The Case Of The Missing Agent

Trento told NEWSWEEK that this week he got a phone call from Salahuddin suggesting that he thought he could arrange for Levinson to be sent home to the U.S. quietly. "He told me the government doesn't want to keep him because of his ill health," Trento said. Salahuddin asked if Trento could come to Iran to take custody of Levinson. At that point, Trento said he called Jack Cloonan, a former FBI supervisor in New York, who now runs a company that specializes in retrieving hostages in the Middle East. Trento asked Cloonan if he would be willing to accompany him on a trip to Iran to meet Salahuddin and retrieve Levinson. Cloonan, who has talked to Salahuddin in the past by phone, told NEWSWEEK that he wouldn't consider such a trip unless he got an official invitation from the Iranian government. As for Salahuddin, he added: "He murdered a guy in cold blood. My only interest would be in bringing him to justice."

Editor's Note: This story was updated after publication to reflect the comments of Ira Silverman, which were received after Terror Watch was posted.

Terror Watch, written by Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball appears online weekly

© 2007