Page 28 – Nejat Society

Atefeh Sebdani: My new mother had seen Cinderella in me

My foster mother did everything to prove me wrong. Jealous, a psychologist would say many years later. But what do I know.

If only I gave a little more. Be a little kinder, more capable? If I maxed out the grades? Just responded to summons. If I did all the cooking, everything cleaned up afterwards without prompting. Didn’t want anything. Didn’t sing, because they hated when I did. I, who loved it, had a talent for it. Like I didn’t see that grain of rice on the floor when I was sweeping the kitchen, how could I be so stupid? It was just to take the consequences of that, that became my foster father’s task. I was then six years old.

I quickly learned not to make the same mistakes again.

We were a total of six children but my new mother had seen Cinderella in me. A docile, desperate girl and…? I had to take care of everything. Never good enough. If I didn’t have time to clean the whole house of 300 square meters in the half hour notice I was given before the spontaneous guests would arrive, then there was a family meeting afterwards about my ineptitude. In the best case.

The stress and pressure were constant. In between I would sit quietly in my room. Not meeting friends. At least not outside the organization. Sometimes it let go of the reins so that outwardly it looked good. Then I hung out with my friends. Felt the sweetness of freedom. Be myself and be appreciated for it. Outwardly I was happy, laughing out loud and not least at my own jokes.

No one was told what was going on behind closed doors. Either what my new mother or my new father did. They had taken on different roles, and both were devastating.

If I survive this, then I will be free.
I have to survive because I had promised my mom to take care of my little brothers. If I don’t survive, I’ll never see her again.

Hold on Atefeh.
So, I persevered.
Atefeh Sebdani’s Face Book, June 14th, 2024

June 16, 2024 0 comments

French police raid MEK headquarter in Paris

France

Le Parisien report on France control operation of the MEK premises

An intervention during an attempted fire last year seemed to indicate that around fifteen people lived there. Border police found three people who are prohibited from being on French territory.

A major control operation took place this Wednesday within the Sima association, whose premises are located in the Vert Galant activity zone in Saint-Ouen-l’Aumône. This building, which was the target of gunfire on May 31, 2023, was also targeted by an attempted fire just a year ago, on the night of June 10 to 11, 2023. Following this disaster, emergency services discovered that around fifteen people appeared to be sleeping there.

The Urssaf services therefore wanted to check, this Wednesday, whether these premises did not house hidden work. The Val-d’Oise firefighters were also called upon to verify that the rules regarding establishments open to the public were being respected. Finally, the border police (PAF) came to control the administrative situation of foreign people there, with the assistance of the Cergy police station

Out of 51 people checked, the Interdepartmental Directorate of the National Police of Val-d’Oise (DIPN 95) identified two men and a woman who were prohibited from remaining in the national territory. These three people were arrested and placed in administrative detention by the PAF. The firefighters noted several breaches of safety and fire prevention rules,

The Sima association is linked to the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). These are opponents of the Iranian regime, the main component of which is the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI). This association notably runs the Simay Azadi satellite television channel, one of the main communication organs of the PMOI and the NCRI. It is responsible for “producing videos and films concerning human rights in Iran”. “The staff of this association is made up of volunteers,” says Afshin Alavi, communications manager for the NCRI. Most of these volunteers are citizens or political refugees in France, some have come from European countries that are members of the Schengen agreement and assist this center. »notably a lack of fire extinguishers. The Urssaf investigation is still ongoing.

By Thibault Chaffotte, Le Parisien

June 15, 2024 0 comments

Hanif Bali came to Sweden as one of the unaccompanied children in the 90s and participates in "The Children from Camp Ashraf". Photo: Iga Mikler

The cult of Rajavi

“The children of Camp Ashraf” – cult life and fight to the death

The documentary ” Children of Camp Ashraf” sheds new light on a dramatic and violent migration story filled with traumatized children, including the controversial moderate politician, Hanif Bali.

In the late 70s, Iranian students founded a revolutionary movement, the People’s Mujahedin, which helped put an end to the Shah’s regime. However, the dream of a secular, democratic and socialist country was short-lived. Ayatollah Khomeini, as you know, wanted something different for Iran. The mujahedin members once again found themselves in opposition.

Somewhere there, the movement was radicalized, which found a new home in dictator Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. From the Camp Ashraf military base, they continued to fight the power in their homeland. When the fighting became too severe, all the children were evacuated. Just over a hundred ended up in Sweden, the vast majority without their parents – often placed in foster homes that sympathized with the biological parents’ struggle – with the goal that the children would return as child soldiers as soon as they were old enough.

