In a recent meeting with cult members, Maryam Rajavi told them that ‘the regime is now ruined, we clearly see signs and symptoms of overthrow of the regime – with this situation and the conditions that the regime has been going through for up to a year and a half, we will see that the regime cannot continue and it’s over, over, over …’
After her speech, one of the members called Mohammad Ali Agahi stood up and asked, ‘Sister Maryam, why are you lying to us about this’. Many then attacked him, but more people came to support him and some minutes later the meeting was ended. Mohammad Ali and the other people who supported him were then sent to Quarantine. For those who don’t know, ‘Quarantine’ is a place of isolation where a person is kept alone until the commanders and leading members of the organization come to talk in a process of so-called ‘Virus Removal’.
The fact is that the slogans of the cult have changed so often – according to circumstances – that it has become another ideological joke in their meetings. One day overthrow is the slogan, next day it was our fault there is no overthrow, next day overthrow is not important only obeying the ideology matters. What a joke.
BY Hassan Heyrani,
News
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says the Islamic Republic is prepared to join hands with the French government to resolve regional issues, especially those in Libya and Sudan.
Zarif made the comments in a Sunday meeting with the new ambassador of the French Republic to Tehran, Philippe Thiebaud, during which he presented a copy of his credentials at the beginning of his mission
In the meeting, FM Zarif referred to the historical and long-term relations between the two countries and the positive attitude of the people of Iran towards France, and called for the removal of the barriers in bilateral relations relying on the wisdom and prudence of the two states’ authorities.
Zarif pointed to the presence of the MKO terrorist group on French soil, and described it as a problem between Tehran and Paris.
The Iranian foreign minister also announced the Islamic Republic’s readiness to hold talks and have cooperation with the French officials to solve the problems of the region.
Pointing to the dangerous developments that recently unfolded in North Africa, including Libya and Sudan, FM Zarif noted they were the result of the intervention of some Arab countries in the region.
Elsewhere in his remarks, FM Zarif criticised the recent statement by the Group of Seven and the French ambassador to the United States regarding the peaceful nuclear activities of Iran, saying that such positions would destroy the 2015 deal between Iran and world powers.
For his part, the French ambassador referred to the recent talks between the presidents of Iran and France, underlining that Paris is willing to continue talks with Tehran on regional and international issues.
“The position of France, as underlined in the telephone conversation of the French president with President Rouhani, is to remain in the JCPOA and support and fulfil both sides’ obligations,” he noted.
Thiebaud referred to Iran’s fulfilment of its obligations under the JCPOA, and highlighted the efforts made by France and the role it played in the establishment and introduction of INSTEX, the European special purpose vehicle aimed at facilitating trade with Iran under the US sanctions.
Iran Front Page, IFPNews,
One of the MEK formers in Germany called me to say that he had heard some news about the members of the cult in Albania.

He said firstly that the cult has taken the decision to remove all those who have separated from the cult in Albania from the country. This is because the cult wants to empty the ‘border’ (or no man’s land) between MEK members and those people who take a salary from the sect and say that they still support the organization. This is because when these separated people come face to face with MEK members in the streets of Tirana street, they create a kind of bad influence on them. This influence makes some of the members who are under pressure in the cult decide to get out.
The cult wants to empty Tirana of every person who it calls so-called mercenaries who are critical of the cult (basically anyone who has left).
I confirmed to this friend in Germany that we in Tirana have also heard that there is currently a register of 35 people who admit that all their costs are paid by the cult, but who do not make this public because the cult doesn’t want it to became public knowledge that it would be willing to transfer these people (because it’s illegal people trafficking by a smuggler). It would also encourage more people to leave if they think the MEK will pay to smuggle them to Europe.
The cost for a smuggler to transfer one person is between 3 and 4 thousand euros or more. So, the cult made indirect contact with a smuggler and told him ‘we have a lot of people to move so reduce the price to 2.5 thousand euros each’. A group of these people have now arrived.
