ROANOKE TIMES 

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, April 11, 1991                   TAG: 9104110177
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: BEIRUT, LEBANON                                LENGTH: Short

U.S. USING HOSTAGES, IRANIAN OFFICIAL SAYS

The commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards in Lebanon said in a newspaper interview that the United States is manipulating the plight of Western hostages for political gains.

"Iran has a desire to help gain the release of the Western hostages as well as Palestinian and Lebanese prisoners held by Israel," Hadi Riza Askari told the leftist Beirut newspaper As-Safir.

"But the United States refuses to enter into this issue through a humanitarian window. It wants only to manipulate political interests from this issue," Askari said.

- Associated Press 


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