Mehdi Khazali:
In 1986 - 1995 he was an intelligence operative working directly with two Presidents, Mr Khamenie, current Supreme Leader and then Mr. Rafsanjani. In 1993, he went into publishing business to cover his intelligence work and he still carries on publishing and holding on couple of other businesses.
In 1988 - 1990 Iranian intelligence operatives were responsible in series of murders (known as the "chain murders") and disappearances of Iranian dissident authors, intellectuals, free thinkers who had been critical of the Islamic Republic system. Later, government accused, Mr. Saeed Eslami of of having independently organized the assassinations of dissidents shortly after he allegedly committing suicide. Saeed Eslami was the Iranian deputy minister of intelligence and Mr. Khazali worked very closely with him and his group but we don't exactly know to what extent.
In 1996 Iran's IRIB Channel 1 broadcast a biweekly TV show called "Identity". The show's objective was said to be "confrontation with western cultural invasion." The series targeted a broad range of Iranian intellectuals, archaeologists, artists, scientists and so on. The show was an "ideological campaign" by the Ministry of Intelligence to "to paint Iranian intellectuals and artists as unpatriotic, un-Islamic, a threat to Iran's national and religious identity," and which included the "chain murders" of Iranian intellectuals that also occurred during the 1990s. The show was specialized in naming intellectuals as `hired agents` of the Bahais, Zionists, Freemasons," and foreign powers.
Mr Khazali transcribed this TV show, published it and he, himself, wrote an introducion to the book, warned intellectuals that "Islam won't let them get away with what they say about Islam". In some extra chapter that he decided to add to the book, he mentioned list of authors and intellectuals who are perverted so they are dangerous to the society.
Mr. Khazali never stopped targeting authors and free thinkers. Even recently when an Iranian atheist, Mr. Shojaedlin Shafa died (on April 2010) Mr Khazali wrote on his blog that "he was the fountain of corruption, perverseness, antagonism and heresy!"
In his weblog he says: "I am bounded to the Islamic republic establishment and to the constitution, to defend Islamic revolution and "guardianship of the jurisconsult (clerical authority)" so some don't deviate and turn it to the monarchy".