Behrooz Ghorbani, an Iranian priest in Norway, is behind this project and is one of the cult’s mercenaries (in the MEK’s pay). I should mention that I previously spoke to this priest from the International Church in Tirana before I found out who he really is. Ghorbani is trying to raise money to smuggle people out of Albania. He contacted my friend in Germany to ask him for 2,500 euros. But my friend found out this was a deception and Ghorbani was working for the cult because the cost of this project for each person from the beginning to the end is 5000 euros. This includes the cost a trafficker to Greece and secret residence in Greece for a while. Even though this is for around 50 people and costs around 250,000 euros, the cult is willing to pay for it. My friend in Germany also warned me ‘be careful, after this project is done, they will make trouble for you who remain in Albania’.
Hassan Heyrani, Tirana, Albania
++ Most Farsi commentary around MEK this week concerned the listing of Sepah (IRGC) as a terrorist entity. MEK’s reaction was condemned as selling your country (MEK being paid for anti-Iran work). But you won’t gain anything but the hatred of Iranians say critics.
++ Joke of the week is that Maryam Rajavi took credit for Trump’s designating Sepah as a terrorist entity, claiming (without irony) that she had been demanding this “for years”.
++ In response to the devastating floods in Iran, Maryam Rajavi gathered her followers in the half-built back yard of the closed camp in Albania and put on a performance. Rajavi spoke a bit, looked sad a bit, stood by a flag a bit and posed a bit. Really helpful.
++ In response to Maryam Rajavi’s response to the floods, Farsi commentators ask, ‘Why are you not helping in any way? Why don’t you send money? Why, when you claimed that MEK “Resistance Units” are operating all over Iran, do you not have even a single person on the ground? The country is in chaos, there is nobody to stop you from sending at least one person to take a photograph to show that MEK is helping – someone holding a photo of Rajavi for example. This has exposed to the full that everything you say is simply lies. You claim to have support in Iran. You don’t even have a single person.
In English:
++ Emile Nakhleh’s article ‘Hawks Clamoring to Attack Iran’ in Lobelog is well worth careful reading. Not because it is difficult, but because it exposes the really dangerous beliefs and behaviours of those close to Donald Trump who are doing everything in their power to bring about a war against Iran in total disregard to damage to human life and society. So, “Instead of relying on calm, expert-based analysis, Secretary of State Pompeo has made a series of trips to the region that have involved bullying, threats, and hilarious, if not tragic, mischaracterizations.” And “Bolton and Giuliani are as susceptible to MEK’s claims as Cheney and Rumsfeld were to Chalabi’s.” Nakhleh points to the path forward: “Fifty-plus retired American generals and diplomats, in a statement published earlier this month, urged the Trump administration to rejoin the Iran nuclear deal and work on resolving outstanding concerns with Iran diplomatically. They advised against a war because they saw no good outcome.”
++ Similarly, Stephen M Walt warns in Foreign Policy that ‘America is Wide Open for Foreign Influence’. Walt argues that although the US may have the most expensive defences in the world, its political system is uniquely open to abuse by foreign agency. Among the examples is the MEK which pays speakers fees to gain influence as well as hiring public relations and lobbyists to promote them (as well as clean up their image). Walt concludes: “Foreign policy is not a philanthropic activity, and even close allies think first and foremost about self-interest, which sometimes means trying to bamboozle the United States into doing what they want, even at some cost to Americans. If the United States is spending all this money securing the borders, leaving the national mind unlocked and ripe for manipulation is a tad short-sighted.”
++ Kim Sengupta in The Independent mentions MEK in an analysis of the tit for tat terror branding between Iran and the US. Sengupta argues that this bolsters the hardliners in Iran at the expense of the reformists. But the focus is on Trump who “is now very much in confrontation with his security and diplomatic establishment” encouraged by Bolton, Pompeo, Saudi Arabia and Israel. Bolton notorious for supporting MEK of course. By forensically linking Trump through his daughter’s business dealings with a corrupt Azerbaijani businessman to a family “ three of whose members were directly associated with the IRGC”, Sengupta concludes that if there is regime change in Iran, “the likelihood is that it will be the hardliners taking over, not a pleasant scenario for the Iranian people or the outside world”.
