Page 129 – Nejat Society

Iran Interlink Weekly Digest – 286

++ For the past two weeks, the MEK’s Farsi sites have all been directed at the election in Iran. The aim of the messaging is to bring the number of voters down. To that end there is nothing they will not do or say; lies, misinformation, exaggeration, fake news. Over the past few days the MEK has begun threatening and cursing people who might vote, especially Iranians living outside the country. The message is that we are watching the embassies and if we see you there to vote, we will get retribution. Many commentators point out that this behaviour is what MEK have always done – intimidation and violence. They pretend to be democratic but have operated for decades with an unelected leader and a so-called president-elect. What is clear is that as a mercenary force, MEK are paid to do this.

++ The second aim in the last two weeks has been to stop people criticising MEK. This has been directed at the members’ families and ex-members – a campaign of cursing and now threatening violence against ex-members to stop them talking. Former MEK member Ghorban Ali Hussein Nejad wrote a note on Facebook saying ‘MEK, you don’t make sense. It is now over one and a half years that I have given up talking about you. But still you have been plotting against me, trying to ruin my life. That shows that what you say is not true. Even when I stop talking, you don’t stop targeting me.’ Other commentators point to the irony of western governments who, even after years of MEK killing members and former members, still don’t take the threat seriously. What is the difference then between Europe and Saddam’s Iraq, they ask. Maybe they are following the same line: if you leave MEK it is safer for you to live in Iran than in the EU or North America.

++ As part of its election broadcasting, Iran TV had a programme about people who have registered for candidacy with the knowledge they will not be ratified. These are people who don’t accept the constitution – they want regime change – but register as a candidate. The programme pointed out that the very constitution they reject bars them from candidacy and there is an element of duplicity and deceit in their registration. As an example, the programme said the first person to do this was Massoud Rajavi who didn’t accept the post-Revolution constitution but wanted to be the president. Ayatollah Khomeini was quoted, who described Rajavi’s act as deceptive. Rajavi was, of course, rejected. In the same way, the current wannabe candidates are also being deceptive. Ironically, the MEK are delighted that the Iranian media has broadcast something about Massoud Rajavi. The Iran Efshahgar ‘attack site’ has happily mentioned this programme simply because it mentions Rajavi.

++ Everyone has commented on the situation of the Palestinians and Israel, saying ‘if there was any doubt that MEK was working for Israel there is no doubt now. MEK have remained silent, waiting for instruction what to say. They can’t even say anything for internal purposes because they have members who are not against Palestinians – remember the MEK trained with the PLO before the Revolution – but because the MEK get money from Israel they can’t say anything.

In English:

++ Nejat Society reported from Albania where former MEK members have benefitted from the vaccine programme. They enjoy the same healthcare as Albanian citizens. Two vaccine recipients denounced the MEK leaders who “do not want to see them happy and healthy”. Gjergjy Thanasi, an Albanian Christian, had handed out red-dyed Easter eggs – symbolic of Christ’s blood and a reminder of the days when communism snuffed out religious freedom in that country. The former members are also now free from the dictates of the Rajavi cult and live “inspired by their own free will and their own decisions… They are not forced to confess any of their thoughts and deeds to the commanders anymore.”

++ Anne Khodabandeh looked at the developments in the Vienna talks and wondered whether the US, in spite of saying Iran is not serious, is itself not serious about re-joining the JCPOA. The path is clear: the US must credibly lift sanctions and Iran will scale back its nuclear enrichment to agreed levels. But the US position, according to Khodabandeh, has been complicated by the inexplicable tolerance of the MEK and the Israeli sabotage and provocation activities. Khodabandeh concludes that although the US cannot control Israeli behaviour, it is possible to dismantle the MEK in Albania as had been agreed in 2016 as a goodwill gesture to Iran.

++ Nejat Bloggers published a short piece exposing the hypocrisy of the MEK leaders who have enjoyed luxuries and comfort over the years while the ordinary members have suffered hardship and deprivation. According to one former member, at one time “under the pretext of financial problems, [MEK leaders] forced the members to grow a plant called “Mallow” in the Camp Ashraf in order to provide at least one meal per day.”

