A return to “The Good Spy”: Mustafa Zein responds
▻http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/return-good-spy%E2%80%9D-mustafa-zein-responds
I was able to track down Mustafa Zein, who is a major character in Kai Bird’s “The Good Spy” and was a major source on the relationship between CIA’s Bob Ames and PLO’s Ali - Abu Hassan - Salameh (he was close to both and introduced them to one another). I introduced myself to Zein in the email two weeks ago as someone from the Lebanese city of Tyre (he also is from Tyre) and assumed that he must have known my father as he grew up in the city (it turned out that he knew of my father although Zein left Tyre to study in Saida at age 10). I asked him if I can interview him by phone but he declined on security grounds, but said that he would be willing to answer my written questions. I sent him a dozen questions but he answered only some of them. We went back and forth until he said politely (...)