People's Mujahedin of Iran
From Freepedia
The People's Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI) is an Iranian militant group. Other names for it include Mujahideen-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) and Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK), sometimes transcribed as Mujahedin-e-Khalq.
Its armed wing is called the National Liberation Army of Iran (NLA). The organization, which was founded in 1965, is today a militant guerrilla movement that seeks, through means including violence, the overthrow of the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The MKO has been officially designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation by the United States and is proscribed by the European Union, though the movement claims to be a "patriotic, Muslim and democratic organization". They have been accused of torturing dissident members by Human Rights Watch but this is not a proven fact. Overall MKO is an organization that wants a better democratic government in Iran without the dictatoring mullahs. [1][2].
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History
The MKO began life as one of the most radical factions opposed to the rule of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and during the 1970s carried out violent terrorist attacks against that government. Some also blame the group for attacks on American interests including involvement in the initial storming of the US embassy in 1979 and the murder of Americans prior to the Iranian revolution.
While initially playing a key role in the 1978 Iranian Revolution because of its ability to mobilise hundreds of thousands of workers, students, and most importantly, many younger army officers, it lost out in the subsequent power struggle and was prohibited from taking part in the post-revolutionary government because of its leftist leanings. Its initial mass protests and demonstrations were violently suppressed by the new government and thousands of supporters and members were arrested and executed in the years to come. Eventually the MKO was driven from Iran and has had to operate from abroad since the early 1980s.
Following the initial clamp down on its mass protests, the movement changed tactics and employed targeted assassinations and bomb attacks against representatives and officials of the Islamic Republic. It is difficult to estimate the exact extent of this campaign which still continues, as both the MKO and the Iranian government have been accused of exaggerating their claims. The MKO's stated motive is to raise funds in the West, while the Iranian government has been accused of trying to shift blame for unrelated events (see Haik Hovsepian). The movement has been accused of perpetrating a large number of assassinations and bomb attacks, including the killing of Mohammad Beheshti and Mohammad Javad Bahonar. The movement also launched several full scale military campaigns during the eighties and nineties, the largest of which was an attempt in 1988 to capture Kermanshah using weaponry largely supplied by Iraq. The invasion force was nearly annihilated by the Iranian military.
Initially in league with other Iranian exile politicians (like Abolhassan Banisadr) the MKO formed the National Council of Resistance (NCR). Nowadays the MKO is the only significant member organisation of the NCR and the NCR is essentially a front organisation of the MKO.
From the Iran-Iraq war until the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, the MKO was supported by the Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein, which provided military equipment, funding, and bases for the organisation. After initially having the headquarters of the organisation in Paris, France, this was subsequently moved to Iraq, as well. Apart from the military action against Iran, Saddam Hussein also used the MKO to occasionally quell internal uprisings, particularly among the Kurds in 1991.
The MKO was the main force involved in attacking the US embassy in Tehran in 1979 and taking American hostages. Khomeini then had to decide whether or not to support this action. At that time the MKO was by far the most active and powerful revolutionary militant force in Iran. Khomeini decided to support them. Nearly all the pictures of the hostage takers (if not all) are of the MKO members. Many of them later became dissidents and were involved in acts of terrorism against the Khomeini regime.
Post-invasion
After the American invasion of Iraq in 2003 the MKO's weaponry was seized and the personnel initially placed under armed guard in a camp outside Baghdad. In August 2004, despite its own labeling of the MKO as a terrorist group, the United States granted the personnel in Iraq Geneva Convention protection, making deportation to Iran illegal. Earlier in 2004 there had been persistent rumours that Iran and the United States were negotiating exchange of MKO leaders for al-Qaida operatives held by Iran. This change in policy has led to increased speculation that the MKO may be used by the United States in potential future operations against Iran.
In recognition for its work against the Iranian Islamic revolutionary government, the movement has enjoyed long periods of freedom and, not uncommonly, public support within the Western world. The world wide headquarters was for many years in Paris, France and even after moving to Iraq during the early 1980's the base in Paris remained large and active. Similarly its operatives were - legally or at least well tolerated - active in Germany, Denmark and many other countries of the European Union. The NCR maintained an Information Office in Washington DC, USA, until its designation as a terrorist group. This designation has never been accepted unanimously. In 2003, over a hundred members of the United States Congress signed a letter calling for the lifting of this designation. Similarly, the activities in France were allowed to continue long after the official proscription in the EU. It was only in June 2003 that the group had some of its French properties raided, after suspicions that it was trying to shift its base of operations there. [3]. Maryam Rajavi remains freely living in Paris and the MKO maintains its web presence without any obvious difficulties [4].
Ideology and reaction
Ideologically, the MKO is difficult to describe. While originally being based on an amalgamation of Marxist and Islamic ideas, the MKO was subject to a number of rapid ideological shifts (each allegedly accompanied by severe internal purges) and has developed a strong sense of veneration for its leading couple, Masoud Rajavi and Maryam Rajavi, which some have described as a personality cult. There have been allegations that the MKO were running prison camps within Iraq and were committing severe human rights violations. To the Western world, the MKO tries to present itself as a pro-democratic and moderate political movement.
Most Iranians - whether supporters of the Islamic Republic or vehemently opposed to that regime or anyone in between - are nearly unanimous in their dislike for the MKO, mostly due to their move to Iraq and alliance with Saddam Hussein. In general, the only Iranians who support this group are the members of the MKO themselves, and to a lesser degree, their family members inside Iran.
Videotape of Massoud Rajavi's secret meeting with Saddam Hussain
Saddam Hussein used to secretly tape everything and this videotape was captured by the Americans after they took control of Saddam's possessions. The tape was later "leaked out" as evidence that Saddam supported terrorists and was connected to terrorist groups.
External links
- Short article on the MKO
- Why the US granted 'protected' status to Iranian terrorists
- Behind the Mujahideen-e-Khalq from Australian government
- Info on MKO from GlobalSecurity
- Article on the MKO on Iranian.com