++ Former MEK member Hassan Heyrani, who lives in Tirana, wrote a short blog piece about the MEK. He says the cult is trying to empty Albania of those who left MEK because their continued presence has a bad effect on the members. It encourages them to leave as well. MEK is prepared to spend 5000 euros per person to illegally smuggle them out of Albania to Greece where they are kept secretly until they can further be taken to western Europe.
++ Nejat Bloggers reported that Nejat Society members visited the Atabay family home in Gilan Province on the occasion of Nouruz. The family are active members of Nejat Society. The mother wants to know why Rajavi does not allow her son Hamid Mohammad to contact his family. They have petitioned international human rights bodies on several occasions to help them visit their beloved son.
April 12, 2019
Mr Manoucher Abdi is an Iranian citizen, who many years ago became a part of the MEK (Mojahedin-e Khalq), a revolutionary, formerly terrorist, organization currently characterised as a cult. After many vicious conflicts with various powers in Iran (the Pahalvi monarchy and later the Islamic Republic of Iran) this organization was removed from the list of terrorist organizations. In 2013, in the last months of Berisha’s government, several hundred fighters from this organization came from Iraq, where they were accommodated as allies of the dictator Saddam Hussein in Albania with the official status of UN-protected persons. During the years of Prime Minister Rama several thousand members of this organization (from 2000 to 4000) came to Albania from Iraq, but also from other countries such as Bulgaria. The organization claims that from its Albanian base called Camp Ashraf 3 it continues to carry out a fierce fight against the legitimate government of Iran, which the MEK calls the mullah’s regime of Tehran. Several dozen MEK members have deserted the ranks of the organization citing the case that Rama’s government supports MEK, the cult of Madam Rajavi which supported Saddam Hussein in Iraq. These frustrated, disenchanted MEK survivors continue to live in Albania and the UNCHR pays some money for their survival. Some of them, often financially supported by the MEK itself, have managed to leave Albania and illegally enter various EU countries.
One of the MEK defectors is Mr Abdi Manoucher, born in 1963. For Manoucher the ideals and aspirations of the MEK cult belong to the past. He simply wants to spend the remaining years of his life with his daughter, whom he has not seen for 15 years.
Despite Manoucher’s past, the Iranian authorities have officially stated that they will not hinder his return to his family home in Iran. We remind readers that in September 2013 PM Berisha in a meeting with the then Iranian ambassador in Tirana, Majid Mozafari, emphasized the fact that the Albanian government guarantees that any of them (Mojahedin), who have the full guarantee of the Iranian authorities and wants to return to his country, will face no obstacle from the Albanian authorities. (more can be consulted link: http://arkiva.km.gov.al/?fq=brenda&m=neës&lid=18617).
Berisha’s successor, the current Prime Minister Edwin Rama, is doing exactly the opposite. The Albanian authorities are hindering Manoucher’s return to the bosom of his family in Iran. Despite his repeated requests, Manoucher is prevented from returning to his homeland just to fulfil a whim of Maryam Rajavi, leader of the MEK cult organization. To this arbitrariness of the Albanian government, Manoucher has responded with the only tool that he has: a hunger strike. With a letter to the UNHCR, the Foreign Ministry of Albania, the Albanian Interior Ministry and Prime Minister Rama on 1 April 2019 he has informed them of his decision to start a hunger strike in order to persuade the Albanian government to allow him to return to his family home in Iran.
Such a servile attitude of the Rama Government towards Madam Rajavi goes well beyond the servile positions of the Libohiva quisling government versus Jacomoni, the Emperor King Vittorio Emanuele III. Albania was then a country occupied by fascism, and today it is a free, sovereign country, a NATO member and an aspirant for EU membership, but unfortunately with a prime minister, both myopic and servile.
Counterproductive action of Rama Government
Holding the grandfather Abdi (Manoucher) hostage in Albania is not only a cowardly and disgusting act by Rama’s government against a stateless man on behalf of Madam Rajavi, but is also completely counterproductive and with negative consequences for the Rama Government.
