Harold Saunders, Assistant Secretary of State for the Middle East, retired unexpectedly Friday. However, he will continue as a special consultant to the U.S. official group negotiating the release of the American hostages in Iran.
Saunders had not been expected to leave his post for several months, according to State Department sources, primarily, because the incoming Reagan Administration had not selected his successor. The sources said the retirement four days before the new Administration takes over permits Saunders to qualify for higher federal retirement benefits.
Saunders, 50, has 23 years of government service. He was with the Air Force, Central Intelligence Agency, and the White House before coming to the State Department when Henry Kissinger became Secretary of State in 1973.
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