هرانا
هشدار کروبی به وزارت اطلاعات رادیو فرانسه - ^ Basij Mission Cultural Iran Daily, 29 Jun 2009. accessed 23-September-2009
- ^ Iran's Khamenei reshuffles Revolutionary Guards top brass, AFP, Oct 4, 2009
- ^ a b Official Journal of the European Union, 4/14/2001: COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) No 359/2011 of 12 April 2011 concerning restrictive measures directed against certain persons, entities and bodies in view of the situation in Iran
- ^ "IRAN". U.S. Treasury Department.