Ashraf City (Camp Ashraf)

2009-11-20T23:42:00.000-05:00

Ashraf City in Iraq

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Catastrophe on Horizon for Camp Ashraf Refugees

2008-10-08T00:32:00.000-04:00

The Middle East Times

By HON. DAVID KILGOUR, J.D.

October 08, 2008

About 3,500 refugees in Camp Ashraf, in Iraq close to an hour's drive from both Baghdad and the Iranian border, are at serious risk. They are members and supporters of the main Iranian opposition, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), formed in the 1960s in opposition to the shah's absolute monarchy and currently seeking to replace the Iranian regime with a secular and democratic government.

The PMOI became the largest democratic political movement in the country following the 1979 revolution. Soon, however, it found itself in opposition to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's religious tyranny. After June, 1981, its members were persecuted mercilessly by his regime and its Revolutionary Guards. Many thousands of PMOI supporters, including children, have been murdered by the regime both inside and outside Iran in the following years.

In 1986, the French government, as part of a quid pro quo with Tehran to secure the release of the French hostages in Lebanon, put pressure on the PMOI, which by then had offices and supporters in France since 1981, to leave. The PMOI, therefore, relocated to Iraq. Camp Ashraf was built on a piece of arid land in the northeast of Iraq. Before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, the PMOI officially declared its neutrality in the conflict.

Later that year, the PMOI agreed to consolidate all of its supporters within Iraq at Ashraf. Following a 16-month investigation by seven U.S. government agencies, every resident of Ashraf was cleared of any violation of American laws and all were recognized as "protected persons" by the U.S. government under the Fourth Geneva Convention. Ashraf has since 2003 been protected by a detachment of U.S. soldiers.

Recent assaults on Ashraf by Iran's regime have included the bombing of its water supply station (February 2008) and two missile attacks (May and July 2008), which luckily caused no deaths. In mid-June of this year, more than 3 million Shiites in southern Iraq signed a petition condemning the meddling by the Iranian regime in Iraq and declaring support for the PMOI and Ashraf. Such support underscored the positive role played by the PMOI at Ashraf, seen as welcomed guests assisting with the rebuilding and providing of support for surrounding Iraqi communities.

Matters have not gone as well diplomatically. In 1997, the Bill Clinton administration added the PMOI to its list of terrorist organizations. In 2002, at the request of the U.K. government, the European Union included it on its list. In 2005, the Paul Martin government did so in Canada. Fortunately the Court of First Instance of the European Court of Justice ruled in December 2006 that the PMOI was wrongly listed. Then the Proscribed Organizations Appeal Commission (POAC), a branch of the U.K. High Court, ruled in late 2007 that the listing of the PMOI in the U.K. was "perverse," unlawful, null and void.

The U.K. Court of Appeal later agreed with POAC, noting that neither the classified nor unclassified evidence provided a basis for terrorist activity or intent for such activity by the PMOI since 2001. Both houses of the U.K. parliament accordingly de-proscribed the PMOI in June 2008. In mid-July, however, the EU council of ministers, claiming unspecified "new evidence," left the PMOI on its terrorist list.

The Tehran regime relies on the continuing terrorist labeling of the PMOI in the European Union, United States, Iraq and Canada to insist that its supporters in Ashraf and elsewhere around the world be harassed by governments.

This includes pressuring the outgoing George W. Bush administration to turn the protection of Ashraf over to the government of Nouri al-Maliki in Baghdad, whose ministers' comments have created no confidence whatsoever in their willingness to provide continuing adequate protection to Ashraf residents.

On June 17, for example, the Iraqi council of ministers issued a statement saying that the PMOI "will come under the full control of the Iraqi government until it is expelled from Iraq." The interior minister declared recently that the present joint patrols by American and Iraqi forces indicate that "Iraqi forces have taken control of Ashraf and that its residents have a six-month deadline to leave the country."

During a visit to Iran in August, the Iraqi justice minister added: "If it were not for the presence of coalition forces at Ashraf, you would have seen that the people of Iraq attacking and destroying Ashraf."

A legal opinion by Eric David, professor and president of the Center on International Law at the Free University of Brussels, concludes that under both The Hague and the Fourth Geneva Conventions the United States must ensure the protection of the refugees at Ashraf. No other authority in Iraq, he adds, is capable of this protection except the American forces.

The opinion of the law firm Greenberg Traurig in Washington this September concluded, "The United States may not hand over the people of Ashraf to the Iraqi government without becoming legally responsible for the humanitarian catastrophe that is virtually certain to result."

The International Committee of Jurists in Defense of Ashraf, representing numerous concerned lawyers in Europe, the United States and Canada, wrote earlier this month to the outgoing commanding general of the Multinational Force-Iraq, stressing that "the transfer of the protection of Ashraf by the U.S. forces to Iraq would pose major risks to the safety and security of the residents there…. We are gravely concerned about a wholesale slaughter of the residents of Ashraf."

There are terrible examples in recent years of what can happen when the international community and the United Nations fail to protect vulnerable communities, including Rwanda, Bosnia (Srebrenica), Kosovo and Darfur. The residents of Ashraf must not be added to this "list of shame."

--
David Kilgour is on the advisory board of the International Committee of Jurists in Defense of Ashraf and a former Secretary of State for Africa and Latin America for Canada, as well as Secretary of State for Asia Pacific.

Iran's liquidation sale?

2008-10-05T00:51:00.000-04:00

By James Zumwalt
The Washington Times
Sunday, October 5, 2008

The answer to a question put to both U.S. presidential candidates could prove very telling. It would speak volumes about each candidate's moral compass and indicate whether he, as president, will preside over the preservation, or liquidation, of an ally.
As background, two recent developments concerning Iraq are noteworthy. The first is journalist Bob Woodward's revelation in his new book claiming the Bush administration has been spying on Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and other Iraqi leaders. It would be surprising if this were not true. Why? Because as the next tough decisions are made concerning Iraq, we must know whether the al-Maliki government is negatively influenced by Iran.

Concerns exist that Mr. al-Maliki, a Shia Muslim, has leanings toward Tehran's Shia extremist government. Some factors suggest he may be his own man - such as his successful March 2008 military operation into Basra to crush Shia militias, many with Iranian ties. But others in his government may operate as Tehran's "Third Man." Through such a Baghdad network, Iran is capable of imposing severe damage upon a fledgling democracy following a U.S. withdrawal.

It is not unreasonable for the United States to spy on the Iraqi government to assess Iran's influence. It is a lesson we failed to learn in the Vietnam conflict - not realizing until after the war North Vietnamese agents had penetrated Saigon's highest levels of government. It is a lesson we have learned today with Pakistan - a government penetrated by Taliban sympathizers.

This brings us to the second development offered for background. MEK, an Iranian group opposed to Tehran's regime, currently lives in Iraq under U.S. protection. Originally formed by students at Tehran University in 1965 to oppose the shah, they challenged Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini after he came to power in 1979. Opposed to the cleric's extreme fundamentalist views, MEK became a target for liquidation by Khomeini.

A young radical extremist first selected to run this liquidation campaign was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - now Iran's president. To date, it has claimed hundreds of thousands of MEK lives - and Mr. Ahmadinejad remains committed to MEK's complete liquidation.

Because MEK opposed Iran's mullahs, Saddam Hussein invited them in 1986 to relocate to Iraq. There, MEK conducted successful attacks against Iran.

Determined to minimize MEK's influence, Tehran pressured President Bill Clinton in 1997 to designate the group a terrorist organization. As a goodwill gesture, he did so. But, the evidence and rationale upon which the Clinton State Department relied has since been found to be "fundamentally flawed."

An independent group further found MEK was "a pro-democratic organization that for more than 40 years has worked to bring democracy and freedom to Iran," repeatedly sacrificed in U.S.-Iranian relations. (Britain recently removed MEK from its own terrorist list, describing the initial designation "perverse.")

In 2003, Tehran again focused on MEK's liquidation. For Iran's false promises not to involve itself in Iraq if the United States invaded, Washington agreed to defang MEK, stripping it of its military bite. As U.S. forces entered Iraq, MEK forces withheld fire, voluntarily surrendering their arms in a show of support. Today, about 3,500 MEK members (one-third of whom are women) remain confined to Camp Ashraf, in Iraq's al Qaeda-active Diyala Province, given "protected persons" status (enforced by the United States as an occupying force) under the Fourth Geneva Convention.

MEK is credited with being first to report Tehran's nuclear ambitions. It also provides the United States and its allies with critical intelligence on Iran's current terrorist activities in Lebanon, Gaza and Iraq. It has identified dozens of supply routes Tehran uses to ship roadside bombs into Iraq - devices responsible for more than half the U.S. lives claimed there.

This chronology of events now leaves the United States in an ironic position. MEK - a group labeled by the United States as terrorist 11 years ago that no longer is; a group labeled such at the behest of the world's only terrorist nation, Iran; a group the United States, as an occupying force, now protects; a group eager to topple Iran's mullahs who, for almost 30 years, have been exporting terrorism outside their borders, including Iraq, where they have killed thousands of Americans; a group invaluable to the West in revealing Iran's nuclear progress and supply routes into Iraq, the latter helping to reduce U.S. casualties - is being prevented from taking Iranian extremist lives while those extremists continue to take American lives.

MEK is in a precarious position with its future survival directly tied to the U.S. occupation - the status of which is now being negotiated by Baghdad and Washington.

On Sept. 4, Gen. David Petraeus said, "U.S. forces still are responsible for the security of ... MEK," but the United States has "begun the process of transition of security to Iraqi security forces."

This evolution, raising the issue of MEK's guaranteed safety under Iraq control, brings us back to the first background event discussed - i.e., Iranian influence in Iraq. Knowing ongoing U.S./Iraq negotiations on a future presence of U.S. forces in Iraq provides Tehran an opportunity to finally liquidate MEK, Mr. Ahmadinejad has pressured Baghdad to disband MEK's camp and turn members over to Tehran. While Baghdad may not bend to this pressure, Iranian influence within Iraq's rank and file - entrusted to protect MEK as U.S. forces reduce their visibility - may well sound MEK's deathknell.

MEK has repeatedly shown it wishes to strengthen democracy in Iraq and counter Iranian influence. Mr. Ahmadinejad salivates over the opportunity to participate in an MEK liquidation sale - a mission given him three decades earlier. The only question remaining is whether the United States, again, will play into Iranian hands by doing so.

The question to our presidential candidates is, in light of Iranian influence in Iraq seeking to eradicate our MEK ally, what is our responsibility to MEK? An easy, morally incorrect answer is to allow Iraq (and thereby, Iran) to determine MEK's fate. The difficult, morally correct answer is that the United States should ensure MEK's survival. When the U.S. presence in Iraq ends, U.S. responsibility to MEK does not. The United States must ensure members are not turned over to Iran or otherwise left to the whim of Tehran-influenced Iraqi "protectors."

The United States has a responsibility to ensure MEK receives safe passage and safe haven - to the United States or another willing country acceptable to MEK. If not, the next U.S. president will preside over an ally's wholesale slaughter.

James G. Zumwalt, a Marine veteran of the Persian Gulf and Vietnam wars, is a contributor to The Washington Times.

Deciding the fate of the Mujahedin

2008-10-05T00:44:00.000-04:00

By Raymond Tanter
The Washington Times
Sunday, October 5, 2008

When the U.N. mandate authorizing Multi-National Forces-Iraq expires on Dec. 31, 2008, a bilateral agreement between Washington and Baghdad is to take its place. This accord would include the disposition of 3,500 Iranian oppositionists at Camp Ashraf, Iraq. They have been protected by Coalition Forces since 2003, but Tehran has been stepping up pressure on Washington to abandon its protection and have the Iraqi government take over responsibility for protecting the Iranian dissidents.

On Sept. 4, 2008, Gen. David Petraeus, commanding general of Multi-National Forces-Iraq, said the U.S. military has "begun the process of transition of security to Iraqi Security Forces." He said that Washington received "assurances" from the Iraqi government that the Iranian dissidents, known as the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), "would be protected."

If protection of those dissidents transfers to the Iraqi government, Washington could be complicit in another Abu Ghraib, a human rights disaster where detainees under American control were abused.

The people of Ashraf have their own status. On July 21, 2004, Maj. Gen. Geoffrey D. Miller, deputy commanding general of MNF-I, recognized them "as protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention."

Regardless of whether Washington remains the occupying power, however, U.S. forces are obligated to uphold the status of Ashraf residents as protected persons. The status of the "Ashrafis" has not changed, and the MNF-I continues to treat them as protected persons.

As recently as Sept. 4, 2008, Gen. Petraeus confirmed, "the residents of Camp Ashraf, the Mujahedin-e Khalq, are in a legal status that is called 'Protected Persons Status' by international law. And U.S. forces still are responsible for the security of them because of that status."

Furthermore, International Humanitarian Law continues to apply to forces of any occupying power for the entire period during which they remain in the occupied territory, as is the situation of the United States in Iraq, even after Dec. 31, 2008.

During 2007, the International Committee of the Red Cross stated, "the residents of Camp Ashraf must not be deported, expelled or repatriated ... or displaced inside Iraq."

Despite Iraqi assurances about the security of Ashraf, Iraqi officials with close ties to Iran clearly intend to expel those in Ashraf from Iraq, fulfilling an Iranian demand. An official resolution of the Council of Ministers of Iraq of June 17 called on Washington to hand over control of Ashraf and announced Baghdad's intention to expel the MEK from Iraqi soil.

Under these circumstances, any transfer of the protection of Ashraf would open up the camp to Tehran-sponsored terrorist attacks. In addition, the original threat to "Ashrafis" persists from Iranian regime proxies integrated into Iraqi Security Forces.

The American ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker, complained on Sept. 27 about Iran's meddling: "Iran would like to keep Iraq off balance as a way of being able to control events here to the satisfaction of Tehran." It is this control that makes any Iraqi government assurance unbelievable, as the turnover would further increase Tehran's pressure on Baghdad to extradite the Iranian oppositionists. Evidence shows that tens of thousands of MEK members have been executed by Tehran.

While the involuntary expulsion and dispersal of Camp Ashraf residents to third countries is contrary to international humanitarian law, their status as members of a designated foreign terrorist organization (FTO) is hardly an incentive for other countries to accept them.

According to the law, the secretary of state may revoke a terrorist designation if circumstances that were the basis for designation have changed or the national security of the United States warrants revocation.

In 2001, the MEK made a formal decision to cease military activity and has not conducted any attacks since; the MEK relinquished its military hardware to coalition forces in Iraq and denounced violence and terrorism in 2003. The British Court of Appeal, presided over by the chief justice, reviewed both classified and unclassified documents, found the terrorist listing unsupported by evidence, and ordered the government in May to deproscribe the MEK. Both Houses approved, and the U.K. government removed the MEK from its terrorist list.

Regarding national security, the MEK provides crucial intelligence concerning Iran's nuclear weapons program and its terror network in Iraq, information that has saved lives of American soldiers. The MEK presence in Iraq balances the Iranian influence and is a bellwether of independence of Iraq from Iranian control.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is due to make a decision regarding MEK designation by January 2009. In addition to being consistent with legal criteria for delisting, revocation would undercut Iranian pressure on Iraqi officials who justify extraditing Iran's largest opposition group at Ashraf because they are "terrorists." Delisting would also send a strong signal to Tehran that the United States has a new option on the table: democratic change by the Iranian people.

Raymond Tanter is the founder of the Iran Policy Committee and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

European members call for PMOI protection

2008-10-03T00:49:00.000-04:00

United Press International
Oct. 3, 2008

BRUSSELS, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- Several members of the Council of Europe backed a written declaration regarding the protection of Iranian dissidents in Iraq.

Members of the Council of Europe, Amnesty International along with the International Federation of Human Rights expressed their concern regarding members of the People's Mujahedin of Iran in Ashraf city 50 miles north of Baghdad.

The PMOI is an Iranian dissident movement seeking democratic reform in Iran. Though it is listed by several nations as a terrorist organization for its activities under the former regime, it has an ambiguous relationship with the United States due to its anti-Iranian stance.

U.S. military forces currently protect the group's sanctuary in Ashraf, but recent claims that Iraqi security forces would assume security responsibility have prompted concern for the group's safety, as many pro-Iranian groups in Iraq may seek retribution on the group.

The Council of Europe document says transferring responsibility over Ashraf violates international standards regarding protected persons and calls on the U.S. military to continue protecting the PMOI in Iraq "to protect Ashraf residents and uphold their judicial protection under international law."

Media reports from September said several members of the PMOI were arrested in France and Switzerland, though officials familiar with the group's activities claim those arrested were sympathizers, not official members.

U.N. Sideshow Brings a Spark to New York

2008-09-25T01:03:00.000-04:00

The Epoch Times
September 25, 2008

... Down at street level Dag Hammerskjold Plaza, opposite the UN headquarters, is littered with groups displaying banners, posters and signs.

In one corner there are the supporters of the 3500 members of the Iranian opposition, presently exiled to Ashraf in Iraq. The group displaying gruesome photos of public hangings and violent torture in Iran want the Ashraf residents protected by Multi-National Forces under the 4th Geneva Convention...

Hundreds protest Ahmadinejad in NYC

2008-09-23T00:57:00.001-04:00

Newsday
September 23, 2008

… The lunchtime rally at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza attracted throngs of local high school students, and Iranian Americans also demonstrated, holding large photographs of political prisoners who were tortured and executed under the Ahmadinejad's regime.

Mitra Samani, 45, of West Hills, Calif., who is staying with family in Long Beach, said she made the cross-country trip to protest American plans to turn over Camp Ashraf, a refugee camp near Baghdad, to the Iraqi government.

Protesters said they worried Ahmadinejad would then attack the camp, where 3,500 Iranian dissident refugees live.

"We are asking the General Assembly not to let Iraqi forces take over the refugee camp. Ahmadinejad will kill the refugees because they are political dissidents," said Samani, who was imprisoned for five years after attending women's rights demonstrations...

Ashraf City can bring democracy and freedom to Iran

2008-09-20T21:16:00.001-04:00

BIRMINGHAM POST
September 20 2008
By Lord King

Lord King of West Bromwich says protection of Iran’s opposition is vital to scores of Birmingham families.

Iranian families from Birmingham last month travelled down to London to join a demonstration of hundreds of their compatriots in support of the Iranian opposition group, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran.

The demonstration outside the UK headquarters of the International Committee of the Red Cross drew also human rights activists who sought to highlight the situation faced by the Iranian opposition in Ashraf City, Iraq.

The PMOI in Ashraf has long been seen as the greatest threat to the Iranian regime, with its mixture of democratic ideals and female leadership. The 4,000-strong opposition group has prided itself on offering a ‘third option’ to the Iranian crisis, democratic change through the Iranian people and their resistance movement – a far better alternative to war and appeasement.

However, the Iranian regime and its proxies in Iraq have now put this Iranian group in danger. Iranian influence in Iraq has increased greatly over recent years as Tehran funds, trains and supplies weaponry to terrorist militias in Basra and beyond. This support for terrorist militias is the main cause of Coalition deaths.

Iranian proxies are now believed to control a number of high-ranking positions in Iraq, while infiltration into the Iraqi police and military has left the Iranian opposition in danger of Tehran’s terrorism.

The safety of these Iranians working towards a free and democratic Iran must be guaranteed. It is a duty of the Coalition and international human rights organizations to certify the safety of this opposition group. It is for this reason that I travelled with a number of the Birmingham families to the rally in London, taking the opportunity to voice my support for this cause.

I met with ICRC officials and highlighted the support that the Iranian opposition has both in Iran and Iraq. I voiced the great concern of a majority of British MPs and over 200 members of the House of Lords who have shown support for Ashraf City and its residents.

In fact, the PMOI has gained the support of over 5.2 million Iraqis who see this group as the single most effective barrier against Tehran’s fundamentalist influence on their nation. More than 70,000 people gathered in Paris on 28 June in support of the Iranian opposition movement and its President-elect Mrs. Maryam Rajavi.

In today’s climate the story of Ashraf and its residents is not only one of humanitarian justice, but also of hope for peace and democracy in Iraq and Iran. The clear message from the Birmingham residents and all others gathered was not only one of personal safety for their families, but for the guarantee of safety for a group that so many see as the only hope for a positive solution to the Iranian crisis.

The United Nations and its Secretary General Ban Ki-moon must now make a pledge to the families of the Ashraf residents that protection of this city will remain fully in the hands of the Coalition and their presence in Iraq cemented under international law.

This would guarantee the safety of an opposition group whose sole aim has been to bring about democracy and freedom in Iran, an aim that must be supported by us all. As the world searches for a solution to ending Iran’s destructive influence it need look no further than Ashraf City. Ashraf and the PMOI can now be the light at the end of a dark 29-year tunnel for the people of Iran.

I know that with the support of the international community this group can bring democracy and freedom to Iran - a conclusion which will not only guarantee the safety of the Iranian people, but a solution which will greatly increase the likelihood for peace in Iraq and the wider Middle East.

I will use a statement famed by the President-elect of the Iranian opposition to conclude - ‘we can and we must’ she exclaimed addressing the 70,000 gathered in June. Now we can and we must support Ashraf City as the single most viable hope for democratic change in Iran.

* Lord King of West Bromwich, from the Labour Party, is a member of the British Parliamentary Committee for Iran Freedom

Blacklist Blues

2008-09-19T21:19:00.001-04:00

The Washington Times
September 19, 2008
James Morrison

A leading member of the British House of Lords is lobbying Congress to protect a disarmed Iranian opposition force now under U.S. detention in Iraq.

Robin Corbett fears that if U.S. troops withdraw from Iraq and turn over the 3,500 detainees in Camp Ashraf to the Iraqi government, pro-Iranian officials in Baghdad will deport many of them, especially the leadership, to Iran and certain death. "There is a real threat, at least to the leadership," he told Embassy Row on Thursday. "Because of Iranian influence [on the Iraqi government], they will turn over the leaders, and there will be a bloodbath."

Mr. Corbett, chairman of Parliamentary Committee for Iran Freedom, said House and Senate members he met this week told him they share his concerns. His committee includes hundreds of members of the House of Lords and House of Commons from all British political parties. It also includes a former home secretary, former solicitor-general and former lord advocate for Scotland.

Mr. Corbett is also building congressional support for his second goal of getting the United States to remove the resistance, known as the People's Mojahedin of Iran, from the terrorist blacklist.

"There is a lot of interest, and a lot of support," he said.

The Clinton administration put them on the terrorist list in 1997 to meet a key Iranian demand when the United States was trying to repair relations with Iran. The U.S. case against the resistance concerns actions in the 1970s, including killing U.S. military personnel and civilian contractors in Iran and supporting the takeover of the U.S. Embassy. Resistance spokesmen attribute those actions to another group with a similar name.

