List of Iranian defectors

This is a list of individuals who have defected from Iran.

Name Occupation Year Notes Ref.
Kimia Alizadeh athlete 2020 sole woman from Iran to win an Olympic medal (taekwondo) [1]
Alireza Faghani athlete 2019 referee in the Persian Gulf Pro League [2]
Saeid Mollaei athlete 2019 judoka Olympian and 2018 world champion [3]
Pourya Jalalipour athlete 2019 para-archer who has qualified for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo [4]
Farzad Farhangian diplomat 2010 press attache at the Iranian Embassy in Brussels [5]
Mohammad Reza Heydari diplomat 2010 [5]
Hossein Alizadeh diplomat 2010 [5]
Shahram Amiri nuclear scientist 2009 Returns to Iran in 2010, Iranian government executes him in 2016 "for revealing the country’s top secrets to the enemy" [6]
Ahmad Rezaee 1998 eldest son of Iranian conservative politician and senior military officer Mohsen Rezaee, found dead in 2011 at a Dubai Hotel, possible assassination [7]
Abdolghassem Mesbahi intelligence operative 1996 [8]
Marzieh singer 1994 [9]
Mehdi Rezvani athlete 1986 weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea, won the bronze medal at the 242-pound class [10]
Samad Montazeri athlete 1986 weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea [10]
Siamak Bajand athlete 1986 weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea [10]
Ardhir Bahmanyar athlete 1986 weightlifter competing at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea [10]
Ali Akbar Mohammadi pilot 1986 former pilot for the speaker of Iran's Parliament, Hashemi Rafsanjani; assassinated in Hamburg, Germany in 1987 [11]
Keyhan Jafankhr pilot 1982 [12]
Parviz Khazai diplomat 1982 Iran's charge d'affaires in Norway [13]
Reza Abedi athlete 1982 wrestler [14]
Ardeshir Asgari athlete 1982 wrestler [14]
Askeyhan Jahanfakhr pilot 1982 Iranian airline pilot applied for political asylum in Austria after piloting his Iran Air Boeing 727 on a flight from Teheran [15]
Seyyed Jabbar Mehdiyoun athlete 1982 wrestler, defecting during the 1982 World Wrestling Championships in Edmonton, Canada [16]
Mohammad Hossein Naghdi diplomat 1982 charge d'affaires at Iran's Embassy in Rome; assassinated in Rome in 1993 [17][18]
Javad Hussain military 1981 Iranian Air Force colonel [19]

References
  1. "The only woman to win an Olympic medal for Iran just defected". The Washington Post. January 12, 2020.
  2. https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/440022/Iranian-referee-Alireza-Faghani-plans-to-move-to-Australia
  3. "Judo world champion granted Mongolian citizenship after fleeing Iran". NBC Sports. 2 December 2019.
  4. "Another Iranian Athlete Refuses To Return Home; Applying For Asylum Iran". Radio Farda. 5 September 2019.
  5. "Iranian diplomats' defections signal fissures in Islamic Republic leaders over election unrest". AP. September 14, 2010.
  6. "How an Iranian's Spy Saga Ends, 6 Years Later: He's Executed". The New York Times. August 7, 2016.
  7. Sciolino, Elaine (2001). Persian Mirrors: The Elusive Face of Iran. Simon & Schuster. pp. 287–288. ISBN 0-7432-1779-9.
  8. "Iran Blew Up Jewish Center In Argentina, Defector Says". The New York Times. July 22, 2002.
  9. "Marzieh, Iranian Singer and Voice of Dissent, Dies at 86". The New York Times. October 16, 2010.
  10. "Iranian Weightlifters Missing, Reported Defected to Iraq". AP. October 3, 1986.
  11. "Former Pilot for Iran's Parliament Speaker Slain". AP. January 16, 1987.
  12. Iranian Air Pilot Defects. Associated Press. The Victoria Advocate 18 October 1982: 7A.
  13. "Iranian Aide Defects in Oslo". The New York Times. Reuters. October 8, 1982.
  14. "Reza Abedi's Greatest Escape". OC Weekly. May 12, 2011.
  15. "Iran Pilot Defects in Vienna". The New York Times. Reuters. October 18, 1982.
  16. "An Iranian wrestler who defected during the World Wrestling..." UPI. August 18, 1982.
  17. "Iranian official quits over Khomeini rule". UPI. April 19, 1982.
  18. "Iranian Is Killed in Rome By 2 Gunmen on a Scooter". The New York Times. March 17, 1993.
  19. "Turkey Weighs Asylum For Iran Air Force Defector". The New York Times. March 18, 1981.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.