++ Iran’s Mehr News reported on the MEK picket in Vienna. The MEK protestors threatened and insulted Iran’s delegation “while intensive negotiations continue between Iran and P4+1 to reach an agreement on the full revival of JCPOA and the lifting of oppressive sanctions against the Islamic Republic”. The report said the MEK’s demand is to halt the nuclear talks and cancel the JCPOA completely. They are “quite noticeably being coordinated by the elements affiliated with the Iran International TV… One of them even clashed with police”.

May 14, 2021

May 16, 2021 0 comments

Eid al-Fitr for MEK defectors in Albania

Former members of the MEK

Eid al-Fitr for MEK defectors vs MEK hostages

“Eid al-Fitr”, Feast of Breaking the Fast’, is a religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide. It marks the end of the month-long dawn-to-sunset fasting of Ramadan. Many Muslims dress in fine clothing and children receive gifts on Eid al-Fitr. Millions of Muslim believers gather to pray for Eid al-Fitr and they celebrate the Eid with friends and families, having parties and picnics.

Albanian Muslims also celebrated the Eid on May 13, 2021, as every year. Albania’s population of 2.8 million is predominantly Muslim, with smaller Orthodox and Catholic communities which get along well with each other. Defectors of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization (the MKO/ MEK/ PMOI/ Cult of Rajavi) in Albania gathered together, having fun on side of a lack in Tirana.

Nevertheless, such a normal gathering of a normal society never takes place inside the cult-like MEK. On holidays, Members of the Cult of Rajavi live their routine scheduled workday including sleep deprivation, forced labor and forced coercion meetings. They probably have an extra program which is a march in front of the picture of leaders chanting slogans.

Actually, the Eid like any other holiday gives people the opportunity to share love, happiness and joy. Recreational activities on this day and other similar days are ways to grow happiness and prosperity among people of a society. Leisure time activities are particularly important for the mental and physical health of the middle-aged people of a society.

As the average age of MEK members is between 40 t0 70, lack of joy and happiness in the cult-like system of the group risks the quality of the life of members. Instead, repressive system of the group intensifies health problems, paranoia, violence and many other mental disorders among members.

Photos published by defectors of the MEK show their joyful moments in the Albanian nature. Their real smiles and the hope in their eyes indicate their passion for the life in the free world: Joie de vie, what you never see in the desperate faces of the rank and file inside the MEK camp, Ashraf three.

Eid al-Fitr for MEK defectors in Albania

By Mazda Parsi

May 15, 2021 0 comments

Mujahedin Khalq Organization's Propaganda System

Beware of MEK’s activities in Western media

The Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO/ MEK/ PMOI/ Cult of Rajavi) has indicated that it counts on the impact of propaganda and psychological war rather than practical activities. Its propaganda work started from the Mujahed journal, the Mujahed radio and later on their TV channel Sima-ye Azadi. Rajavi’s efforts were to show off his group’s so-called activities.

The MEK have constantly tried to showcase their large-scale, popular form of advertising through media and promotional activities, instead of succeeding in creating a successful social base among Iranian nation. Using such techniques, the MEK leaders deceive their members and their foreign sponsors about the social base of the group in Iran. They have to make them believe that the so-called supporters in Iran donate funds to the group.
Perhaps this is not the case for Saddam and Rajavi relationship but Saddam was one of the most deceived ones by the Cult of Rajavi. Although the Ba’ath Party’s intelligence service tried to make a precise assessment of the veracity of Rajavi’s claims, the fact was in the videos of the meetings of the Rajavi’s representatives with the Ba’athist security officers that were published after the fall of Saddam Hussein.

The MEK: Masters of Propaganda

The assassination of the Iranian civilians in the streets and markets was actually sold to Saddam Hussein. The former Iraqi dictator also paid large amounts of money to the group for the assassination of Iranian officials and military figures. The group’s terrorist acts were actually used as a fuel for their propaganda machine.