This is not an entirely new story. Rinkeby policeman Hanif Azizi has told about his life as a Mujahedin child in the book “Suburban Cop” (2021). Last year, Atefeh Sebdani, digital strategist and author, published “My Hand in Mine” with a similar arrangement. But the documentary “The Children of Camp Ashraf” expands the story of Sebdani and the other children in an even more striking way. Much thanks to a fascinatingly rich archive material. The story oscillates between the past – with euphoric images of life in the camp, where the children swarm around cared for by everyone and no one in a kind of non-normative extended family – and the present, where four adults in Sweden recount their traumas from childhood.

It is in many ways an absolutely incredible story of betrayal on many levels. The parents who chose fighting within the sometimes-terror-labeled organization over their children, but also about Sweden and its social service that obviously made a lot of mistakes. Among the most famous people who appear in the film is the controversial politician Hanif Bali (m), who ended up in Sweden at the age of 3 and went from one foster home to another foster home throughout his childhood.

Amir Yaghmaei at Camp Ashraf-Iraq

At the center, however, is the environmental consultant Amir Vafa, who deals with his trauma most movingly. Among other things, by searching for an elusive father in Paris and a poignant attempt to reconnect with the mother who remains in the movement’s military camp, now relocated to Albania.

You may lack context and a little more explanatory fact. It’s such a complex story – politically, historically and socially – that it feels like a lot of prior knowledge is required to really grasp it. At the same time, there are enough talking pictures to still get close to the main characters. At times it is exciting like a thriller, at times “The Children from Camp Ashraf” plumbs existential depths about parenting and cult life in an intelligent and poignant way. On a more general level, there are lessons of wisdom and strong lessons to be learned from the film about the difficult art of healing wounds and taking command of one’s own story.

DAGEN NYHTER, By Helena Lindbald

June 15, 2024 0 comments

France

Val-d’Oise: search of the premises of the Mujahedin-e Khalq

According to our information, the premises of the Iranian organization of the People’s Mojahedin were the subject of a police intervention this Wednesday afternoon.

The premises notably house a television, relay of the organization.

An Iranian organization under close surveillance. The police, gendarmerie and anti-fraud services carried out a search this Wednesday afternoon in the premises of the People’s Mojahedin Organization, a source close to the investigation announced to LCI.

These premises, located in Saint-Ouen-L’Aumône, notably house a television channel, considered a “propaganda relay” of the organization in France.
The reasons for these investigations were not detailed by this source.

TFI Info, Catherine Jentile

June 15, 2024 0 comments

Iran

Iran hails French raid on MKO terrorists’ headquarters near Paris

French police raid a main headquarters of the MKO terrorist group in Saint-Ouen-l’Aumône near Paris, on June 12, 2024.

Iran’s top human rights official has hailed an attack by French police on the Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO) terrorist group’s main headquarters in a Paris suburb, saying there will be “no safe place for terrorists.”

In a post on X on Thursday, Kazem Gharibabadi, who serves as head of the Iranian Judiciary’s High Council for Human Rights, said the Islamic Republic welcomed the raid by the French police on MKO’s main headquarters in the Paris suburb of Saint-Ouen-l’Aumône that led to the sealing of the premises and the detention of at least three members of the group.

“We welcome the attack of the French police on the main headquarters of the MKO terrorist group, thorough inspection of the headquarters, the arrest of three members of the faction and the sealing of this headquarters. This operation was monitored live by Iran,” he said.

“Iran will leave no safe place for terrorists,” Gharibabadi asserted.

از حمله پلیس فرانسه به مقر اصلی گروهک تروریستی منافقین، بازرسی کامل مقر، بازداشت سه نفر از اعضای گروهک و پلمپ این مقر، استقبال می کنیم. این عملیات بطور زنده توسط ایران رصد می شد. هیچ مکان امنی برای تروریست ها باقی نخواهیم گذاشت.
— Gharibabadi (@Gharibabadi) June 13, 2024

Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported that France’s security forces on Wednesday raided the headquarters of the MKO – also known as the so-called People’s Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) – and detained three of its members.

The raid occurred at a site housing MKO’s TV studio, the report said, adding that the group had to substitute live programming with archival content for several hours.

According to the report, security forces also seized a cache of weapons hidden in the headquarters, suggesting the persistent engagement in terrorist and criminal activities by this group.
50 Years later
50 Years later
MKO, founded initially on Islamic ideology and tilted toward Marxist armed struggle, later shifted to pure Marxism, with no Islamic Ideology, gaining widespread notoriety lasting up to the present day.

