Iran and Iraq are close neighbors whose socio-religious-cultural ties are inextricably bound. Two issues that affect Iran and Iraq right now are the fate of the Mujahidin Khalq Organization (MKO), a
group hanging in limbo in Iraq, and the US-Israeli plans to topple Iran’s government. The US-Israel relationship is tight, and it is likely that they share their illusion to overthrow Iran’s Islamic Republic. It is likely that they are planning conspiracy projects to start another war in the Middle East—all while US troops are still occupying both Iraq and Afghanistan.
What is the MKO’s part in the war mongers’ scenario for Iran? The Brookings Institution report, titled “Which Path to Persia?” published in 2009 speculates a role for the MKO. The report states that “clearly the more outrageous, the more deadly, and the more unprovoked the Iranian action,
the better off the United States to goad Iran into such a provocation without the rest of the world recognizing this game, which would then undermine it. (One method that would have some possibility of success would be a ratcheted up covert regime change effort in the hope that Tehran would retaliate overtly, or even semi-overtly, which could be portrayed as a provoked act of Iranian aggression).”[1]
The recent allegations on the so-called Iranian terror plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador announced by the US Attorney General implied that besides funding, arming and sheltering the terrorist group the MKO, the US is determined to entirely fabricate “such provocations.”
A few days after the attorney’s claim was broadcast, the Mehr News Agency speculated that the Iranian government revealed that Gholam Shakouri, who US officials claimed was a member of Quds Force and was linked to Mansour Arbabsiar in the terror plot – is actually a key member of the MKO.[2]
Mehr News Agency said that Interpol “has found new evidence that suggests Shakuri is associated with the MKO and was last seen in Washington and Camp Ashraf.”[3]
As expected, the MKO exploited the “terror plot” news. On October 22, the group held one of their regularly scheduled propaganda rallies in Washington, once again, calling on president Obama to remove them from the US list of terrorist organizations. The American advocates of the group include former Pennsylvania governor, Tom Ridge who spoke on behalf of the MKO. He also accused the Iranian government of being a terrorist government.[4]
The MKO’s extensive background on fabricating intelligence about the Islamic Republic and then exploiting the so-called intelligence in their propaganda is nothing new. Most journalists and experts know about the true nature of the MKO, but a lot of what the MKO does goes unreported. What is reported, however, in main stream media is mostly done by the group itself and the fancy right wing organizations they belong to. This time, however, the MKO’s link is too prickly to be ignored by serious journalists. The so-called terrorist plot on the Saudi ambassador is presented as follows:
Richard Silverstein a journalist and blogger whose articles appear in Haaretz, The LA Times and Al Jazeera, writes “I’ve been able to confirm with enough certainty to feel comfortable publishing the report from Iranian media that Gholam Shakuri, the alleged Iranian revolutionary Guard co-conspirator in the Iran terror plot, is a member of the Mujahedin al-Khalq (MEK/MKO). This is the group which engages in acts of terror within Iran in order to overthrow the regime. It also collaborates with the Mossad in spreading disinformation about the Iranian nuclear program.”[5]
Silverstein finds that according to the MKO’s history, it seems only natural that the group would fabricate evidence against the Islamic Republic. He points out that, “the MEK has a history of planting fraudulent evidence designed to support the claim that Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon. It therefore is entirely possible that it cooked up this scheme to further tarnish Iran’s reputation and relations with Western countries. My only question is wouldn’t they care if they hatched such a slipshod plot that it made Barack Obama end up looking like an utter fool?”[6]
Moreover, Saeed Kamali Dehghan’s (The Guardian) comments on the plot summarize the predicament the US faces. He suggests that, “if the MEK alleged link turns out to be true, it would be a big embarrassment for Washington, which has already met widespread skepticism over its version of events of Iran’s’ involvement in the assassination plot.”[7] Dehghan adds, “little evidence has been provided by the US in support of its claim and the amateurish and sloppy nature of it have led to many analysts speculating that the alleged plot might have been the work of rogue elements.”[8]