However, during Saddam’s era for a group that was looting the Iraqi people’s oil, using media capabilities of the Ba’athist regime and international capabilities with Saddam’s help was nothing special. But after the collapse of Saddam, it was also discovered that the MEK used to use Iraqi media tools. One of the most prominent examples of this action were one-page or half-page advertisements of the MEK in Iraqi newspapers, calling Iraqi tribes for support. In one case, they had allegedly issued a statement to prevent the group’s expulsion from Iraq!

Photo: President of the National Resistance Council of Iran Massoud Rajavi, left, meets with and the Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in Iraq in June 1986.

Meanwhile, the use of western and European media capacity was also considered by the MEK who was seeking to attract western politicians. The MEK-sponsored expensive reportage advertainments became possible by paying hefty amounts of money to politicians and journalists. All expenses were made to gain support of the terrorist Cult of Rajavi.

The MEK has more or less kept on the policy throughout the recent years. Today, the list of politicians and journalists who sell their dignity to a handful of dollars can has been revealed in the mainstream media several times, even the exact amount of money that they were pail has been made public. Eventually, the group has repeatedly has lost its connections in Western media over the past years, its communications have been blinded, and it has been forced to spend a lot of money on new connections.

Nevertheless, the sensitivities of Western audiences on the credibility of their media should be regarded as serious. The disclosure of such communications with MEK as a cult-like violent group, will make the Western audience react.

Studying the websites owned by the MEK simply reveals the clues of the communication of the Cult of Rajavi with certain Western media, and the repetition of the reportage ads for an event related to the group, indicates the links. The Western governments should prevent the publication of such contents because it is a case of material support for a terrorist group.

May 15, 2021 0 comments

Massoud Rajavi

Rajavi Silent On Palestine, Awaiting New Instruction

SSince taking over leadership of the MEK after the 1979 Revolution, Massoud Rajavi and his wife have been very fond of publicity. Mostly about them and only if it shows them in a positive way. Rajavi has always tried to control media coverage of the MEK and the Rajavi leadership brand. As time has passed and the MEK role has changed from terrorist/military to intelligence/propaganda-based activity, Rajavi has become famous for always having something to say about just about anything – from events in South America to the Far East. The Rajavi propaganda machine constantly churns out the messages of the MEK’s owners and backers, whether Saudi, Israeli or the US.

But recently, Rajavi has fallen silent. Not a word of comment can be found on the Saudi-Iran talks in Tehran. Not a word on the situation in Israel and the Occupied territories and neighbouring countries (Lebanon, Syria, Jordan). Rajavi has suddenly been confronted with the unthinkable: that his backers and paymasters are either making deals with Iran or losing the battle to suppress the country. There is even a possibility that the US and Iran could come to an agreement on the JCPOA as talks continue in Vienna.

Palestine

Nothing demonstrates more clearly the mercenary nature of the MEK and its leadership than this situation. Rajavi is unable to take a specific line unless told by his masters. At present this line is confused and vague in relation to his masters’ relations with Iran.

No doubt once the situation is clarified one way or another, Rajavi will pump up his slave-driven propaganda machine to churn out the correct line. But for the present, Rajavi must wait and see what happens.

Oh for the days of Saddam, when all that was needed was to threaten to overthrow the entire Iranian regime.

May 15, 2021 0 comments

Mujahedin Khalq Organization as a terrorist group

Alfred, an Armenian soldier killed by the MEK terrorist

Alfred Gabri was only 20 years old when he was killed by the Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO/ MEK/ PMOI/ Cult of Rajavi).

Alfred was born in a Christian (Armenian) family, 1971, in Tehran. In 1990, He graduated from high school and was supposed to go to university after finishing his army service. Unfortunately, he did not finish his army service.

Alfred Gabri

He was on his guarding post when he was shot in heart by MEK operatives in the army garrison in Gilangharb, West of Iran. His friends found him dead in blood. “His dead body was brought to Tehran,” his father Vahan Gabri says. “He was shot in his heart, I saw.”