The MKO terrorist group is responsible for the deaths of thousands of Iranian civilians during the past four decades.

The notorious group sided with Saddam Hussein during Iraq’s war with Iran in the 1980s but fell out of favor with Baghdad after he was toppled by a US-led invasion in 2003.

June 15, 2024 0 comments

The cult of Rajavi

Why is le Monde’s investigative report on the MEK child soldiers worth to read?

The French newspaper Le Monde published a detailed report about former child soldiers of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK). This report, written by Ghazal Golshiri, has four full pages of this widely circulated newspaper. It is titled: “We, the child-soldiers of the Iranian Mujahedin-e Khalq”. The publication of the report is important based on different aspects.
After the publication of the life story of Amin Gol Maryami, a former child soldier of the MEK, in Germany’s De Zeit magazine at the end of 2021 and the screening of the documentary “Children of Camp Ashraf” in Sweden at the beginning of this year, four full pages of the national newspaper of France were dedicated to this topic. It can be a big step in the advancement of the army of former child soldiers against the leaders of the MEK.

Le Monde, on top of French newspapers

With a circulation of more than 472,000 copies per day, Le Monde was regarded as the most widely circulated French national newspaper in 2022. This French flagship publication introduces its mission to provide the latest news coverage about France and the whole world, with a unique perspective and in-depth analysis. The well-known publication Le Monde is published in a country that has been the safe haven of the People’s Mojahedin Organization for more than four decades.
The main base of the National Council of Resistance, the political wing of the MEK, and Maryam Rajavi’s residence is in the suburbs of the capital, in Auver sur d’oise region. The citizens of Paris and Auver sur d’Oise are used to regularly seeing members of the MEK, women wearing scarves and uniforms, holding book tables and demonstrations around the city squares. Many former French politicians have expressed their support for this organization in terms of being received at the group headquarters and being paid for a ten-minute speech in favor of the MEK.

Ghazal Golshiri and dozens of witnesses of child soldiers

As a Le Monde journalist covering the Middle East, Ghazal Golshiri has journalistic records in Iran, Afghanistan and Europe, focusing on Iran and Afghanistan issues. As a professional, investigative journalist, he has published various reports in Persian, English and French. Covering the protests after the death of Mahsa Amini in Iran, Ghazal Golshiri published several reports about the incidents in Iran in Le Monde.

Following the publication of her recent report in Le Monde, Golshiri wrote on her account on the X social network: “More than a year of work, dozens of witnesses and a hardworking team. I am very proud of this investigative report.”
Ghazal Golshiri is proud of the results of a year of interviewing witnesses MEK’s exploiting child soldiers, while she certainly knows that she will soon be the target of unjust accusations and slanders by the group. Louisa Homrich, the author of the Zeit article, and Sara Moin, the director of t “Children of Camp Ashraf”, were attacked and hated by the MEK media and their agents. At the beginning of her article, Golshiri mentions Hommerich’s article and the story of Amin Gol Maryami as one of her motives for researching the issue of child soldiers of the MEK.

Ghazal Golshiri’s report states that Le Monde magazine’s questions from the MEK remained unanswered. At the same time, Afshin Alavi, a person who holds the title of “Press Spokesman of the People’s Mujahedin Organization”, immediately after the publication of the report, in a letter he wrote to the heads of Le Monde publication, accused Golshiri of selecting the interviewees who are known for their relations with the Iranian government!

Who are the interviewees of Le Monde?

Among the dozens of interviewees who spoke out in the Le Monde report about the violation of the rights of child soldiers of the MEK, only the names of three people have been revealed, and the rest of eyewitnesses whose testimonies are mentioned in the report stayed anonymous probably out of fear. They did not want their names to be disclosed. The three young men who have been very active in revealing the cult-like nature of the MEK in recent years are: Amin Gol Maryami, Mohammad Reza Torabi and Amir Vafa Yaghmai.

Amin Golmaryami

Amin Gol Maryami now lives in Cologne, Germany. After the MEK was transferred to Albania, he left the group and took refuge in Germany. Previously, he had spent his childhood in this city in the team houses of the MEK along with other children of Mujahed parents, until he was 13 years old when the organization smuggled him to Iraq to recruit him in its army.
Amin is a successful citizen today; he is married and has a child. He lives in his beautiful house on the outskirts of the city. His father was killed in the MEK operations, his mother is in the MEK’s camp in the village of Manz in Albania. After the publication of his life story in Germany’s De Zeit magazine, he was accused of collaborating with the Iranian government in an article attributed to his mother, published by the MEK websites.