"We bring tighter economic sanctions against Iran [over its nuclear program] on the one hand, and on the other, we shackle the resistance," Mr. Corbett said.

A new law requires the State Department to review all organizations on the terrorist list every five years. The Iranian resistance is due for a review this year. Mr. Corbett hopes congressional pressure will force the State Department to remove them from the list, especially after Britain's highest court this year ordered the British government to remove the resistance from its own terrorist list.

"Look," he added, "I'm not asking [the United States] to organize a parade for them down Pennsylvania Avenue. But [the resistance] are friends of freedom. Take the handcuffs off."

Ahmadinejad foes need a shield

2008-09-17T19:14:00.005-04:00

The Washington Times
By Brian Binley
August 24, 2008

America's Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno will take over the top brass job in Iraq next month while Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards Quds Force continues to train Shi'ite militias to kill Iraqis and Coalition troops.

As Iranian-sponsored violence continues, there remains a powerful force in Iraq with far greater local knowledge than the U.S. military and anti-fundamentalist Islamic roots that has thus far acted as the principal bulwark to complete Iranian domination of Iraq's political landscape.

The People's Mujaheedin of Iran (PMOI), based in Camp Ashraf in Iraq's Diyala Province for more than two decades, is the main democratic opposition movement to the ayatollahs' regime in Tehran.

Following the U.S.-led war in Iraq in 2003, the group voluntarily disarmed and its members confined themselves to Camp Ashraf. From there, they rallied Iraqis of all ethnic and religious backgrounds to take a firm stance against Tehran's expansionist policies in Iraq.

The group has been instrumental in providing intelligence to the West on Iranian meddling and arms transfers fueling the insurgency.

In what U.S. officials admitted at the time was an incentive to the government of then-Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, Washington blacklisted the PMOI a decade ago. The copycat ban was applied in the United Kingdom and the European Union, but the U.K.'s Court of Appeal and the European Court of Justice annulled both designations, describing them as "perverse" and "unlawful."

In Iraq, the PMOI has won significant support, with some 3 million Shi'ites announcing in June that they were backing the group on the grounds that it acts as the strategic counterbalance to Iranian aggression and sponsorship of sectarian strife. Even though the PMOI is a Shi'ite movement, the group is very popular among Iraqi Sunnis who fear their country is facing a second "secret occupation" by Tehran.

Prominent Sunni lawmakers including Saleh Mutlaq and Adnan al-Dulaimi who heads the largest Sunni bloc in Parliament openly support the group's presence in Iraq, noting that the U.S. has designated all PMOI personnel in Ashraf as "protected persons" under the Fourth Geneva Convention, meaning they cannot be extradited or involuntarily displaced within Iraq.

Despite this support, the al-Maliki administration, widely suspected of being infiltrated greatly by allies of the Tehran regime, has said it wants to expel the group from Iraq. This declaration is in breach of international law and the Principle of Non-Refoulement.

Regrettably, Tehran's proxies in the Iraqi government have now stepped up pressure on U.S. forces to end their protection of Ashraf and hand over its control to Iraqi forces. Given the Iraqi government's public calls for the group's expulsion, such a scenario would be in violation of the Geneva Conventions and International Humanitarian Law, as it would undoubtedly lead to the massacre of the brave men and women of Ashraf.

Any hostile action toward the Mujaheedin in Ashraf may convince many Sunni leaders that the United States is impotent to prevent Iranian domination of Iraq and that they must resort to arms to tackle a wider backlash against their citizens. Gen. Odierno would have a tough time bringing such Sunni tribal leaders into official government service.

A crackdown on Ashraf would also tip the balance of power in Iraq mightily in favor of the regime, resulting in extensive repercussions for U.S. troops and overall American strategy in this fledgling democracy.

The Bush administration and any serious contender to fill the presidency should seek to guard Ashraf City against Iranian aggression if only to ensure American and Coalition interests in Iraq and the Middle East.

Brian Binley is a member of Parliament in the United Kingdom from the Conservative Party.

America's tough decision on Iran's dissidents

2008-09-17T19:14:00.003-04:00

The People's Mujahideen of Iran is caught between Iraq and a hard place (Iran)
By John Hughes
The Christian Science Monitor
September 18, 2008

Provo, Utah - In a dusty little enclave about 60 miles north of Baghdad, some 3,800 opponents of the Iranian regime present a difficult problem for the next American president.

The Iranians, members of the People's Mujahideen of Iran (PMOI), who once mounted military operations against the Tehran regime from sanctuary in Saddam Hussein's Iraq, have been disarmed and placed under the protection of American forces since the US invasion of Iraq. To add to the confusion, some Iraqi sources say Iraqi troops have deployed to "protect the camp, not to seize it."

But the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq is now under discussion. With that withdrawal in prospect, Iran is pressing for the fighters, the military arm of the Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran, to be returned to Iran, or at least turned over to the Iraqi government, which it believes would do Tehran's bidding. Understandably, the dissidents fear that either outcome would mean their imprisonment, torture, or death.

Whether it be President McCain or President Obama handling it, the future US relationship with Iran is perhaps the most pressing international issue he will face. The clock is ticking as Iran speeds enrichment of uranium for what it declares is a peaceful civilian nuclear program, but which the US and a substantial number of other nations allege is the pursuit of nuclear-weapons capability. The two candidates have differing views about how to deal with Iran, but both have declared their resolve that Iran should not develop nuclear weaponry.

To hand over the Mujahideen to a cruel fate at the hands of Iran would probably cause an outcry among the American public, and in the US Congress, where the former Iranian fighters have substantial support. Indeed, they are credited by US sources with having provided earlier accurate information about clandestine Iranian nuclear facilities. But not to accede to Tehran's demand to hand them over could hinder any broader negotiations for less tension in the US-Iran relationship.

Refugee status in the US might seem an obvious solution to the problem. But in another bizarre twist, the Iranian Mujahideen members, who are considered "protected persons" under the Geneva Convention by US forces in their "Camp Ashraf" north of Baghdad, are actually listed as a terrorist organization by the US State Department. They allegedly supported the takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979.

British courts and the European Court of Justice have ordered that the PMOI be removed from their respective lists of proscribed organizations.

Standard diplomatic procedure requires the White House to assert that, in the basket of pressure tactics on Iran, military action is always an option. Both presidential candidates have echoed that line. The reality is that both the State Department and the Pentagon know that an airstrike against Iran's nuclear facilities would be a political catastrophe and could not guarantee eliminating some of the facilities buried deep underground. Predictably, the State Department favors diplomacy and has been trying some initiatives of a conciliatory nature. It is trailing in front of the Iranians the prospect of a US Interests Section in Tehran, a step short of an embassy and diplomatic recognition. Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reportedly has said he would welcome this.

Another gesture was the first-time dispatch of a senior US diplomat, Undersecretary of State William Burns, to join six-nation, face-to-face talks with the Iranians. Then, after Mr. Burns had suggested sports exchanges might help rebuild bridges, the Iranian national basketball team was admitted to play NBA teams in Salt Lake City and Dallas. The fate of the Mujahideen may be an unwelcome and untimely issue.

Various Iraqi officials, some allegedly tied to Iran, have since early July been demanding that the Iranian Mujahideen be "expelled" from Iraq within six months. That is an interesting time frame, coinciding as it does with the last months of the Bush administration.

The options confronting President Bush – or his successor if the saga drags out that long – are unenviable. One is to withdraw the protective US military guards from Camp Ashraf, thus turning the Mujahideen over to Iraqi forces, and probably to the hands of Iran. That would fly in the face of a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees ruling regarding the protection of individuals who face serious risks if returned to their country of origin.

The other option would be to transport the Mujahideen to refuge in the US. That would require another decision: abandoning their designation as terrorists. Some who favor this argue that if North Korea can be considered for delistment, why not the Iranian Mujahideen?

It is a decision that pits principle, humanitarianism, and national self-interest against one another.

• John Hughes, a former editor of the Monitor, served as assistant secretary of state in the Reagan administration. He is currently a professor of communications at Brigham Young University.

Free Iran

2008-09-17T19:14:00.000-04:00

The Washington Times
September 17, 2008

Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama criticizes the war in Iraq, saying, "Iran, which always posed a greater threat to Israel than Iraq, is emboldened and poses the greatest strategic challenge to the United States and Israel in the Middle East in a generation."

Would premature withdrawal of U.S. forces - set by an arbitrary timetable - pave the way for Iran's greater influence in Iraq and the region or a lesser one?

Mr. Obama's Web site suggests that "we have not exhausted our non-military options...; in many ways, we have yet to try them." His site also says "we will offer [Iran] incentives like membership in the World Trade Organization, economic investments, and a move toward normal diplomatic relations."

Do Iran's rulers seek nuclear bombs, export Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism, take American diplomats hostage and help bomb U.S. bases in Lebanon just to push for normalizing relations and joining WTO?

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is clear: "The political power of the occupiers [of Iraq] is being destroyed rapidly, and very soon we will be witnessing a great power vacuum in the region... We... are ready to fill this void."

What's the danger of endless negotiations? Could Iran use the opportunity to work on building the bomb and wait out the departure of U.S. forces from Iraq?

Religious fascism is no less a global threat than Hitler's Nazism. Would we have advised British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain to use more incentives, more negotiations? Today, the military option is preventable. The United States should continue protecting Iranian freedom fighters in Ashraf, Iraq. It's time to support the People's Mujahedin Organization of Iran, capable of ending the mullahs' rule - a change we can believe in.

DR. SEYED SAJADI
Overland Park, Kan.

Swiss Greens call on the ICRC on behalf of Iranian opponents in exile in Iraq

2008-09-12T19:14:00.002-04:00

Friday, 12 September 2008

Geneva (ATS) - The Greens party parliamentary group supported the families of Iranian opposition in Iraq. It called on the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) to intervene to protect opponents, threatened with deportation by the authorities in Baghdad.

In a letter addressed to President of the ICRC, Jakob Kellenberger, the Greens parliamentary group expresses great concern about the situation of refugees
in the Iranian city of Ashraf, north-east of Baghdad.

Some 3500 opponents of the Iranian regime have been refugees since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, under the protection of U.S. forces. The Iraqi authorities call for the transfer of control of Camp Ashraf to the Iraqi security forces. Iranian opposition fears that Baghdad, at the request of Tehran, expels them to Iran.

Humanitarian law
"Under the international humanitarian law, residents of Ashraf can neither be extradited to Iran nor deported from Iraq, nor displaced inside the Iraqi territory, " says the letter, signed by the president of Greens parliamentary group, Therese Frösch.

"In order to protect theses people, we ask the ICRC to do its utmost to ensure that the Ashraf region remains under the control of the multinational forces,"
Swiss Greens continued.

The ICRC said that it is in contact with all parties in this case. The residents of Ashraf are protected by provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Some fifty representatives of families of Iranian opposition have held a daily sit-in since August 25 outside the UN in Geneva.

Iraq Expels Anti-Iranian Group

2008-09-12T19:14:00.001-04:00

theTrumpet.com
September 12, 2008

An Iranian opposition group that has sought refuge in Iraq for more than 20 years has been ordered by the Iraqi government to leave the country.

The Shiite-dominated Iraqi Interior Ministry announced September 1 that members of the Iranian opposition group Mujahideen-e-Khalq (MeK) has six months to leave Camp Ashraf, the U.S. camp in Iraq where approximately 3,360 members of the group are currently being held. The Saudi daily al Riyadh reported September 3 that the United States and Iran had agreed to hand over members of the MeK (also known as the People’s Mujahideen Organization of Iran) to Iraqi authorities.

While Iraq wants this group out of the country, it is Iran that is behind the move to expel the MeK from Iraq. Tehran views the MeK—whose goal is to replace Iran’s Islamist theocracy with a secular regime—as a terrorist group. The U.S.’s protection of the group has been a major obstacle in U.S.-Iranian negotiations over Iraq. America—which has been a longtime ally of the MeK—has now caved in to Iran’s demands. At the same time, the U.S. administration has become relatively silent in its criticism of Iran, indicating a final deal between Iran and the U.S. on the future of Iraq may be drawing closer.

Meanwhile, “By essentially selling out the MeK,” Stratfor reports, “the United States risks sending the wrong message to its current allies” (September 4). The U.S. is increasingly finding itself in such a position—as recently seen in its lack of support for Georgia. As America increasingly loses power and prestige on the world stage and its military forces continue to be overstretched, we can expect it to become less and less reliable as an ally. This will push former allies to desert the U.S. and look to other nations for support and protection.

French groups calls for PMOI protection

2008-09-12T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
September 12, 2008

PARIS, Sept. 12 (UPI) -- A French human-rights group called on U.S. forces in Iraq to maintain security operations around the enclave of an Iranian dissident group in Diyala province.
The French International Human Rights League, or FIDH, called on the U.S. military to “commit publicly” to securing the People's Mujahedin of Iran in their safe haven in Ashraf City or pledge not to forcibly expel the group to another country where they may face prosecution.

The PMOI is labeled a terrorist organization by several countries, including the United States, for its activity in Iraq under the previous regime. It seeks the overthrow of the current Iranian leadership.

“FIDH calls on the Iraqi authorities and the U.S.A. to commit publicly that they will not forcibly send the (PMOI) back to Iran, where their security and their life would be in danger, and where they would hardly benefit from the right to a fair trial,” the statement said.

FIDH President Souhayr Belhassen said the human-rights record in Iran puts residents of Ashraf at a significant risk if they were deported to Iran. The PMOI is the main organization of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, which was founded in Tehran in 1981.

“A long-term solution must be found to ensure their protection,” she added.

White House Rally for Camp Ashraf

2008-09-11T19:14:00.000-04:00

Arkansas Democrat Gazette
September 11, 2008

WASHINGTON NEWS IN BRIEF
By Alex Daniels

Hooshang Nazarali, a store owner in Crosses, in Madison County, was in Washington on Monday to draw attention to the treatment of Iranian nationals held in Iraq.

Nazarali, who came to the United States from Iran in 1977, before that country's Islamic revolution, marched with about 1,000 fellow demonstrators around the White House and listened to speeches in Lafayette Park, across the street from the presidential residence.

Between 3,000 and 4,000 members of the Muhajadine Khalq (the Muslim Iranian Student's Society, or MEK) Organization, which advocates the overthrow of the Iranian regime, are being held in Ashraf, a large protected compound in Iraq. The group is on the State Department's list of terrorist organizations.

Currently, the Iranians in Ashraf are under U.S. jurisdiction and are protected under the Geneva Conventions.

Nazarali warned that if Iraq were to take over the compound, they would send them over the Iranian border where they would likely be "slaughtered." He argued that the State Department should remove the MEK from its list of terrorist organizations.

"They're the only group that's stood up to the Iranian government," he said.

Protesters fear for Iranian dissidents in Iraq

2008-09-09T19:14:00.008-04:00

Hundreds rally at the White House against U.S. plans to give control of a dissident camp to Iraq. They believe members of the militant opposition group Mujahedin Khalq could be sent back to Iran.
The Los Angeles Times
By Cynthia Dizikes
September 9, 2008

WASHINGTON — Hundreds of people rallied outside the White House on Monday to protest U.S. plans to give the Iraqi government control of a camp housing Iranian dissidents, a step they said could lead to a humanitarian disaster.

The demonstrators, who included about 200 Iranian Americans from California, said the move would put camp residents in danger of being expelled to Iran, where they could face torture and death.

“I am terrified of what will happen to those living in the camp,” said Babak Dadvan of Woodland Hills. The activists, who waved green, white and red Iranian flags and chanted into portable microphones, have traditionally supported the Bush administration's hard-line approach toward Iran. But at Monday's rally, there was plenty of criticism for the U.S. government.

“It is not fair,” said Mojtaba Rassi of San Diego. “The American government has an obligation to protect these people. They can't just leave them and go.”

The United States has guarded Camp Ashraf, about 40 miles north of Baghdad, since 2003. The camp houses more than 3,000 members of the Iranian rebel group Mujahedin Khalq, which agreed to disarm in exchange for protection.

Although the group, also referred to as the MEK, is considered a terrorist organization in the U.S., Iraq and much of Europe, its members in Camp Ashraf are protected under the Geneva Convention, which bans extradition or forced repatriation of people who could face torture, persecution or death.

“Whenever somebody is transferred or repatriated, the authority in charge should make sure the person is going on his or her own free will,” said Dorothea Krimitsas, a spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross, one of several human rights groups following the situation.

But harboring members of the MEK, which is the largest Iranian opposition group, poses a difficult situation for officials in Baghdad, who regularly talk with their Iranian counterparts.

Last week, Iraqi government spokesman Ali Dabbagh announced the government's “intention to impose full sovereignty over the area of Camp Ashraf.” It will “deal with members of the organization in a humane way according to existing international laws,” he said.

Those who rallied near the White House were skeptical.

“Here is the problem,” said Alireza Jafarzadeh, a well-known Iranian dissident who heads a national security consulting firm in Washington. “Once the U.S. forces leave, this would invite Tehran to attack Camp Ashraf, which they have not done up until now because they would be attacking America. But once the U.S. moves out, it's a totally different ballgame.”

U.S. forces are preparing for a gradual transfer of security at the camp, but a specific date has not been set, according to Navy Lt. Patrick Evans, a Multi-National Force spokesman.

“We have received assurances from the government of Iraq that the residents of Camp Ashraf will be treated humanely,” he said. “We will continue to engage closely with the government of Iraq on this issue.”

The State Department designated the MEK a terrorist organization in 1997 for its role in the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, assassination of U.S. military personnel and civilians, and other acts of violence. According to a 2007 State Department report, it was also allegedly involved in Saddam Hussein's 1991 massacre of Iraqi Shiites and Kurds.

This May, however, the British government officially removed the group from its terrorist list, saying it could find no evidence that the group had engaged in or claimed responsibility for acts of violence since 2001 or 2002.

O.C. Iranian-Americans demonstrate at White House

2008-09-09T19:14:00.007-04:00

Families of dissidents living in Iraq fear for their safety.
The Orange County Register
September 9, 2008

By DENA BUNIS

WASHINGTON – Shadi and Melissa Zolgalal were seven and eight-years old when their parents sent them to the United States rather than have them mixed up in their fight to overthrow the Iranian regime.

But the two young women flew from Orange County to the nation’s Capitol Sunday and today stood in the hot sun across from the White House and demand that the U.S. government continue to protect their family and thousands of other Iranian exiles living in Camp Ashraf in Iraq.

“We want to make sure they're going to be protected and not turned over to Iran because we know then they'll all be executed,” Shadi Zolgalal, 24, said. She held a red, white and green Persian flag in her hand while Melissa, 23, waved a royal blue and yellow flag with the symbol of the Mujahedeen Khalq, known as MEK. The MEK fought against the Shah of Iran and its members have been living in exile after the Islamic fundamentalists began their rule of the country.

An estimated 3,500 dissidents live in Ashraf, which had been an armed camp until 2003 when in exchange for a promise of U.S. military protection, the MEK disarmed. Recently there have been news reports in Iraq that the U.S. government will turn over control of Ashraf to Iraqi forces. And American supporters of MEK say that could mean a death sentence for the dissidents.

The U.S. Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents organized today’s rally in Lafayette Park. They drew some curious lunchtime passersby but their goal was not to draw a crowd, said Nasser Sharif of Newport Beach, who is an organizer for the California Society of Dissidents in Iran. They wanted media exposure.

“We’re trying to bring more attention to this issue so that the U.S. government will keep protecting them,” Sharif said. “Many of the family members living in Orange County and in the L.A. area are worried we're going to have another disaster on our hands.”

The Zolgalals e-mail their father and older sister who live in Ashraf. Shadi and Melissa Zolgalal haven’t were sent to America for their own safety, they said, and haven’t seen their family since.

“It's very insecure there although they are trying to be very cheerful. They have a hard time getting food in there,” Shadi Zolgalal said. The answer, the two sisters said, is not for their family to come to the United States or flee Iraq.

“They went there (to Iraq) because their main goal has been to free our country from this regime. They want a country like this one. Everybody should have the freedom we have here,” Shadi Zolgalal said.

The MEK has long been on the U.S. list of terrorist organizations, something Washington lawyer Steven Schneebaum told the crowd of Iranian-Americans he is trying to get reversed. Several members of Congress have lobbied the Bush administration to take the group off the list as well.

“The people of Ashraf are not terrorists and they voluntarily disarmed in 2003,'' Schneebaum said. He said the Iranian frontier is less than 100 miles from the camp and that the U.S. must live up to its obligation to protect them.

Rep. Ed Royce said after meeting with Iranian Americans in his Fullerton district he has gotten assurances from the State Department that they are doing all they can to make sure Ashraf residents are not sent back to Iran.

“We’re going to keep the pressure on to make certain that no one is returned to Iran who does not want to be,” said Royce, who is not yet convinced that the MEK should be removed from the terrorist list.

Royce also believes that over time “Camp Ashraf will slowly dissolve,” with some residents moving back to Iran and others becoming part of the larger Iraqi society. He said State Department officials tell him the population of the camp is decreasing over time.

White House officials had no comment on today’s rally.

Many of the protestors at today's rally will take their cause to Capitol Hill this week. Sharif said they will go to-do-door and try and talk to members of Congress to help them in their cause.

The Zolgalals said they have gone to House members in Orange County who have been sympathetic.

Melissa Zolgalal said she’s worried that Ashraf will become a political football as European and U.S. officials negotiate with Iran over the issue of nuclear weapons.

“Everybody needs to be aware that you don’t negotiate with a regime that’s the biggest terrorists in the world,'' she said.

“It’s not fair,” Shadi Zolgalal Oglala added. “These are people. They are being tossed back and forth as if they have no meaning.”

Call For Help

2008-09-09T19:14:00.006-04:00

U.S. may transfer Iranian refugees to Iraq

2008-09-09T19:14:00.005-04:00

The Washington Times
By Jon Ward
September 09, 2008

This isn't what the supporters of Iranian dissidents and refugees wanted to hear: the White House appears to be leaning towards transferring control of Camp Ashraf, a refugee camp inside Iraq, to the government in Baghdad.

“The United States is consulting with the Iraqi government concerning the ongoing transfer of security responsibility to Iraq and the expiration of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1790,” said a White House official, who spoke to the Washington Times on the condition of anonymity.

“The Iraqi government has given us its assurances that it would treat the residents of Camp Ashraf humanely in accordance with the Iraqi constitution, local laws, and international obligation,” the White House official said.

That will be no comfort to the hundreds of people who rallied in front of the White House yesterday, to call on President Bush to continue U.S. protection of Camp Ashraf instead of handing it over to the Iraqis.

