FBI wants Iran’s ambassador in Pakistan arrested: Why and how this puts Islamabad in a tight spot

In a rare move, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has released a “seeking information” poster for three senior Iranian intelligence officers, including Reza Amiri Moghadam, who is currently Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan. The FBI believes they were involved in the 2007 abduction of retired FBI agent Robert A. “Bob” Levinson from Kish Island, Iran.

The posters, released on July 15, are part of the FBI’s continuing efforts to bring those responsible to justice. The US holds Iran responsible not just for Levinson’s disappearance but also for hiding the truth.

According to Firstpost, this is not the first time the US has named Moghadam. On March 25, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Moghadam and two other Iranian intelligence officials.

A statement from the department read: “Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), in coordination with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), is imposing sanctions on three Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) officials who were involved in the abduction, detention, and probable death of former FBI Special Agent Robert A ‘Bob’ Levinson.”

It continued: “Reza Amiri Moghadam, also known as Ahmad Amirinia, has been a head of MOIS’s operations unit, with MOIS agents in Europe at one point reporting to him in Tehran. Moghadam is the current Iranian ambassador to Pakistan. Moghadam has held a senior role in the Levinson case and has obfuscated the truth about Mr Levinson’s abduction.”

The FBI’s public poster campaign, showing Moghadam’s photo, has drawn more attention than the Treasury’s earlier action. The move is also diplomatically awkward, especially since Pakistan and the U.S. currently have no hostile relations, and such posters are rarely issued against diplomats in friendly countries.

Under US law, the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act (2020) and a 2023 presidential order give American authorities the power to continue pursuing Levinson’s case. Sanctions under this law freeze any assets of the named individuals within U.S. reach and restrict any financial dealings with them.

Despite being caught in the middle, Pakistan has responded cautiously. Its Foreign Ministry has not issued an official public statement but instead answered individual media queries.

In response to a question from Dawn.com, the Ministry spokesperson Shafqat Khan said: “As far as Pakistan is concerned, the ambassador of Iran is widely respected for his role in the promotion of Pakistan-Iran relations. He is entitled to all the privileges, immunities, and respect due to [being an] ambassador, and that too from a friendly neighbouring country.”

The same response was given to Arab News. However, no formal press release was published on the Ministry’s website, which sends a signal to both Iran and the U.S. Pakistan is trying to avoid upsetting either side.

Although Pakistan stood by Iran during the recent Iran-Israel tensions and criticised US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites, it now seems eager not to strain its relations with Washington.

As Firstpost reports, it’s likely that Pakistan will privately ask Iran to replace Moghadam in the coming months. The US “wanted” poster has made it hard for him to continue his duties normally in Islamabad.

Pakistan’s relationship with Iran has always been complicated. While it shares religious ties with Sunni Arab nations, it also has a large Shia population and doesn’t want to provoke tensions with Tehran. For instance, in January 2024, Iran bombed what it said were terrorist bases inside Pakistan. Pakistan responded with airstrikes of its own. But both sides quickly moved to ease tensions.

Robert Levinson had a long career in US law enforcement. He worked first for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and later for the FBI until 1998. After retiring, he worked as a private security consultant.

In March 2007, he travelled to Kish Island, an Iranian resort area with looser visa and security rules. He reportedly met Dawud Salahuddin, a US citizen who had converted to Islam and was accused of killing a critic of the Iranian regime in the US.

Levinson disappeared during this trip. The last known evidence of him alive was a photo received by his family in 2011. In 2020, his family announced he was likely dead.