Jun 24, 2001 the iran contra affair has been characterized by u. Behind the iran contra affair a tangled tale of politics, drugs, hostages, weapons, assassinations, covert operations and the ultimate plan to suspend the constitution of the united states. Reagan makes his address to the nation on the investigation of the iran arms and contra aid controversy. On october 31, 1996, the washington post ran a follow up story to the san jose mercury news series titled cia, contras and drugs. Government operations were publicly exposed, potentially implicating reagan administration officials in illegal activities. Reagans role will be looked at while aiding the nicaraguan contras, releasing american hostages, both which led to the irancontra affair, and during the cover up, in america and partly in iran. Behind the irancontra affair 1988 cast and crew examines reagans alleged deal with iran that delayed the release of american hostages until after his inauguration. What we saw in the irancontra hearings, was the exposure of the beginnings of a national security state which believes it has the right to override the constitution of the united states in the name of security. In 1987, amid the iran contra inquiry, investigators found that the scandal fit within a larger republican scheme for manipulating. The united states was the largest seller of arms to iran under mohammad reza pahlavi, and the. Lawrence walshs contribution to history march 26, 2014 irancontra at 25. In 1987, amid the irancontra inquiry, investigators found that the scandal fit within. From the phoenix program, secret teams, ncs and more there were many illegal and horrible things that happened inclucing the mystery death of my associate jerry hog daniels, whom. The tower commission finds that the president had not been told enough about the affair to cover it up michael white in washington thu 27 feb 2014 02.
Attorney general edwin meese iii requests that an independent counsel be appointed to investigate the iran contra affairs. The irancontra affair 20 years on the national security archive. In 1972, a bungled breakin at the headquarters of the democratic national committee led to a cover up by the white house, which became the. The film reveals a shadow government of former cia operatives, drug smugglers, top us military personnel and others, revealing evidence of. But if fiers is correct, topranking cia officials not only knew about the operation and did nothing to stop it. Reagan appoints a commission, led by former senator john town rtx, to investigate the irancontra affairs dec. Cover up behind the irancontra affair is a thorough investigation into information suppressed during the irancontra hearings in 1987 where it was found that senior officials in the united states government secretly facilitated the sale of arms to iran. A a sworn enemy a in hopes of securing the release of american hostages held in lebanon by hezbollah terrorists loyal to the ayatollah khomeini, irans leader. Mark leighton bettmann corbis david kimche, the director general of israels foreign ministry, meets secretly with national security adviser robert mcfarlane to advise him that israel may be able to use its influence with iran see 1981 to engineer the release of american hostages currently held by hezbollah. Reagans presidency, came into the open in the fall of 1986 with the disclosure of two intertwined secret operations. The iran contra scandal, as this video illustrates in the beginning, is probably one of the most ignored events of the 1980s.
Iran contra affair larry gilman in october and november of 1986, it was discovered that for several years, agents of the united states government had been running an illegal operation to sell weapons to iran and funnel the profits to the contras, a military organization dedicated to overthrowing the leftist government of nicaragua. The irancontra affair was a clandestine action not approved of by the united states congress. The 1988 film is updated with information from recent court cases and events. In 1984, the boland amendment passed, which said that the cia and department of defense could not give militaristic aid specifically in nicaragua. Bush pardons 6 in iran affair, aborting a weinberger trial.
Not simply an important public accounting of an egregiously misconceived policy, but a cautionary tale of power. Institutionally, congress tur congressmen timidly pursued t tigations even when it became c to coverup. Caso irancontra, popularized in iran as the mcfarlane affair, the irancontra scandal, or simply irancontra, was a political scandal in the united states that occurred during the second term of the reagan administration. Through the eighties, iraq attempted to sue iran for peace, but it wasnt until 1988 that iran accepted a ceasefire, and in 1990 final terms to end the war were agreed upon. The committees formally concluded business at the end of february 1988. August richard norton, boston globe we would never have known the truth about irancontra without the tenacious sevenyear struggle by the independent counsel in the affair, lawrence walsh, to get to the bottom of itof firstrate historical importance.
