++ Anne Singleton’s article ‘Mojahedin Khalq (Rajavi cult) and Struan Stevenson: Another propaganda stunt, another failure’ highlights demands by members of the Iraq’s Foreign Relations Committee for a boycott of the European Parliament’s Iraq Delegation because of the role of Struan Stevenson and others in the European Parliament who act as facilitators for the Israelis, Saddamists and MEK who have a shared anti-Iraqi government agenda. Singleton points out that, “Although the MEK’s 3,000+ foreign presence in Iraq is tiny in relation to the massive numbers of Iraqi civilians being killed and is irrelevant to the complex social, civil, economic and security issues of the burgeoning democracy, the MEK has enjoyed extraordinarily disproportionate attention in the European Parliament because of the Israeli backing for the group.” Singleton reminds Stevenson and his ilk of the fate of Paulo Casaca who in 2009 was deselected as an MEP in his Portuguese constituency when his support for the terrorist MEK was exposed by local media.
++ Iran Interlink translated a Farsi article by Amir Hussein Panahi, Ariya Iran into English. Titled, ‘The fake Women’s Day of Maryam Rajavi’s male dominated shop front (from faking history to insulting Iranian women)’, the writer reveals that the front row was dominated by men posing as bodyguards and “a few European and Arab women who are known to get paid by Rajavi to attend such meetings and shows in order to applaud her; the ones who turn up each time and never change… Is it not ironic that from the many Iranians living outside Iran not even one of them wanted to participate?” The bulk of the article is a scathing attack on Maryam Rajavi’s promotion of her own “samples and examples of progressive women”. After pointing out that women in Iran are among the most highly educated in the region, Panahi lists the various ways in which the MEK women “fall into the category of the most uneducated female population in the world”, as “for the last 30 years they have had no contact with any education whether scientific or otherwise.”
++ There was a big reaction against this from Iranian women whose articles and comments generally denounce Maryam Rajavi as a vicious and nasty woman. How can she put on such a false face and talk about women’s rights they ask.
++ MEK is in serious overdrive to support terrorism on their websites. Specifically, under the name Siamak Dehghani, the MEK’s Aftab Karan site criticises those Iranians who are campaigning for the to release of several Iranian border soldiers kidnapped by Al Qaida and Jaish Al Adl. The MEK now call this “a smear campaign against Jaish al Adl”. This has brought into question by commentators how Western and Saudi support for such actions translates into overt support for terrorism. Many have referred to this as the latest proof that Americans are breeding terror not fighting it, that this terrorism originates in the West not in Iraq or the other trouble spots.
++ Russia Today reports on a book by CBS News’s Dan Raviv which claims President Obama and MOSSAD want Israel’s assassinations of Iran’s top nuclear scientists to stop. In 2012 an NBC News report concluded that “deadly attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists are being carried out by an Iranian dissident group that is financed, trained and armed by Israel’s secret service.” The report cited two senior Obama administration officials as confirming that Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK) is behind the killings, though the officials denied the US played any role in the program.
++ Fars News reported President Rohani’s response to the above news. Speaking at the 27th Khwarizmi scientific festival in Tehran Rohani said, “Owing to their ability to create power and development, the industrial states assume it (scientific progress) as their exclusive right in a way that their spy agencies embark on assassinating our scientists and intellectuals to prevent the country’s development and progress…” He asks western states, “You were informed of the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, then why did you assassinate our nuclear scientists and killed our missile specialists while we have and will make use of our missiles just for defending our country.”
++ Iraqi media have reported on statements by the terrorist group Lashkar Mohammad, asking Wahhabi groups from Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and other countries to get together under one umbrella to fight what they call the ‘infidel Safavi shias of Iran’. Lashkar Mohammad, a known affiliate of al Qaida, have revealed on the Araq al Qanoon website that they already enjoy good relations and cooperation with the MEK and that many of MEK are working with them.
++ After the threats made by the MEK that they will eliminate ex members in the West, Milad Ariyai in Germany has written with reference to the history of MEK violence against ex members. He concludes his article saying that at this point of time, any escalation of violence in Europe and America will result in severe legal and social repercussions for the MEK. Even their backers will not be able to tolerate and turn a blind eye to their actions. In any case, says Ariyai, the time has passed when there were three thousand against two former members. The number of ex members has increased now to hundreds if not a thousand and is increasing daily as they escape Iraq and make their way to Europe.
++ Press TV reported Iraqi Minister of Justice Hassan al-Shammari saying the Islamic Republic of Iran can demand the extradition of members of the terrorist Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) under an agreement signed between Iran and Iraq on the exchange of prisoners and criminals. He noted that Iraq will hand the terrorists over to Iran should the Islamic Republic ask for their extradition. On February 19, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari called on the United Nations (UN) to speed up efforts to relocate MKO members.
++ Ghoraban Ali Hossein Nejad’s article is titled, ‘MEK swearing at families is irrelevant to any struggle’. He refers to Rajavi’s recent threats against ex members and the families and in particular the way he makes MEK members swear at their own family members online, in the media or wherever. He compares this with a passage from the Qoran in which Ebrahim addresses his infidel father with the utmost respect and dignity, saying ‘hail to you my beloved father’. Hossein Nejad compares this to what the MEK makes members shout at their mothers, fathers and siblings; “Our shame, our shame, our vulgar family”. Rajavi, hiding behind such slogans, claims this is for the struggle and the resistance. But the author makes his point by giving the example of his daughter in Iran who has never seen her other sister and who has never spoken against the MEK and who wants only to see her sister inside the MEK. “The MEK brought my other daughter to swear at her in this way even though she has nothing against her.” This, says Hossein Nejad, has nothing to do with the struggle.