About 3,500 members of the People's Mojahedin of Iran (PMOI), the main Iranian opposition party, are in exile inside Camp Ashraf.

Before the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, Camp Ashraf was self-sufficient and not threatened by the Sunni-run government. But the new government is led by Shiite Muslims, just like the regime in Tehran, and Ashraf residents fear that Baghdad may help the Iranians go after dissidents.

Iran has stepped up pressure on the Iraqi government to expel dissidents from the camp and send them back to Iran, PMOI says.

The White House official said they had no information that Tehran is seeking to “repatriate” Camp Ashraf residents to iran. But in the same breath, the official said that that Washington is seeking assurances “that any repatriation would fully comply with international standards.”

In 2003, PMOI handed over its weapons to the U.S. military and accepted its protection. The U.S. government in 2004 recognized Ashraf residents as protected persons under the Geneva Conventions.

An organizer with the U.S. Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents (USCCAR) said that they do not know what the long-term solution is, but that while U.S. forces are in Iraq, they should be the ones protecting Ashraf.

Iranians seek U.S. help for dissidents in Iraq

2008-09-09T19:14:00.000-04:00

San Diego Union-Tribune
By Paul M. Krawzak
September 9, 2008

Iranian immigrants from San Diego County joined others from across the nation yesterday, taking to the streets of Washington, D.C., to warn of a humanitarian catastrophe if the United States gives up protection of Iranian dissidents in Iraq.

San Diego residents such as Amir Emadi fear that a deal is in the works to transfer control of Camp Ashraf, a protected enclave near Baghdad, from the U.S. military to the Iraqi government.

“If that were to happen, considering the presence of and influence of agents of the Iranian regime in Iraq, our loved ones will not see the light of day,” he said.

Emadi, a legal U.S. resident who is studying at San Diego State University, has parents and other relatives living in the camp.

American troops have protected the site since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. But now, U.S. officials are in discussion with the Iraqi government to transfer security to the Iraqis.

Iraq's leaders have threatened for more than a year to expel the dissidents, who said they face certain torture or execution if returned to Iran.

Efforts to seek comment from a representative of the Iranian government were unsuccessful.

The camp dates back to the 1980s, when the People's Mujaheddin of Iran, or MEK, sought refuge under President Saddam Hussein in Iraq. The organization, which seeks to overthrow the fundamentalist regime in Iran, has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States since 1997.

But U.S. military officials said the group has provided valuable intelligence on Iranian efforts to develop nuclear weapons and target American troops in Iraq.

Residents of the camp voluntarily gave up their weapons to U.S. forces in 2003. The next year, the U.S. military declared the group “protected persons” under the Geneva Conventions.

As demonstrators waved MEK flags, held up signs and marched yesterday, Homa Salehi pulled out her wallet.

Salehi, a floral designer in San Diego, showed a picture of a nephew who lives in Camp Ashraf.

“We are asking the United States to continue the protection of Ashraf,” she said.

Several congressmen have taken up the group's cause, including Rep. Bob Filner, D-San Diego.

Last month, Filner warned Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, that transferring control of the camp to the Iraqi government “would be an obvious breach of U.S. obligations under international law.”

He said if governance changed hands, residents of the camp “would become a target of Iranian-sponsored aggression, violence and slaughter.”

Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, also has expressed concern.

Hunter “will encourage U.S. negotiators from the executive branch to address the status of those dissidents with their Iraqi counterparts,” his spokesman said.

2008-09-08T19:14:00.005-04:00

Supporters of Iranian dissident group rally across from White House, seek US protection

2008-09-08T19:14:00.004-04:00

Associated Press
September 8, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) - Supporters of an Iranian dissident group based in Iraq held a rally outside the White House.

Backers of the People's Mujahedeen Organization of Iran, or Mujahedeen Khalq, are asking for U.S. protection of the dissidents in Iraq. They claim the members face persecution if sent back to Iran.

Activists say about 3,500 members remain at Camp Ashraf, their base northeast of Baghdad which is managed by U.S.-led multinational forces.

Mahie Shaikh (Shayk) of Dallas cried as she spoke about her concern for her parents and relatives who live at the camp. She said Iranian authorities executed 2 of her uncles, and she worries about what would happen if her family is returned to Iran.

The Khalq allied with Saddam Hussein during the bitter 1980s war between Iran and Iraq. It has opposed Iran's Islamic republic and has operated out of Iraq.

U.S.-led troops disarmed the group after the U.S. 2003 invasion. The U.S. lists the group as a terrorist organization.

Iranian dissidents rally in D.C.

2008-09-08T19:14:00.003-04:00

CNN
September 8, 2008

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Several hundred people loyal to a prominent Iranian opposition group rallied Monday in a park across from the White House, saying a death sentence for thousands of dissident Iranians would result if the United States relinquishes security control of their refugee camp in Iraq.

But the State Department considers their group a terrorist organization, and Iraq’s leadership has said it eventually plans to exile the 3,500 refugees. Nonetheless, organizers with the People’s Mujahedeen Organization of Iran (PMOI) say the United States is obligated under the Geneva accords to protect the camp as long as American forces are in Iraq.

“If the Iranian regime puts enough pressure on the Iraqi government, if protection is handed over, it would for sure incite a humanitarian disaster,” said Ana Sami, a rally spokeswoman.

Supporters of Iranian opposition rally in DC

2008-09-08T19:14:00.002-04:00

Associated Press
By NAFEESA SYEED
September 8, 2008

WASHINGTON — Supporters of an Iranian dissident group rallied Monday outside the White House, calling on the U.S. to protect its members based in Iraq.

Several hundred people marched around Lafayette Square, holding blue and yellow flags of the People's Mujahedeen Organization of Iran, or Mujahedeen Khalq. They chanted slogans demanding the U.S. support their members, claiming they face persecution if sent back to Iran.

Organizers say about 3,500 members remain at Camp Ashraf, their base northeast of Baghdad, which is managed by U.S.-led multinational forces. They fear Iran is pressuring Iraq to take control of the site from the U.S., which could lead Iraq to expel Khalq members from the country.

Supporters say Iran has already targeted the camp by firing weapons and kidnapping members.

The Washington-based U.S. Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents, which sponsored the rally, says about 2,000 took part in the march. Organizers say participants came from more than a dozen states, including Virginia and California.

The Khalq allied with Saddam Hussein during a bitter 1980s war between Iran and Iraq. The group has opposed Iran's Islamic republic and has operated out of Iraq.

Mahie Shaikh of Dallas cried as she spoke about her concern for her parents and relatives who live at the camp. She said Iranian authorities executed two of her uncles, and she worries about what would happen if her family is returned to Iran.

"It's important for them to be protected ... they're the only true resistance to the Iranian regime," Shaikh said.

U.S.-led troops disarmed the group following the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. Proponents say members of the camp have been recognized by the U.S. as "protected persons" under the Fourth Geneva Convention since 2004, which bars extradition or forced repatriation to Iran while U.S.-led multinational forces remain in Iraq.

But activists face a major hurdle with the Khalq's designation by the U.S. as a terrorist organization. In June, the Iraqi government also banned any dealings with the group, and said those who violate the order will face charges under the anti-terror law.

Backers filed a petition in July requesting the State Department revoke the group's terrorist status, according to Steven M. Schneebaum, a Washington attorney for U.S.-based supporters. They also point to Amnesty International and other non-governmental organizations that speak out against transferring authority of the camp to Iraq as proof that their cause is legitimate.

At Monday's rally, Hamid Azimi of Berkeley, Calif., held a photo of a relative who lives at the camp. Though the Khalq is a political group, he considers their current situation a humanitarian issue.

"We are definitely worried about the fate of these people," he said.

Iranians rally at White House

2008-09-08T19:14:00.001-04:00

The Washington Post
Jon Ward
September 8, 2008

Several hundred people rallied today in front of the White House to call on the U.S. military not to hand over control to the Iraqi government of a refugee camp that is home to Iranian dissidents.

“U.S. take action! Ensure Ashraf protection,” the rally-goers chanted, marching down Pennsylvania Avenue with signs and flags.

They held signs that said, “Stop Tehran's plan to massacre Ashraf residents.”

At the rally in Lafayette Park speakers urged the Bush administration to keep Camp Ashraf, which is 60 miles from Baghdad and 50 miles from the Iranian border, under U.S. military control.

About 3,500 members of the People's Mojahedin of Iran (PMOI), the main Iranian opposition party, are in exile inside Camp Ashraf.

But Iran has stepped up pressure on the Iraqi government to expel dissidents from the camp and send them back to Iran.

Camp Ashraf has existed since the mid-1980's, and was an independent entity inside Iraq under dictator Saddam Hussein, who was a Sunni Muslim unfriendly to the Shiite-led Iranians.

After the U.S. invasion of Iraq, PMOI handed over its weapons to the U.S. military and accepted its protection. The U.S. government in 2004 recognized Ashraf residents as protected persons under the Geneva Convention.

But Iraq is now led by a Shiite-dominated government, however, and many advocates and family members of those inside Ashraf now fear that with the Bush administration readying itself to hand over control of large parts of Iraq, Ashraf may be overlooked or cast aside.

“I have faith that they know the right thing to do, but it can go either way, and that's the scary part,” said Afagh Azadeh, 21, a senior at Marymount University, whose mother, Sudahbeh, is a resident of Ashraf.

An organizer with the U.S. Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents (USCCAR) said that they do not know what the long-term solution is, but that while U.S. forces are in Iraq, they should be the ones protecting Ashraf.

European Parliament expresses concern over human rights violations and PMOI security

2008-09-07T19:14:00.002-04:00

September 07, 2008

NCRI – The European Parliament (EP) expressed deep concern over human right violations in Iran especially execution of juveniles on Thursday.

The MEPs also are concerned over the fate of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) safety and security in Ashraf City, Iraq.
"Having regard to the Declaration of 29 July, 2008, by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on the execution of 29 people in Evin prison in Iran,

Having regard to Council declaration of 25 August 2008 on the execution by hanging of Reza Hejazi, Having regard to the statement of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union on the imminent execution of Behnood Shojaee and of Bahman Soleimanian on 19 and 28 August 2008," the final statement said.

With regards to 3,500 PMOI members is Ashraf facing plots by the mullahs' regime, the EP said," whereas there is reason for concern that members and associates of the Iranian opposition who are regrouped and protected in Camp Ashraf in Northern Iraq by US-led Multinational Forces under Art. 27 of the IV Geneva Convention are under threat of being expelled or forcibly returned to Iran, where they could face heavy persecution and possibly even the death penalty."
Representatives of the EU parliaments added in their observation of the risks facing residents of Ashraf emphasized, "Iraqi and US authorities not to forcibly return to Iran any Iranian opposition members, refugees and asylum seekers who would be at serious risk of persecution and to notably work together with the UNHCR and others to find a satisfactory long term solution to the situation of those currently in Camp Ashraf."

Iranian Americans target expulsion

2008-09-07T19:14:00.000-04:00

By Susan Ferriss
Sunday, September 7, 2008

Members of California's large Iranian population will go to Washington, D.C., on Monday, to protest the possible deportation to Iran of thousands of brethren who've been in exile in Iraq for years.

Up to 200 Iranians from Northern California who oppose Iran's Islamic regime and support an Iraqi-based dissident group could join the demonstration, according to Sacramento-based Iranian Americans who are going.

"They will be killed if sent back to Iran," said Fred Dastamalchi, a state Transportation Department engineer in Sacramento. He was speaking of an estimated 3,500 people who are confined to a compound called Camp Ashraf in Iraq, and whose fate depends on what Iraq and U.S.-led coalition forces do.

An exile who is now a U.S. citizen, Dastamalchi has a cousin who lives in Camp Ashraf, 60 miles north of Baghdad. The inhabitants are guarded by U.S. troops, but the camp is expected to be relinquished to Iraqi control later this year. The Iraqi government has said it wants to eject the Iranians, whom it blames for meddling in the nation's affairs.

The Iranian dissidents in Iraq are known as the Mujahedeen Khalq, or MEK, a group that opposed the shah of Iran, joined the 1979 revolution against him and whose members fled to Iraq or other countries after the Islamic fundamentalists turned against the more secular MEK.

The MEK, which was once an armed group, has long been on the U.S. list of terrorist organizations. Recently, some in Congress have lobbied for the U.S. government to take the MEK off the terrorist list and embrace it as an ally against the fundamentalist Iranian regime.

One of the MEK's most ardent champions is Rep. Tom Tancredo, Colorado's anti-illegal immigrant crusader, who has said the MEK can serve as "warriors" against Iran.

The MEK's presence in Iraq goes back a generation, after members settled there and collaborated with Saddam Hussein, who fought a war against Iran in the 1980s. Saddam gave the MEK Camp Ashraf, which they used to launch attacks across the border in Iran.

After the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, the MEK dissidents gave up their weapons and now live under U.S. guard to protect them from retaliation by Iraqis who resent them.

While the MEK enjoys support among some of the nearly 700,000 Iranian Americans in the United States – the vast majority in California – many Iranian Americans are strong critics of the group.

Trita Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council in Washington, D.C., said the council will not join protests Monday and has no position on the event.

However, speaking on his own behalf, not the council's, Parsi said he believes something must be done to avoid a humanitarian crisis.

Amnesty International and other rights groups also urge that the dissidents not be forced to return to Iran.

"But there are equal concerns about the people in the camp remaining there (in Iraq)," Parsi said, because of reports that many people are held against their will and want to leave the camp.

Human Rights Watch, among other humanitarian groups, has documented former MEK supporters saying they endured abusive, cult-like conditions under leaders who forced them to divorce spouses and give up their children.

Hamid Yazdanpanah, 22, who grew up in the Bay Area and is a student at the University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento, said his aunt is in the camp, of her own free will, and that his family fears for her safety.

Iran's fundamentalist government "shattered" his family, Yazdanpanah said, killing some and forcing others, including his parents, to flee, first to Pakistan and then the United States. He believes in the MEK, and sees the group as a leader in the fight against Iran's regime.

However, he said, right now he's concerned that the United States ensure that people in Camp Ashraf receive the protection from torture and death due to them under international law.

"Our main concern is a humanitarian concern," said Yazdanpanah.

The deafening silence on Iran

2008-09-06T19:14:00.001-04:00

Stratfor
September 6, 2008

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, visiting Libya, said that Iran and North Korea should emulate Libya’s example. What she meant by that was, like Libya, they should reach an accommodation with the United States while abandoning policies that the United States opposes.

That seems like a fairly uninteresting statement, except for the fact that Iran was mentioned. We have heard nothing from the Bush administration on Iran since before the war in Georgia – although a State Department official told us on September 4 that the last official statement was issued by the US Treasury on August 12. Certainly, the constant barrage of comments by the Bush administration on the Iranian threat has decreased dramatically. Frankly, while there might have been passing mentions, the administration appears to have simply dropped the subject.

The silence is, of course, enormously significant.

Prior to August 8, the focus of the United States was on Iran. The United States was warning Iran that the deadline for delivering an answer on freezing nuclear development had passed, and the United States was now going to ask its partners in dealing with Iran – the permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany – to impose sanctions. Obviously, Russia was part of that group and, equally obviously, it was in no mood to work with the United States on placing sanctions. The Russians have said that they do not see sanctions in general as a desirable strategy. With the Russians out of the picture, the sanctions won’t work anyway. You can’t have a dam with a section missing.

That made the negotiations and the sanctions strategy moot. What strikes us as extraordinary is that the Bush administration has not returned to discussing Iran and outlining a new strategy or making new threats. The administration simply has acted as if a major confrontation with Iran had not been under way just prior to the Russo-Georgian war and, indeed, has acted as if Iran was not a major issue, which it obviously was and continues to be. The American media have not been particularly aggressive in demanding that the administration explain the relative silence on Iran, and the administration has not raised it.

All this becomes more interesting with confirmation that an anti-Iranian group – Mujahideen-e-Khalq (MeK) – had been ordered by the Iraqi government to leave Iraq, amid accusations that it had been involved with al Qaeda. The MeK has been a major issue between Iran and the United States. The Iranian position has been that while the Americans demand that Iran pull its support for Hezbollah, the United States is itself supporting an anti-Iranian terrorist group. The reports appear to be true, since supporters of the MeK demonstrated in the United States today protesting the expulsion from Iraq.

It is unlikely that the Iraqis decided to do this unilaterally. The United States had to have supported this. It is understandable why the United States would not want its fingerprints on this, since the MeK has been a longtime ally, and this change of policy would leave other longtime allies nervous. Still, it is happening. And that means that the Americans have given in to a long-standing demand of the Iranians.

There are rumours that the United States and Iran have signed a document concerning the MeK – which is something we find hard to believe, and the sources aren’t great. There is also a report from a pretty good Stratfor source who is in a position to know that a meeting is scheduled between US Vice President Dick Cheney and unnamed Iranian officials at Italy’s Lake Como later this week. We are not saying that we know that a meeting is taking place; we are saying only that we have received rumours about this meeting. But there are many such rumours in the region at the moment. It should be noted that there are such rumours whenever a senior American and Iranian official are within 50 miles of each other.

Given that, we still note three things.

First, the United States has gone silent on Iran for the first time in a very long time.

Second, the United States engineered or did not prevent the expulsion of the MeK from Iraq – which is a substantial concession to Iran.

Third, unlike Syria, Iranian leaders have not gone to Moscow since the end of the war with Georgia and have been fairly subdued on the matter.

One geopolitical option now is a deal with Iran. We do not know whether one is in the works, but we know this: the rhetoric from Washington on Iran has quieted since the Russo-Georgian war and has stayed quiet. And the United States has made a major concession to Iran this week.

The media have lost interest in Iran, but it is hard to believe the Bush administration has.

Yet the rhetoric has shifted. We do not think the United States is on the brink of attacking Iran. If the Americans were planning an attack on Iran, the last thing they would do is pull the MeK back. So something is up.

Trip to D.C. rally Monday

2008-09-06T19:14:00.000-04:00

Staten Island Advance
September 6, 2008

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Staten Islanders concerned about the human rights of an Iranian opposition group based in Iraq are invited to travel to a rally in Washington, D.C., Monday.

First United Christian Church in Tompkinsville is spearheading the effort to raise awareness of the situation at Camp Ashraf in Iraq, home to 3,500 members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran.

The residents of the camp are recognized as "protected persons" under the Geneva Convention. The camp's security is overseen by the U.S. led multinational force in Iraq.

Concerns have arisen over suggestions that oversight would be turned over to the Iranian-influenced Iraqi security forces. Supporters believe the transfer of oversight would be a death sentence to residents.

"These people need our help," said the Rev. Lloyd Land, assistant pastor of First United Christian Church in Tompkinsville. "Any time there's a humanitarian situation, we try to help out."

Cars will leave the church, located at 109 Victory Blvd., at 5 a.m. Monday. Call 718-981-4828 for information.

Massacre feared if Iranians in Iraq handed over

2008-09-05T19:14:00.000-04:00

Reuters
Fri 5 Sep 2008
By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United States risks a Srebrenica-style massacre if its forces in Iraq hand over responsibility for more than 3,000 exiled opposition Iranians to Iraqi authorities, an international lawyers' group has said.

The International Committee of Jurists in Defence of Ashraf said the Iranians would be in danger as pro-Shi'ite elements of Iraq's government close to Tehran could expel them to Iran.

Camp Ashraf, 70 km (40 miles) north of Baghdad, has housed Iranian refugees and the exiled opposition People's Mujahideen Organisation of Iran (PMOI) for two decades. U.S. forces who toppled President Saddam Hussein have protected it since 2003.

But the residents' fate hangs in the balance as U.S. forces negotiate the transfer of territory to Iraq's government, which says PMOI is a terrorist group, the Paris-based committee said.

“We fear we will end up with a situation like Srebrenica,” said Marc Henzelin, a committee member who visited Ashraf last month, told a news briefing on Thursday.

“It is like putting foxes in charge of protecting the chicken coop. We don't want to have a massacre which is foretold,” the Swiss lawyer added.

He was referring to the Bosnian enclave of Srebrenica, where Bosnian Serbs killed 8,000 Muslim men and boys in 1995.

“PROTECTED PERSONS”
Amnesty International has urged Iraq and the United States to treat the PMOI as “protected persons” under the Fourth Geneva Convention, and not deport them to Iran. The 1949 pact bans extradition or forced repatriation of people who could face torture or persecution.

Expelling the Iranian rebel group, also known as Mujahadeen e-Khalq (MEK), has been one of Tehran's main demands.

Iraqi authorities want to “eradicate, to disband this resistance movement to the Iranian regime” and were “slowly taking control of Ashraf camp like a python”, Henzelin said.

On Monday, Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh announced Baghdad's “intention to impose its full sovereignty in the Ashraf camp area in Diyala province, which includes elements of the Khalq Iranian organisation”.

Iraq would work with humanitarian agencies to resolve their fate, he said. It did not plan to force Ashraf residents out of Iraq but did want them to leave the country.

The residents' families have protested outside the United Nations in Geneva all week, demanding humanitarian groups' help.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) visited Ashraf in August for the first time since 2003, reminding all sides of the principle of no forced returns, a spokeswoman said.

The U.N. refugee agency says the Ashraf residents do not fall under its protection mandate until they agree to lay down arms and uniforms, and denounce armed struggle.

Over the years, some 200 residents have done so, but it has been hard to find countries of asylum for those granted refugee status due to their background, a UNHCR spokeswoman said.

The PMOI began as a leftist-Islamist opposition to the late shah of Iran but fell out with Shi'ite clerics who took power after the 1979 Islamic revolution. It is also banned as a terrorist group in the United States and the European Union.

Francois Serres, committee executive director, said Ashraf had endured “a lot of attacks carried out by Iran's regime”.

These included the kidnapping of two residents in 2005, the deadly bombing of a workers' bus in May 2006, and the bombing of a water station in February 2008, the French lawyer said.

“We will continue our action so that clear action is taken to maintain protection of the population,” he said.

(Additional reporting by Missy Ryan in Baghdad; editing by Elizabeth Piper)

Iranian Sources To Saudi Daily: Iran, U.S. Signed Agreement On Mojahedeen-e Khalq

2008-09-03T19:14:00.000-04:00

MEMRI
September 3, 2008

Iranian sources have told the Saudi daily Al-Riyadh that the transfer of control over the centers of the Iranian opposition organization Mojahedeen-e Khalq to the Iraqi government was carried out in the framework of a secret agreement signed recently between Iran and the U.S.

In the framework of the agreement, the U.S. sought to clarify to Iran that its presence in Iraq was not aimed against the Iranian regime.