The irancontra affair involved a secret foreign policy operation directed by white house officials in the national security council nsc under president ronald reagan. The first two came from israel, with the promise that the u. Jun 07, 2014 in all, there were eight arms shipments to iran from aug. The iran contra affair involved a secret foreign policy operation directed by white house officials in the national security council nsc under president ronald reagan. In 1972, a bungled breakin at the headquarters of the democratic national committee led to a coverup by the white house, which became the. President ronald reagan shortly after the irancontra scandal engulfed his administration in november 1986. Behind the iran contra affair or read the iran contra connection.
Nov 12, 2017 watergate sits at the apex of all presidential scandals. This documentary video looks inside the irancontra affair. It is the only film that puts the entire iran contra affair into a meaningful political and historical context. Coverup was released in theaters in 80 cities across the united states in 198889. In all, there were eight arms shipments to iran from aug. Behind the iran contra affair 1988 what you saw in the iran contra hearings was the exposure of the beginnings of a national security state which believes it has the right to override the constitution of the united states in the name of national security. Reproduces on microfiche over 20,000 pages of documentation, much of it highlyclassified, pertaining to the iran contra affair,1983 1988. Cover up behind the irancontra affair is a thorough investigation into information suppressed during the iran contra hearings in 1987 where it was found that senior officials in the united states government secretly facilitated the sale of arms to iran. Walsh on march 19, at age 102, is an appropriate occasion to recall some of the extraordinary outcomes of his investigation into the most significant political scandal of the 1980s the irancontra affair stirred up profound political passions. The iran contra affair, also referred to as irangate, contragate or the iran contra scandal, was a political scandal in the united states that came to light in november 1986. Covered are the allegations of secret governments, drugs, cia involvement, assassinations and even a plan to suspend the constitution. Washington, dc, march 26, 2014 the passing away of irancontra independent counsel lawrence e. President ronald reagan makes his address to the nation on the iran arms and contra aid controversy nov. This documentary video looks inside the iran contra affair.
The irancontra affair, the latest in a line of disturhing american foreign. Reagan and bush criminal liability evaluations november 25, 2011 the irancontra affair. Behind the iran contra affair is the third featurelength documentary. Senior administration officials secretly facilitated the sale of arms to the. I have approximately 12 of these films only three people ever seen them.
President reagan and national security adviser robert mcfarlane. How iran and contra came to be said in the same breath was the result of complicated covert activities, all carried out, the players said, in the name of democracy. Behind the iran contra affair is the third featurelength documentary produced by the empowerment project. Behind the irancontra affair 1988 examines reagans alleged deal with iran that delayed the release of american hostages until after his inauguration. Irancontra affair legal definition of irancontra affair. Covered are the allegations of secret governments, drugs, cia involvement, assassinations and. Professionally, she lent her voice as narrator to two political documentaries critical of us foreign policy, cover up. The irancontra scandal, as this video illustrates in the beginning, is probably one of the most ignored events of the 1980s. The irancontra affair popularized in iran as the mcfarlane affair, the iran contra scandal.
Mar 27, 2014 the iran contra affair, also referred to as irangate, contragate or the iran contra scandal, was a political scandal in the united states that came to light in november 1986. This documentary of the iran contra affair consolidates the evidence and conspiracy theories of the incident after the week congressional hearings proved inadequate, acting merely as damage control and failing to show any sincere effort to get to the real truth of the matter. The irancontra affair american experience official. An investigation account and american history are mostly used to evaluate reagans role. Irancontra focuses on the period from fall 1983, when congress first put limits on official u. Irancontra affair larry gilman in october and november of 1986, it was discovered that for several years, agents of the united states government had been running an illegal operation to sell weapons to iran and funnel the profits to the contras, a military organization dedicated to overthrowing the leftist government of nicaragua. Irancontra summary executive summary in october and november 1986, two secret u. The iran contra affair was a political scandal in the united states which came to light in november 1986, during the reagan administration, in which senior us figures agreed to facilitate the sale. Iran and israel the extent of iranianisraeli cooperation that came about as a result of the irancontra affair has been seen by some as even more surprising than the u.
