Khosrow Qashqai (; 1921 – 1982) was an Iranian politician and a Qashqai tribal leader. Qashqai was a secular nationalist, and an opponent of

Pahlavi dynasty The Pahlavi dynasty () is an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian royal dynasty that was the Pahlavi Iran, last to rule Iran before the country's monarchy was abolished by the Iranian Revolution in 1979. It was founded in 1925 by Reza Shah, Reza S ...

. Historian

Mark J. Gasiorowski Mark J. Gasiorowski (born October 9, 1954) is a political scientist at Tulane University in New Orleans in the field of Middle East politics, Third World politics, and U.S. foreign policy. He has served frequently as a consultant to the United Sta ...

describes him as "very pro-American".

Career

Qashqai joined Democrat Party of

Ahmad Qavam Ahmad Qavam (2 January 1873 – 23 July 1955; ), also known as Qavam os-Saltaneh (), was an Iranian politician who served as Prime Minister of Iran five times. Early life Qavam was born in 1873 to the prominent Iranian Qavam family. His un ...

upon establishment, and was elected to the parliament in 1947 election. In the next term, he was elected to the parliament as an independent. and during the 17th term, he joined the National Movement fraction after 1952 election. After 1953 coup d'état took place, he was forced into an exile that lasted from 1954 to 1979, when the

Iranian revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...

happened. Qashqai had close ties to the

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...

(CIA) during the 1950s, and his

cryptonym A code name, codename, call sign, or cryptonym is a code word or name used, sometimes clandestinely, to refer to another name, word, project, or person. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage. They may also be used in ...

was "SDROTTER/4". He re-established connections with the American agency in 1978 again and in January 1979, he visited the

Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs ...

. Following his return to Iran, Qashqai regularly met with CIA officers in Tehran. He requested them to help him establish a newspaper, but the CIA saw no use in this matter and apparently refused the offer. Instead, the urged Qashqai to continue 'full-scale political activity' and strengthening his ties to various players in order to gather intelligence and influencing them. In 1980 parliamentary election, Qashqai won a ticket supported by the National Front. However, his credentials were rejected due to his American connections.

Prosecution and execution

Qashqai was arrested after the 1980 presidential election, when the

Muslim Student Followers of the Imam's Line The Muslim Student Followers of the Imam's Line ( ''Dânešjuyân-e Mosalmân-e peyrov-e Khatt-e Emâm''), also called the Muslim Students of the Imam Khomeini Line, was an Iranian student group that occupied the U.S. embassy in Tehran on 4 Novem ...

released documents regarding his involvement with the Americans. He escaped from prison and fled to

Fars province Fars Province or Pars Province, also known as Persis or Farsistan (فارسستان), is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Shiraz. Pars province has an area of 122,400 km2 and is located in Iran's southwest, i ...

to organize armed tribesmen for an insurgency. They were suppressed by the

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), also known as the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, is a multi-service primary branch of the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces, Iranian Armed Forces. It was officially established by Ruhollah Khom ...

, and he was arrested in April 1982. He was executed on 1 October 1982.

References

1921 births 1982 deaths Qashqai people People from Firuzabad, Fars National Front (Iran) MPs Democrat Party of Iran politicians Iranian elected officials who did not take office Members of the 15th Iranian Majlis Members of the 16th Iranian Majlis Members of the 17th Iranian Majlis People convicted of espionage in Iran People convicted of spying for the United States 20th-century executions by Iran Executed spies Executed Iranian people by the Islamic Republic of Iran {{Iran-politician-stub