From Many Strands, a Tangled Web

Special envoys traveling to a hostile nation under false credentials. Ferocious power struggles among Islamic zealots in a country torn asunder by revolution and war. Private arms dealers earning millions in commissions. Mysterious air drops to Central American guerrillas. Secret bank accounts. Hostages.

These are just some of the strands that have been woven together in a bizarre tapestry of intrigue that stretches across two continents and several years. As each day brings fresh revelations about the scheme to skim profits from secret U.S. arms sales to Iran and channel them to the contras in Central America, the tale assumes the...