Mohammad Reza Torabi

Mohammad Reza Torabi also lives in Cologne, Germany. After leaving the MEK Organization, he was in Albania for some time and then he moved to Germany. Once he was settled in Germany, Mohammad Reza got married and had a child. His revelations about the MEK have received many positive feedbacks on social networks. His articles about his bitter experiences in the Cult of Rajavi are reposted many times by users.
Only after he left the organization did he find out that his father had been killed under the torture of the MEK commanders. His mother, Zahra Seraj, is still a captive of the MEK, and she has also accused Mohammad Reza of being a mercenary for the Islamic Republic in the contents attributed to her.
Mohammad Reza Torabi has always emphasized his opposition to the Iranian government in his posts. He even avoids communicating with his uncles in Iran. They are members of Nejat Society- an Iranian non-governmental organization consisting of former members and the families of current members of the MEK.

Amir Vafa Yaghmai

Amir Vafa Yaghmai is the son of Ismail Vafa Yaghmai, a former member of the MEK. Amir lives in Sweden and has wife and two children. Yaghmai is the first child soldier who started to speak out 6 years ago and for the first time he spoke in detail about the violation of the rights of children in the MEK, on Mihan TV. Later, in support of Amin Gol Maryami, he launched a campaign of former child soldiers, and now he is actively talking about the suffering of the children of the MEK on his social media accounts. Along with Atefeh Sabdani, Parvin Hosseinnia and Hanif Bali, he is one of the four young people who were the subjects of Sara Moin in the documentary Children of Camp Ashraf.
Although Amir Yaghmai and his father clearly express their opposition to the Iranian government, Afshin Alavi refers to an article on the Nejat Society’s website to prove Amir Yaghmai’s connection with the Iranian government, which is an interview with Amir’s uncle, Abul Qasem Yaghmai, who he was worried about the fate of his brother and his nephew who were members of the MEK at the time, trying to express his voice to them through Nejat Society.

The ripple effect moves on

Interestingly, the Le Monde report emphasized that despite the accusations that the MEK has brought against these three former child soldiers and even despite the benefits that may be there for the Iranian government due to revelations of the child soldiers about the crimes of the group leaders, these three young men are determined to continue to reveal the truth about their experience in the MEK.
Sharing the link of the Le Monde report on his X account, Amin Gol Maryami wrote: “Why should we be silent? Why should we hide ourselves, while they are introducing us as agents of the Iranian regime? We have the right to tell the stories of our lives.”
The army of child soldiers who are open to speech reaches tens of people, according to Golshiri. The audience of the free media has become familiar with the names a few of them. Considering that the number of the trafficked children of the MEK was over a thousand, this army has the capacity to mount to several hundred people. About 500 of these children are still under the control of the organization and their names are used when writing letters against the former child soldiers who criticize the group.

By Mazda Parsi

June 11, 2024 0 comments

Missions of Nejat Society

Le Monde’s four-page report on child soldiers of the MEK

Ghazal Golshiri, journalist of Le Monde, in a detailed report published on four full pages of the newspaper along with a number of photos recounts the fate of three former members of the People’s Mojahedin organization (PMOI/ MKO/ MEK) who had joined it since childhood and adolescence. The main title of the report is: “We, the child-soldiers of the Iranian Mujahedin-e Khalq”.

The three people mentioned in the Le Monde report were born in the 1980s and had parents who were close to the MEK. Along with photos of these three people, Le Monde mentions their real names as follows: Amir Vafa, Mohammad Reza Torabi and Amin Golmaryami.

Amir Vafa Yaghmai, who lives in Sweden today, got acquainted with the Kalashnikov weapon in Iraq in 1998, when he was 14 years old, he even learned how to drive a tank. He criticizes the MEK for separating children from their families and putting mental pressure on them to raise them as fighters.

Ghazal Golshiri writes that today the MEK presents itself as “a peaceful, democratic and non-nuclear alternative” to the Islamic Republic and “has significant influence in the West, including in the United States and France. About 2,000 members of this organization live in Albania today.”

Besides Amir Vafa, two other former child soldiers have agreed to describe their fate to Le Monde with their true identities. Others have spoken about their experiences but have preferred to remain anonymous.

Le Monde newspaper has asked the MEK’s opinion about the main points of the report, but has not received an answer. Instead, by sending an email, the organization considered the testimony of all these people as invalid without knowing their identity and described them as “known agents of the Mullah regime”.

After describing the background of the group and taking refuge in France and finally settling in Iraq, Le Monde writes that Amir Vafa was separated from his parents when he was three years old, after being transferred to Iraq like other children. His father, Ismail Vafa Yaghmai, was engaged in composing hymns as the organization’s official poet, and his mother, known as Akram, worked in the organization’s communications and logistics department. In those circumstances, Amir met his parents in very rare opportunities.