Source: Al-Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, September 3, 2008

Iraq will not expel Iranian exiles

2008-09-02T19:14:00.001-04:00

Iraqi daily Azzaman
September 2, 2008

Iraq has no intention of expelling Iranian exiles from its territory despite its strong objection to their presence, a senior Interior Ministry official said.

“The government will deal with the elements of Mujahideen Khalq Organization in a humanitarian way and in the light of international law,” said Ali al-Dabbagh the ministry’s spokesman.

Iraqi forces have reportedly restored control of the group’s main military base al-Ashraf which was until very recently under U.S. military protection.

There are nearly 4,000 armed Mujahideen members in the camp which was target of numerous Iranian missile and air attacks before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

For the U.S. the exiles are ‘terrorists’ but it has opted to protect them despite Iraqi government’s repeated calls to close their camp.

“Iraq will not force the group to leave. It will rather encourage the group to go to another state that will accept their asylum,” Dabbagh said.

Dabbagh warned the group against taking any measures, whether political or military, as long as they are in Iraqi territory.

PMOI fate determined by international law

2008-09-02T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
September 2, 2008

BAGHDAD, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- The Iraqi government Tuesday said it would rely on international law to determine the fate of Iranian dissident group People's Mujahedin of Iran.
The PMOI operates in Iraq under U.S. protection in Ashraf City in eastern Diyala province. The group is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States and several other nations for its activity under the former Iraqi regime, though that status is being reviewed.

Iranian media outlets last week carried a statement from a senior Iraqi official saying Iraqi forces had taken over responsibility of Ashraf city, though that claim has been refuted.

“U.S. forces are coordinating with Iraqi security forces to prepare for a gradual transfer of security at Camp Ashraf. A date is not yet set,” the U.S. military in Iraq told United Press International in response to e-mail questions.

The PMOI is a source of contention for Iran and several Iraqi leaders, prompting calls for the group to abandon its stronghold in Iraq, Iraqi daily Azzaman said.

“The government will deal with the elements of (PMOI) in a humanitarian way and in the light of international law,” Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said. “Iraq will not force the group to leave. It will rather encourage the group to go to another state that will accept their asylum,” he added.

The PMOI claims protection in Iraq under the Fourth Geneva Conventions.

Iraqi politicians divided over the handover of Ashraf camp

2008-09-01T19:14:00.000-04:00

September 1, 2008
DPA (German News Agency)

Baghdad- A refugee camp in Iraq home to an Iranian opposition party has been transferred from US control to Iraqi authorities, Iraqi Radio reported on Monday.

Camp Ashraf was originally set up during the Iran-Iraq war to give shelter to opponents of the regime of Ayatollah Khomeini.

Following the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, the US military has been responsible for protecting the group in the face of Sunni-Shia sectarian violence throughout Iraq.

Iraqi army forces officially received from the Multi-National Force (MNF) responsibilities to protect the Ashraf camp on Sunday.

The camp, 60 kilometers north of Baghdad, is the official headquarters of the People's Mujahedin of Iran, the largest Iranian opposition group.

Iraqi politicians are divided over the move.

A member of the Shiite Unified Iraqi Coalition's Solidarity Bloc on Monday described the handover of the camp as 'a step in the right direction' to rectify relations with Iraq's neighbours.

'The government should take similar steps with all countries because Iraq needs to establish good neighbourly relations with all and to move away from the tensions created by the former regime,' Voices of Iraq news agency quoted Member of Parliament Qays al-Aameri al-Aameri as saying.

However, the leader of the Sunni Iraqi National Dialogue Front, Saleh al-Motlaq, described the handover as a great loss to Iraq and a victory for the Iranian regime, which according to him is seeking to eliminate the organization.

The unarmed residents of the camp fear becoming the target of Iranian-sponsored aggression, violence and slaughter.

They also fear being expelled by the Iraqi authorities.

Demonstrations were held worldwide in support of the 3,500 Iranian dissidents in Ashraf.

Families and supporters of Ashraf residents demonstrated in front of the UN headquarters in Geneva earlier in August to press for guarantees of safety for the camp's inhabitants.

Iraqi troops take control of Iranian refugee camp

2008-08-30T19:14:00.001-04:00

Agence France Presse

Aug 30, 2008

BAGHDAD (AFP) — The Iraqi army has replaced American troops in securing a refugee camp north of Baghdad where members of Iran's main armed opposition group are grouped, Iraq's defence ministry said on Saturday.

“Iraqi forces have taken over responsibility from US forces to protect Ashraf camp,” ministry spokesman General Mohammed al-Askari told AFP.

“Our forces have deployed to protect this camp, not to seize it as recent rumours have alleged,” Askari added.

Nearly 4,000 members of the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI) fled to Iraq in the 1980s and settled at Ashraf camp, some 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of Baghdad, which the group now uses as its headquarters.

Opponents of the Iran government and wary of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, whom they consider too close to Tehran, the future of the PMOI in Iraq is uncertain and Maliki has said he is looking for ways to end their presence.

The group is on the European Union's list of terrorist organisations subject to an EU-wide assets freeze, and has been designated by the US government as a foreign terrorist organisation.

However in June, Britain decided to lift a ban on members of the PMOI, infuriating Tehran which labelled the action “a disgrace.”

Formed in the 1960s in opposition to the rule of the US-backed shah, the PMOI took part in the 1979 Islamic revolution but then took up arms against the Islamic republic.

It killed several of Iran's new leaders in the early years after the revolution and backed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in the 1980-1988 war with Iran. But the attacks had ceased by the early 1990s.

American troops disarmed thousands of Mojahedin fighters at Ashraf following the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 that toppled Saddam and afforded them protection after classifying them as “non-combatants.”

Iraq: No Iranians in need of protection should be sent to Iran against their will

2008-08-28T19:14:00.001-04:00

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PUBLIC STATEMENT
AI Index: MDE 14/023/2008
28 August 2008

Click here to download the PDF version of the statement

Amnesty International has written to both the Iraqi and US governments reminding them of their obligations under international law and urging them to continue to provide protection to people affiliated to and members of the People’s Mojahedeen Organization of Iran (PMOI), an Iranian opposition group based in Iraq.

In its letters, Amnesty International reminds both governments that members of the PMOI in Iraq are ‘protected persons’ under international humanitarian law and, therefore, should not be expelled or forcibly returned to Iran.

In its letters to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamil al-Maliki and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Amnesty International expressed concern at recent statements made by senior Iraqi officials criticising the presence of members of the PMOI (also known as Mojahedeen Khalq Organization – MKO) at Camp Ashraf in Iraq’s northern governorate of Diyala. On 3 July 2008 ‘Abd al-‘Aziz al-Hakim, head of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, one of the main political parties represented in the Iraq government, reportedly said that the "MKO's presence in Iraq lacks any legal or international covers," and accused the organisation of "aiding and abetting the former regime in killing Iraqis...." He is also reported to have accused the MKO of seeking “to fuel” sectarian conflict in Iraq and adopting an “aggressive position toward the parliament and the elected national government".

Earlier, on 18 June 2008 Iraq’s government spokesperson Dr. Ali al-Dabbagh said that the Iraq cabinet had “decided to emphasize the decisions made previously that consider the MKO as a terrorist organization and should leave Iraq.”

Amnesty International considers that those living in Camp Ashraf would be at grave risk of torture or other serious human rights violations if they were to be returned involuntarily to Iran, whether by the Iraqi authorities or by the US-led MultiNational Force (MNF). The organization has told the Iraqi and US governments that it strongly opposes any such forcible returns, either of those at Camp Ashraf or of other Iranian nationals who currently reside in Iraq having left Iran for political reasons or to escape persecution.

Amnesty International urged both governments to provide promptly a firm assurance that they will prevent the forcible return to Iran of any Iranian refugees and asylum seekers, currently in Iraq, who would be at serious risk of torture or persecution there, respecting the principle of non-refoulement.

The organization emphasised that before any final decision to remove an individual to their country of origin, there should be an independent, individual assessment of the potential risk of serious human rights violations, including the death penalty and torture. No person should be returned, either directly or via a third country, to a situation where they would be at risk of torture or other serious human rights abuses.

Amnesty International urged the Iraqi and US authorities to work together with UNHCR, and others as appropriate, to find a satisfactory long term solution to the situation of PMOI members and supporters currently at Camp Ashraf.

Background Information
Amnesty International has been monitoring the situation of members and supporters of the PMOI in Camp Ashraf. Following the US-led military intervention in Iraq in 2003 about 3,400 members of the PMOI were disarmed by the US-led forces at Camp Ashraf. Since that time PMOI members living in the Camp, which is managed by the MNF, have been designated as “protected persons” under Article 27 of the Fourth Geneva Convention which prevents extradition or forced repatriation to Iran as long as the US-led Multinational Force (MNF) is present in Iraq.

END/

Iraq reported to control PMOI enclave

2008-08-28T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press Interantional
Aug. 29, 2008

BAGHDAD, Aug. 29 (UPI) -- Iranian media reports say Iraqi national security forces have assumed security responsibility for the enclave of the People's Mujahedin of Iran in Ashraf City.

The Fars News Agency quotes Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed al-Askari saying Iraqi military forces have “surrounded” Ashraf City in Iraq's eastern Diyala province.

The report says the move came as the Iraqi government called on U.S. military forces to halt their security operations in the area.

The United States and several other countries classify the PMOI as a terrorist organization in part due to its activity during the era of Saddam Hussein. That status is being reconsidered in light of a British decision to delist the group.

An assistant at the British Parliamentary Committee for Iran Freedom, who spoke to United Press International on condition of anonymity, said the Fars report was erroneous.

Iranian lawmakers called on the national government to review its relationship with the United Kingdom in response to the reclassification.

Ali Safavi, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, told UPI the report was an Iranian attempt to threaten the group in Iraq.
“These reports and developments foretell of the Iranian regime's extensive plots against the residents of Ashraf City, which seriously endanger the lives of 3,500 people living there,” he said.

Rally outside Red Cross demands protection for PMOI/MEK

2008-08-26T19:14:00.001-04:00

Global Politician
Tuesday, 26 August 2008
by Nasser Razy

Hundreds of Iranians gathered outside the UK office of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) urging the world humanitarian body to take action to ensure that Coalition forces continue to protect the members of Iran's main opposition force, the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI [MEK]), in Camp Ashraf in Iraq's Diyala Province.

On June 17, 2008, the Iraqi Council of Ministers issued a six-point directive, demanding to take control of Ashraf emphasizing that the PMOI [MEK] will be expelled from Iraq and that some of its members will be prosecuted. A subsequent directive prohibited the provision of any form of support to the residents of Ashraf by Iraqis and non-Iraqis alike.

"We have gathered here in protest to worrying news that the Coalition in Iraq is contemplating transferring the protection of some 3,500 members of the main democratic Iranian opposition movement, the People's Mojahedin, residing in Camp Ashraf, to the Iraqi government", said Lord King of West Bromwich from the ruling Labour Party. "The forcible expulsion of the residents of Ashraf would be a grave breach of international humanitarian law and the principle of non-refoulement. The directive by the government of Iraq therefore flagrantly violates International Humanitarian Law and its provisions", he said.

"Transfer of the protection of the residents of Ashraf to Iraqi security forces, who are known to have been infiltrated by the Iranian regime's agents, would invite a humanitarian disaster. There is little doubt that the demands by the Iraqi government to take control of Ashraf are the result of pressures put on it by Tehran, which views the PMOI as the major threat and impediment to its ominous objectives in Iraq", Lord King added.

Elizabeth Sidney OBE, chairwoman of the International Federation of Women Against Fundamentalism and for Equality, who along with Lord King met ICRC officials simultaneous with the protest, said afterwards that the Red Cross is urgently following up the matter.

"The Red Cross must ensure that the residents of Ashraf continue to be protected by the Coalition. Anything short of this would be inviting a humanitarian disaster", said Prof. Assiter, a prominent British human rights activist.

Relevant provisions of international law, international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions prohibit the transfer of Camp Ashraf’s protection. In a letter on March 20, 2007, the ICRC underscored "the residents of Camp Ashraf must not be deported, expelled or repatriated in violation of the [principle of non-refoulement] or displaced inside Iraq in violation of the relevant provisions of International Humanitarian Law (IHL)." Similarly, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees urged "the Multinational Forces (MNF-I) from any action that could endanger the life or the security of these individuals (Camp Ashraf residents), such as their forcible deportation from Iraq or their forced displacement inside Iraq."

Lord King and others handed the ICRC officials a letter which read in part: "Handing over the security of those in Ashraf, who are disarmed and have no means of protecting themselves against any hostile action, to a government which has already stated its intention to expel them to Iran would itself constitute a grave breach of international law and the Principle of Non-Refoulement".

"Iraq’s security apparatus is known to have been infiltrated by the Iranian regime's agents. As such transferring the protection of Ashraf to it would create a humanitarian disaster, which the ICRC cannot allow to happen".

"We urge the ICRC – as the trustee of the Geneva Conventions - to take an urgent stance on this pressing matter to prevent the handover of Ashraf to the Iraqi forces", it added.

Swiss daily: Iranian stage a sit-in outside UN in Geneva

2008-08-26T19:14:00.000-04:00

Swiss daily Le Courrier
August 26, 2008

Dozens of supporters and families of Iranian opposition in Iraq began an open-ended sit-in yesterday in Geneva. They asked the International Committee of Red Cress (ICRC) to intervene to prevent the transfer of 3,500 Iranian dissidents, threatened with expulsion.

"The sit-in is held outside the UN's European Headquarters, Place des Nations, and will last as long as necessary, "said a spokesman of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).

The participants call on the ICRC to ask the Multi-National Force-Iraq(MNF-I) to continue the protection of Ashraf (residents of the dissidents) to avoid a "humanitarian catastrophe" and insist on the need to respect the International Humanitarian Law, the International Law and the principle of non-refoulement.

Last Wednesday, hundreds of supporters of Iranian dissidents in Iraq had already demonstrated in Geneva against the threat posed by Baghdad authorities to expel them under pressure from Tehran. One delegation was received at the headquarters of the ICRC.

When questioned, a spokeswoman for the ICRC said that the organization "is in contact with the authorities and is in contact with all parties concerned." The Iranian dissents have the protection of the multinational force since May 2003.

Editor's note: The above text is a direct translation from French of the Swiss national daily Le Courier.

Iranian dissidents in Iraq: the beginning of a sit-in in Geneva

2008-08-25T19:14:00.001-04:00

ATS News Agency
August 25, 2008

Geneva, August 25, 2008 (ats) - Dozens of supporters and families of the Iranian opposition in Iraq began an open-ended "sit-in" on Monday in Geneva.

They asked the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) to intervene to prevent the transfer or expulsion of 3,500 Iranian dissidents from Iraq.

"The 'sit-in' will last as long as it is necessary outside the United Nations Headquarters," said Afshine Alavi, a National Council of Resistance's spokesman. We call on the (ICRC) to take a public stance.

The participants call on the ICRC to ask the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) to continue to provide protection for Ashraf (home to the Iranian dissidents in Iraq) to avoid a "human catastrophe" and stressed on the need to respect the International Humanitarian Law, International Law and the principle of non-refoulement.

Last Wednesday, hundreds of supporters of the Iranian opposition in Iraq demonstrated in Geneva against the threat that Baghdad authorities might expel the dissidents under pressure from Tehran. A delegation from the participants was received by the ICRC officials at its headquarters.

When asked, a spokesman for the ICRC said that the organization "is in contact with the authorities and is talking with all concerned parties."

The MNF-I is providing protection for the Iranian dissents in Iraq since May 2003.

Iranian stage a sit-in outside UN in Geneva

2008-08-25T19:14:00.000-04:00

August 25, 2008
Source: www.20min.ch

Dozens of supporters and families of the Iranian opposition in Iraq began an open-ended "sit-in" on Monday in Geneva.

They asked the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) to intervene to prevent the transfer or expulsion of 3,500 Iranian dissidents from Iraq.

"The 'sit-in' will last as long as it is necessary outside the United Nations Headquarters," said Afshine Alavi, a National Council of Resistance's spokesman. We call on the (ICRC) to take a public stance.

The participants call on the ICRC to ask the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) to continue to provide protection for Ashraf (home to the Iranian dissidents in Iraq) to avoid a "human catastrophe" and stressed on the need to respect the International Humanitarian Law, International Law and the principle of non-refoulement.

In contact
Last Wednesday, hundreds of supporters of the Iranian opposition in Iraq demonstrated in Geneva against the threat that Baghdad authorities might expel the dissidents under pressure from Tehran. A delegation from the participants was received by the ICRC officials at its headquarters.

When asked, a spokesman for the ICRC said that the organization "is in contact with the authorities and is talking with all concerned parties."

The MNF-I is providing protection for the Iranian dissents in Iraq since May 2003.

Editor's note: The text is translation from French

Care needed to prevent humanitarian disaster

2008-08-22T19:14:00.001-04:00

August 22, 2008
British daily Birmingham Post
By Lord King of West Bromwich

Dear Editor, Hundreds of Iranians and I gathered outside the UK office of the International Committee of the Red Cross on Wednesday urging the world humanitarian body to take action to ensure that US forces continue to protect the members of Iran's main opposition force, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), in Camp Ashraf, Iraq.

On June 17, the Iraqi government issued a directive, demanding to take control of Ashraf, emphasizing that the PMOI will be expelled from Iraq and that some of its members will be prosecuted.

The forcible expulsion of the residents of Ashraf would be a grave breach of international humanitarian law and the principle of non-refoulement since they are all protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention.

The Iraqi government directive is therefore unlawful. Handing over the security of those in Ashraf, who are disarmed and have no means of protecting themselves against any hostile action, to a government which has already stated its intention to expel them to Iran would itself constitute a grave breach of international law and the Principle of Non-Refoulement.

Iranian regime's agents are known to have infiltrated Iraq's security forces.

Transferring the protection of Ashraf to it would create a humanitarian disaster, which the ICRC cannot allow to happen.

The Iranian community in the UK and many of us in Parliament are very concerned with these developments.

---------------------
Lord King of West Bromwich,
Labor peer,
Member, British ParliamentaryCommittee for Iran Freedom

PMOI intensifies its efforts to protect members in Iraq

2008-08-22T19:14:00.000-04:00

Friday, 22 August 2008

NCRI – Asharq Alawsat, the Arabic international daily wrote on Wednesday of the "intensified efforts" by the supporters of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) to make sure that the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) would avert a "human catastrophe" by providing unremitting protection to the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City-Iraq.

"Tehran increases the pressure on Baghdad to hand over their opponents. It is demanding the expulsion of Iran's organized opposition from Iraq. However, the PMOI members say that their lives would be in danger if returned to Iran," added asharq alawsat.

The rallies in support of the PMOI have held in Washington DC, London and Geneva at the same time on Wednesday the paper said.

Hundreds of Iranians gathered outside the UK office of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) urging the world humanitarian body to take action to ensure that Coalition forces continue to protect the members of Iran's main opposition force, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), in Camp Ashraf in Iraq's Diyala Province.

About the same number rallied in Geneva in front of the UN headquarters having the same demands from the ICRC to adopt a proactive position, as the guarantor of the Geneva convictions, to ensure the safety of Ashraf residents.

Iranians rally in support of the PMOI in Geneva

2008-08-21T19:14:00.001-04:00

Thursday, 21 August 2008

NCRI – Al Arabiya News Channel in a report from Geneva said that hundreds of Iranians gathered outside UN headquarters "demanding protection" for Ashraf City (home to members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq).

"The Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) should continue the protection of Ashraf City to prevent a human catastrophe from occurring," the Al Arabia quoted Afshin Alawi, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) spokesman as saying.

The protesters reminded the MNF-I of its responsibilities in implementing the International Humanitarian Law, International Law and the principle of non-refoulement and warned that the transfer of protection of Ashraf City would pave the way for Iraqi forces and result in a human catastrophe.

The demonstrators, many of whom have relatives and family members in Ashraf City, called on the Secretary General of the United Nations, President of the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) and all other relevant international bodies to actively intervene and urge for the continuation of protection of Ashraf City by the MNF-I and not allow that such a human tragedy to occur.

Baghdad moves to expel PMOI in six months

2008-08-21T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
August 21, 2008

BAGHDAD, Aug. 21 (UPI) -- The Iranian envoy to Baghdad said Iraq passed legislation to compel the dissident People's Mujahedin of Iran out of the country in six months.
Hassan Kazemi Qomi said in an interview with the Iranian Fars News Agency that Baghdad has passed a measure to order the group out of Iraq.

"The Iraqi government considers the terrorist group as a factor behind the insecurity in Iraq," he said.

The U.S. military provides protection for the group in its safe haven in Ashraf City in Diyala province. Many nations, including the United States, consider the group a terrorist organization for its anti-Iranian militancy during the former Iraqi regime, though several countries have delisted the group.

Iranian supporters of the group assembled outside the British offices of the International Committee of the Red Cross, meanwhile, to call on the world community to urge U.S.-led forces to continue protecting the group in Ashraf City.

PMOI points to a June 17 provision in Iraq that calls for national security forces to assume security responsibility from U.S. forces while issuing demands for the group to leave the country.

Officials with the group say such a move will encourage sectarian retribution for the group's activity during the previous regime. The group claims protection status in Iraq under the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Iranians rally in support of Mojahedin in Ashraf City in Iraq

2008-08-20T19:14:00.002-04:00

August 20, 2008

NCRI - On Wednesday, August 20, hundreds of Iranians residing in Switzerland held a rally outside the headquarters of the United Nations Office in Geneva and warned about the plots and pressures of the clerical regime against Ashraf City (home to members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK)). They urged the Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) and the US to counter these plots and to continue protecting the residents of Ashraf City.

Iranians rally outside Red Cross demanding protection of PMOI's rights in Ashraf city in Iraq

2008-08-20T19:14:00.001-04:00

August 20, 2008
Right Side News

Hundreds of Iranians gathered outside the UK office of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) urging the world humanitarian body to take action to ensure that Coalition forces continue to protect the members of Iran's main opposition force, the People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI), in Camp Ashraf in Iraq's Diyala Province

On June 17, 2008, the Iraqi Council of Ministers issued a six-point directive, demanding to take control of Ashraf emphasizing that the PMOI will be expelled from Iraq and that some of its members will be prosecuted. A subsequent directive prohibited the provision of any form of support to the residents of Ashraf by Iraqis and non-Iraqis alike.

"We have gathered here in protest to worrying news that the Coalition in Iraq is contemplating transferring the protection of some 3,500 members of the main democratic Iranian opposition movement, the People's Mojahedin, residing in Camp Ashraf, to the Iraqi government", said Lord King of West Bromwich from the ruling Labour Party. "The forcible expulsion of the residents of Ashraf would be a grave breach of international humanitarian law and the principle of non-refoulement. The directive by the government of Iraq therefore flagrantly violates International Humanitarian Law and its provisions", he said.