I hope that Mrs Fu-Fu, who covers public relations for the prime minister, will explain to Prime Minister Edvin what a “debacle” regarding public relations it will be for the Albanian Government as Abdi’s hunger strike, among other things, is reflected in foreign and world media, starting with the Danish Dagens Naeringsliv, France’s Le Monde, Italy’s RAI and the US’s Wall Street Journal.
Prime Minister Edwin must also be aware that unlimited servility towards Madam Rajavi will not be enough for the well-paid lobbyists of these stateless people’s efforts to get Mr Rama a 3-4 minute meeting with President Trump at the Oval Office. Such a “coup de main” at the height of the electoral campaign will simply remain a pipe dream which does not even have the slightest chance of becoming reality.
In my article I am not appealing to the human feelings of my country’s prime minister, but merely his sound judgment. Keeping an Iranian grandfather hostage in Albania will not bring any benefit to the prime minister but will be a source of endless trouble in the field of public relations. I humbly remind Mr Edvin that the words of MP Majko or ex-professor Klosi, Grida, Salianji & Co, that do not even go down the toilet, make his own cruel decisions for grandfather Abdi bad news for Prime Minister Edvin!
Gjergji Thanasi, Gazeta Impact, Translated by Iran Interlink



++ There was a lot written about the devastating floods in Iran this week and how the MEK are misusing the crisis. Sara Zahiri of the Farsi NITV News site (Canadian/American-Iranians) quotes some of this commentary, including Massoud Khodabandeh, which is saying that Maryam Rajavi is effectively asking people to take up arms and fight their rescuers. This, say some, is probably the biggest gaffe she has given in recent years as she is asking flood victims to fight to repel the armoured vehicles come to rescue them. Zahiri compares this to their behaviour when they worked for Saddam Hussein. For the MEK, everything has to come back to violence and terrorism, they can’t do without it.
++ On the anniversary of the attack on Camp Ashraf in 2011, former members have written their memories of how Rajavi tried to get people killed; sending them against the Iraqi police and soldiers with false pretences – without arms etc. Those people were killed only because Rajavi wanted more money from the Americans. It was already clear by then they would have to evacuate the camp and go to a third country.
++ Hassan Raahi, an MEK veteran from the time of the shah, had an interview with Cheshmandaz-e Iran publication belonging to the famous Lotfollah Maysami (also a former MEK veteran). Raahi talked about Massoud Rajavi’s mentality. He mentioned every detail about him. For example, how when he was in prison, Rajavi tried a few times to become the MEK leader, but those still alive then knew him very well and prevented it. How Rajavi managed, after the Revolution, to exploit the chaos and take over and destroy the original MEK. How he went to France then Iraq etc and derailed the organization.
In English:
++ A blog by Ali Alavi examined some of Maryam Rajavi’s stances – along with that of other ‘instant experts’ – over the floods. Interestingly according to Alavi, Rajavi didn’t know what to do and had to take instruction from Massoud Khodabandeh’s criticisms to finally make some pretence at helping. But even this was ‘churning out breath-taking lies’ rather than real help. Rajavi advised flood victims to resist their rescuers. She claimed that MEK ‘Resistance Units’ were helping, but all they could do was print and hand out leaflets “instructing people to come to their own aid!”
++ Stephanie Baker in Bloomberg examines ‘Where Rudi Giuliani’s money comes from – While he represents the president for free, he travels the world consulting, giving speeches, and building his brand’. In a long and detailed article, Baker reveals that from Ukrainians, Chechens, the Polish, Brazilians, Columbians and of course the MEK, Giuliani doesn’t hesitate to take money for consultation and speeches advocating foreign interests while wielding unchecked influence with the POTUS.
