U.S. sceptical that hostages will be freed next week

Press, 24 October 1980, Page 6

U.S. sceptical that hostages will be freed next week

NZRA-Reuter Teheran Iran has set a date for the; announcement of its conditions for releasing the American hostages, but a series of potential pitfalls could still delay their freedom. Hojatoleslam Moussavi Kho’ini, a member of the special commission drafting terms for the release of the 52 captives, said the body would probably report to Parliament on Sunday and the assembly would then de-; bate and vote on the issue. ’ If the . United States! accepted and put into effect! the conditions, the hostages could be released as early as; the next day, but there was| some scepticism in Teheran; about whether this was even! technically feasible. The promise that the; Majlis (Parliament) would; finally declare its stand on; the hostages held out the brightest hope so far for' their liberation after nearly; a year of captivity. In Washington, the United; States Government reacled cautiously. State Department officials adopted an attitude; of “watch what they do, not; what they say." But the hostage issue, might again be postponed.! as it has been several times

. before, because of other, pressing business before the; ;house, and when it is de-! bated some deputies might; “contest the commission’s! i terms. Once the Majlis has! ’ agreed the so-far unan-i nounced conditions it will be: up to the United States to; ’ say if it accepts them, and if; ’ it did so more complications ; could arise over how to put ’ them into effect. 5 Although the seven-man /commission has worked . in ! secret since it was set up •ithree weeks ago. its coni’elusions are expected to con-! .'form broadly with terms set j. out by Ayatollah Khomeiny ’ last month for the hostages- ]] release. i! The leader of Iran’s pow- ; erful Islamic Republican ;iParts- (Ayatollah Mohammad H Beheshti), said yesterday 11 that Parliament’s terms >'might-differ in detail from “Ayatollah Khomeiny’s, but rhe declined to elaborate. Diplomatic sources said 1; there could be a psy--1 chological problem of Ira-; t;nian lack of confidence in] ;! American promises to t! honour terms, compounded by difficulties Washington t, might have in speaking fori ,iprivate interests involved in,; (for instance, legal claims. 1

•; "1 find it impossible to (deal with these statements. ;We cannot read the tea ; i leaves from this distance. ■iWhat is said in Teheran does not affect us until’ J there is a decision on the: ’!hostages,” an American offi-i Jcial said in Washington. > j Another official cited the' h multiplicity of conflicting; .’voices in Teheran, which he I Jisaid reflected the continuing' 'struggle for power. Whatever was being said I I ‘in Teheran, officials point'iedly noted, the Parlia- ' mentary debate on the hos-l ’’tages had been, postponed’ ■'once again, from Wednesday’ t-ior yesterday, but it had now! I been put off to Sunday. A State Department spokesman, John Trattner, ■ deliberately tried to dampen i expectations. “I think optimism is the wrong word to use,” he told ■ a questioner. “I think optim--1 ism arises from pleasant or favourable facts, which at the moment at least are not ! in view. Our attitude is as ■'realistic as one can be.” •I Mr Trattner again called t'for direct talks with Iran to ; I work out terms of a deal. I| “I think that’s something ifor the two of us eventually •ito decide among ourselves,; J not '-ou and me, but us and 'lran.” I