Several hundred Iranian exiles were traveling to a UN-approved site near Baghdad on Saturday after leaving Camp Ashraf, where Iranian opposition members have been based for decades.The move is part of a December 25 deal between the UN and Iraq..Iraq had previously aimed to close Camp Ashraf in Diyala province..But Iraqi premier Nuri al-Maliki said on December 21 that his government had agreed to extend the deadline to April
UNHCR has been for some time and remains ready to undertake verification and refugee status adjudication for the residents of Camp New Iraq (formerly Camp Ashraf) who are persons of concern. It has mobilized teams on the ground, and has put in place the necessary soft and hard ware support capabilities. Individual interviews will need to take place in a safe, neutral and confidential location. UNHCR attaches utmost importance to ..
This brings us a step further in ensuring that proper conditions are in place for voluntary relocation of Camp New Iraq residents.” UN monitors are ready to start round-the-clock human rights monitoring during the transport of residents from Camp New Iraq, as well as on their arrival at Camp Liberty, currently built to accommodate 5,500 people. UNHCR is also ready to start refugee status determination ..
The Iraq National Tribal Leaders Conference on Tuesday supported recent decision of Iraqi Prime Minister to sue criminals and saboteurs, calling for closure of the garrison of the outlawed and terrorist Mujahideen Khalq Organization (MKO).The participants also praised the Iraqi government’s efforts to fight terrorism, close the MKO garrison and expell MKO members from Iraqi territory. ..
Maliki said the terrorist group committed “brutal crimes inside Iraq” as part of the intelligence apparatus in the hands of the former Ba’ath regime of Saddam Hussein, and that Baghdad has issued 120 arrest warrants for MKO aka MEK/PMOI operatives inside Camp Ashraf.“The Iraqi constitution prohibits harboring terror organizations which threaten the stability of neighboring countries,” he underscored.
The judge noted that US presence in Iraq affected the MKO presence in Iraq, and emphasized that “now that the United States has left Iraq, the issue is under the control of the Iraqi government, and members of the group enjoy no legal coverage in Iraq.”Meanwhile, member of Iraqi parliament, Al-Tamimi said, “those who support the group (MKO/MEK) turn a blind eye to the families of martyrs and victims”…
Daniel Fried said that Camp Liberty, a former U.S. military base near Baghdad International Airport, is the Iraqi government’s property and the MKO members are not authorized to reside there for a long-term period, ..
The deadline has not been extended but the way to expel the MKO aka MEK/PMOI members from Iraq has changed, Dabbaq stated.Up to now, no country has agreed to give refuge to the members of the group, he said, adding that ,however, it takes a long time to move four thousand people and their belongings.
… Top advisor to Speaker of Iraq’s Majlis al-Aala Seyyed Mohssen Hakim says that the presence of the members of the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) in the country can be defined as an international crime, because the organization is not officially permitted to stay in the country… Parviz Sorouri says no European country is willing to accept the terrorist Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) because the cost of hosting them will be too high. Sorouri said on Saturday that based on creditable documents, the MKO has committed about 14,000 acts of terror in Iran …
Al-Maliki goes on to say:”We ask some European states why they support them, and, if this falls under the context of a regional conflict, Iraq rejects being a part of any regional conflict.”He adds:”That is why we have decided to order the departure of this organization, and we have given them the end of the year as a deadline.”With regard to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s request for a six-month extension of the deadline …