++ Albanian investigative journalist Gjergji Thanasi writes in Gazeta Impakt to advise PM Rama against servility and myopia in relation to Maryam Rajavi. Thanasi speaks about former MEK member Manoucher Abdi who is a grandfather and wants to return to his family in Iran. The Albanian government is hindering his efforts so that Abdi has started a hunger strike in protest. This will reflect badly in foreign and world media, says Thanasi, starting with the Danish Dagens Naeringsliv, France’s Le Monde, Italy’s RAI and the US’s Wall Street Journal. He concludes “In my article I am not appealing to the human feelings of my country’s prime minister, but merely his sound judgment. Keeping an Iranian grandfather hostage in Albania will not bring any benefit to the prime minister but will be a source of endless trouble in the field of public relations.”
April 05, 2019
++ International Women’s Day, and many have written about women in the MEK’s Manez camp. They talk of the historic abuse of women members by Massoud and Maryam Rajavi, the slavery situation and the specific problems for women who don’t have any place to go if they run away. Many have compared their situation with domestic violence and coercive control. They highlight the financial dependence of the women, especially now that they are in their 60s and 70s. On the other side of this is Maryam Rajavi’s pretence at being a feminist.
++ The anniversary of the death of Dr Mohammad Mossadegh prompted Maryam Rajavi, as usual, to jump on the publicity bandwagon. In a complete irrelevance Rajavi posed for photos in front of a picture of Mossadegh. Many commentators have written critical articles about her, assessing her as the direct opposite of Mossadegh. Mossadegh was overthrown by a CIA coup, Maryam Rajavi is proud of being a mercenary for the CIA. Some linked this to her history of selling herself to Saddam and now the Saudis.
++ In the week of Chaharshanbeh Souri, several people have written about the MEK and Rajavi’s long tradition of every year asking people to rise up against their government, followed by publishing photoshopped images of fireworks during the celebrations and claiming these are from disturbances. Even though every year these photoshopped images are exposed by the media and internet searches as fake, Rajavi has never given up and this has now become an annual joke for the people.
++ A group of former MEK women members were invited to participate in an inter-parliamentary committee meeting organized by the European Parliament’s Gender Equality Committee. After the meeting they caught up with a relaxed looking Federica Mogherini who was happy to pose for photos with them. This reminded several people of Maryam Rajavi’s last fateful and imposed visit to the EUP when Mogherini avoided her like the plague and when Rajavi’s henchmen violently attacked critics and by-standers just outside the parliament building.
In English:
++ An article by Anne Khodabandeh published by Lobelog asked ‘Are regime change and the MEK running out of road’. Describing the American version of violent regime change as a bandwagon, Khodabandeh pictured the MEK as paying passengers with the likes of John Bolton doing the driving. However, with its unsolvable internal problems, which are being exposed by western reporters, the MEK cannot progress its agenda. If the MEK – as the only tool in the regime change toolbox – are absent, does it signal that the whole regime change shebang is running out of road?
++ Fars News reported on a visit by Code Pink activists and others to Iran. Medea Benjamin, speaking at a conference at the FNA College of Journalism in Tehran, criticised the relationship between some members of the US Congress and groups like the MEK. Speaking openly in Iran, Benjamin clarified that she does not endorse the behaviour or beliefs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, but she and other activists are against war and violence to resolve the standoff between the US and Iran.
++ Ali Alavi – whose brother escaped the MEK some time ago – has joined the blogging platform on Iran Interlink (after some persuasion). He agreed to write about Iranian views of the MEK (a view often overlooked in western analysis). Alavi is interested in conveying the views of Iranians inside Iran and outside about the MEK. We look forward to his writing.
++ Ebrahim Khodabandeh’s latest blog concerns the MEK’s charity in the UK which openly solicits donations for the MEK – a political entity. This is a clear breach of the Charity Commission rules which bans charities from promoting political agendas.
March 15, 2019
Female defectors of the Mujahedin Khalq Organizaion (the MKO/ MEK/ PMOI) participated an inter-parliamentary committee meeting organized by Parliament’s gender equality committee.

The conference that was held a day ahead of the International Women’s Day was focus on young women in politics as well as women’s real power in politics and how to boost it.
Women’s Rights and Gender Equality Committee members debated with more than 20 national MPs from 15 EU member states and Norway during an inter-parliamentary meeting on ‘‘Women’s power in politics’’.