The father of Alfred Gabri

According to his father, Alfred was an athlete and a body builder, he loved reading books and studying but he did not survive the MEK’s terrorist attack. He could not fulfill his dreams for future.

May 12, 2021 0 comments

Former members of the MEK

MEK defectors mentally and physically safer outside the group

As the vaccination against Covid-19 has began in most countries around the world, Albania started a mass inoculation campaign from March, ahead of the summer tourism season, according to the AP. The government is continuing to work on securing new vaccine contracts so the entire population can be fully vaccinated by early 2022.

Some of the MEK defectors who live in Albania received the first shot of the Covid vaccine. This is considered important because they are free citizens in Albania who enjoy the normal facilities that Albanians enjoy. This is exactly contrary to what the MEK propaganda tells the rank and file about the life outside the group.
Two of the defectors of the group, Parviz Heidari and Ali Hajari who received their first shots published their photos on their Facebook accounts insulting leaders of the MEK as “cult leaders who do not want to see them happy and healthy”.

Ali Hajari

Parviz Ahmadi

The defectors seem to be very grateful to any joyful moment of their life in the free world. They cherish the Albanian journalist, Gjergjy Thanasi who gave them colored Esther eggs in one of their gatherings in coffeeshop. It is one of the few Albanian religious traditions that survived communism. Grandmothers dyed eggs blood red in a simple yet powerful sign of faith and rebellion against the atheism that snuffed out churches, killed priests and imams, and deprived Albanians of faith for 40 years. They did it in hiding, secretly celebrating Easter as they gave them to their grandchildren and families, risking death or interment for their families if caught. The egg represents new life, dyed in the color of Jesus blood.

MEK defectors in Albania

MEK defectors in Albania - Thanasi

MEK defectors in Albania

New life for defectors of the Mujahedin Khalq is full of these small happy times. Their life is inspired by their own free will and their own decisions. They are free from supervision of the MEK commanders. They are not forced to confess any of their thoughts and deeds to the commanders any more.

May 11, 2021 0 comments

Albania

MEK hostages eight years after relocation in Albania

When in the early years of the 2010s, the Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO/ MEK/ PMOI/ Cult of Rajavi) was supposed to be expelled from Iraq, one of the most important issues raised by the UNHCR, was the transfer method of the group members to a third country.

There were two main situations, the first to examine the type of asylum for each person individually, and eventually the free choice of people to settle in third countries as refugees. In this case, members of the group could decide for their future life without the control of the leaders. On the basis of conclusive evidences, most members would choose to live independently and free from the cult-like control of MEK, which would lead to the loss of forces of the organization and its eventual disintegration.

But the second case that the leaders of the MEK focused on it and also benefited from the assistance of Western lobbyists, in particular the Americans, was the integrated transfer of the group to a third country, so that, as in the past, they could have their members under an organizational control.

Camp Ashraf in Albania

Therefore, the efforts of the organization’s leaders and the help of their American lobbyists to choose Albania was an important part of the process of maintaining the group’s forces. The group leaders needed to continue organizational constraints and inhumane restrictions, which was, in fact, an act contrary to the civil laws of the host country.

Therefore, the resettlement of the MEK members from Iraq into a freer space in Europe and a sudden change of place for members of the organization, helped them reaching out to the free world, far from the organizational structure in very few opportunities. Most members found out that they want to leave the organization and want to be free more than ever.

This is quite understandable when we refer to the records of the members escape records from Camp Ashraf, that despite the possibility of death and the absence of any clear mental image of the life after escape, they were willing to accept the risk of leaving the MEK.

What is happening now in the MEK’s camp in Manëz, Albania? The same isolation space continues, living freely is impossible, cult-like regulations are implemented day and night, there is no access to communication tools. And this time, this is happening in Europe, the continent which is expected to be the most democratic location in the world.

In the process of disposing of the MEK from Iraq, two goals were supposed to be fulfilled: on the one hand, Iraq was seeking to clean its country from the existence of terrorists, which was fulfilled as the result of the Iraq’s people request and the insistence of the government.