"Transfer of the protection of the residents of Ashraf to Iraqi security forces, who are known to have been infiltrated by the Iranian regime's agents, would invite a humanitarian disaster. There is little doubt that the demands by the Iraqi government to take control of Ashraf are the result of pressures put on it by Tehran, which views the PMOI as the major threat and impediment to its ominous objectives in Iraq", Lord King added.

Elizabeth Sidney OBE, chairwoman of the International Federation of Women Against Fundamentalism and for Equality, who along with Lord King met ICRC officials simultaneous with the protest, said afterwards that the Red Cross is urgently following up the matter.

"The Red Cross must ensure that the residents of Ashraf continue to be protected by the Coalition. Anything short of this would be inviting a humanitarian disaster", said Prof. Assiter, a prominent British human rights activist.

Relevant provisions of international law, international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions prohibit the transfer of Camp Ashraf's protection. In a letter on March 20, 2007, the ICRC underscored "the residents of Camp Ashraf must not be deported, expelled or repatriated in violation of the [principle of non-refoulement] or displaced inside Iraq in violation of the relevant provisions of International Humanitarian Law (IHL)." Similarly, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees urged "the Multinational Forces (MNF-I) from any action that could endanger the life or the security of these individuals (Camp Ashraf residents), such as their forcible deportation from Iraq or their forced displacement inside Iraq."

Lord King and others handed the ICRC officials a letter which read in part: "Handing over the security of those in Ashraf, who are disarmed and have no means of protecting themselves against any hostile action, to a government which has already stated its intention to expel them to Iran would itself constitute a grave breach of international law and the Principle of Non-Refoulement".

"Iraq's security apparatus is known to have been infiltrated by the Iranian regime's agents. As such transferring the protection of Ashraf to it would create a humanitarian disaster, which the ICRC cannot allow to happen".

"We urge the ICRC – as the trustee of the Geneva Conventions - to take an urgent stance on this pressing matter to prevent the handover of Ashraf to the Iraqi forces", it added.

Representative Office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran – UK
20 August 2008

Note to editors:
All PMOI personnel in Ashraf City enjoy "protected persons" status under the Fourth Geneva Convention. As such, their basic rights must not be infringed, and they cannot be extradited to any other country or involuntarily displaced within Iraq.

2008-08-20T19:14:00.000-04:00

Rally for Mujahedeen

2008-08-16T19:14:00.001-04:00

The Washington Times

August 16, 2008

Iranian-Americans Hold Rally in front of ICRC in DC

2008-08-15T19:14:00.000-04:00

WPFW Radio
August 15, 2008

Host: We are going to talk to Majid Roshani. He is going to talk to us about the demonstration to be held today by members of the Iranian American community of Northern Virginia. Why do they hold the rally in front of the International Committee of the Red Cross? Good morning.

Majid Roshani: Good morning and thank you for your time. We are really concerned about the fate of about 3,500 Iranians who are refugees in Iraq. They are under the protection of the Multi-National Forces because they’re in opposition to the Iranian regime. They are currently in Iraq, in a camp called Ashraf. They are protected by our soldiers.

There has been recently an effort on the part of the Iranian regime to have them expelled or repatriated essentially into Iran. And we are extremely concerned about this because the Iraqi security forces have been obviously infiltrated at many levels by the Iranian security agents and we are certainly afraid that if in fact the authority to protect them is transferred to Iraqi authorities there will be a humanitarian catastrophe coming up.

They are currently considered refugees under the auspicious of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, protected by the Multi-National Forces under the Fourth Geneva Convention, and the International Committee of the Red Cross has warned everyone including the Iraqi government and everyone else to certainly protect them and not allow them to be deported or expelled or even displaced within Iraq.

Essentially, they have been the target of bombings by the Iranian regime and their agents, their Iraqi employees have been murdered, and two of their members within were kidnapped and murdered. Their water supply was disrupted, their power supply was bombed. And so certainly, they are Iranian, they’re our loved ones, they’re our families and we want certainly to be sure that their rights are protected as the have been so far.

Host: You have singled out the International Committee of the Red Cross to hold your rally. Why the Red Cross and not have a rally at all the agencies or most of the agencies that can do something about this impending crisis as you see it?

Majid Roshani: Of course, well certainly, the body that has overseen, has been the umbrella group that has been making sure to date has been the ICRC.

Host: Majid Roshani. Thank you for sharing your information.

Iran denies negative influence in Iraq

2008-08-07T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
August 7, 2008

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 7 (UPI) -- Iran categorically denies any allegations made by U.S. officials that Tehran's influence undermines political development and security in Iraq.

Mohammad Khazaee, the permanent representative of Iran to the United Nations, told the Security Council in New York that Tehran supports progress in Iraq and denies claims it is meddling adversely in Iraqi internal affairs.

"My delegation wishes to place on record that the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran rejects these unfounded allegations, the raising of which has unfortunately become a tired and routine practice on the part of the United States," the envoy said.

Khazaee said Iran has "been unambiguous in its condemnation" of acts of terrorism perpetrated in Iraq, particularly those carried out by groups backed by the United States.

Iran has been outspoken in its criticism of U.S. support for the anti-Iranian People's Mujahedin of Iran, whose base in the eastern Iraqi city of Ashraf is protected by U.S. military forces. The PMOI is listed as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department, though it was recently delisted by the British government.

The ambassador restated Iran's "unwavering" support for the Iraqi effort, noting it is in the best interest of the region to ensure Iraq does not fall back into instability.

"Undoubtedly, as any other neighboring countries, Iran stands to highly benefit from stability, security and prosperity in Iraq, as it will immensely suffer from insecurity and instability in that country," he said.

PMOI should be protected, scholar says

2008-08-05T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
August 5, 2008

WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 (UPI) -- Protection for the opposition People's Mujahedin of Iran should be included in the broader U.S.-Iraqi military arrangement, a U.S. scholar on Iran says.

The presence in Iraq of the group, which seeks to overthrow the current Iranian government, has provoked widespread controversy, leaving a mutually agreed upon solution a diplomatic challenge for the United States in Iraq, notes Raymond Tanter for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Tanter observes the criticism faced by the U.S. military for protecting the PMOI in its eastern Iraqi bastion of Ashraf. The PMOI is listed on the U.S. State Department's list of foreign terrorist organizations, though that status will be reviewed in October.

A British court earlier this year removed the PMOI from its list of terrorist organizations, and the group has lobbied Europe recently for similar consideration.

With the PMOI in Ashraf considered “protected persons” under the Fourth Geneva Convention, however, Tanter says any provision for the PMOI to remain in Iraq should be considered as part of the broader security arrangement set to replace the expiring U.N. mandate for Iraq.

“If (PMOI) members remain in Iraq under the protection of U.S. forces, such an arrangement should be explicit in agreements negotiated between Iraq and the United States,” he says.

Increasing Pressure on Iranian Opposition in Iraq

2008-08-04T19:14:00.001-04:00

The Washington Institute
PolicyWatch #1394
By Raymond Tanter
August 4, 2008

Throughout summer 2008, Iraqi politicians tied to Tehran have put increasing political pressure on the U.S. government to allow Baghdad to control Camp Ashraf, the base housing Iran's main opposition -- the Mujahedin e Khalq (MEK). Options regarding Iraqi-based MEK members are limited, but include the following: sending them to the United States; allowing them to stay in Iraq under Iraqi control; dispersing them to surrounding countries, including Iran; or maintaining the status quo with the continued protection of the U.S. military. Since each option is problematic, finding a solution is neither easy nor simple.

Escalating Pressure
On July 4, 2008, Iran's Fars News Agency reported that Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, head of the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, called for MEK's expulsion from Iraq, adding that the group "instigates tribal conflicts, interferes in the internal affairs of Iraq, and creates hostility between the parliament and government of Iraq and the Iraqi electorate." On July 8, Iraqi government spokesman Abbas Bayati told al-Zaman: "The presence of the Mujahedin Organization in Iraq is illegal. We will ask the United States to put Camp Ashraf, the [MEK's] bastion, under the control of the Iraqi government."

On July 9, an English language agency of the Iranian regime, Press TV, reported, "Iraqi foreign minister Hoshyar Zebari has declared the imminent expulsion of members of Mujahedin-e Khalq from Iraq." And on July 10, Iran's ambassador to Iraq, Hassan Kezemi-Qomi, told Press TV that "an Iraqi committee has been formed to expel the . . . [MEK] from the country."

International Law
International humanitarian law is vital to the MEK issue, especially if the group's adversaries succeed in their efforts. Coalition forces recognize the residents of Ashraf as "protected persons" under the Fourth Geneva Convention, as does the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). In 2004, the ICRC reiterated its position in a letter stating: "Those persons who are protected under the Fourth Geneva Convention remain protected by the Fourth Geneva Convention."

And in March 2007, the ICRC reminded relevant authorities "of their obligations to act in accordance with the principle of non-refoulement [a term in international law that concerns the protection of refugees dispersed to countries where they would face persecution] when transferring persons to another state or authority." This statement is an acknowledgment of the nontransferable status of the protection of Ashraf under the present circumstances.

During the same year, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reiterated its position that "bodies of international law, particularly international humanitarian law and human rights law, have positive relevance to the Ashraf situation and could confer protections on individuals who fear serious risks if returned to their country of origin." As such, UNHCR cautioned Iraqi authorities and the coalition "to refrain from any action that could endanger the life or security of these individuals, such as their forcible deportation from Iraq or their forced displacement inside Iraq."

In February 2006, Maj. Gen. John D. Gardner, the coalition's deputy commanding general, reiterated the protected-persons status of the people of Ashraf. He acknowledged coalition responsibilities regarding the Geneva Convention relative to the treatment of civilians, stating, "The coalition remains deeply committed to the security and rights of the protected people of Ashraf and the principle of non-refoulement."

Problematic Options
Assuming a transfer of MEK members were possible, many questions remain regarding their destination. There are many reasons why it would be difficult for the European and U.S. governments, or Iraq's Kurdish regional bloc, to accept the MEK en masse to their territories.

Moving the group's members to the United States, for instance, is currently impossible because of MEK's status as a foreign terrorist organization. This status could change, however, if the designation is lifted in October 2008 when the Department of State performs a regular review process. This appears to be a viable possibility given recent developments in the United Kingdom, where the British government was forced to remove the group from its terrorist list after an independent judicial commission -- one ratified by a British appeals court -- determined that such a designation was no longer appropriate.

If Ashraf's security responsibilities were transferred to Iraqi security forces, as demanded by the Iranian regime, it would be a flagrant violation of international laws and conventions. Since it is widely reported that the Iranian regime has infiltrated Iraqi military and security forces, and wields significant influence within the government, such a move would certainly invite a humanitarian catastrophe. No U.S. president would want to leave such a legacy.

Moreover, dispersing the MEK, in addition to being illegal, is likely to decrease the international community's leverage over the Iranian regime. Because the regime pays more attention to the opposition in Iraq than all other opposition groups combined, a case could be made to rely on the MEK as leverage to encourage Tehran to give up its quest for nuclear weapons capability.

Conclusion
If MEK members remain in Iraq under the protection of U.S. forces, such an arrangement should be explicit in agreements negotiated between Iraq and the United States. Given that military components of the Iraqi government cannot be trusted to provide security for Ashraf and guarantee protected persons status conferred under the Fourth Geneva Convention, transfer to Iraqi control would risk a humanitarian disaster.

The argument for protecting the human rights of MEK members need not be based on a favorable view of the organization. One need not accept or reject the claim by some that the group provides useful intelligence, or that it is an important means to unsettle Tehran.

It would be especially unfortunate if the treatment of the MEK was harsher because of a desire to secure concessions from Tehran on the nuclear impasse. Not only is it inappropriate to abandon the principles of human rights for concessionary purposes, but such an approach would be counterproductive on the nuclear front. This strategy would show Iran that its nuclear program has won it leverage on unconnected issues -- thus reducing Iran's incentive to abandon its program -- and it would destroy what is arguably Tehran's main opposition.

Raymond Tanter, a visiting professor of government at Georgetown University, is an adjunct scholar at The Washington Institute, researching U.S. policy options toward Iran.

PMOI obstacle to peace, Iran says

2008-08-01T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
Aug. 1, 2008

TEHRAN, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. relationship with an Iranian opposition group based in Iraq jeopardizes the future of relations with the Islamic Republic, an Iranian report says.

An Iranian Press TV report says the U.S. relationship with various militant groups in the post-Sept. 11, 2001, geopolitical environment is duplicitous.

The United States and Iran have had an acrimonious relationship since a CIA-backed coup in 1953 overthrew the Iranian government. Now, the report said, “U.S.-Iranian political atmosphere and dominant American philosophies have encouraged the U.S. government to forge a friendship with an Iranian opposition group that is living in exile, the People's Mujahedin of Iran.”

The report points to a 2007 BBC report saying Tehran in 2003 offered to abandon its support for Hamas and Hezbollah if the United States would revoke its support for the PMOI, but U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney refused the offer, the report said.

Press TV said that instead of pushing for warmer ties with Iran, Washington has thrown its support behind the PMOI in order to promote democracy in Iran. The column cites a report this year from Seymour Hersh in The New Yorker claiming the U.S. intelligence community has “longstanding ties” to the PMOI as well.

Furthermore, though considered a terrorist group, the PMOI is offered U.S. military protection in its base in Ashraf city in eastern Iraq, Press TV notes.

“Especially in a time where both Iran and the U.S. have mounting levels of distrust for one another; how would supporting an enemy of Iran make Iran want to be a cooperative friend to the U.S.?” the report asks.

DC rally to warn of humanitarian crisis for Iranian refugees in Iraq

2008-07-20T19:14:00.000-04:00

Sunday, 20 July 2008
USNewswire

WASHINGTON, July 17, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire - Today, Thursday, July 17, 2008, a rally was held in front of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) office in Washington, DC, to sound the alarm about a looming humanitarian crisis for nearly 3,500 Iranian political refugees in Camp Ashraf in Iraq. The rally condemned the July 4 missile attack by Iran's clerical regime against Camp Ashraf and demanded security guarantees for its residents.

Camp Ashraf is the residence of nearly 3,500 members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), the principal Iranian opposition movement, who are recognized as "Protected Persons" under the Forth Geneva Convention, International Law, and International Human Rights Law. They are currently under the protection of the Multi-National Force-Iraq, led by U.S. forces.

According to numerous reports in the state-run media in Iran, Iraqi security forces, which are largely staffed and controlled by Iran's terrorist outfit, the Qods Force, intend to take over the protection of Camp Ashraf. This would likely lead to the killing, torture, repatriation, or forcible expulsion of these refugees, creating a humanitarian crisis.
The rally, attended by friends and relatives of Camp Ashraf Residents, and sympathizers of the Iranian Resistance in the area, made the following demands:

1- Camp Ashraf Residents symbolize the will of the Iranian people for democracy and popular sovereignty. We pledge our full support for the Camp Ashraf Residents and declare that we will stand by them right to the end and will not allow the regime in Iran to harm them in any way.

2- Camp Ashraf Residents are protected persons under the Geneva Conventions, International Law, International Humanitarian Law, and the principle of non-refoulment, and should be protected by Multi National Force-Iraq (MNF-I) led by the U.S. Army. In addition to the status recognized by the U.S. Forces, according to the most credible international law experts, this responsibility lies with the U.S. forces for as long as they remain in Iraq.

3- According to the International Law, the safety of Camp Ashraf Residents cannot be transferred to any other authority, and must remain the responsibility of the United States Military.

4- ICRC is a key enforcer of the Geneva Conventions and International Humanitarian Law, and should remind the United States Military of their non-transferable obligations towards the security of the Camp Ashraf Residents, and not allow the Iranian regime to violate the rights of the residents of Ashraf.

5- We ask the MNF-I, the Iraqi Government, and the international community, specifically the ICRC, to condemn the missile attacks against Camp Ashraf. We also ask the United States military to take special measures in order to prevent future attacks.

6- We would like to give our warmest thanks to the Iraqi people, in particular the residents of the Diyala Province, for their unconditional support for Camp Ashraf Residents despite all the pressures, and restrictions.

SOURCE US Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents

Will Washington Betray Anti-Regime Iranians?

2008-07-17T19:14:00.000-04:00

The Jerusalem Post
by Daniel Pipes
July 17, 2008

As the United Nations mandate that legitimizes the presence of U.S forces in Iraq expires on December 31, 2008, a humanitarian and strategic disaster is coming into view. The fate of about 3,500 anti-regime Iranians will be decided in the course of status-of-forces negotiations between Washington and Baghdad.

They are members of the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK; it is also called the People's Mojahedin of Iran, or PMOI), the leading Iranian opposition group. Based at Camp Ashraf in central Iraq where they are recognized as "protected persons" under the Fourth Geneva Convention, they have since 2004 been under the protection of U.S. military forces. According to the Convention Against Torture of 1984, to which the U.S. government is a party, expiration of the UN mandate does not end the American obligation to continue to protect MEK members in Iraq.

Further, the MEK's network of supporters inside Iran have provided invaluable intelligence. For example, it exposed Tehran's nuclear ambitions and its shipments of roadside bombs to Iraq. Recognizing this assistance, a "Memorandum for the Record" by Lt. Col. Julie S. Norman dated August 24, 2006, noted that "The PMOI has always warned against the Iranian regime's meddling and played a positive role in exposing the threats and dangers of such interventions; their intelligence has been very helpful in this regard and in some circumstances has helped save the lives of [U.S.] soldiers."

Although the State Department still lists the MEK as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), that will likely end in October, for it no longer meets the terrorism criteria, having renounced terrorism, not conducted operations for many years, lacking the capability to conduct future operations, and not threatening the security of the United States. Gen. Raymond Odierno, soon to be the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, already in May 2003 questioned the MEK's designation as an FTO: "I would say that any organization that has given up their equipment to the coalition clearly is cooperating with us, and I believe that that should lead to a review of whether they are still a terrorist organization or not."

Since then, an interagency group of the U.S. government, led by the FBI, has exonerated the Iranians at Ashraf of terrorism. After a British court ruled that the group was not "concerned in terrorism," the U.K. government in June removed the group from its terrorist list.

Naturally, the expulsion of the MEK from Iraq ranks as Tehran's top demand of both Baghdad and Washington. The Iranian regime is determined to destroy its main opponent and, with some success, has pressured the Iraqi government to disband Camp Ashraf and turn MEK members over to Iran. Iraqi politicians sympathetic to Tehran have joined in this call, including leaders of the United Iraqi Alliance and the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council.

Then, on July 9, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said that the Iraqi government had decided to expel members of the MEK. The Iranian ambassador to Iraq, Hassan Kezemi-Qomi, specified that the Iraqi cabinet had agreed quickly to expel the MEK from Iraq. Iran's Jame Jam television channel reported on July 6 that "American military forces have announced their readiness to hand over" Camp Ashraf to Baghdad, which gave the MEK six months to leave its territory.

Should these reports be true (and it bears noting that prior such statements had little operational effect), they imply either the handover of unarmed Ashraf residents to Iraqi forces or their expulsion to Iran. In either case, a full-scale slaughter, whether by Tehran's proxies in Iraq or by Tehran itself, appears likely. Inspired by such a success, Tehran's ambitions in Iraq would undoubtedly grow further.

The Bush administration has stayed silent about these developments but it has the duty and the interest – based on its humanitarian commitments, its international law obligations, and its need for allies against Tehran – to insist in its status-of-forces negotiations with Baghdad that MEK members at Camp Ashraf remain under the protection of the U.S. military and that they be free to leave Camp Ashraf.

After delisting the Mujahedeen-e Khalq as an FTO, Washington should use the regime in Tehran's near-pathological fears by threatening to meet with it and help its public relations efforts. This is the easiest, most effective way to intimidate the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The writer, director of the Middle East Forum, is the Taube distinguished visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University

U.S. bound to protect PMOI, official says

2008-07-16T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
July 16, 2008

WASHINGTON, July 16 (UPI) -- The United States has a duty under international law to protect the People's Mujahedin of Iran in its Iraqi holdout in Ashraf, a former U.S. official said.

Raymond Tanter, president of the Iran Policy Committee, writes in a column featured with the National Council of Resistance of Iran that the anti-Iranian People's Mujahedin of Iran is protected under the Geneva Conventions, but its future in Iraq is in doubt.

Tanter, who served as a national security staffer under U.S. President Ronald Reagan, writes that the U.S. military provides the group protection in its eastern Iraqi stronghold, but with negotiations ongoing regarding the long-term security arrangement between the two countries, the transfer of security responsibility to Iraqi forces and the influence of Iran over the Iraqi government, the group faces reprisal should U.S. forces withdraw their protection.

"Rather than protect the Iranian oppositionists, Iraqi security forces may choose to assassinate, slaughter or kidnap them for transfer to Iran, where public hangings await them," he writes.

Washington, Tanter says, has a moral obligation to continue its protection of the group as long as there is a U.S. military presence in Iraq.

As the primary opposition group in Iraq opposing the Iranian regime, it would be "politically prudent" for the United States to continue its positive relations with the group to contain the influence of Tehran, he says.

America’s Obligations to Protect the Iranian Opposition

2008-07-15T19:14:00.001-04:00

Human Events
by Raymond Tanter
July 15, 2008

During the 2003 Iraq invasion, U.S. forces bombed and then disarmed members of the MEK -- Mujahedeen-e Khalq -- an Iranian opposition group that had been given refuge in Iraq. Now under U.S. protection in Camp Ashraf in Iraq, MEK members face a bleak future if U.S. forces hand over control of the base to the Iraqi government or withdraw precipitously from Iraq. The U.S. government has obligations under the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law refugees cannot be dispersed to a country where they would face persecution -- to protect the MEK.

The U.S. military provided protection but is under pressure by the Iranian regime and its allies in Iraq to allow the Government of Iraq to provide security for the MEK or the PMOI -- People’s Mojahedin of Iran. But Baghdad is beholden to Tehran: Rather than protect the Iranian oppositionists, Iraqi security forces may choose to assassinate, slaughter, or kidnap them for transfer to Iran where public hangings await them.

An Iraqi government spokesman, Abbas Bayati told the Az-Zaman daily on July 8 that “The presence of the Mojahedin Organization in Iraq is illegal. We will ask the US to put Camp Ashraf, the PMOI’s bastion at the control of the Iraqi government.” The reporter asked, “But the US Embassy spokesman in Baghdad has said that they are internationally protected persons,” Bayati replied, “It is us who determine this, not the American Embassy, because we are a sovereign country…”

Focusing on activities of the MEK with Iraqi moderates against radical Shiites and Sunnis, a news service for the Iranian regime -- the Mehr News Agency -- on 9 July 2008 accused “the terrorist Monafeqin grouplet’s [of] interference in Iraq’s internal affairs,” and stated that the Iraqi Foreign Minister reported the group would be expelled.