Opening the event chaired by Vilija Blinkevičiūtė (S&D, LT), EP President Antonio Tajani declared: ‘‘We must keep working to have more women in politics, but also in businesses. It is a battle for dignity and respect that must be fought by all of us.’’
EP Vice-President and Chair of the High-level group on Gender Equality Dimitrios Papadimoulis added that even though women’s participation in politics was on the rise, ‘‘most of the important positions are still filled by men, and this has to change. If we continue according to the rhythms we are following now, we will achieve gender equality in 182 years!’’
The first-ever female President of Croatia, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, delivered a keynote speech in which she recalled how she had to fight for her place, both in life and in politics, and to break countless glass ceilings. “The starting point is a change in mind-set: we need to build a political culture which leads to women’s equal participation’’. In conclusion, her message to women and girl was: ‘‘Have faith and believe in yourselves, in your values, your strength and your capabilities. Your determination will make all remaining obstacles fall.’’

Among the other participants, Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality Commissioner Věra Jourová, EU foreign policy Chief Federica Mogherini and Women’s Rights Committee Vice-Chair João Pimenta Lopes advocated for more women in decision-making, pleaded for men to be involved in the fight for gender equality and for existing legislation on the subject to be properly enforced.
Batoul Soltani, Homeira Mohammadi and Zahra Moini of Women Association and Reza Jebeli of Aawa Association attended the meeting to denounce violent attitudes of the MKO leaders against their rank and files. Batoul Soltani condemned the MKO authorities for they separated her six-month old and two-year old children from her and smuggled them to Europe in 1991. She stated that the MKO has violated the rights of hers and her children’s.
Homeira Mohammad nezhad was a teenager when she joined the MKO. She addressed the conference on the psychological pressure she endured inside the MKO. As a fourteen year-old girl she was not allowed to contact her parents during the years she was a member of the group.
Zahra Moini gave testimony on forced divorce, forced celibacy, brainwashing sessions and violation of the most basic human rights in the MKO camps.
Reza Jebeli also talked to a number of representatives warning about the potential violence of the MKO and the destructives role of the group’s lobbies to obstruct the future EU elections.
In the margins of the conference, the defectors tried to enlighten EU parliament representatives offering them documented testimonies on the cult-like nature of the MKO. They called on the EU Parliament to recognize the rights of defectors of the MKO as refugees submitting their letters of requests for medical care and living facilities.
The human rights violations committed by the MKO was condemned by the representatives.
The grand gathering of families held at the Nejat Society office of Azerbaijan Province on Wednesday March 6 to March 8, 2019.
Former members of the MKO Cult also attended the meeting, giving answer to the families’ questions on the group’s situation at Albania and how they can help their beloveds getting themselves free.
Mr. Saadollah Seifi and Mr. Bakhshali Alizade who defected the group in Albania as well as Mr. Ali Ekrami who separated the group in Iraq were among the defectors who attended the meeting.
The families also talked to Mr. Parviz Heidarzade. Mr. Heidarzade is among the MKO defectors who defected the group in Albania and lives there.
The attendees cheered as the defection news of a new member in Albania was declared.
The families decided to get their complaints to the UN and Red Crescents’ office in Tehran.

The co-founder of Pinkcode, an anti-war NGO based in the US, blasted members of the Congress for supporting the anti-Iran Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO, also known as the MEK, PMOI and NCRI) terrorist group.

Speaking at a press conference at FNA College of Journalism in Tehran on Tuesday, Medea Benjamin, the co-founder of Codepink: Women for Peace, voiced concern about the relationship between the US congresspersons and the terrorist groups like the MKO.
She underlined that the American people are tired of new wars and conflicts as well as the propaganda launched by the US media and officials against Iran, adding that they are more suspicious of Saudi Arabia’s activities, specially in Yemen, and after the brutal killing of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
“The American people are also tired of the US government’s unconditional support for Israel,” Benjamin said.
Asked by journalists if they will be troubled when returning from Iran to the US, she said, “We do not know if we will have problem. But when we go back, some of us may undergo questioning.”