On the other hand, the issue of the release of members of the MEK was raised. The second goal has not been fulfilled yet, and consequently the leaders of the group continue to violate the members’ rights, this time in heart of Europe.

In fact, it can be said that only an illegal prison called Ashraf with its prisoners has been transferred from Iraq to Albania. As part of the European territory, Albania is known for freedom, human Rights, and democracy. What is happening at the so-called Camp Ashraf 3 in Manez requires a response from the international media, the monitoring of human rights organizations and the pursuit of European governments. Otherwise, this place is a living evidence against the claims of Europeans about the existence of freedom and human rights.

European countries and human rights organizations must explain that, despite the demand for their own monitoring of the human rights situation in other continents, how do they justify the situation in the MEK camp in Albania and what has been done to put an end to these conditions so far?

May 11, 2021 0 comments

Mujahedin Khalq as an Opposition Group

The MEK supporters know about its unpopularity in Iran

One of the main characteristics of the Mujahedin Khalq Organization (the MKO/ MEK/ PMOI/ Cult of Rajavi) is its complete dependence on foreign states and specifically those who are in conflict with the Iranian government including the US, Israel and Saudi Arabia. The MEK offer services to the enemy of their enemy and in exchange they gain financial and logistical support.

The unlimited interactions of MEK, as a terrorist group, with enemies of Iran contains any act that a mercenary or proxy force might do.

The MKO has followed this pattern, from the beginning of its establishment. The most prominent example was the group’s connection with the Soviet Unions’ intelligence service, KGB, and then serving as Saddam’s private army in the eight years of war against Iran. Collaboration with the former Iraqi dictator was something that other opposition groups of the Iranian government avoided or at least refused to reveal.

siding with the the countries’ enemies caused the Iranian people to hate the Mujahedin-e Khalq .

Investigating the reasons of such an attitude by the side of the MEK leaders only leads to one definite conclusion, and it is the complete despair of the group for having the least social base within Iranian people. While other opposition groups are not far behind in this area, the unjustifiable record of the MEK from treasons in the war to the hundreds of terrorist attacks against the innocent civilians has left no room for them. Thus, it is safe to say that there will be no support for them inside Iran and they are one of the most hated entities for the Iranian people.

Although there are documented evidences of US, Israel and Saudi’s support for the MEK, these states hardly ever want their links with this cult-like and formerly designated terrorist group to be overt. They definitely know about the unpopularity of the group among the Iranian public.

With recent progresses in the diplomatic relations of the region, the opening of direct channels between Iran and Saudi Arabia will signal a calming of tensions across the Middle East after years of hostilities. In addition, there is an optimistic signal by the Biden administration that an American return to the accord between Iran and world powers could be within reach.

The news seems to be horrendous for the leaders of the Mujahedin Khalq who have been fishing in the troubled waters between Iran and its adversaries, for years. The enemy of their enemy is turning out to become the friend of their enemy!

May 10, 2021 0 comments

Mujahedin Khalq; A proxy force

MEK Israel Derailing Failed – Democrats Try New Tactic

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has alleged that negotiators don’t yet know if Tehran is serious about making a deal in Vienna. The US negotiators are talking with Iran’s negotiators on the sidelines of the meetings of the remaining JCPOA signatories. But perhaps the opposite is true. In spite of severe provocation, Iran did not abandon the talks and has kept its baseline proposition – if the US wants to re-join the JCPOA it must credibly lift sanctions and Iran will scale back its nuclear enrichment to agreed levels. Maybe, by focusing heavily on Iran’s compliance without offering a clear commitment to lifting the sanctions, it is the US that is not serious about the talks.

Of course, from the start, opponents of the JCPOA agreement tried to derail the talks in Vienna which involved the US on the sidelines. Israel, Saudi Arabia and US neocons have all objected to the nuclear deal in the past. They have been active during the talks to prevent progress. The US has not reacted to this interference.

female operative of MEK in vienna

On its arrival in Vienna at the start of April, Iran’s delegation was confronted with a small picket of MEK supporters who heckled and threatened violence against them. The MEK demand is to end all negotiations with Iran, scrap the JCPOA and declare war instead. Although the MEK leadership has been expelled from the EU to Albania, it still receives tacit support from within the US embassy there. While the MEK remains a minor irritant to Iran due to its history of treachery and terrorism, US tolerance of what it regards as a terrorist cult signals a lack of sincerity on America’s behalf.