After the end of the Iran-Iraq war and the armed operations of the MEK against Iran, known as “Forugh Javidan”, an “ideological revolution” was developed by the group leaders, which was associated with the marriage of Masoud Rajavi and Maryam Qajar Azdanloo (Rajavi). From this time on, the pressure on families and children increased because according to them “family bonds harm the struggle.”

Then in 1991, when Iraq invaded Kuwait, hundreds of MEK children were sent to Europe, Canada and America without their parents. Amir Vafa also was trafficked to Sweden at the time, but finally returned to Iraq at the request of his mother. In a letter, his mother asked her son to continue the fight against “Khomeini’s mercenaries”. With this letter, she had sent two photos of Masoud and Maryam Rajavi as a gift to her son. The forty-ear old Amir says, “Masoud Rajavi was like the father of all of us, like God.”

In Iraq, strict military training and discipline shocked Amir. In addition, sessions of “self-criticism” and even confessions to sexual fantasies became mandatory. In 2001, during an operation near Iranian border, one of Amir’s friends and “comrades” named Shahram Jooyandeh lost his life in a conflict with the forces of the Islamic Republic. This incident strongly affected the spirit of Amir so that he was exempted from military activity shortly after.
Masoud Rajavi disappears

With the American invasion on Iraq in 2003, the status of the MEK changes. Rajavi tells the members to go to Iran. Amir along with his friend named Amin Golmaryami go to the border of Iran with a tank, but they are captured by the American forces. In this chaotic situation, Masoud Rajavi disappears. Some members say that he was killed in the American bombings, others believe that he lives secretly in a country like Iraq.

Finally, under the pressure of US military, the MEK accepts disarmament and remains in Camp Ashraf. Amir is also allowed to leave the organization after signing a letter in which he has to testify that he has always been treated well there. He finally went to Sweden in 2004 and ended his cooperation with the MEK forever.

But Amin Golmaryami has a different fate. After “Ashraf”, he goes to the “Liberty” camp and is finally transferred to Albania. The most ominous fate awaits the members who stayed in Camp Ashraf. 52 people are massacred in this place. The Iraqi government led by Nouri Maliki denies any kind of intervention in this crime. After escaping from Albania, Amin Golmaryami reaches Germany. Today he has German citizenship.

In 2019, one of Golmaryami’s friends named Mohammad Reza Torabi also arrived in Germany. He, who strongly believed in the MEK as a teenager, after his defection from the MEK was informed through one of the former members that his father died under torture in Camp Ashraf. After Iraq, Mohammad Reza arrived in Albania and found out the meaning of “real life” there.

Ghazal Golshiri writes at the end of the report that Mohammad Reza Torabi, Amin Golmaryami and Amir Vafa, despite insults and attacks and accusations by the MEK, are still trying to expose the “cult-like behavior” of the organization. Of course, the regime of the Islamic Republic also tries to take advantage of their statements. However, all three people still want their words and experiences to be heard. Even Mohammad Reza Torabi is thinking of filing a legal complaint against the MEK on charges of “murder and child trafficking”.

Amin Golmaryami says: “We were left in the hands of an organization that betrayed us and led us to war… Many of our friends have died. Some self-immolated. But the Mojahedin organization is still unable to accept its faults and apologize. Those who claim to fight for the freedom of Iranians must first start by freeing their members.”

June 10, 2024 0 comments

Former members of the MEK

Former members and families of MEK hostages write letter to the Germany Chancellor

A group of former members of the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK, MKO), along with some families of the current members of this organization from Zanjan Province in Iran, wrote a letter to the Chancellor of Germany, which was delivered to the Embassy of the Federal Republic in Tehran.

The text of the letter is as follows:

His Excellency Mr. Olaf Scholz,
Honorable Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany
Greetings and regards

We, a group of survivors from the MEK, as well as some of the families of the members of the MEK, who are currently captured in the camp known as Ashraf 3 in the city of Manez in Durres Province in Albania, under the control and domination of the MEK, led by Maryam Rajavi, from Zanjan, Iran, would like to inform you of the followings:
The MEK, which used to hold its main annual conference every year in Paris, France, was banned from holding this program by the French government and police since last year due to the nature of this group.

