In September 2023, Bergman of the Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations, and Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, began seeking answers from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Ariane Tabatabai’s employment with the Department of Defense and her relationship with the Iranian regime. The letter discusses concerning reports that cite a close relationship between Ariane Tabatabai, the Chief of Staff for the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict, and the Iranian regime.
A large cache of Iranian government correspondence and emails connected Ariane with the Iran Experts Initiative, an effort initiated by senior Iranian Foreign Ministry officials to bolster Tehran's image and positions on global security issues, particularly its nuclear program. She regularly met with high ranking Iranian officials and often asked for their guidance in shaping U.S. foreign policy toward Iran. These meetings even included vows of allegiance to the Iranian government.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariane_Tabatabai
Now, in this month of October, Bergman is demanding answers about another individual, Yousra Fazili, who worked for the Islamic terror state of Qatar and now works at the Pentagon. In 2022, she became the Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs at the U.S. Department of Defense.
Bergman first probed allegiances in an Aug. 17 letter to the Pentagon. The response from Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs Rheanne Wirkkala did not address his concerns, Bergman wrote in the letter.
Fazili was director of strategic partnerships at the Qatari embassy for three years before joining the Pentagon, Politico reported, citing Fazili’s LinkedIn page. The page appears to have been taken down since. She “travelled with and advised the Ambassador on strategic philanthropic giving across the U.S. and Caribbean,” the page reportedly stated.
https://freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/4190229/posts?page=1
https://dailycaller.com/2023/10/17/biden-pentagon-qatar-bergman/
Regarding Tabatahai: Supposedly, her emails did not demonstrate or suggest that she became an agent of Tehran, but they did show that she and others responded to Tehran’s flattering and pleasing statements and sought its approval.
The Pentagon ruled that Tabatabai was “thoroughly and properly vetted” for her current job but refuses to say whether her emails were accurately and fairly quoted.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/09/tehran-times-classified-documents-leak-investigation-robert-malley/675480/
Regarding Fazili: Bergman probed her vetting. The response from Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs, Rheanne Wirkkala, did not address his concerns. Fazili had close relations with the Qatari ambassador during the same period when he targeted Americans “in an effort to silence Qatar’s critics,” stated Bergman. Wirkkala provided a brief response, saying the Pentagon vetted Fazili “in accordance with all appropriate laws and policies."
https://dailycaller.com/2023/10/17/biden-pentagon-qatar-bergman/
Constructive criticism, Fren: If you do a little bit of digging on "TheAtlantic", I think you'll find they are in the A-list of leftist propaganda. Using them as a reference for any point generally goes against what you're trying to verify.
Agree.
The claims that there WAS proper vetting is total BS.