Jamshid Sharmahd was an Iranian-German national who is now a U.S. citizen. He was detained by Iran's intelligence services in 2020. Iran claimed that he was the leader of Tondar (the militant wing of Iran's opposition group Kingdom Assembly of Iran).
Sharmahd's family claims that he is only the spokesperson of the Kingdom Assembly of Iran. This Farsi name is Anjoman-e Padeshahi-e Iran. Sharmahd has also accused Iran of kidnapping his daughter in Dubai. Glendora in California is his hometown.
State TV reported that Sharmahd admitted to having a relationship both with the FBI and the CIA. State TV reported that Sharmahd was in touch with nine FBI agents and CIA agents, and their last meeting was January 2020. However, he did not elaborate.
Since long, Iran's state television has been believed to have been controlled by intelligence agencies. Its channels broadcast coerced confessions.
Sharmahd's family accused Iran of holding their father in "555 days solitary confinement, without charges" before the hearing.
Iran claimed that Sharmahd was responsible for the 2008 bombing attack on the Hosseynieh Seyed al-Shohada Mosque, in Shiraz. He also claimed that he was planning more attacks against Iran. In addition to the 14 victims of the bombing, 215 others were also injured.
Sharmahd is a supporter of Iran's monarchy being overthrown in 1979 Islamic Revolution. Sharmahd was previously targeted in an Iranian assassination plot in U.S. soil.
Iran has not yet revealed how Sharmahd was detained. This occurred against the background of covert actions by Iran, amid increased tensions with the U.S. due to Tehran's collapsed nuclear agreement with world powers.
His son stated that Sharmahd was in Dubai trying to fly to India to complete a business deal for his software company. He was hopeful of getting a connecting flight, despite the coronavirus pandemic that has been disrupting global travel.
Officials from the West believe Iran is responsible for intelligence operations in Dubai. They also keep an eye on the many thousands of Iranians who live in the city-state. Iran is believed to have kidnapped and then killed Abbas Yazdi, a British-Iranian national, in Dubai in 2013. Tehran has however denied any involvement.
The U.S. State Department has its Iran Regional Presence Office located in Dubai. Here diplomats monitor Iranian media and speak to Iranians.
Intelligence operatives have long targeted Dubai's hotels, as was the case in the 2010 assassination attempt by Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh (Israel Mossad Of Hamas operative). Dubai and the UAE have continued to invest in a sophisticated surveillance network.
The Kingdom Assembly of Iran aims to restore Iran's monarchy. It was destroyed in 1979 when Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, a fatally ill Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, fled the country just before the Islamic Revolution. In the mid-2000s, the founder of this group disappeared.
Iran's intelligence units had arrested the No. 2 leader of Tondar (or "Thunder" Farsi), identified only as Masmatus.
Iran also accuses the group of being behind the bombing in Tehran at Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s mausoleum, which left several people injured.
State TV reported that some relatives of victims of the bombing at the mosque attended the hearing on Sunday. It was presided by Judge Abolghasem Salvati of Revolutionary Court 15 in Tehran.