Caso iran contra, popularized in iran as the mcfarlane affair, the iran contra scandal, or simply iran contra, was a political scandal in the united states that occurred during the second term of the reagan administration. Understanding the irancontra affairs the irancontra. Twenty years later, the irancontra affair continues to resonate on many levels, especially as washington gears up for a new season of political inquiry with the pending inauguration of the 110th congress and the seeming inevitability of hearings into a range of bush administration policies. Secret teams and covert operations in the reagan era by peter dale scott and judge for yourself.
These plans were apparently aborted when the irancontra scandal broke in november 1986. These operations were the provision of assistance to the military activities of the. North, oliver oliver north testifying at the iran contra. Jan 11, 2017 the lasting effects of irancontra are primarily these, and they are related to our national reputation. It was the subject of 200 local radio shows and 150. Feb 27, 2014 the tower commission finds that the president had not been told enough about the affair to cover it up michael white in washington thu 27 feb 2014 02. Watergate sits at the apex of all presidential scandals. Jose bueso rosa reagan administration officials interceded on behalf of jose bueso rosa, a honduran general who was heavily involved with the cias contra operations and faced trial for his role in a massive drug shipment to the united states.
The irancontra coverup marked the restoration of a cold war status quo in which crimes, both domestic and international, could be committed by the executive while the. The irancontra affair, also referred to as irangate, contragate or the irancontra scandal, was a political scandal in the united states that came to light in november 1986. Irancontra was one of the many clandestine operations under the guise of s. The irancontra affair the irancontra affair was an underground operation within the cia that was interwoven between two foreign policy issues that were unlikely to connect had the players in the ordeal not utilized one to benefit the other. Because the reagan campaign was willing to trade arms for hostages and even bargain to have the iranians hold the hostages until reagans inau.
The film reveals a shadow government of former cia operatives, drug smugglers, top us military personnel and others. That clash continues under the presidency of george w. Iran contra affair 1983 1988 the iran contra affair began as an internal u. Behind the iran contra affair is the third featurelength. The film takes an obvious conspiracy theory approach, which, although sometimes entertaining, sometime relies too much on documents and information that arent actually seen. The reagan administration was found doing what during the iran contra affair. Apr 06, 2020 iran contra focuses on the period from fall 1983, when congress first put limits on official u. The lasting effects of irancontra are primarily these, and they are related to our national reputation. North, oliver oliver north testifying at the irancontra. With elizabeth montgomery, jack brooks, barbara honegger, david macmichael. It began in 1985, when president ronald reagans administration supplied weapons to irana.
Mcfarlane sought reagans approval, in spite of the embargo against selling arms to iran. Cover up behind the iran contra affair trailer youtube. Apdennis cook the irancontra scandal, 25 years later. The story drew on court testimony in 1990 of fabio ernesto carrasco, a pilot for a major columbian drug smuggler named george morales. In 1985, while iran and iraq were at war, iran made a secret request to buy weapons from the united states. In an angry statement, the irancontra independent counsel. Reagan announces that profits from arms sales with iran were diverted to support the contras nov. Despite the damage to his image, the president arguably got off easy, escaping the ultimate political sanction of impeachment. This documentary was covered up, unreported by mainstream media. Many of these acquisitions are derived from the official bodiesinvestigating the irancontra affair, including the senate intelligence committee, the. Special activities division under the command and control of the cias ncs. Congress or violated the stated public policy of the government. The iran contra cover up marked the restoration of a cold war status quo in which crimes, both domestic and international, could be committed by the executive while the congress and the press.