Benjamin noted the hospitality of the Iranian people during the visit to Tehran and other Iranian cities and voiced concern over Washington’s inhumane sanctions on Iranian citizens.
The delegation said they have traveled to Tehran to stress the difference in the stances between the American government and people, reiterating that the American people are against their country’s sanctions on Iran.
Banjamin said that the travel ban against the Iranians, the US unilateral sanctions against Iran and the difficulties created for the Iranian people in their access to medicine and different technological goods by the embargoes have upset the Codepink members and many American people.
She said that after returning to the US, the anti-war group will push the US congresspersons and presidential candidates to make efforts to rejoin the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, adding that the American people want to leave in peace with the world community.
On February 24, Code Pink activists met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and students at University of Tehran.
After the meeting, Benjamin criticized Donald Trump for “ramping up confrontation with Iran”.
Also last Wednesday, the US anti-war activists participated in a press conference at Tehran’s Milad Tower where they criticized the US administration for abandoning the multilateral 2015 nuclear deal and re-imposing bans on Iran, saying such a move is the outcome of extensive lobbying by the Israeli and Saudi regimes, America’s staunchest allies in the Middle-East.
Trump unilaterally pulled the US out of the nuclear accord, officially named the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and unleashed the “toughest ever” sanctions against Iran.
Since then, the US has been trying to coerce the Europeans into following its lead and withdrawing from the nuclear accord with Iran.
The MKO, founded in the 1960s, blended elements of Islamism and Stalinism and participated in the overthrow of the US-backed Shah of Iran in 1979. Ahead of the revolution, the MKO conducted attacks and assassinations against both Iranian and western targets.
The group started assassination of the citizens and officials after the revolution in a bid to take control of the newly-established Islamic Republic. It killed several of Iran’s new leaders in the early years after the revolution, including the then President, Mohammad Ali Rajayee, Prime Minister, Mohammad Javad Bahonar and the Judiciary Chief, Mohammad Hossein Beheshti who were killed in bomb attacks by the MKO members in 1981.
The group fled to Iraq in 1986, where it was protected by Saddam Hussein and where it helped the Iraqi dictator suppress Shiite and Kurd uprisings in the country.
The terrorist group joined Saddam’s army during the Iraqi imposed war on Iran (1980-1988) and helped Saddam and killed thousands of Iranian civilians and soldiers during the US-backed Iraqi imposed war on Iran.
Since the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, the group, which now adheres to a pro-free-market philosophy, has been strongly backed by neo-conservatives in the United States, who argued for the MKO to be taken off the US terror list.
The US formally removed the MKO from its list of terror organizations in September 2012, one week after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sent the US Congress a classified communication about the move. The decision made by Clinton enabled the group to have its assets under the US jurisdiction unfrozen and do business with the American entities, the State Department said in a statement at the time.
In September 2012, the last groups of the MKO terrorists left Camp Ashraf, their main training center in Iraq’s Diyala province. They have been transferred to Camp Liberty. Hundreds of the MKO terrorists have now been sent to Europe, where their names were taken off the blacklist even two years before the US.
The MKO has assassinated over 12,000 Iranians in the last 4 decades. The terrorist group had even killed large numbers of Americans and Europeans in several terror attacks before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Some 17,000 Iranians have lost their lives in terror attacks in the 35 years after the Revolution.
Rumors were confirmed in September 2016 about the death of MKO ringleader, Massoud Rajavi, as a former top Saudi intelligence official disclosed in a gaffe during an address to his followers.
Rajavi’s death was revealed after Turki al-Faisal who was attending the MKO annual gathering in Paris made a gaffe and spoke of the terrorist group’s ringleader as the “late Rajavi” twice.
Faced with Faisal’s surprising gaffe, Rajavi’s wife, Maryam, changed her happy face with a complaining gesture and cued the interpreter to be watchful of translation words and exclude the gaffe from the Persian translation.
Documents had shown last year that US National Security Adviser John Bolton received $40,000 to participate and address the audience in a gathering of the MKO terrorist group in Paris in July 2017.