WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO THE MEK AT CAMP ASHRAF IN IRAQ?

by Mahmood Hakamian 

In 1986, around 1,000 members of the People’shttps://irannewsupdate.com/news/iranian-opposition/4635-what-really-happened-to-the-mek-at-camp-ashraf-in- Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) travelled to Iraq in order to build a new operations base for their resistance group with the hopes of bringing democracy to Iran.

They were given a barren patch of land in the desert, near the Iranian border, which had a few deserted and partially-constructed buildings, but no running water or electricity. This was Camp Ashraf. It expanded quickly as MEK supporters from the US and the EU travelled to the camp in order to help free the Iranian people from the grasp of the mullahs.

 IRAN-IRAQ WAR

At the time, the Iran-Iraq war was in its fifth year, and the MEK, Iraq, and the Iranian people all wanted the conflict to end quickly. Iraq had offered peace in 1982, but the mullahs refused because they wanted to destroy Iraq and take it over for themselves.

The MEK, in an effort to speed up the resolution to the war, formed the National Liberation Army (NLA) to take part in battles against Iran separately from the Iraqi army. Eventually the mullahs, scared that the MEK would spark a revolution in Iran, agreed to a UN ceasefire.

After the war had ended, the MEK turned Ashraf into a fully functioning 14-square-mile city, which included a mosque, university, museum, shopping centre and many other facilities. They were often the target of missiles attacks by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), but thanks to the MEK’s secure bunkers, casualties were minimal. The MEK remained dedicated to their objectives of bringing freedom to Iran.

The Truth Behind the MEK in Iraq: Part 1

The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) have resided in two separate camps (Ashraf and Liberty) in Iraq from 1986 to 2016. This article will tell the story from 1986 until 2009.

In 1986, in addition to MEK members and sympathizers from Iran around 1,000 MEK members from France to Iraq to build a new operations base for the Iranian Resistance. They were granted a small patch of barren land in the desert, near to the Iranian border, with only a handful of deserted and partially-constructed buildings that had no running water or electricity. It expanded rapidly as MEK supporters from the West, mainly students and professionals travelled to the remote area with hopes of bringing democracy to Iran.

Iran-Iraq War

This was during the Iran-Iraq war, which the MEK, Iraq, and the people of Iran wanted to end. The mullahs, however, pushed on in the hope that they could turn Iraq into an Iranian province. Thus the MEK formed the National Liberation Army (NLA), which eventually resulted in a UN ceasefire to the war.

Following the war, the MEK build Camp Ashraf into a 14-square-mile city with a university, mosque, museum, bakeries, shopping centre, four Olympic size swimming pools, zoo, and various social and other sports facilities. However, they still remained committed to their objective of bringing democracy to Iran.

During this time, Ashraf was often the subject of attacks by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), but thanks to the MEK’s secure bunkers, casualties were minimal.

Gulf Wars

The next time that the MEK faced off with the Iranian Regime on a large scale was after of Saddam Hussein’s defeat in the first Gulf War. The IRGC crossed into Iraq, which was still in chaos, with the intention of eliminating the MEK. However, the MEK was prepared and caused Iran’s forces to retreat in defeat with huge losses.

SENIOR US SENATORS MEET IRAN OPPOSITION LEADER IN ALBANIA

Dr. Majid Rafizadeh

While August seems usually a passive time of the year in politics, it has been quite the opposite for Iran and the wide variety of developments around this controversial international dossier.A senior delegation of United States Senators travelled to Tirana, the capital of Albania, today, August 12, 2017, to meet the Iranian opposition leader Maryam Rajavi, who heads the National Council of Resistance of Iran.

The delegation, Senators Roy Blunt, Vice President of the Republican Conference, and member of the Appropriation, Select Intelligence, Rules and Administration, and Commerce, Science, and Transportation committees; John Cornyn, the Majority Whip, and a member of the Judiciary, Select Intelligence, and Finance committees; and Thom Tillis, a member of the Armed Services, Judiciary, Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs and Veterans’ Affairs committees, also visited members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) in the Albanian capital.