Court to Let Iranian Ex-Spy Give Evidence at 9/11 Trial

HAMBURG, Germany —  A judge in the trial of an accused Sept. 11 plotter agreed Thursday to hear last-minute testimony from a former Iranian spy claiming to have inside evidence about the plot and about an alliance of Al Qaeda, Hezbollah and Iranian intelligence.

The ex-spy also told German federal police he was a longtime double agent for the CIA and had contacted U.S. and French intelligence before the Sept. 11 attacks to warn about an impending Al Qaeda strike, according to testimony Thursday.

The description by two German investigators of the Iranian’s wide-ranging story drew questions from the judge and defense lawyers, who cast doubt on his trustworthiness. A prosecutor testified that the Iranian had aided German authorities in a separate case involving Iranian spies but admitted that police were still assessing his credibility as a witness against Abdelghani Mzoudi, a Moroccan suspected of being an associate of the hijackers based in Hamburg.

Judge Klaus Ruehle urged prosecutors to have the new witness testify next Thursday. The former spy is between 30 and 35, goes by the alias Hamid Reza Zakeri and has given several interviews to journalists since fleeing Iran in July 2001, according to testimony.

But it was not clear whether Zakeri would actually take the stand in the five-month trial. In addition to doubts about his credibility, prosecutors said they want to ensure that they can protect his anonymity.

The cloak-and-dagger story was superimposed on the trial on the day originally set for announcement of the verdict. Mzoudi, who is charged as an accessory to murder, allegedly trained at an Al Qaeda camp and later paid bills and helped provide apartments for the Hamburg hijackers, prosecutors charge.

Zakeri told police that a top Iranian intelligence official last month identified Mzoudi as a communications specialist for the Hamburg plotters, according to testimony. Defense lawyers scoffed at the accusation.

“An acquittal for my client is not in danger,” lawyer Guel Pinar said. The defense cited a U.S. magazine article that quoted an American intelligence official describing Zakeri as “a fabricator of monumental proportions.”

The world of espionage and counter-terrorism often produces figures who blur the lines between fact, fiction and manipulation.

Nonetheless, German prosecutors consider him a strong enough witness to publicly pin their hopes for a conviction on him. While Western counter-terrorism officials have accused Iran of harboring Al Qaeda figures after the Sept. 11 attacks, Zakeri alleges that an alliance teaming Al Qaeda with the Shiite Muslim militant group Hezbollah and its Iranian sponsors intensified before the attacks, according to testimony.

Zakeri told police that Iranian agents met in January and May of 2001 with Al Qaeda leaders including Ayman Zawahiri and Saad bin Laden, the son of Osama bin Laden. After the meetings, Iranian agents and a unit led by Imad Mughniyah, a Hezbollah chieftain present at the meetings, said a major attack was in the works, according to Zakeri’s account. Zakeri claimed that his boss told him the date would be Sept. 10 or 11, according to police.

Zakeri also told police he went to a CIA agent in Baku, Azerbaijan, to warn of an impending Al Qaeda attack -- and to demand $1.2 million he said he was owed for serving as a double agent for the U.S. since 1992.

That brought a lighthearted comment from the judge, who said: “So he came to collect his double-agent fees.”

Pressed by the judge, investigators declined to evaluate Zakeri’s credibility. Officer Andy Neuman testified that he felt the witness “looked serious.”

Asked about the Iranian’s motives, Prosecutor Bruno Just said Zakeri had asked for help finding an apartment in Berlin and dealing with immigration when he contacted prosecutors about a separate case. Zakeri told interrogators that he “has to make a living somehow” and could give more information “if an agreement is reached,” according to testimony.

But when asked whether money was his main motive, according to testimony, he said: “No. I want to serve my country.”

Special correspondent Laabs reported from Hamburg and Times staff writer Rotella from Paris.