++ Mazda Parsi of Nejat Bloggers says Massoud Rajavi is panicking over the perceived collapse of his cult after it was revealed that out of 210 MEK transferred to Albania from Camp Liberty, over seventy immediately abandoned the MEK and separated from the other arrivals who are still under MEK hegemony. “The panic of collapse is also evidently seen in the new message of the cult leader Massoud Rajavi. He runs a torrent of fabrications against former members… labelling them as the agents of the Iranian Intelligence Ministry in Iraq.” Parsi puts this down to defectors “enjoying the free world they have access to the Internet. They run their own websites and weblogs and use different media including online social networks to denounce the cult and its leaders. Having experienced the horrible life of the cult and witnessed the atrocities of the group leaders against its own members, Iranian country men, and Iraqi Kurds and Shiites… The new MKO’s flood of accusations against defectors and critics has no use except [as] a tool to threat[en] other members who are still taken as hostages behind the bars of the cult. All these allegations and accusations are made to give a lesson to the other hostages of the consequences of leaving the cult. In fact, the target audience of the MKO propaganda particularly in Farsi and the alleged messages of Rajavi are exclusively for the brainwashed followers and a few misled sympathizers of the cult.”
++ Maryam Sanjabi interviewed Massoud Khodabandeh for the Call of Truth website about the untold story of the Mojahedin Khalq. Part of this interview was translated into English. Khodabandeh, who many spent years in close proximity to both Massoud and Maryam Rajavi, describes the MEK as a cult and says “only a person with abilities, motivations, and psycho complexes of Rajavi could bring the MeK to the current point.” Khodabandeh concludes, “Rajavi is not a normal man. He is a different person and knowing him is a different job. Rajavi’s illness is odd and very dangerous. For myself, I’ve seen different persons at all levels but I dare to say that I’ve never seen anyone like him who has no boundaries in any field except self-preservation. I think that anybody has a boundary that they eventually stops at. Ordinary persons no way can break boundaries into infinity. It requires madness; an exceptional madness that Rajavi has. He is the only one who still hunts for new boundaries to burst it and be satisfied. Maryam Rajavi has another type of madness. But even she is motivated by Massoud. Maryam Rajavi’s pugnacity, tyranny, ignorance and crime are engineered by her husband.”
++ Nejat Association in Tehran says the Mojahedin were disappointed when, according to Local Website, “Lawmakers in Spain voted on Thursday [February 25th] in favour of a bill that will reduce the capacity of the country’s courts to pursue cases of human rights abuses committed abroad.” The bill curbs the use of the doctrine of universal jurisdiction, which allows judges to try certain cases of crimes against humanity that took place in other countries. The Mojahedin Khalq Organization was seeking to manipulate the Spanish judges to promote its agenda. After the September 1st Camp Ashraf clashes and the allegedly missing 7 Camp residents, MKO leaders forced members in Camp Liberty into hunger strike. After 107 days of fruitless show of hunger strike and the escalation of criticisms, Maryam Rajavi ordered an end to the hunger strike under the pretext that a Spanish investigative judge accepted to investigate the allegations of two members of the MEK that Iraq’s National Security Advisor has been involved in Camp Ashraf events. Then the group websites broadcasted this as a ‘victory’ and in Farsi they portrayed this as an actual court ruling against an Iraqi official.
++ The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Tuesday thanked Italy for welcoming seven Iranian refugees from Camp Hurriya in Iraq. In a statement issued by UNHCR Italia, the agency welcomed the Italian government’s decision to let into the country a total of 15 Iranian refugees from Iraq, including the seven latest arrivals. This is giving “hope to Iranian citizens still living in Camp Hurriya whose safety is in grave danger,” said Laurens Jolles, UNHCR delegate for southern Europe.
March 07 2014
welcomed the Italian government’s decision to let into the country a total of 15 Iranian refugees from Iraq, including the seven latest arrivals.
respectful of human rights, for the former residents of Camp Ashraf. It was promoted by the Farnesina in collaboration with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
years of my stay in Newcastle became more and more interested in the so-called ‘revolutionary groups’, one of which was the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization of Iran (MKO).” Massoud Khodabandeh describes that period. “In those days the Mojahedin comprised no more than a group of martyred or imprisoned young people who were [considered] as followers of Ayatollah Khomeini.”
again. Massoud Rajavi tried in vain to demonize his former followers –now critics.
The Barack Obama administration has demanded that Iran resolve “past and present concerns” about the “possible military dimensions” of its nuclear program as a condition for signing a comprehensive nuclear agreement with Tehran.
Apart from pressure from Washington that Israel give up the assassination program, sources close to Israel’s intelligence agencies told CBS News’s Dan Raviv that Mossad itself viewed the campaign as too dangerous to continue. Raviv, who was updating a book he co-wrote about the history of Israel’s intelligence agencies, said the pressure form the Obama administration was “more than a hint.”