Confirming a report given to EIR News Service by an Iranian source last week, that the group responsible for violence at the Imam Hussein shrine in Karbala, Iraq on Aug. 28 was the MKO, the Tehran Times has presented information on how the MKO triggered the events. The report, issued today by the Tehran Times Political Desk, says that three months prior to the massacre, "closed-circuit cameras captured a 23-year-old woman and 13-year-old youth who were gathering information about the various entrances to the Imam Hussein (AS) shrine. After their arrest, it became clear that they had been sent by the Mojahedin Khalq Organization (MKO) to locate ways to sneak into the shrine for terrorist operations."
The paper describes how the attack was planned. Members of Moqtada Sadr’s Al-Mahdi militia who were trying to enter the shrine, were prevented by security forces. Then, clashes began which led to 52 dead and 300 injured. "At first glance, it seemed to be a clash between rival Shi’a groups seeking to monopolize power, and another indication of the extreme insecurity in Iraq, especially in Shi’a areas," the paper comments. But, this is not the case.
According to witnesses, large amounts of weapons were distributed to people near the al-Sadr group’s position, giving the impression that that group itself had been handing out arms. Among the weapons were some made in Iran–to leave a clear lead. The Iraqi Interior Ministry has conducted investigations into the event, concluding that the MKO was behind the incident.
The MKO is officially on the U.S. terrorist list, but is now being protected by the U.S. occupying forces there. It has been responsible for multiple attacks, including assassinations of leading politicians in Iran over the years. Offers by Iran to exchange al-Qaeda terrorists it holds in prisons, for MKO terrorists, were rejected by the U.S.