Historical Organization
Israel
Israel
Details
Organization Timeline
Fischer answers questions about Israel-Iran arms routes
📅 28 July 1981Dean Fischer said Washington was unaware of Israeli shipments to Iran. He restated restrictions on U.S.-built arms after reports linked an Argentine cargo-plane crash to military supplies.
ABC documents report Israeli supplies to Iran
📅 21 August 1981UPI relayed an ABC investigation into Israeli military supplies reaching Iran during the hostage crisis. The reporting described spare-parts transactions that predated the later Iran-Contra channel.
UPI reports continued Israeli arms air bridge
📅 28 March 1982UPI cited Western diplomats describing continued Israeli arms shipments to Tehran after the 1981 cargo-plane crash. The report illustrated Iran’s search for supplies across hostile political...
Sharon publicly defends arms sales to Iran
📅 29 May 1982In a broadcast interview, Ariel Sharon defended Israeli arms sales to Iran and rejected U.S. criticism. His remarks made the wartime supply relationship a matter of public ministerial debate.
U.S. officials circulate a proposed opening to Iran
📅 17 June 1985McFarlane circulated a draft policy recommending trade and selected military equipment for Iran. Shultz and Weinberger opposed it; the proposal exposed divisions in Washington over relations with...
Kimche proposes a U.S.–Iran dialogue
📅 3 July 1985David Kimche discussed renewed contact with Iran with Robert McFarlane. The proposed channel linked Iranian help with American hostages in Lebanon to reciprocal U.S. gestures, potentially including...
Israeli intermediary raises arms sales to Iran
📅 2 August 1985Kimche asked McFarlane whether Washington would permit Israeli sales of U.S.-made weapons to Iran and replenish Israel’s stocks. The talks helped turn a proposed political opening into an arms...
Iran receives an initial covert TOW shipment
📅 20 August 1985Israel delivered 96 U.S.-made TOW anti-tank missiles to Iran through intermediaries. No American hostage was freed after this initial shipment, showing the uncertain results of the secret arrangement.
Iran receives a second Israeli TOW delivery
📅 14 September 1985An Israeli-chartered aircraft delivered 408 TOW missiles to Iran. The covert supply channel offered Tehran U.S.-origin equipment while the war with Iraq continued.
Benjamin Weir is released after the TOW delivery
📅 15 September 1985American hostage Benjamin Weir was released in Beirut one day after Iran received a further TOW shipment. His release became a central result of the emerging arms-for-hostages channel.
Ghorbanifar requests additional missile types
📅 8 October 1985Ghorbanifar met U.S. and Israeli contacts in Washington and sought HAWK, Sidewinder, Harpoon and Phoenix missiles. The meeting records Iran-related procurement requests, not delivery of every weapon...
Contested HAWK shipment reaches Tehran
📅 24 November 1985A CIA-linked aircraft delivered 18 HAWK missiles to Iran. The missiles differed from what Iranian contacts expected and carried Israeli markings; no hostages were freed following the delivery.
Reagan’s advisers debate continuing the arms channel
📅 7 December 1985Reagan met senior advisers about further arms sales to Iran. Shultz and Weinberger objected on legal and policy grounds, while the initiative remained under consideration.
Nir proposes a new arms and hostage sequence
📅 2 January 1986Amiram Nir presented a plan involving an initial Israeli shipment of 500 TOW missiles to Iran and hoped-for hostage releases. The proposal sought to restart the channel after the troubled HAWK...
Reagan signs a revised Iran arms finding
📅 17 January 1986Reagan signed a revised intelligence finding authorizing third parties to transfer weapons to Iran. The decision underpinned the direct U.S. arms transactions that followed in 1986.
First 1986 TOW shipment reaches Iran
📅 18 February 1986Iran received 500 TOW missiles in a U.S.-organized transaction routed through Israel. The return flight carried 17 HAWK missiles rejected from the November 1985 shipment.
Iranian and U.S. contacts meet in Frankfurt
📅 25 February 1986Mohsen Kangarlu emphasized Iran’s weapons needs while Oliver North pressed for hostage releases. Their Frankfurt meeting exposed different priorities and ended without a significant agreement.
Iran receives another 500 TOW missiles
📅 27 February 1986A further 500 TOW missiles were delivered to Iran. Despite the combined February deliveries, no hostages were released immediately afterward, underscoring the channel’s uncertain bargaining results.
Paris talks address weapons and intelligence on Iraq
📅 7 March 1986Kangarlu met North and other contacts in Paris. Iranian requests centered on weapons and intelligence about Iraq, while U.S. participants sought hostages’ release and a broader political dialogue.
McFarlane’s delegation arrives secretly in Tehran
📅 25 May 1986McFarlane, North and other U.S. delegates arrived in Tehran with HAWK spare parts. Negotiations sought hostage releases and further contacts, while Iranian interlocutors demanded the remaining parts...
U.S. delegation leaves Tehran without the expected releases
📅 28 May 1986McFarlane’s party departed Tehran after inconclusive negotiations. Iranian interlocutors had not arranged the immediate release of all American hostages promised by intermediary Ghorbanifar.
Jenco’s release prompts renewed supply discussions
📅 24 July 1986American hostage Lawrence Jenco was released in Lebanon. His release was followed by negotiations over sending Iran HAWK spare parts withheld after the unsuccessful Tehran mission.
Delivery of withheld HAWK parts begins
📅 3 August 1986The remaining HAWK spare parts were delivered to Iran on 3–4 August after Reagan approved the transfer. The supplies followed renewed bargaining after Jenco’s release.
Second-channel Iranian contact meets U.S. officials
📅 19 September 1986A contact described in the Walsh report as Rafsanjani’s nephew began meetings in Washington. The 19–20 September talks developed another sequence of arms deliveries and hostage releases.
Second-channel negotiations open in Frankfurt
📅 6 October 1986U.S. participants and the second Iranian channel met in Frankfurt on 6–8 October. Negotiations continued over linked arms deliveries and hostage releases as the first channel lost its role.
Iran receives a final covert TOW shipment
📅 28 October 1986Five hundred U.S.-made TOW missiles held in Israel were delivered to Iran through the second channel. Public exposure of the secret initiative followed within days.