Research by the Iran Policy Committee (IPC) shows that the legal status of Iranian citizens at Camp Ashraf, Iraq under the Fourth Geneva Convention, precludes their involuntary transfer or dispersal. The Convention provides protections against the forcible transfer of protected persons and deems violations of the forcible transfer provisions to be “grave breaches,” i.e., war crimes.

The people of Ashraf City have Protected Persons status under Article 4 of Geneva IV. Consider a 21 July 2004 letter from Major General Geoffrey Miller, Deputy Commanding General of the Multi-National Force–Iraq, to People of Ashraf:

I am writing to congratulate each individual living in Camp Ashraf on their recognition as protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Even after a permanent Iraqi government was elected in January 2005, Multi-National Force-Iraq reiterated that provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention continue to apply to residents of Ashraf. On 16 February 2006, Major General John D. Gardner, then-MNFI’s Deputy Commanding General wrote:

The Multi-National Force-Iraq appreciates our responsibilities with regard to the Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Civilian Persons (GCIV), 1949… The Coalition remains deeply committed to the security and rights of the protected people of Ashraf and the principle of non-refoulement [refugees cannot be dispersed to a country where they would face persecution].

And as recently as March 2007, the International Committee of the Red Cross reminded the relevant authorities involved “of their obligations to act in accordance with the principle of non-refoulement, when transferring persons to another State or authority.” The same year, United Nations High Commission for Refugees reiterated that “bodies of international law, particularly international humanitarian law and human rights law have positive relevance to the Ashraf situation and could confer protections on individuals who fear serious risks if returned to their country of origin.” As such, UNHCR cautioned competent Iraqi authorities and MNF-I “to refrain from any action that could endanger the life or the security of these individuals, such as their forcible deportation from Iraq or their forced displacement inside Iraq.”

The Iraqi government cannot credibly give undertakings in observing rights of the residents of Ashraf, in view of hostile remarks and actions by its officials and government agencies, including the suspension of vital food, medicine, and fuel rations to the residents of Ashraf. Any attempt to transfer the protection of Camp Ashraf to the Iraqi authorities, considering Iran’s influence on that government, would be a recipe for disaster.

The United States is trying to negotiate with the Government of Iraq on a Status of Forces Agreement to provide an Iraqi legal authority for U.S. forces after the mandate under UN Security Council Resolution 1546 runs out at year’s end. Whatever the status of these forces may become, the obligation of Washington to continue the protection of Camp Ashraf remains as long as U.S. forces are in Iraq, and arguably even after that. The status of Camp Ashraf and its residents is a direct result of the 2003 invasion of that country by the American-led coalition.

In addition to legal obligations of the United States toward the MEK, continued protection of Camp Ashraf by Washington would be consistent with American moral commitments in that it ensures the security of unarmed residents of Camp Ashraf, who might otherwise face serious and imminent risks. It also would be politically prudent for Washington to continue providing protection, considering that the MEK is the principal opposition to the regime in Tehran and has played a significant role in thwarting the regime’s influence in Iraq by encouraging Sunni and Shiite Iraqis to advance the political process in a country ravaged by sectarian conflict.

Far from being the perfect society of Plato’s Republic, post-Saddam Hussein Iraq is a perfect storm of Tehran-friendly armed militias, including those associated with the Government of Iraq, which cannot be entrusted to protect the main opposition to the Iranian regime. The prospective protectors are unable and unwilling to guard themselves against themselves. Hence, the U.S. military must retain its role as protector.

Professor Raymond Tanter is a former senior staffer of the National Security Council in the Reagan-Bush Administration and is President of Iran Policy Committee.

Rally in Front of ICRC Office in New York City

2008-07-14T19:14:00.000-04:00

July 14, 2008

NEW YORK - On Monday, July 14, 2008, the Americans in Defense of Democracy and Human Rights held a rally in front of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) office in New York, to sound the alarm about a looming humanitarian crisis for nearly 3,500 Iranian refugees in Camp Ashraf in Iraq. The rally was attended by members of the Iranian-American communities and the friends and relatives of Camp Ashraf residents.

Iraqi lawmaker speaks out against PMOI

2008-06-30T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
June 30, 2008

BAGHDAD, June 30 (UPI) -- An Iraqi lawmaker said Monday the government would remove members of an Iranian opposition group from Iraq if they failed to leave within six months.

The Iraqi parliament moved recently to expel members of the Iranian opposition group People's Mujahedin of Iraq, from their stronghold in the eastern city of Ashraf.

"After the deadline passes, the Iraqi government will not tolerate any pressure or interference aimed at keeping (PMOI) members in the country," said Jalaleddin al-Saghir with the Shiite Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council.

The group seeks the overthrow of the Iranian government and advocates against Tehran's influence in Iraq. Though many nations consider the movement a terrorist entity, England moved to de-list the group in recent weeks.

Saghir added Iraqi authorities would hand members of the dissident group over to Red Cross officials so they can leave Iraq for another country, the Iranian Press TV said.

Meanwhile, Tehran summoned Jordanian Ambassador Ahmad Jalal al-Meflah to Iran to express displeasure over a move by Jordanian lawmakers Sunday to attend a Paris rally in support of the group.

The rally was intended to raise support to remove the group from the European Union's list of terrorist organizations. The European Court of Justice removed the group from its terrorist list in 2006, but EU lawmakers denied the ruling a year later.

The opposition to PMOI comes on the heels of a report in the New Yorker magazine by investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, who claims U.S. lawmakers funneled some $400 million to the group to support its opposition to the Iranian leadership.

U.S. and Iraq in talks over PMOI

2008-06-21T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
June 21, 2008

BAGHDAD, June 21 (UPI) -- A Shiite lawmaker with the United Iraqi Alliance said Friday Baghdad is in negotiations with U.S. officials over the fate of an Iranian opposition group.

Jalal al-Saghier said the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki began talks with American counterparts to determine the fate of the People's Mujahadin of Iran, known as the PMOI or MEK, headquartered in the eastern city of Ashraf.

Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Tuesday the Maliki administration voted to classify the PMOI as a terrorist organization. The United States has been accused of using the group as a proxy for counter-terrorist operations in Iraq.

On Thursday, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim of the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council said the U.S. backing of the group ran counter to government decisions to expel the PMOI from Iraq.

Saghier said the United States can play an influential role in the PMOI issue and reminded Washington of its pledges to honor issues concerning Iraq's sovereignty, Voices of Iraq reported Friday.

The PMOI opposes Iranian influence in Iraq. It also seeks the overthrow of the Iranian government.

PMOI accuses Baghdad of Geneva violations

2008-06-19T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
June 19, 2008

BAGHDAD, June 19 (UPI) -- An Iraqi decision to ban the People's Mujahedin of Iran and label the group a terrorist entity violates international law, a spokesman said Thursday.

The government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki this week issued a decree that labels the group, known as the MKO or PMOI, a terrorist entity and called on the removal of the group from its safe haven in the eastern city of Ashraf.

The PMOI advocates the overthrow of the Iranian regime and seeks to deter its influence in Iraq.

Baghdad said U.S. and multinational forces in Iraq should discontinue its involvement with the group and hand over all related checkpoints to Iraqi authorities. The U.S. military is accused of using PMOI as a proxy for its counter-terrorism activities in Iraq.

PMOI spokesman Mahdi Aqbaee said the government decision amounts to a violation of the Geneva Conventions, Voices of Iraq reported.

"The decree violates the principle of not using forced deportation, international laws and the international laws pertaining to the Red Cross," he said. "Threatening to deport (PMOI) personnel and handcuffing their freedom of expression can be considered a war crime."

He added the decision is an indication of Tehran's negative influence over Iraqi affairs and called on Maliki to overturn the measure.

Iranian opposition criticizes Iraqi government

2008-06-18T19:14:00.001-04:00

Associated Press
June 18, 2008

BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iranian opposition group said Wednesday that the Iraqi government's move to ban dealings with it reflected pressures on Baghdad by Iran.

The statement followed an announcement Tuesday by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Cabinet accusing the Mujahedeen Khalq organization — known as the MEK — of interfering in Iraq's internal affairs and supporting anti-government activities.

The government said those who violate the order will face charges under the anti-terror law.

The MEK said the Iraqi statement was a "flagrant breach of international law and conventions" and called on the U.N. Security Council to insist that the Iraqis back down.

"The stance" taken by the government "is the reflection of hysterical pressures of the religious fascism ruling Iran and its embassy in Baghdad on the Iraqi government to take revenge on the (MEK) because 3 million Iraqi Shiites have rejected the Iranian regime," the MEK said.

A prominent Sunni lawmaker, Saleh al-Mutlaq, said that the government decision shows how much influence Iran wields over the Shiite-led Iraqi government.

Al-Mutlaq, who heads an 11-member block in parliament, said that the MEK should be used to counter Iran's "destructive role" in Iraq

"It is an organization that opposes a regime that interferes in our affairs and wants to settle old scores with America on our soil," he said.

The MEK has had fighters based in Iraq since Saddam Hussein era. When U.S.-led troops overthrew the regime, they demilitarized the group and confined its fighters to Camp Ashraf northeast of Baghdad, under the protection of the multinational forces.

The Iraqi Cabinet has demanded that the coalition turn over checkpoints around the camp to Iraqi control.

PMOI responds to Iraqi expulsion order

2008-06-18T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
June 18, 2008

BAGHDAD, June 18 (UPI) -- The People's Mujahedin of Iran Wednesday formally condemned a move by the Iraqi Parliament calling for the expulsion of its members from the country.

The Shiite United Iraqi Alliance bloc and the Kurdistan Alliance Tuesday introduced a bill to Parliament demanding the People's Mujahedin of Iran, known variously as MKO or PMOI, leave the country.

“The cabinet decided to ban any dealings with this organization by any Iraqi or foreign individual, organization or party,” Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Tuesday.

The group responded in a statement Wednesday saying the government was responding to “hysterical pressures” exerted on Baghdad from Tehran, the Iranian Press TV reported.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Tuesday those who violated the order would be brought up on charges under Iraqi terrorism laws.

The PMOI response called on the U.N. Security Council to intervene in what it said was a “flagrant breach of international law and conventions.”

The group, which is established in the eastern city of Ashraf, issued a statement Monday saying more than 3 million Iraqi Shiites, including members of several political parties, had signed a petition opposing Iranian influence in Iraqi affairs.

Several European nations list the group as a terrorist entity, though Press TV says the group is currently backed by the United States as a counter-terrorist proxy.

Iraq bans dealings with Iran opposition group

2008-06-17T19:14:00.002-04:00

Associated Press
Tuesday, June 17, 2008

BAGHDAD (AP) — The Iraqi government Tuesday banned any dealings with an Iranian opposition group based in Iraq.

In an official statement, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Cabinet accused the Mujahedeen Khalq organization of interfering in Iraq's internal affairs.

"The Cabinet decided to ban any dealings with this organization by any Iraqi or foreign individual, organization or party," the statement said. The government said those who violate the order will face charges under the anti-terror law.

Before the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, the Mujahedeen Khalq enjoyed Saddam Hussein's full support. It was used to quell domestic unrest by Shiites and Kurds after Iraq's defeat in Gulf War in 1991. But U.S. troops demilitarized the group and confined its fighters to a camp northeast of Baghdad, under the protection of the multinational forces.

The Cabinet demanded that the coalition turn over checkpoints around the camp to Iraqi control. The discussion in parliament Tuesday over the government move broke down along ethnic and sectarian lines.

Shiite and Kurdish lawmakers described the group as a threat to Iraq's national security, while Sunni lawmakers alleged that the group is not involved in any terrorist acts.

Iranian opposition criticizes Iraqi government

BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iranian opposition group said Wednesday that the Iraqi government's move to ban dealings with it reflected pressures on Baghdad by Iran.

The statement followed an announcement Tuesday by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Cabinet accusing the Mujahedeen Khalq organization — known as the MEK — of interfering in Iraq's internal affairs and supporting anti-government activities…

The MEK said the Iraqi statement was a "flagrant breach of international law and conventions" and called on the U.N. Security Council to insist that the Iraqis back down.

"The stance" taken by the government "is the reflection of hysterical pressures of the religious fascism ruling Iran and its embassy in Baghdad on the Iraqi government to take revenge on the (MEK) because 3 million Iraqi Shiites have rejected the Iranian regime," the MEK said.

A prominent Sunni lawmaker, Saleh al-Mutlaq, said that the government decision shows how much influence Iran wields over the Shiite-led Iraqi government.

Al-Mutlaq, who heads an 11-member block in parliament, said that the MEK should be used to counter Iran's "destructive role" in Iraq.

"It is an organization that opposes a regime that interferes in our affairs and wants to settle old scores with America on our soil," he said.

Iraqi Government Steps Up Campaign to Isolate MEK

2008-06-17T19:14:00.001-04:00

McClatchy News
June 17, 2008

... Separately Tuesday, the Iraqi government stepped up its campaign to isolate and eventually deport members of the Mujahedin-e Khalq, an Iranian militant group based north of Baghdad whose chief agenda is to overthrow the Shiite Muslim theocracy in neighboring Iran.

The MEK, as the group is commonly known, will no longer be able to meet with Iraqi officials, foreign visitors or journalists at their camp near the Iraqi city of Khalis if U.S. and Iraqi authorities enforce an Iraqi government order issued Tuesday. The controversial order, which labels the MEK a terrorist organization, also calls for U.S. troops to cede authority of the group's Camp Ashraf to the Iraqi military.

MEK members follow a blend of Marxist and Islamist ideologies, are blamed for a string of deadly attacks inside Iran and once enjoyed the protection of the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who waged a bloody, eight-year war with Iran. The ouster of Saddam and the rise of pro-Iranian Shiite leaders have left MEK members in a precarious situation: they are no longer safe in Iraq, they fear persecution and torture if they return to Iran..

The International Committee of the Red Cross categorizes MEK members in Iraq as "protected persons," and has told the Iraqi government that members are not to be "deported, expelled or repatriated" by force. For now, Camp Ashraf is protected by U.S. forces.

The State Department lists the group as a terrorist organization, though some members of Congress and several European lawmakers have championed the group as a valuable partner in efforts to curb Iran's growing influence in the region.

In the past, Iran has made amnesty offers in which MEK members living in Iraq could return to Tehran with the promise that they would not face persecution. Few members accepted the deal and hundreds still remain in Camp Ashraf north of Baghdad.

An MEK spokesman, reached by telephone at Camp Ashraf, dismissed the order as unenforceable under international law.

Iraqis sign declaration opposing Iranian regime, supporting PMOI

2008-06-17T19:14:00.000-04:00

United Press International
June 17, 2008

BAGHDAD, June 16 (UPI) -- More than 3 million Iraqi Shiites signed a petition sponsored by the leaders of the People's Mujahedin of Iran [PMOI/MEK] opposing Iranian influence in Iraqi affairs.

The declaration, which also called for the lifting of a measure curtailing the activity of the PMOI [MEK] in Ashraf City in eastern Iraq, was announced at the fourth conference for the Solidarity Congress of the Iraqi People.

The PMOI [MEK] said in the statement announcing the declaration that it was a strategic move to offset Iran's sway over Baghdad.

President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran Maryam Rajavai said the "slogan of eviction" against the PMOI had turned into a "slogan for the Iraqi people" opposing the Iranian regime.

She praised the delegation for advocating friendly relations with Iran, adding the people of Iraq were in a struggle to create a democratic society free from fundamentalist influence.

Several Iraqi politicians from the Sunni Islamic Party of Iraq of Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, the Islamic Unity Party and several other blocs, including the Iraqi Accordance Front, attended the conference in Ashraf City.

Iraq's political refugees in limbo

2008-04-23T19:14:00.000-04:00

The Boston Globe
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
By Saleh al-Mutlaq

HERE IS so much tragedy in Iraq that some stories go underreport-ed - eclipsed by other negative news. This one requires atten-tion:

Inside Iraq, 20 kilometers west of the Iranian border and 60 kilometers northeast of Baghdad in Diyala province, stands Camp Ashraf where members of the Iranian opposition - known as the Muja-hedin-e-Khalq - have lived for more than two decades. Today, some 3,500 residents live in Ashraf.

In another bizarre turn in Iran-Iraq relations, these arch-opponents of Iran's theocratic regime, who are now a valued part of an Iraqi community, find them-selves in danger of expulsion. Caught in a geopolitical quandary, they are being told by Iraqi officials that their refuge is no longer safe.

The MEK has a controversial image in the Middle East and in the West. The group's determination to end the rule of religious zealots in Iran over the past 20 years led to its vilification by the United States, which, in 1997 branded the MEK a "foreign terrorist organization" - a design-nation that has continued even though the group has given up its weapons and abandoned any militaristic path.

The MEK's demands for a moderate, secular, and democratic Iran put it at odds with the mullahs of Tehran. But, in a strange twist of fate, the MEK is now at odds with the US government, and the Iraqi government.

Regardless of one's opinion of the MEK, the residents of Ashraf are political refugees, protected under the Fourth Geneva Convention. They are considered "protected persons" by US and Coalition forces in Iraq - a designation reserved for noncombatants - not militants or terror-ists. The Iraqi government's threats to the status of the MEK is unlawful and unjust. Even the Iraqi constitution provides protection for dissidents until or unless a legitimate court determines otherwise.

Beyond the legal issues surrounding asylum, the MEK people enjoy popular support inside Iraq, particularly in Diyala province, where they have worked to promote reconciliation between the Sunni and Shi'ite communities. Millions of Iraqis have signed petitions calling for the MEK members to stay in Iraq.

Ironically, the recent signals by some Iraqi officials that MEK members are no longer welcome comes at a time when European governments are positively reassessing the organization. Last year, a British court ruled that the organization must be removed from the British govern-ment's list of terrorist organizations.

An extensive review by a three-judge panel especially empowered to decide cases involving the delisting of designated terrorist groups said the failure of the British government to lift the terrorist designation was "perverse" because "the only belief that a reasonable decision maker could have honestly entertained" is that "the PMOI no longer satisfies any of the criteria necessary for the maintenance of their proscription" as a terrorist organization. Even US military officials pri-vately concede that the MEK has been a valuable source of intelligence regarding Iran's clandestine nuclear program and its meddling in Iraq.

The Iraqi government is caving in to pressure from Iran to make life difficult for the MEK. There is a new and growing alliance between radical elements in both Iran and Iraq, who do not want freedom and democracy to spread. But the US government should not fall into the trap of marginalizing the MEK to appease Iran - and in the process, lose a vital source of intelligence and an ally for the promotion of democracy in the greater Middle East.

American policymakers must tran-scend old ways of thinking, and not be so consumed by fears of potential terrorists that they end up sacrificing potential allies in the struggle against terrorism. The Middle East makes for strange bedfellows, and Western leaders have not always chosen friends wisely. But this is one occasion where the West has a clear opportunity to avoid ending up on the wrong side of history by hearing the call of the MEK for protection before it's too late.

Dr. Saleh al-Mutlaq is a member of the Iraqi Parliament. He heads the Iraqi Front for National Dialogue.

Iran regime arrests, tortures families of PMOI members

2008-04-04T16:15:00.000-04:00

Friday, 04 April 2008

NCRI – Iranian regime arrests and tortures families of members of the main Iranian opposition group, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) for meeting their relatives in Iraq, the PMOI said in a statement on Tuesday, April 1.

In recent months, there have been widespread arrests of families of PMOI members who had visited their relatives in Ashraf City, home to thousands of members of PMOI in northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, the statement added.

The PMOI has called on competent international bodies, the UN Secretary General and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to take immediate measures to save the lives of families of the PMOI members in Iran.

The PMOI statement detailing some of the accounts said: "Mrs. Zahra Assadpour, 50, and her daughter Fatemeh, 22, were picked up by Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) agents at Karaj’s Sassan Square on February 5, 2008. She was kept in Evin prison under the most inhuman conditions in the cold winter without having the basic minimum requirements. For 30 days she was blind folded, tortured physically and mentally. During this period she had no contacts with her daughter.

"Fatemeh was taken to Gohardasht prison in Karaj and held together with dangerous criminals. She was beaten up by prison guards or prisoners provoked by the guards.

"They were not allowed any visits by their family for five weeks. Despite payment of a heavy bail the regime continues holding them in prison," the statement said.

The harassment of families of the PMOI members follows the repeated failures of the clerical regime in its plots against Ashraf City.
In an explosion on February 8, the terrorist agents of the Iranian regime's Qods Force destroyed the water supply pumping station of Ashraf City. The installation was located 25 km to the west of Ashraf City. As a result, supply of water to Ashraf and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

The bombing sparked a wave of strong condemnations by International and local political and human rights organizations.
Jean Ziegler, the Special Rapporteur on the right to food, issued a statement voicing deep concern about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Ashraf City.

Mr. Ziegler said that he had received reports that the explosion may have been intended to increase the pressure on an estimated 3,000 members of the PMOI who are residing in Ashraf city.

Iran regime "meddling" in all aspect of Iraqi's lives - Iraqi activists

2008-03-31T16:27:00.000-04:00

Monday, 31 March 2008

NCRI- A group of Iraqi Shiite and Sunni human rights activists from across Iraq, in a press conference in Rome testified on Iranian regime's terrorist activities in Iraq and called on the European community to intervene and defend human rights in their country, particularly the rights of women, Italian news agency ANSA reported on Friday.

Five Iraqi women activists from Iraqi National Accord led by former Prime Minister Dr. Ayad Allawi and other political and human rights groups condemned the terror and violence by the Iranian-backed paramilitary groups in Iraq, the report added.

"There are at least 30 Iranians, members of Iraq's National Assembly sitting in the parliament to protect Iranian regime's interest in our country," said Ms. Abdolghader a member of Tikrit city council in the conference.

Fa'eze'h Abidi, President of the Iraqi National Accord's Women's Movement said, ''The Iranians infiltrated Iraq to gain control over the country's oil resources and the holy shrines. Moreover, they occupy the country to oust the Iranian resistance movement who have are refugees in Iraq," ANSA added.

Mona Adnan-Hossein, whose father and husband, Sunnis, were killed before her eyes said she lives in fear of Iranian militias.

''Women can not leave home without the fear of being raped and murdered. About a month ago 10 women were killed in Basra, the government has done nothing to find those responsible and even a peaceful demonstration against the murders was suppressed without any explanation," she said.