Now that the leaders of the MEK have failed to hold this program in France as well as in Albania, which is their headquarters, they plan to carry out the desired program on June 29, 2024 in Berlin, Germany, with the permission of your government, in order to deceive public opinion.
We, the signatories of this letter, in order to reveal the true nature of the leaders of the MEK, declare that this fraudulent group, by resorting to cultic methods with brainwashing, captures the soul and body of the members and abuses them for inhuman interests.

According to the testimony of a large number of survivors from this organization, many of the opposing members of this destructive cult were arrested, tortured and even executed by the direct orders of Masoud and Maryam Rajavi and were killed in the prisons of the MEK.

Despite the years of efforts of the old and expectant fathers and mothers, who have no desire but to meet their family members who are trapped in the MEK camp, they have always faced anger and wrath from the leaders of the MEK, and were not allowed even a minute to visit their families. The legal and human rights of the members of the MEK have been trampled under the feet of the leaders of this group.

The point to think about, which has caused the resentment of families and former members, is the acceptance of hosting the meeting of the MEK by the German government. The German government has given permission to the MEK to officially open offices there for illegal activities to deceive people and attract them to terrorist acts.
Mr. Federal Chancellor

What has been formed in the minds of us Iranians from your country is the existence of a rich history and culture that seriously fights terrorism. Unfortunately, the acceptance of the MEK and the issuance of a license to promote lie and deceit and murder by this destructive cult in Germany have challenged our opinion.

Our question is how the German government considers itself to be the leader in the fight against terrorism and the defense of human rights, but in practice, it puts its territory at the disposal of a terrorist and criminal group whose hands are stained with the blood of thousands of innocent people and even discontented members within itself?!

We emphasize that a number of rescued members of the MEK filed a complaint against the leaders of the MEK for torture, murder, genocide, deprivation of civil liberties and numerous crimes through the Tehran International Court Branch 55, which issued a definitive verdict in 39 pages. It was noted that the implementation of this ruling is followed up through international authorities. Also, there is a criminal trial going on in Iran regarding the filing of a lawsuit by a large number of families of terror victims against the leaders of the MEK.

We, far from any international political discussions, only as members and families affected by the crimes of the MEK, ask you not to allow the MEK to endanger the image of your country with their usual tricks and leave a bitter memory in our minds.

Thank you in advance for your attention:

List of signatures:
Rescued members of the MEK:
– Samad Eskandari
– Fathullah Eskandari
– Kamand Ali Azizi
– Rahim Qanbari
– Adam Karimi
– Nasser Almasi

The families of members in the MEK camp in Albania:
– Ghasemi
– Kamyab
– Jama’ti
– Sadeqi
– Mohebbi
– Kalantari
– Mohammadi
– Zakery
– Bagheri
– Karami Afzal
– Soleimani
– Afshar
– Borji
– Qadimi

June 10, 2024 0 comments

Former members of the MEK Missions of Nejat Society

Amir Yaghmai: Didn’t we have the right to choose?

A visual narrative from childhood to adulthood of Amir Yaghmai as a child of Mujahedin-e Khalq

Amir Yaghmai, a former child soldier of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), was one of the first children of this group who spoke out to expose its leaders. 5 years ago, when he went to meet his mother in front of the MEK’s camp in Albania, he was not allowed by the group leaders to meet her. Then, he started publicly criticizing the leaders of the MEK, and in return, he was accused and defamed by the MEK that claimed that Amir is the agent of the Iranian Intelligence.

Amir is one of the 1000 children of the MEK, whose Mujahed parents offered them to Masoud Rajavi when they were children. He is one of the 4 children who participated in the documentary “Children of Camp Ashraf” directed by Sara Moin, and after the release of this documentary, he was hated by the MEK more than before.
In response to the attacks of the MEK’s insults, he has increased his activity on social networks more than before. He, who is always accused of being a mercenary for the government of Iran by supporters of MEK, addressed them in one of his posts on the X social network and promised that he would share more stories from his past time inside the MEK in response to each accusation.

Thus, his account on X is full of photos and videos that show the painful history of helpless children of the MEK in its brainwashing system. Some of these children, such as Amir, have been involved in the issues of this terrorist cult since birth or at a very young age. Some of these children were able to distance themselves from the group, some have managed to leave it, and some are still trapped by it.

Amir is a child of Iranian parents, but he was born in France. He is the son of Ismail Vafa Yaghmai, a former member of the MEK. His father, who was once a member of the National Council of Resistance and a poet of the group, managed to leave the organization when Amir was young. His mother Akram Habib Khani, who is still trapped behind the bars of the Cult of Rajavi, has taken strong positions against Amir and his father in recent years under organizational pressure.