Michael Rubin, the prominent journalist who criticized both the Islamic Republic and the MKO, shares the idea that US intelligence lacks enough information on the MKO. He writes, “certainly we can add a lack of information about Iranian MKO members to the list of our intelligence failure regarding Iran.” [9] Furthermore, he submits, “it will be interesting to see how this plays out. It would not be the first time the Mujahedin Khalq has forced intelligence agencies and the press to scramble with an elaborate hoax. And even if the evidence against the Islamic Republic is overwhelming, the fact that Iranian leaders can seize on past Mujahedin al-Khalq fabrications is ample reason not to trust anything the MKO says today either, no matter how many Americans and European officials are willing to embrace them.”[10]
Hillary Mann Leverett, a former American diplomat, and an advisor on Iran in George W. Bush’s administration, told CNN on October 12 that Iranian government involvement in the suspected plot “makes no sense.” She also mentions that “there is no benefit; there is no payoff from them pursuing this kind of hit against Al-Jubeiri.”[11] The only subjects who might benefit from a confrontation with Iran is the US itself, Israel, and of course the dissident cult, the Mujahedin Khalq. The cult, since 1978—since the early years of the Iranian Revolution—has always tried to find a pretext to engage in a war against those in charge of Iran. The group is notorious for its deadly stance against Islam and the Islamic Republic. In fact, they are the most hostile terrorist group against the Republic.
Simply put, they have little or no respect inside Iran; outside Iran, they have managed to fool masses of people under a loudmouth human rights disguise. Given this scenario, it’s entirely possible that the MKO, the CIA, and the Mossad managed to recruit someone assassinate the Saudi ambassador.
The warmongers in the US government and Israel are preoccupied with operations which would bring them closer to a military strike and topple the government of Iran. The Mujahedin Organization has a huge interest in cooperating with anyone who is against Iran because their sole interest is to step in to replace the current regime with their own government.
Previous acts of the group indicate that they never hesitate to cooperate with Iran’s enemies—as they formerly did by siding with Saddam Hussein during the 80’s and 90’s. It is clearly documented that the MKO will do anything to achieve power, even turn against their own countrymen.
Philip Giraldi, former CIA official, who wrote “How To Kill an Ambassador,” an article on Anti.War.com, analyzed the alleged plot as “not only completely implausible but also possibly the contrivance of an intelligence or security service other than that of Iran.” [12] Giraldi also suggests
that "another possibility is that it might have been an operation planned by Mujahedin-e-Khalq, or MEK.” He believes that “the MEK would not have the resources or technical expertise to carry out such a deception, unless it were working in cooperation with the CIA or the Mossad, which raises the possibility that this has been from the work of an intelligence agency rather than law enforcement.” [13]
By Mazda Pa
References:
[1] M.Pollack,Kenneth/L.Byman,Daniel/Indyk,Martin/Maloney, Suzanne
E.O’Hanlon Michael/Riede, Bruce. Which Path to Persia? Options for a New
American Strategy toward Iran, The Saban Center for Middle East policy at
the Brookings Institution, November 20, June 2009
[2]Mehr News Agency, Number Two Suspect in Plot Case is MKO Member, Oct.17,
2011
[3]ibid
[4]Associated press, Hundreds rally in support of Iranian opposition, Oct.
2011
[5]Silverstein, Richard, Iran: Alleged Terror Conspirator MEK leader,
Eurasia Preview, Oct. 22, 2011
[6]ibid
[7]Kamali Dehghan, Saeed, Iran Blames CIA’s Favorite pets, Mujahedin
e-Khalq (MEK),for Saudi Ambassador plot, Guardian.co.uk, Oct. 21,2011
[8]ibid
[9]Rubin Michael, Iran says plot was Mujahedin put-up job, commentary
Magazine, Oct.18, 2011
[10]ibid
[ 11]Ottens, Nick, Former Diplomat: Iran Plot ”Makes No Sense",
atlanticsentinel.com, Oct. 13, 2011
[12]Giraldi, Philip, How to Kill an Ambasador?,Antiwar.com, Oct.20, 2011