Senior Iraqi Shiite leader: Only Iran benefits current violence in Basra

2008-03-27T16:30:00.000-04:00

Thursday, 27 March 2008

NCRI- Sheikh Kadhim Abdulwahed al-Anizan, head of the Southern Iraqi Tribal Council, in an interview with Al-Jazeera TV said on Wednesday that Iranian regime was the only party benefiting from the violent clashes in Basra.

"This is the Iranian Intelligence Ministry (MOIS) that has infiltrated everywhere in Iraq from Karbala to Najaf and to Basra," He said.

He called on Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to fight against MOIS infiltrations in Iraq.

Last month, more than 130 Iraqi tribal leaders from southern Iraqi provinces in a strongly worded joint statement condemned the visit by Ahmadinejad, the Iranian regime’s president, to Iraq.

“Since five years ago Iraq has turned into the scene of the Iranian regime’s meddling and aggression. Everyday hundreds of Iraqis are victims of the Iranian exported terrorism. In southern Iraq we are witnessing the murder of our children and ransack of our oil and other national wealth by the criminal elements of the Iranian regime,” the statement said.

Last November more than 300,000 Iraqis including hundreds of Shiite tribal leaders from Sothern provinces signed a petition condemning Iranian regime’s meddling in Iraq and supported the presence of the main Iranian opposition group, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in that country.

The petition was viewed as a turning point in Iraq. For the first time there was a public and organized display of opposition toward Iranian regime’s meddling by tribal leaders in the predominantly Shiite south.

Saleh Mutlak: Iranian meddling in Iraq continues

2008-03-11T16:36:00.000-04:00

Tuesday, 11 March 2008

NCRI- Dr. Saleh Mutlak, leader of the Iraqi National Dialogue Front, in an interview with Iraqi Al-Rafeddin TV channel condemned the visit by Ahmadinejad, Iranian regime's president, to Iraq. He said the purpose of the visit was to prepare the grounds for further meddling in Iraq.

"There are many families that have lost their loved ones due to Iranian regime's meddling; today there are close to one million widows in Iraq, mainly because of the terrorism by Iranian-supported militias; our relationship with the Iranian regime is in a critical state; its meddling in Iraq has taken drastic dimensions."

The two-day visit by the mullahs? president to Iraq on March 2, 2008, faced widespread protests by Iraqi people from various social sectors and political affiliations as well as a large number of tribal leaders.

The visit had to be cut short and he did not even visit the holy Shiite cities of Najaf and Karbala as scheduled.

Mr. Muhammad al-Daini, a member of the Iraqi National Assembly from the Iraqi National Dialogue Front called for the shutdown of Iranian regime's diplomatic offices in Iraq.

Over 130 Iraqi tribal leaders from southern Iraq in a strongly worded joint statement condemned the visit by Ahmadinejad to their country.

"Since five years ago Iraq has turned into the scene of the Iranian regime's meddling and aggression. Everyday hundreds of Iraqis are victims of the Iranian exported terrorism. In southern Iraq we are witnessing the murder of our children and ransack of our oil and other national wealth by the criminal elements of the Iranian regime," the statement said.

UN Special Rapporteur calls for restoration of Ashraf City’s water supply destroyed by bomb in Iraq

2008-03-07T16:42:00.000-05:00

Friday, 07 March 2008

Source: Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

The Special Rapporteur on the right to food to the Human Rights Council, Jean Ziegler, issued the following statement:

Geneva, 6 March 2008: - I am deeply concerned about information I continue to receive concerning the deteriorating situation in Ashraf City/Camp Ashraf (Iraq) and its surrounding area, following an explosion on 8 February 2008 that destroyed the water pumps in Zorganieh, which supply the area.

That pumping station provided drinking water and irrigation for Ashraf City and its surrounding area, covering more than 20,000 persons. The explosion has caused water and food shortages for the local population, which relies on local food supplies already severely affected by water scarcity. The situation is made more critical by increasingly hot weather.

Some of the reports I have received allege that the explosion may have been intended to increase pressure on over 3,000 members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/[MEK]) confined in Camp Ashraf in Diyala province. The camp remains under the control of the multi-national force under the demobilization agreement the Iraqi authorities signed with the PMOI in May 2003. In July 2004, the United States Government recognized PMOI members as Protected Persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention, meaning that they should not be deported, expelled or repatriated, or displaced inside Iraq.

The rights to food and to drinking water are protected by international human rights law. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognizes the right of everyone "to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food", and other international human rights instruments, to which Iraq is a party, further spell out the protection of these rights.

The Iraqi authorities have failed to protect the inhabitants of Ashraf City and its surrounding area from the actions of third parties which are impeding enjoyment of the rights to food and water and creating a critical humanitarian situation. The competent authorities must restore urgently the water supply to all the inhabitants of the region affected by the explosion in the water pumping station; the affected population must be protected from violation of their rights by third parties. I call on the Iraqi authorities to take immediate measures to guarantee the rights to food and water of the inhabitants of Ashraf City/Camp Ashraf and its surrounding area.

*****The Special Rapporteur on the Right to food sent a letter to the Iraqi government on 17 October 2006 where he inter alia raised concern about the damages caused by a series of explosions to the water pipeline that stretches 26 km from the pumping station near the Tigris River to Camp Ashraf. This allegedly affected access of the Camp residents and nearby villages to drinking water for approximately two weeks. Irrigation was also reportedly disrupted by the explosions.

UN Special Rapporteur calls on Iraqi authorities to restore the water supply to Ashraf City

2008-03-06T16:37:00.001-05:00

March 06, 2008
Source: UN News Centre

An independent United Nations human rights expert today called on Iraqi authorities to restore the water supply to more than 20,000 people having to endure water and food shortages since an explosion last month at a local pumping station.

Jean Ziegler, the Special Rapporteur on the right to food, issued a statement voicing deep concern about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Ashraf City/Camp Ashraf and surrounds since the explosion on 8 February at nearby Zorganieh.

He said locals were now experiencing water and food shortages that had been made more critical by the increasingly hot weather in the region.

Mr. Ziegler said he had received reports that the explosion may have been intended to deepen the pressure on an estimated 3,000 members of a militia known as the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI[aka MEK]) that have been confined in Camp Ashraf.

Under an agreement signed by Iraqi authorities and the PMOI in 2003, the camp remains under the control of the Multi-National Force (MNF) in Iraq and in 2004 the United States recognized PMOI members as protected persons under the Geneva conventions.

In his statement the Special Rapporteur emphasized that the rights to food and drinking water are protected under international human rights law.

“The Iraqi authorities have failed to protect the inhabitants of Ashraf City and its surrounding area from the actions of third parties, which are impeding enjoyment of the rights to food and water and creating a critical humanitarian situation.

“The competent authorities must restore urgently the water supply to all the inhabitants of the region affected by the explosion in the water pumping station [and] the affected population must be protected from violation of their rights by third parties.

“I call on the Iraqi authorities to take immediate measures to guarantee the rights to food and water of the inhabitants of Ashraf City/Camp Ashraf and its surrounding area.”

Iranian Resistance on Iraqi soil is legal - Leading Iraqi Shiite lawmaker

2008-03-05T16:45:00.000-05:00

Wednesday, 05 March 2008

NCRI – Mr. Iyad Jamaluddin, a Shiite member of the Iraqi National Assembly in an interview with Al-Arabiya TV station dismissed Iranian regime’s claims on the presence of members of the main Iranian opposition group, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq.

“Will PMOI pack and leave Iraq? No, it will not happen,” said Mr. Jamaluddin. “Their presence in Iraq is based on the international law,” he added.

Mr. Jamaluddin said members of PMOI are present and active in many countries throughout the world.

“The purpose of Ahmadinejad’s visit to Iraq was nothing but propaganda; he wanted to demonstrate that his regime is not isolated. Ahmadinejad intended to break the sanction, but he would not succeed. He would receive just a few photos, nothing else,” he said commenting on Ahmadinejad’s visit in interview with Al Arabiya TV prior to his visit.

Iraqi political leader: PMOI’s presence in Iraq is based on international law

2008-03-03T16:47:00.000-05:00

Monday, 03 March 2008

NCRI - Dr. Saleh Mutlaq, leader of Iraqi National Dialogue Front dismissed claims by the Iranian regime for expulsion of members of the main Iranian opposition group in Iraq as baseless.

He said that the presence of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) on Iraqi soil is based on the international treaties and Geneva Convention.

“No one has the authority to expel the PMOI in Iraq; unless he intends to breach all international treaties. It is not in the best interest of the Iraqi people to break the law,” said Dr, Saleh Mutlaq in interview with Al-Rafeddin TV channel.

Iraqi Islamic Party condemns explosion of water pumping station of Ashraf City in Iraq

2008-02-29T16:50:00.000-05:00

Friday, 29 February 2008

NCRI - Mr. Fareed Sabri representative of the Iraqi Islamic Party in Britain in an interview with Iraqi News Agency strongly condemned the explosion of water pumping station of Ashraf City, home to the members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq.

Mr. Sabri said that the rights of the members of PMOI as political refugees in Iraq should be respected and any threat against them in violation of the international law.

Mr. Sabri dismissed the terror label against the PMOI and emphasized that the Iraqi government should adhere to international human rights treaties regarding the PMOI members in Iraq. “The Iraqi constitution prevents the Iraqi government from conducting any provocative actions against the PMOI,” he said.

On February 8, Iran’s Qods Force terrorists by using more than 300 kg of TNT blew up the station supplying water to the members of PMOI in Ashraf City and 20,000 villagers living in the vicinity. As a result water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

The bombing of Ashraf City's water pumping station has sparked a wave of strong condemnations by International and local political and human rights organizations.

Lawyers Without Borders condemns Iranian regime’s bomb attack on Ashraf City’s water station

2008-02-26T16:52:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, 26 February 2008

NCRI - Dr. Khaled Issa Taha, chairman of the London based “Lawyers Without Borders” in an interview with the Persian language channel INTV (Simaye-Azadi) condemned the explosion of the bomb attack on the water pumping station of the Ashraf City, home to the members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq.

Dr. Taha described the bomb attack as “criminal and unjustifiable.” “The role of Iranian mullahs is quite clear in such incidents; explosions and murder of innocent people, particularly those who try to bring democratic change in Iran,” he added.

On February 8, Iran’s Qods Force terrorists by using more than 300 kg of TNT blew up the station supplying water to the members of PMOI in Ashraf City and 20,000 villagers living in the vicinity. As a result water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

The bombing of Ashraf City's water pumping station has sparked a wave of strong condemnations by International and local political and human rights organizations.

Iraqi official: Iran planning to pin my assassination on PMOI

2008-02-24T16:55:00.000-05:00

Sunday, 24 February 2008

NCRI - Mohammad Mesbah al-Waeli, governor of southern Iraqi province of Basra, revealed in a press conference on Thursday that Iranian regime is planning to assassinate him and his brother and blaming it on the main Iranian opposition group, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI /MEK).

“The Iranian consulate in Basra informed a leader of our movement (Fazilat party) of a plot to assassinate my brother and I by the PMOI in Iraq,” reported Elaph Arabic language website from Al-Waeli’s conference.

“The PMOI is not present in Basra. It is a message from the assassins that the plan would be carried out blaming it on the PMOI,” added al-Waeli.

Al-Waeli called on the Iraqi officials to shut down the Iranian consulate in Basra.

“I believe that abundant information about the intelligence activities of the local agents of the Iranian security forces have been brought to the attention of the Iraqi officials, including that of the Iranian consulate in Basra.

“I hold the Iranian consulate responsible for any future attampts on my life and that of my brother’s,” said Al-Waeli in an interview with Al-Arabiya television network.

Tehran’s demonizing campaign against its main opposition is common knowledge.

After the criminal bombing of the holy shrine of Imam Reza (the eighth Shiite Imam) in the northeastern city of Mashad in 1994, in which dozens of innocent pilgrims were killed, the clerical regime’s leaders immediately blamed the PMOI for that terrorist attack.

The same year, after murdering three Christian priests, the Iranian Intelligence Ministry accused the PMOI of the killings.

Several years later, the clerical regime’s officials acknowledged that the heinous crimes had been perpetrated by the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS).

300 Iraqi tribal leaders condemn explosion of Ashraf City water pumping station by Iranian regime

2008-02-22T16:58:00.000-05:00

Friday, 22 February 2008

NCRI – In the gathering of the Union of Iraqi Tribal Sheikhs Councils, 300 tribal leaders from across Iraq, condemned the bombing of the water pumping station of Ashraf City, home to the members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/ MEK) in Iraq.

The Iraqi leaders expressed their solidarity with the PMOI and called for eviction of the Iran’s Qods Force agents from Iraq.

On February 8, Iran’s Qods Force terrorists by using more than 300 kg of TNT blew up the station supplying water to the members of PMOI in Ashraf City and 20,000 villagers living in the vicinity. As a result water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water were cut off.

Sheikh Mutlaq Abde Rashid al-Darab addressing the gathering said: “The water pumping station was exploded by the Iranian regime; we call on you, the nationalist Iraqi tribes from north to the south of Iraq, to stand firm and expel all the forces of the regime ruling in Iran from our country; we ask you the Iraqi people to insist on early elections. We also condemn Ahmadinejad’s trip to Iraq.”

“After investigating the recent incidents, we came up with the conclusion that all these crimes, particularly the recent terrorist crime, have been carried out by the Iranian embassy in Baghdad and are planned by Kazemi Qomi, Iranian regime’s ambassador to Iraq, and in coordination with the Qods Force mercenaries who were dispatched from abroad, like Massoud Khodabandeh and Mostafa Mohammadi, and the local mercenaries”, said the final declaration of the gathering that was read by Sheikh Khalil al-Bayati.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

The bombing of Ashraf City's water pumping station has sparked a wave of strong condemnations by International and local political and human rights organizations.

Conference in U.S. Congress deplores Iran's meddling in Iraq, calls for protection of Ashraf City

2008-02-18T17:02:00.000-05:00

Monday, 18 February 2008

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following statement was issued today by the Society of Iranian-American Scholars & Professionals (San Diego), Colorado's Iranian American Community, and the Iranian-American Society of Texas:

Iran's rising meddling in Iraq and the humanitarian and political status of Iran's largest opposition -- the People's Mojahedin Organization (PMOI/MEK) -- in Ashraf City, Iraq, was the topic of a policy conference in the U.S. Congress on February 13, 2008.

The bi-partisan Iran Human Rights and Democracy Caucus hosted the conference in which more than 200 Iranian-American delegates from across the United States, congressional staffers, former government officials, policy and military experts, and the representatives of foreign embassies attended. The conference was chaired by Mr. Ronald G. Precup, a partner in the law firm of Carpenter & Precup.

On February 8, 2008, the agents of the Qods Force, the terrorist arm of Iran's regime bombed and completely destroyed a plant in Iraq's Diyala Province which supplied water to Ashraf City and 20,000 Iraqis living nearby. The members of PMOI in Ashraf City are "Protected Persons" under the Fourth Geneva Convention and under protection of the Multinational Force -- Iraq.

Congressmen Bob Filner (D-CA), Chairman of the Veterans' Affairs; Tom Tancredo (R-CO) and Ted Poe (R-TX), members of the Foreign Affairs Committee, attended the conference. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), a member of the Homeland Security Committee sent a special message to the conference.

Rep. Tancredo called for immediate attention to "the current problems" at Ashraf City and said "I believe it would be better for the U.S to be very clear in its intentions and I believe those intentions should be to protect the people at Camp Ashraf and to support the Iranian opposition. Iranian opposition today represents the best hope for democratic change in the country... The Iranian opposition has been a long friend of the U.S for a long time. The MEK is responsible for informing about Iran's nuclear activities and providing information about Iranian Qods force. US policy I believe should be changed to reflect this reality."

Congressman Poe remarked that "America's quarrel... is not with the people of Iran, but it's with the government of Iran and there is big difference... And I for one hope we do everything as a country, as a Congress, to support the efforts of the Iranian people in that struggle against tyranny, against the government that is oppressive to the people..."

Dr. Allan Gerson, chairman of Gerson International Law Group, said that "despite the fact of the MEK's actions at Camp Ashraf in renouncing terrorism and fully cooperating with U.S. authorities, and despite the MEK leadership's total renunciation of terrorism, the MEK remains on the U.S. terrorism list. This is inexplicable..." He added that the humanitarian provisions of the Geneva Convention "demand that the restored sovereign, here the government of Iraq, and the military power seeking to assure stability in the war torn area -- the U.S. military command -- continue to have a duty to do whatever they can to assure the well-being of protected persons."

The address by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, was read by Ms. Soona Samsami. In her address, Mrs. Rajavi stated that: "The Iranian Resistance is the counter weight to the mullahs and their export of fundamentalism to Iraq and to the region... The PMOI has played a vital role in pursuing different nationalist Iraqi forces as well as Sheikhs and tribes to participate in the political process. This explains why the Iranian regime views the PMOI as the most important barrier against expanding its complete influence in Iraq and hatches every possible conspiracy to destroy Ashraf."

In its message to conference, the Coordination Committee of Iraqi National Forces, which includes major non-sectarian Iraqi groups, emphasized that "There are many reasons for the existing level of political awareness amongst Iraqi political forces and on the grass root level. But one major factor that will never be forgotten by Iraqis is the role played by the Iranian Resistance and namely the PMOI and Ashraf. A role that has exposed them to a great deal of pressure and conspiracies by the Iranian regime."

Bomb attack on Ashraf City's water station violates Iraq's sovereignty - Iraqi National Accord

2008-02-17T17:05:00.000-05:00

Sunday, 17 February 2008

NCRI - Iraqi National Accord headed by Dr. Ayad Allawi, former Iraqi Prime Minister condemned the last week bomb attack on the water station of Ashraf City, home to the members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq.

"Iraqi National Accord condemns the inhumane and un-Islamic act that violates Iraqi sovereignty and has targeted the Iraqi people’s security and integrity", Mr. Zia al-Sheikhly, spokesman for the group said.

"We ask the Iraqi government to form an investigative committee to identify the criminal agents involved in the attack", he added.

On February 8, the Qods Force terrorists in a cowardly act blew up the water pumping station supplying water to Ashraf City residents and 20,000 Iraqis living in the vicinity.

The incident took place at 3:30 a.m. local time on Friday. More than 300 kg of TNT was used in this bombing and as a result water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water to Ashraf City and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed by the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

France Libertés Foundation calls for investigation into bomb attack on Ashraf City's water station

2008-02-16T17:22:00.000-05:00

Saturday, 16 February 2008

NCRI – France Libertés Foundation, headed by Mrs. Daniell Mitterand, the former French First Lady in a statement condemned the February 8 bombing of the water pumping station of Ashraf City home to members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI / MEK) in northeast Iraq.

The French human rights organization described the bomb attack as an act of "war crime" against the people residing in Ashraf City who are recognized as protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention, and over 20,000 Iraqis living in the area.

"The France Libertés Fondation joins the National Council of Resistance of Iran to condemn these practices that endanger civil society and affect indiscriminately the life of the community, and calls upon the multinational force in Iraq, the International Committee of Red Cross, the United Nations and in particular the Iraqi government to investigate and prosecute the instigators of the attacks," the statement said.

The bomb attack took place at 3:30 a.m. local time on February 8. More than 300 kg of TNT was used in this bombing and as a result water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water to Ashraf City and surrounding areas were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City's water pumping station sparked a wave of strong condemnations by International and local political and human rights organizations.

Lebanon’s Islamic-Arabic Council condemns Iran regime's bomb attack on Ashraf City water station

2008-02-15T17:24:00.000-05:00

Friday, 15 February 2008

NCRI - The Secretary General of the Islamic-Arabic Council in Lebanon, Allameh Mohammad Ali al-Husseini, condemned the last week's bomb attack on the water pumping station of Ashraf City, home to the members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI / MEK) in Iraq.

Allameh al-Husseini in a statement said that the Islamic- Arabic Council of Lebanon condemns this hideous and inhumane act and calls on the Multi-National Force in Iraq (MNF-I), International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC), UN and the Iraqi government to investigate the bomb attack.

The Iranian regime showed its nature to all by committing this inhumane crime, the Islamic-Arabic Council of Lebanon added.

On February 8, the Qods Force terrorists in a cowardly act blew up the power station supplying water to Ashraf City residents and 20,000 Iraqis living in the vicinity.

The incident took place at 3:30 a.m. local time on Friday. More than 300 kg of TNT was used in this bombing and as a result water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water to Ashraf City and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed by the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

13 Iraqi MPs condemn bomb attack on Ashraf City water pumping station

2008-02-14T17:25:00.000-05:00

Thursday, 14 February 2008

NCRI - In a joint statement, 13 members of Iraqi National Assembly condemned bomb attack on water pumping station of Ashraf City, home to the members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI / MEK) in Iraq.

The statement called on the Multi-National Forces in Iraq (MNF-I) and the Iraqi government to investigate the last Friday's inhumane bomb attack by the Iran regime's agents on the water pumping station that supplied water to residents of Ashraf City and some 20,000 inhabitants in surrounding areas.

The statement reads in part: “Individuals affiliated with the Iran's regime are responsible for the inhuman crime. They have no intention other than pressuring the people of Diyala province. The crime also deprives the local residents of drinking and irrigation water which the same station supplied."

“It is a part of a scenario that has been revealed by the press recently aimed at setting grounds for pursuing terrorist measures against the people of the area and the residents of Ashraf City,” the statement added.

The bombing of Ashraf City's water pumping station followed by the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the the station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

Iranian regime bomb attack on power station an inhumane act – Iraqi TV

2008-02-12T17:32:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, 12 February 2008

NCRI – Iraqi Political parties and parliamentarians condemned the bombing of the water pumping station of the Ashraf City, home to the members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), located in Diyala province, Iraqi TV Channel al-Rafidain TV reported on Sunday.

"The crime is in clear violation of Iraq's sovereignty and security which has stemmed from the inaction in respect with the Iranian regime's meddling in Iraq," the report added.

"The bomb attack on Ashraf's power station is not the first of its kind by the Iranian regime against its main opposition, the PMOI. This power station has been attacked at least twice before. The last attack took place in summer of 2006. The damages were repaired by the PMOI members with the help of local residents.

"The villagers living in the surrounding areas of Ashraf City have cooperated with the members of the PMOI to keep the water flowing to more than 20,000 inhabitants of the area.

"This criminal action that deprives over 20,000 of their water supply can only be defined as inhumane crimes committed by the master minds known to everyone in the area.

"This crime is in lined with the restrictions imposed by the Iranian regime and the present Iraqi government on the residents of the Ashraf City."