After enduring a long and difficult process, Amir Yaghmai managed to leave Camp Ashraf and join the temporary camp of the American army in the neighborhood of Camp Ashraf, and after 8 years of being a child soldier and living in the modern slavery structure of the MEK, he made his way to the free world. In 2005, he managed to return to Sweden.

This article is supposed to republish some of the photos and notes shared by Amir Yaghmai in his account on the X social network, in the order of the time of occurrence, from his childhood to today. Your attention is drawn to a few images from the story of a child who was a victim of the totalitarian and extremist cult of Masoud and Maryam Rajavi at least until he was 19 years old, translated by Nejat Society:

Amir Yaghmaei and his mother Akram Habibkhani

Amir Yaghmai’s post on X, May 5th, 2024

5 years ago, I and one of my friends went to Ashraf 3 in Albania, hoping to meet our mothers. At that time, I had not contacted my mother for about 16 years, and my only intention was to inform my mother that she would have a grandchild in a few months. MEK responded negatively to the meeting request.

Amir Yaghmaei in his childhood

His post on X, May 28th, 2024
This is a photo of me when I was 5 years old in the area of “Skan” or MEK’s housing complex in Badiezadegan camp near Baghdad. I was with my family one day a week and then I would go back to the overnight boarding house. We were used to missing our parents. Sometimes I think I dreamed everything…

His post on X, June 1st, 2024
The first year after I left Iraq and came to Sweden. Wherever I went, the photo of the two “ideological prophets” of the MEK was above my head.

Amir Yaghmaei in Sweden

His post on X, May 9th, 2024
Here at the base of the Zayerian in the suburb of Paris and me at the front, at the age of 4. We are singing the songs of the MEK. The brainwashing of MEK children started from this age. Pay attention to the letter board “A is like a revolution, G is like a gun, W is like war, K is like Khomeini…

the base of the Zayerian in the suburb of Paris

His post on X, May 10th, 2024
About 1 year before we were sent back to Iraq, I met Maryam Rajavi during a trip to Paris. She gave me a gold necklace. The necklace that she gave to all the children of MEK. 1 year after that, I left for the hell in Iraq and the exit doors were completely closed on me.

Amir Yaghmaei and Maryam Rajavi

His post on X, May 10th, 2024
A photo of “Auver”, the main base of MEK in the suburbs of Paris in 1998. The underage children in this photo were all sent to Iraq and Camp Ashraf. They were brought from Germany during the school holidays to be brainwashed and recruited by the MEK. I’m in the middle with a red shirt.

A photo of Auver

His post on X, May 11th, 2024
The MEK claims that there were on child soldiers in the group. This is a picture of me at the age of 14 in a military uniform in Camp Ashraf. After 1 year of active brainwashing by the authorities, I was transferred from Paris to Iraq in 1998, and this captivity lasted for 6 years until the arrival of the American forces.

Amir Yaghmaei at Camp Ashraf-Iraq

His post on X, May 31st, 2024
This is at Alavi’s border camp. I was transferred here from Faeze camp because I was a “non-organizational” person and did not follow the MEK’s rules. I had told myself that now that I was forced to be a prisoner here, I will be “childish” and I will not let them steal this time from me. I am the second person standing from the right in a white T-shirt.

MEK child soldiers

His post on X, June 7th, 2024
I am in Camp Ashraf. Smiles do not always express the truth.

Amir Yaghmaei

His post on X, May 16th, 2024
Dr. Jones, colonel dentist who took me under his wing after I was released from Ashraf prison and taught me the lesson of humanity. He trained me as his assistant in the dental office and paid me, he provided me with connection with the Swedish embassy and helped me in all the steps forward.

Dr. Jones, colonel dentist

His post on X, May 12th, 2024
Birthday celebrations were forbidden in MEK. Sometimes people who secretly have a friendly relationship with each other put a secret gift such as syrup powder or a handwritten greeting in each other’s closet. If it was revealed, you would be severely punished. But in the American camp, that “foreign imperialist” force, celebrated my birthday after 6 years.

Amir Yaghmaei’s birthday at the American Camp

His post on X, May 26th, 2024
In the end, it was the American forces who took me by helicopter to the Baghdad airport on October 2, 2005, to take me to the Swedish embassy in Jordan and finally return to Sweden. At the moment of the helicopter flight, the female colonel told the pilot to fly one round over Ashraf so that Amir would see this hell for the last time.

Yaghmaei at Camp TIPF

His post on X, June 6th, 2024
One of my first photos after returning to Sweden after 8 years in the hell of Iraq. I fell behind in everything, in education, social relations, even how to buy goods and train tickets. Someone told me, “Your fate is not strange, your parents were Mujahids and you ended up with Ashraf”. Does that mean we didn’t have the right to choose?