On a more serious level, Israel embarked on a course of action which could have provoked Iran into retaliation and withdrawal from the talks. However, despite an attack on Iran’s nuclear plant and its naval presence in the Persian Gulf and beyond, Iran did not abandon the talks as anticipated. The aim of Israel, as with the MEK, has been to drive a wedge between Iran and the US and EU so as to end the talks. This has not worked. The US continues talking with Iran.

However, the US has not condemned the Israeli nuclear attack, nor taken steps to curtail the unwanted activities of the MEK. In this context, it is not clear whether the Americans have had to come up with a different tactic. Rather than relying on external sources of disruption and hindrance to control the terms of talks with Iran, the US is now playing the blame game: Iran is not serious.

The US accusation looks hollow. Allowing the MEK to continue with its false narratives disseminated from the click farm in Albania can only be read by Iran as acting in bad faith. The US cannot control the Israeli reaction. But it can act to stop the MEK activity. A return to the de-radicalisation program instigated by the Obama administration in 2016 would be a good place to start.

May 10, 2021 0 comments

Iran

Iranian Diplomat Taken Hostage by Using MEK Terrorists

After the Belgian Court of Antwerp sentenced Asadollah Asadi, an Iranian diplomat to 20 years of jail, the Iranian Embassy in Belgium released a statement condemning the sentence and questioned the authority of the Belgian court.

The statement released by the Iranian Embassy reads as follows:

“In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Most Merciful

The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Brussels refers to its previous Press Release dated 4 February 2021 on the verdict of the Court of Antwerp in the case of the Iranian diplomat, and seizes the occasion to state the following regarding the current developments:

As stated in the previous Press Release, the Islamic Republic of Iran has strongly protested the violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961) by Germany and Belgium, and deems the actions on the part of the said governments to be a stark contravention of customary international law and established diplomatic practices.

The verdict of the Court of Antwerp of 4 February 2021 indicated that the Belgian judicial system does not heed the binding nature of commitments under the Vienna Convention. The Islamic Republic of Iran has officially rejected the Belgian court’s competence in two Note Verbales to Belgium and Germany on the grounds of the court’s violation of the immunity of Mr. Asadi’s person as a diplomat under the 1961 Convention.

Iran Embassy in Belgium

In line with the above notes, the Islamic Republic of Iran reserves the right to resort to all legal mechanisms, including the Vienna Convention’s optional protocol concerning the compulsory settlement of disputes.”

Asadollah Asadi is an Iranian diplomat, who was arrested while returning to his residence in Austria on a highway in the German state of Bavaria on June 10, 2018. He was accused of being involved in an attempted bombing at a gathering of the so-called National Council of Resistance of Iran (a Mojahedin-e-Khalgh organization branch) in Villepinte, north of Paris.

On February 4, 2021, Asadi was sentenced to 20 years in prison for “attempted murder and involvement in terrorism.”

Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, had condemned the verdict, stating that “the Islamic Republic of Iran strongly condemns the announcement of the Belgian Court of Antwerp to issue a 20-year prison sentence for Asadi”

He had said that Belgium and some European countries are heavily influenced by the MEK.

He had noted that as Iran has stated several times, all stages of Asadi’s detention, the judicial process, the issuance of the recent sentence are illegal and in flagrant violation of international law, particularly the provisions of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

The international community considers the MEK a terrorist group. Its members jointed Iraq’s Saddam Hussein in the war against Iran in the 1980.

For decades, the infamous group has carried out various attacks against Iranian civilians and government officials.

Following concerted lobbying by groups affiliated with Saudi Arabia and other regimes hostile to Iran, the U.S. State Department removed the MEK from its list of designated terrorist organizations in 2012

May 10, 2021 0 comments

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