Iraqi Kurdish figure condemns bomb attack on Asharf City's power station

2008-02-12T17:30:00.001-05:00

Tuesday, 12 February 2008

NCRI – Dr. Mahmoud Othman, Kurdish member of the Iraqi National Assembly, strongly condemned bombing of the water pumping station of Ashraf City, home to the members of the People's Mojahedin Orgnization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq.

Dr. Othman described the bomb attack that resulted in the water outage to Ashraf City and some 20,000 inhabitants in the surrounding area as an "anti-Islamic and inhumane action."

The statement reads in part: “Individuals affiliated with the Iranian regime are responsible for the inhuman crime. They have no intention other than pressuring the people of Diyala. The crime also deprives the local residents of drinking and irrigation water which the same station supplied."

“It is a part of a scenario that has been revealed by the press recently and is carried out under the guise of defending human rights and refugee rights. It is aimed at setting grounds for pursuing terrorist measures against the people of the area and the residents of Ashraf City,” Dr. Othman added.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed by the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

Iranian regime's Qods Force prepares for missile attack on Ashraf City

2008-02-12T17:28:00.001-05:00

Tuesday, 12 February 2008

NCRI – Iranian regime has ordered a group of agents affiliated to the terrorist Qods Force in the town of Khalis, in Diyala Province of Iraq – to carry out a missile attack on Ashraf City - the People's Mojahedin of Iran (PMOI/MEK) said in a statement on Tuesday.

The statement by PMOI follows the explosion of Asharf City's water pumping station on Friday and extensive activities by agents of Iranian regime in Iraq to set the grounds for terrorist operations against Ashraf City, home to members of PMOI in Iraq.

The following is the text of the PMOI's statement:

Criminal Plot by Qods Force for Missile Attack against Ashraf City

The theocratic regime of Iran has ordered a group of agents affiliated to the terrorist Qods Force in Khalis town – Diyala Province, Iraq – to carry out a missile attack against Ashraf City. These agents have started their practices and preparations since two weeks ago in Khalis area.

Commander of the terrorist group is Awad Azzawi, a.k.a. Abu-Zahra Khalisi, 43, a veteran member of the Badr Brigade who has been recruited by the Qods Force since 1990 and has an Iranian wife. This agent has been registered with the code number 27896 in the pay roll list of the 32,000 agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in Iraq, and his account number in the Iranian regime’s Sepah Bank is 2308.

Awad Azzawi, who regularly goes back and forth to Iran, is responsible for the terrorist explosion of the bus carrying Iraqi workers to Ashraf on May 29, 2006 in Khalis Road which left 11 workers dead and 15 others wounded.

Last week a number of the Qods Force agents who work at the Iranian Embassy in Iraq went to Khalis City and planned to run a terrorist center disguised under a human rights defender NGO. Prior to that, four personnel of the Intelligence Ministry of the Iranian embassy in Baghdad went to Khalis and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah-Hamid al-Saadi known as Abu-Heidar who is in charge of the Badr’s office at Khalis and two commanders of the death squads called as Abu-Tabarak al-Saedi and Khozair Mohammad Ahmad, a.k.a. Abu-Issama Khalisi, for planning the terrorist plot.

Tehran regime exploded the water supply pumping station of the Ashraf city that supplied water to 20,000 inhabitants of the vicinity too. Two days prior to that on Feb. 6, the agents of the Qods force in a terrorist attack murdered Sheikh Hamid Ziab, a tribal council member, who was in charge of the security of the area and the pumping station.

A number of agents of the Iranian regime’s Ministry of Intelligence(MOIS) and the Qods force, including Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari-Nassab and Alirezi Bashiri, had been accommodated in Hotel al-Mansour in Baghdad to set the grounds for terrorist operation against the city of Ashraf. Three individuals identified as Nowbakht(deputy to Kazemi Qomi), Assadi ( in charge of the so-called human rights committee in the Iranian embassy) and Tabatabaii are in contact with these agents. Kazemi Qomi, regime’s ambassador to Baghdad and the godfather of Intelligence and Qods force agents in Baghdad, met with these agents in Hotel al-Mansour on Thursday afternoon Feb. 7.

Following designation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and after verdict by a British court and resolutions of the Council of Europe and the European Parliament which dealt devastating blows to terrorist listing of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), the religious fascism ruling Iran finds itself more in need of terrorist attacks and conspiracies against the PMOI, especially on the eve of Majlis(Parliamentary) elections, when it has staged an unprecedented purging of the rival factions. In a similar situation on the eve or presidential elections, the clerical regime launched 77 missiles against the camps of National Liberation Army (NLA) on 18 April 2001.

The intelligence on the terrorist Qods Force’s felonious plot to stage missile attack against Ashraf City and its residents, all of whom are protected persons under international conventions, along with information on preparations and gathering of MOIS agents in Hotel al-Mansour in Baghdad who had come from Iran and abroad, has been shared with relevant international organizations and the MNF-I forces in charge of the security of Ashraf.

People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran
February 12, 2008

Bombing of Ashraf City power station part of a conspiracy by Iran regime - Iraqi group

2008-02-11T17:36:00.000-05:00

Monday, 11 February 2008

NCRI - Iraqi National Dialogue Front, headed by Dr. Saleh Matlaq, condemned bombing of Ashraf City water supply pumping station by the Qods Force terrorist agents of the Iranian regime in Iraq.

In its statement the Iraqi National Dialogue Front strongly condemned the bombing as a criminal action and part of a broader conspiracy against the Iranian political refugees residing in Ashraf City.

"Such measures, bombing of the Ashraf City's power station coupled with the disinformation campaign in recent weeks by the agents of the Iranian regime against the People's Mojhedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in is a sign of the plots against Iranian political refugees in Iraq", the statement added.

The incident took place at 3:30 a.m. local time on Friday. More than 300 kg of TNT was used in this bombing and as a result water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water to Ashraf City and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed by the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

Iranian regime forced to retreat from lies against PMOI

2008-02-11T17:34:00.000-05:00

Monday, 11 February 2008

NCRI – In a statement yesterday, the Iranian regime withdrew its claim about the arrest of members of the main Iranian opposition, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq.

The state-run news agency IRNA reported on Sunday "Iran's consulate in Karbala said on Sunday that the two Iranians arrested in Iraq are ordinary pilgrims," and reiterated that they were not affiliated to the PMOI.

"The Iraq-based Iranian diplomats have acknowledged the identity of the two Iranians to the Iraqi officials and it is expected that they will be released later in the day," IRNA reported.

On Saturady an agent of the clerical regime acting as the spokesman of the Karbala police force disseminated the false claims that four members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) had been arrested in that city.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) in a statement said on Saturday, "The PMOI has no presence in any part of Iraq except in the city of Ashraf. The source of these lies is the terrorist Qods Force of the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that is setting the stage for further terrorist operations against the PMOI and the residents of Ashraf city."

In an explosion on February 8, the terrorist agents of the Iranian regime's Qods Force destroyed the water supply pumping station of Ashraf City (100 km to northeast of Baghdad), home to members of PMOI. The pumping station was located 25 km to the west of Ashraf City. As a result, supply of water to Ashraf and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City's power station followed by the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq. The agents were identified as: Massoud Khodabandeh, Mostafa Mohammadi, Reza Akbari Nasab and Alireza Bashiri. The team leader for the group belonging to the Qods Force is Tabatabaie.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

On November 8, 2007, four members of the MOIS went to Khalis directly from the Iranian regime's embassy in Baghdad and met with Abdul-Rassoul Mullah Hamid Al-Saadi (aka Abu-Heidar) head of the local office for Badr Brigade in Khalis. At the meeting there were two commanders of the hit squads identified as Abu Tabarak Al-Saedi and Khezr Mohammad Ahmad (aka Abu-Osama Khalesi). The latter was involved in a terrorist attack on a bus carrying workers to Ashraf City in May 2006.

General Council for the People of Iraq condemned Bombing of Ashraf City water supply pumping station

2008-02-10T17:41:00.000-05:00

Sunday, 10 February 2008

NCRI - General Council for the People of Iraq, headed by the prominent Iraqi politician Dr. Adnan al-Dulaimi, condemned bombing of Ashraf City water supply pumping station by the Qods Force terrorist agents of the Iranian regime in Iraq.

In its statement the council described the mullahs' bombing attack on the water pumping station of Ashraf City (home to members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq) a "criminal act" against political refugees in Iraq.

General Council for the People of Iraq stated that water outage to residents of Ashraf City, who are recognized as protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention, and 20,000 Iraqi local residents in surrounding areas amounts to war crime.

The Iraqi party called on the Multi-National Force-Iraq, International Red Cross and Iraqi government to investigate the criminal act and prosecute those who planned and perpetrated the bombing.
The incident took place at 3:30 am local time on Friday. More than 300 kg of TNT was used in this bombing and as a result huge water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water to Ashraf and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

The bombing of Ashraf City water supply pumping station followed the assassination on February 6 of a local tribe council member, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of protection of the power station.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) revealed that the Iranian regime in past few weeks dispatched a number of agents of Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as well as Qods Force elements from Iran and abroad to Iraq.

These rogue elements were to prepare for subsequent plots for terrorist attacks against the PMOI members residing in Ashraf City. The mullahs' embassy in Baghdad accommodated them in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad and kept a constant contact with the agents. A number of MOIS and Qods Force agents are presently staying in Al-Mansur Hotel in Baghdad.

Euro Parliamentary Group condemns bombing of water supply pumping station to Ashraf City

2008-02-10T17:38:00.000-05:00

Sunday, 10 February 2008

NCRI - In a statement issued on February 9, the Friends of a Free Iran Inter-Parliamentary group at the European Parliament strongly condemned the bombing of the water supply pumping station to Ashraf City, home to members of the Iranian opposition movement, People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Diyala province in Iraq.

"Bombing water supply stations and pipelines are considered as war crimes against protected persons and local residents, according to the Geneva Convention", The statement said.

The following is the full text of the statement:

Friends of a Free Iran
European Parliament

February 9, 2008

Friends of a Free Iran in the European Parliament (FOFI) strongly condemns the bombing of the water supply pumping station to Ashraf City in Diyala province in Iraq.

On Friday 8 February 2008, the water supply pumping station which provided water to Ashraf City, home to members of the Iranian opposition movement, People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI) north-eastern Baghdad, was bombed. The pumping station also supplied water to many villages in the Diyala province.

The European Parliament has an official policy on PMOI members in Ashraf. Paragraph 7 of the European Parliament resolution of 12 July 2007 emphasised on "4,000 members of the Iranian opposition who have been political refugees in Iraq for the past 20 years and have the legal status of 'Protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention".

Bombing water supply stations and pipelines are considered as war crimes against protected persons and local residents, according to the Geneva Convention.

Several days ago Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of the protection of the pumping station, was killed in a terrorist attack which the local community have blamed on the Qods Force, part of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, for this atrocity.

Friends of a Free Iran (FOFI) inter-group in the European Parliament, which includes a wide range of MEPs from various political groups who have visited Camp Ashraf three times already in the past, strongly condemns this bombing and calls on the on Multi-National Force – Iraq and the Iraqi Government to conduct an urgent investigation and prosecute those responsible for this crime.

FOFI is also very concerned by the terrorist activities conducted by agents of the Iranian regime in Iraq against Iranian exiles.

Paulo Casaca MEP
Co-chair, Friends of a Free Iran

Struan Stevenson MEP
Vice-President of EPP-ED
Co-chair, Friends of a Free Iran

Mujahidin Deny Detention of Members in Karbala

2008-02-09T15:52:00.000-05:00

Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA)
February 9, 2008

... In Karbala, some 100 kilometres south of the Iraqi capital, 15 people were detained, including four members of the Mujahidin Khalq group, the Iranian opposition in Iraq, al-Arabiya news channel said.

The press spokesman for the People Mujahidin Organization of Iran (PMOI) in Ashraf camp denied detentions of members of Mujahidin Khalq.

He told dpa: "This is a misinformation campaign by the Iranian regime against PMOI in Ashraf. We totally deny this claim, and all members of the Mujahidin are staying in Ashraf and protected by the US military."

He said the Iranian regime had dispatched to Iraq some elements of the Qods force, which is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, to pursue this misinformation campaign...

Iran regime's new disinformation campaign against the PMOI

2008-02-09T11:44:00.000-05:00

Saturday, 09 February 2008
The clerical regime's terrorist Qods Force claims four PMOI members arrested in Iraqi city of Karbala

NCRI - The false claims disseminated by an agent of the clerical regime acting as the spokesman of the Karbala police force that four members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) had been arrested in that city is a sheer lie.

The PMOI has no presence in any part of Iraq except in the city of Ashraf. The source of these lies is the terrorist Qods Force of the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that is setting the stage for further terrorist operations against the PMOI and the residents of Ashraf city.

In an explosion on February 8, the terrorist agents of the Iranian regime's Qods Force destroyed the water supply pumping station of Ashraf City (100 km to northeast of Baghdad), home to members of People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI). The pumping station was located 25 km to the west of Ashraf. As a result, supply of water to Ashraf and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

Two days before this explosion, a member of the local tribal council, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of the local security and protection of the pumping station, was assassinated in a terrorist attack. The tribal council blamed the Qods Force for this crime.

Claims of arrest of four members of the PMOI in Karbala are part of a new terrorist conspiracy by the Qods Force against the PMOI and the residents of Ashraf City who are recognized as "protected persons" under the Fourth Geneva Convention.

The new plot was launched a few weeks ago by the Qods Force. The clerical regime had dispatched a number of agents of the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and Qods Force to Iraq to plan and prepare the grounds for terrorist operations against the residents of Ashraf City. The agents were sent from inside and outside Iran and they have been staying in Baghdad's Al-Mansour Hotel. They are in regular contacts with the regime's embassy in Baghdad.

All members of the PMOI are based in Ashraf City which is under constant protection of the Multi-National Force-Iraq round the clock and their movements in and out of Ashraf is supervised by the MNF-I. Something that has been confirmed on numerous occasions by the commanders of the MNF-I (Statement by Lieutenant General William Caldwell, chief spokesman and Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Effects for the Multi-National Force in Iraq, on June 20, 2006).

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
February 9, 2008

Bombing of Ashraf City water supply pumping station - Statement no. 2

2008-02-09T10:47:00.000-05:00

Saturday, 09 February 2008
Mrs. Rajavi calls for condemnation of the clerical regime and prosecution of those who planned and perpetrated the bombing

The terrorist Qods Force bombed the pumping station supplying water to Ashraf City and 20,000 inhabitants of nearby areas

NCRI - Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the Iranian Resistance, called on the UN Secretary General, the Security Council, High Commissioner for Human Rights, High Commissioner for Refugees, International Committee of the Red Cross as well as other human rights and competent international bodies to condemn the mullahs' inhuman regime for the criminal and cowardly bombing attack on the water pumping station of Ashraf City (home to members of People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) in Iraq) and surrounding rural areas. She also called for prosecution of those who planned and perpetrated the terrorist crime.

Mrs. Rajavi reiterated that water outage to residents of Ashraf City, protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention, and 20,000 deprived Iraqi local residents amounts to war crime. She added that the mullahs' regime engulf in domestic and international crises is attempting in vain to simultaneously increase executions and medieval punishments at home as well as planning terrorist attacks on its main opposition which are aimed at preventing the rapid downfall of the regime.

Yesterday, the terrorist agents of the Iranian regime's Qods Force bombed the water supply pumping station of Ashraf City (100 km to northeast of Baghdad), home to members of People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI).

The incident took place at 3:30 am local time. The pumping station also supplied water to areas 25 km to the west of Ashraf according to information received.

More than 300 kg of TNT was used in this bombing and as a result huge water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water to Ashraf and 20,000 Iraqis living in the area were cut off.

Mrs. Rajavi offered her condolences and expressed solidarity with Sheikh Hamid Ziab's family and the Iraqi people in particular the residents of Diayal Province and the PMOI members in Ashraf City. Sheikh Ziab was assassinated in a terrorist attack on Wednesday. He was in charge of the local security and protection of the pumping station.

She said that dominating Iraq is part of the ruling religious fascism's strategy and to that end, as it appeared on the statement of 5.2 million Iraqis in June 2006, the only way to establish peace and democracy in Iraq was to evict the mullahs' regime and its subordinates the IRGC and Qods Force from the country.

The mullahs' regime has recently dispatched a number of agents of the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and Qods Force to Iraq to conspire and prepare the grounds for terrorist attacks against the residents of Ashraf City. These agents were sent to Iraq from inside and outside Iran and are in constant contact with the mullahs' embassy in Baghdad. They have been staying in Baghdad's Al-Mansur Hotel. This is a clear indication of the regime's ongoing plots against Ashraf residents.

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
February 9, 2008

Bombing of water supply pumping station by Qods Force, a war crime under international conventions

2008-02-08T19:19:00.000-05:00

Iranian Resistance calls for prosecution of those who planned and perpetrated the criminal act
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
Friday, 08 February 2008

NCRI - This morning, the terrorist agents of the Iranian regime's Revolutionary Guard Corps - Qods Force bombed the water supply pumping station which provided water to Ashraf City, home to members of People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) in northeastern Baghdad.

The incident took place at 3:30 am local time. The pumping station also supplied water to areas 25 km to the west of Ashraf according to information received.

More than 300 kg of TNT was used in this terrorist bombing and as a result huge water pumps, installations of the station and offices were destroyed and supply of water to Ashraf and areas in the vicinity were cut off.

Two days ago, a member of the local tribal council, Sheikh Hamid Ziab, in charge of the local security and protection of the pumping station, was assassinated in a terrorist attack. The tribal council blamed the Qods Force for this crime.

The pumping station has been under the protection of local residents and tribes in recent years and for the past few months the newly formed "Awakening Councils" have been protecting it.

As cutting off and bombing water supply stations and pipelines are considered as war crimes against protected persons and local residents, according to the Geneva Convention, the Iranian Resistance calls on Multi-National Force – Iraq, International Committee of the Red Cross, the United Nations and in particular the government of Iraq to conduct an urgent investigation into this terrorist crime and prosecute those who planned and perpetrated the attack.

The mullahs' regime has recently dispatched a number of agents of the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and Qods Force to Iraq to conspire against the residents of Ashraf City. They have been staying in Baghdad's Al-Mansur Hotel. This is a clear indication of the regime's ongoing plots against Ashraf residents.

The water supply pumping station has belonged to the PMOI for the past 22 years and in addition to Ashraf it also provided over 20,000 local farmers and residents with water. The station also supplied part of drinking water of Azim Township in the vicinity.

In summer of 2006, mercenaries of the clerical regime bombed twice the water pipelines of Ashraf close to this pumping station. They were rapidly repaired with the help of local residents and people of Ashraf.

Under the pressures of the Iranian regime and its agents within the Iraqi government, supply of medicine, food and fuel to Ashraf have been barred since 2005 in violation of international conventions. The situation prevails despite protests by international bodies such as the European Parliament and the United Nations.

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
February 8, 2008

Iran: 1000 Iraqi sheikhs ask US Secretary of Defense for the eviction of mullahs from Iraq

2008-01-18T11:32:00.000-05:00

Friday, 18 January 2008

NCRI – 1000 Iraqi tribal sheikhs in a letter to Robert Gates, US Secretary of Defense, asked for eviction of the clerical regime ruling Iran from Iraq. They underscored the role of the main Iran’s opposition, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI / MEK) in revealing the regime’s interference in the Iraqi internal affairs.

“The tribal leaders acted as the bulwark to the meddling and spread of terrorism and sectarian violence by the Iranian regime, while [Iraqi] governmental institutions were highly infiltrated by the Iranian regime, in particular, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Qods Force (IRGC-QF),” the letter of Iraqi tribal sheikhs said.

“The US government should stand on the side of the Iraqi people for establishing peace and democracy and avoid those who represent the interests of the Iranian regime,” the letter added.

They referred to the frauds in last election in Iraq and called for a new parliamentary election.

500 tribal sheikhs call for closure of the Iran regime's embassy in Iraq

2008-01-13T13:14:00.000-05:00

Sunday, 13 January 2008

NCRI – More than 500 tribal sheikhs called for the shutdown of the Iranian regime's embassy and consulates in Iraq. The move by tribal leaders nationwide also demanded a total expulsion of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) elements from their country as necessary steps toward putting an end to the mullahs' meddling in Iraq.

The Iraqi tribal leaders emphasize on the need to maintain the main Iranian Opposition group, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in Iraq as a strategic balancing force.

In the gathering formation of "Congress of Iraqi Tribal Alliance for Support of Nationalist Alternative" was announced. Support for a national reconciliation government through early national elections under United Nations control and transfer of security to local tribal leaders are among the goals of the alliance.

"We want to form a national salvation government and the elections to be held under the UN auspices", Sheikh Mutlaq Hamada al-Jabouri from al-Jabour tribe said at the gathering.

Yaaqub al-Qaissi, spokesman of the Iraqi People’s Congress, headed by Dr. Adnan Dulaimi, said: "We wish for a genuine national reconciliation and elimination of autocratic rule and suppression in Iraq. We call for establishment of a non-sectarian and strong army void of militias belonging to Iran. ."

Dr. Abdullah al-Jabouri, chairman of the National Front for Salvation of Diyala, Sheikh Kamil Latif Ghazi, from Wassit province, Sheikh Abdulhalim Abdulkarim from Salahuddin, Sheikh Muhammad Mahdi Khudhair from Muthanna, where among many Iraqi leaders who spoke at the event.

One of the Sheikhs of Diyala Province was murdered with his three sons by Iranian regime's terrorist

2008-01-08T13:31:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, 08 January 2008

NCRI - Agents of the clerical regime murdered Sheikh Salman Hamzeh al-Jabouri and his three sons. He was a relative of Dr. Abdullah Jabouri, the former Governor of Diyala Province.

At midnight on Monday, December 31, 2007, the terrorists kidnapped Sheikh Salman Hamzeh Jabouri and his sons from their residence in Marjaneh village, six Kilometers north of Saadieh in Diyala Province. They were machine gunned only four hundred meters away from their home and all of them were killed instantly.

The Iranian Resistance strongly condemns the kidnapping and ruthless terror and expresses its condolences to the Jabouri Family, in particular Dr. Jabouri. The Iranian Resistance reiterates the need for prosecution of the perpetrators of this crime and on the need for serious measures to deal with the clerical regime's terrorist meddling in Iraq.

In June 2006, 5.2 million Iraqis signed a statement calling for eviction of the clerical regime from Iraq. While pointing out some of the regime's crimes in Iraq including "mass murders; assassination of nationalist personalities and the Iraqi society's elite; an unremitting wave of arbitrary arrests and countless cases of kidnapping," the 5.2 million Iraqis reiterated that the Iranian regime has targeted "security, life and democracy," and "Iraq was driven to the verge of precipice."

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
January 5, 2008