Amir Yaghmaei in Sweden

His post on X, May 6th, 2024
When I tried to meet my mother, the supporters of the MEK mockingly said, “A 40-year-old child is looking for his mother”, not knowing that in a free society, especially in Iranian culture, children have a relationship with their parents until the end of their lives. But my biggest regret is that my daughters have not seen their grandmother until today.

Amir Yaghmaei

Today, Amir Yaghmai is an environmental scientist and lives in Sweden. He is married and has two children. He believes that authenticity is with truth. Although in the middle of his content, he introduces himself as an atheist and against the government of Iran, he is well aware that the truth of the MEK must be acknowledged, and efforts must be made to end violation of human rights of the members of this violent cult.

By Mazda Parsi

June 9, 2024 0 comments

The cult of Rajavi

The MEK: Child Soldiers and the Swallow Project

Everyone knows that during the Persian Gulf War, nearly a thousand children of Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) members were sent to European and North American countries. Many of these children, including me, were illegally trafficked to these countries. The history and fate of these needs to be widely discussed, but today I want to talk about the fate of about a hundred of them who were sent to Iraq as child soldiers in the late 1990s and early 2000s and became members of the Liberation Army, that is, the military wing of the MEK. The project was named “Swallow” by Rajavi.

Since Maryam Rajavi was sent to France in 1995 to become the political figure of the MEK in the Western world, the project was launched. The MEK bases in European countries, especially France, became a place for these children to gather together in order to attract them by creating a warm and intimate atmosphere, which replaced their missed families. Exactly the same thing happened. The MEK cadres in these bases, whom we called “uncle” and “aunt”, were so kind and loving to us and told us about the good things of the MEK, and about Camp Ashraf that we felt that our “family” and “home” was there. Many of these children, who lived in boarding houses under the control of the MEK and were still brainwashed by the MEK, never felt a sense of belonging to their place of residence and society and saw Camp Ashraf in Iraq as their utopia where our parents and all uncles and aunts are gathered and everything is good and beautiful. A flawless and problem-free world in which we would spend our childhood.

In 1997, the first group of these teenagers were sent to Iraq. Some of these people were 13 years old when they were sent. A little later, a promotional video cassette was prepared from this initial group, which served as a propaganda tool for MEK abroad. In this tape, we saw our friends wearing military uniforms at Camp Ashraf, undergoing military training, riding tanks, having a communal dinner, and exercising, and they were having a great time. Some of them were also interviewed and they told us about their good qualities. In this way, a wave of sending teenagers to Camp Ashraf started. Teenagers who were in Europe were first sent to France, to the main headquarters of the group in Auver Sur d’Oise, and then they were sent to Iraq. Most of these teenagers were under 13 years old.

North America was a little different. The MEK did not have a headquarters there. Therefore, there was no place for teenagers to gather at first. But in 1998, the MEK turned the headquarters of the National Council of Resistance in Washington DC into their main base for deployment. Teenagers like me were dragged there under various pretexts, such as going to Iraq to visit your parents. This way, they resumed the brainwashing process. I must mention here that our brainwashing started from our childhood, when we were in Iraq and in the school and kindergarten of Camp Ashraf, before the Persian Gulf War. The war with Khomeini, and being a mujahid and warrior, and the gun and sacrifice of life, were in our heads, and it was enough to activate those feelings and thoughts again. And the Mujaheds were very skilled in this job and still are.

Between the years 1997 and 2002, about 100 teenagers, mostly under the age of 18, were sent to Camp Ashraf from Europe and North America. There, we entered basic military training from the very beginning. Training in light rifles, Kalashnikovs, BKC, RPG rocket launchers, infantry combat training and then gradually training in armor, tanks and personnel carriers, artillery and air defense, communications, etc. Camp Ashraf was really in war situation. I remember that about two weeks after I entered Camp Ashraf, the Iranian government fired several Scud B missiles into the camp. At that time, Camp Ashraf was a very large military base (36 square kilometers) full of tanks, cannons, military vehicles and ammunition. All members wore khaki and green military uniforms.

In this way, Rajavi successfully carried out the Swallow Project and was able to add nearly 100 teenagers to his old and worn-out organization in order to revive it and give new motivation to his inner forces. In the next part, I will mention the legal aspects of this issue and also the German court ruling against MEK.
Mohammad Reza Torabi, former child soldier of the MEK

X social network – Mohammad Reza Torabi account – Translated by Nejat society

June 8, 2024 0 comments

Newer Posts

Older Posts