When he left Iran for France in 1977, Matthieu Ghadiri intended to study engineering. But fate decided otherwise. In a few years of meetings and activism, the man who knew nothing about France became a double agent for the counter-espionage services of his adopted country. He tells his extraordinary story in Our Iranian agent: from student to spy for the DST, the astonishing destiny of a Franco-Iranian copto be published this Wednesday, November 6 by Editions du Nouveau Monde. Personal sacrifices, Iran, espionage, he confides. Interview.
RFI: Why publish this book today, in November 2024?
Matthew Ghadiri: There are several reasons. The first is that I want to say thank you to France. Thank you for welcoming a 16 year old teenager, for giving him the opportunity to build his life. I owe everything to France, and it owes me nothing. I would also like to address foreigners who arrive in France, more particularly young people. I want to tell them that if they take one step towards France, then it will take two steps towards them. It is up to them to assimilate, learn the language, the culture and respect the laws of the Republic. From there, they will have the key to succeed in this magnificent country.
What are the qualities of a double agent?
I would say it takes 90% conviction and 10% innateness. I have this sense of adaptation which allows me to play different roles. Depending on the missions, I had to pass myself off as a Lebanese, a Turk, a Kurd, a Spaniard, a Moroccan…
In the book, you say you have a preference for upstream work over field missions.
Quite. I loved taking charge of interrogations, research, telephone tapping. In fact, my weapon has more often been the fountain pen than the revolver.
Precisely, you systematically refused to be armed during operations…
Yes. I don’t like guns. And then, I knew that my colleagues were there, on cover, and that if there was the slightest problem, they would intervene.
Why did you continue to go into the field for so long if the part you preferred was the upstream part?
I went out into the field whenever I was asked. It often happened that we needed a Turkish or Iranian speaking agent, capable of passing himself off as an Italian or an Albanian. From the moment I put on the undercover agent’s hat, I forgot the rest. And then I was helped by the excitement, the adrenaline.
You do not hesitate to mix the story of your personal life with that of your professional experiences. You have married or entered into a civil partnership four times. Is the price to pay for doing a job like this to give up part of your family life?
In fact, I mostly think I haven’t been very good at handling both. I know colleagues who have achieved this. If I had to do it again, I think I would let my companions know more about my job. Often, I invented excuses to go on a mission.
You have regularly had to lie – at least by omission – to those close to you.
Yes… but to protect them! Since my wife didn’t know what I was doing, no one could put pressure on her.
You also talk about your activism in the Socialist Party. This is also one of the reasons why the Iraqi and then Iranian intelligence services spotted you. Why such interest on their part in the PS?
For some time, the Iranians have sought to have agents of influence in Europe and the United States. I think there are two categories. The first is useful idiots. The other is those who consciously agree to defend the interests of the regime.
What is the message that the Iranian government seeks to convey?
They want to make people believe that in the event of the fall of the regime in place, Iran would be invaded by Daesh, al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups, as happened in Iraq or in Syria. Their goal in doing this is to convince other states that it is in their interest to help Iran. This is above all the message of the reformers who constitute one of the two currents within the Iranian government. They are very active abroad. In the United States, they create associations and foundations to recruit intellectuals, researchers, etc.
I take an example. Two years ago, a major protest movement engulfed Iran following the assassination of Mahsa Amini. Some have started to claim that it would be enough to establish some individual freedoms, to remove the obligation to wear the hijab. But no ! What the Iranians wanted was a new, secular regime! The people who relayed this type of speech often called for getting closer to the reformers.
Is this book also the story of a progressive distance from Iran?
I have as much love for France as for Iran. When I think of this country, I think of Iran in the 1960s and 1970s where I had a wonderful youth. I know that one day I will return to the Iran of my childhood. This is why I dedicate this book to all Iranians who are fighting against the regime in place. Especially these young Iranian women who are fighting for change.
We had another example of these protests this week: on Monday, a young girl wandered around in her underwear on a campus of a university in Tehran after forces affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards reproached her for her manner. to wear the veil.
Absolutely. On this subject I want to say something important. I was talking about useful idiots earlier. I saw a drawing in a daily newspaper, which represents this young woman with just her bra, without panties. And they changed the motto “Woman, life, freedom” by replacing the last word with “nudity”.
We must not forget that for more than two years, the mullahs in Iran have been saying that the protest movement is organized and managed by prostitutes. The press and media of the Islamic Republic published this cartoon saying: “ You see, even in France, they know that they seek nudity, that they are prostitutes. »
You say in the book that, even on operations, you almost never took off your suit and tie. For what ?
Because I always saw my father in a suit and tie, three pieces. So, I dress like that. This has been my style since I was 20.
And today, you have completely hung up?
Yes. Today, I am a happy grandpa. It’s over for good.
► Our Iranian agent: from student to spy for the DST, the astonishing destiny of a Franco-Iranian coppublished by Nouveau Monde, 256 pages, 19.90 euros.