Italian Journalist’s Arrest and Iranian Technology Allegations: A Case of Connected Cases?

0
491

Abedini’s case, however, involves significant international dimensions. He was detained at the request of the U.S. following a federal court indictment for conspiring to procure sensitive American technology for Iran’s military.

Attorney General Merrick Garland highlighted the seriousness of the charges. 

“Today, the Justice Department has charged, and our foreign partners have taken into custody, Mohammad Abedini, who we allege supplied sensitive technology used by the Iranian military to kill three American servicemembers in Jordan earlier this year.”

The Allegations Against Abedini

Abedini, 38, is the founder and managing director of San’at Danesh Rahpooyan Aflak Co. (SDRA), an Iranian company specializing in navigation modules used in military drone programs.

The United States designated the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), SDRA’s primary client, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in 2019.

 The navigation systems developed by SDRA are reportedly used in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles.