Ahmadinejad's Personal Cameraman Defects to US

 

It's been confirmed that Hassan Golkhanban, Iranian President Ahmadinejad's personal photographer has defected to the U.S., after sending his family out of the country to Turkey to ensure their safety.

Golkhanban and his family are now in an undisclosed location.

Golkhanban's U.S. attorney Paul O’Dwyer told CNN that Golkhanban is seeking asylum because “He’s perceived as not being a supporter, or being an opponent of the Iranian regime… somebody who has betrayed the regime and who can no longer be trusted by them.”

According to O'Dwyer, Golkhanban's application for asylum has been filed with the State Department.

It's worth noting that Golkhanban is no ordinary photographer. As Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's personal photographer, he followed the president everywhere, quite likely including a number of Iran's secret nuclear facilities.

There are a number of unconfirmed reports that Golkhanban  brought with him a treasure trove of up-to-date photographs and videos of top Iranian leaders showing up-to-date details of those facilities. 

I wouldn't call these sources especially reliable, but it's quite possible, in fact, almost certain that Golkhanban did bring something valuable with him to trade.Or to be accurate, something that at first look appears to be valuable.

Given that Golkhanban was considered a fairly solid member of the Iranian regime until he jumped ship, it's highly doubtful his request for asylum would even have been considered as a mere defector under ordinary circumstances unless  he brought some kind of information or material with him that would have made it worthwhile for the feds to consider letting him stay in America. Since this is his second time in America, it's also possible that he was turned then and he has been an American agent since last year.

What's likely happening right know is that whatever information or materials he's brought with him are being vetted and tested to the degree they can be for accuracy and value.He's also likely being questioned by our CIA to see if his story holds together and if the intel he brought with him seems accurate and holds together.

If Golkhanban is an actual defector and not just a  U.S. agent coming in from the cold. his situation is a dicey one. There are three possibilities.  (a) he's a real defector who brought something valuable  with him and will be allowed to stay as an intelligence asset, (b) he's a real defector but what he brought with him is worthless or doctored or (c) he's a double agent who knowingly came here as a 'defector' with the full knowledge of the Iranian regime to spread disinformation.

That's the call the CIA will have to make.Again, it usually involves checking whatever information was brought with other sources to see how accurate it might be and how it holds together.  And it also involves going over the person's story over and over again, looking for inconsistencies.

If the CIA determines that Golbakhan is a real defector who brought something worth having, his application for asylum will be pushed through, and he'll be assigned a CIA 'manager ' to continue his debriefing.

If he's a real defector but brought something with him that's essentially worthless,  he'll either  be sent home or allowed to stay on humanitarian grounds depending on what the consensus is on how likely he is to be a double agent.It's unlikely that  it can be proved he definitely is a double agent unless some additional intel pops up,  but if that happens, he'll likewise be assigned a /manager' and interrogated.

I may have more for you on this later.