[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Page 3654]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      BOB LEVINSON'S DISAPPEARANCE

 Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, 4 years ago yesterday, a 
man who had spent more than 28 years serving the United States of 
America disappeared from Kish Island in the Persian Gulf. His name is 
Bob Levinson, and he is a dedicated husband and father, a retired FBI 
agent, and one of my constituents.
  Today Bob Levinson remains missing, and we must bring him home.
  On March 8, 2007, Bob traveled to Kish, an Iranian free trade zone, 
on a business trip. From what we know, he checked into his hotel, 
checked out on March 9, got into a taxi, and then disappeared.
  In the 4 years since then, I have worked closely with the State 
Department and the Swiss government to lodge a number of requests for 
information with the Iranian government. Bob's wife Christine has 
traveled to Iran and visited Kish on a fact-finding mission. She and 
her children have remained steadfast and determined in their mission to 
bring Bob home.
  Just last week, Secretary Clinton offered a glimmer of hope: we now 
have recent indications that Bob is alive and being held somewhere in 
Southwest Asia. Secretary Clinton also asked the Government of Iran to 
undertake humanitarian efforts to return him home safely.
  Today, on the fourth anniversary of Bob's disappearance, I join 
Secretary Clinton's call for the Government of Iran to do all it can to 
reunite Bob Levinson with his family. The Iranians have long offered 
their assistance, and now it's time for them to make good on that 
commitment.
  Christine Levinson and her children have waited 4 long years for Bob 
to come home. It is time to grant their wish.

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