So What to Do with Those Mujahedin Terrorists?

The Bush administration inherited many of Iraq's problems when it invaded that country, including an Iranian terrorist organization funded and armed by Saddam Hussein, the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MKO).

Though the group is on the State Department's terrorist list, it still operates freely in the US -- including organizing fundraisers in the MCI center in Washington DC in January 2004 (with Richard Perle as a key note speaker) and extensive lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill.

In the midst of a war on terror, the Bush administration chose in 2003 to protect 3,000 of the organization's militants and house them in a camp given to the group by Saddam -- Camp Ashraf just north of Baghdad.

Ever since, the fate of this State Department-listed terrorist organization has been unclear. Hated by Iraqis for its involvement in Saddam's crimes against the Iraqi people, the Baghdad government wants to expel the group. But no country is willing to take them.

I wrote about this in the Washington Times this past Sunday:

"Though the Iranian government wants to put the group's leadership on trial in Iran, it seems less interested in the organization's rank and file. The European governments have little interest in taking in 3,000 battle-hardened Muslim militants, fearing that they will use Europe as a base to plan and execute further terrorist attacks.

The U.S., on the other hand, has already contradicted its own principles by giving preferential treatment to an organization on the State Department's terrorist list -- even though President Bush himself pointed to the organization's patronage under Saddam Hussein as evidence of Iraq's support for international terrorists in his speech to the United Nations in September 2002.

'Iraq continues to shelter and support terrorist organizations that direct violence against Iran,' President Bush said. To complicate matters further, if reports that the U.S. has used MKO terrorists for cross-border raids into Iran are true, then Washington certainly doesn't want these militants to end up in Iranian hands.

Washington seems doomed if it does, doomed if it doesn't."

What is often forgotten in the discussions about the Mujahedin is that it is not only a terrorist organization, but also a cult that brainwashes its members, places children of Mujahedin members with other families in order to prevent parents from defecting, and who according to Human Rights Watch, maintains control by torturing its rank and file. "Members who try to leave the Mujahedin pay a very heavy price," according to Joe Stork of Human Rights Watch.

The solution? Well, protecting one terrorist group while sending another group to Gitmo doesn't do much to strengthen our credibility.

Instead, we should recognize that the rank and file of this terrorist cult are also victims of the organization. Unlike other terrorist groups, the Mujahedin does not have a breeding ground where it can recruit its members from. Rather, they have to cling on to their existing membership for survival, which partly explains why they are so ferocious against those who seek to leave the cult.

The best way of defeating this terrorist group is to help the rank and file break from the cult. You can read the full op-ed here.

And a new documentary on the Mujahedin by the award-winning filmmaker, James Longley, is available on Link TV.

Comments

[MajidSaatchi]

The West is appeasing the Iranian Regime for the past 25 years. Mr. Jack Straw from UK, Mr. Chirac from France and State Departement Mr. Richard Armitage and his supporters here in US like Mr. Gary Sick, Congressman Bob Ney and Senator Jospeh Biden.

What is the result of all these compromises, negotiation and appeasement? It is some crazy guy like Ahmadinejad.

This is doing the same thing that happen in WWII with Mr. Chamberlin and how he reacted toward Hitler. Sometimes worst that Hitler and dictator like him are people who appease dictator and provide some sort of reason for their crime or their own inaction.

Problem in today's world for Islamic Fundamentlism and Terrorist like Ahmadinejad. Terrorim is coming from Iranian goverment we see that in Iraq every day.

All I can say is shame, shame and shame on the appeasment policy.

Unless we have a stronge policy against Islamic Fundamentalism and terrorist like Ahmadinejad, we will have all these problem. Regime change is the only solution. No War and No Appeasment, the 3rd option of regime change by Iranian People and their democratic representatives.

[Sasha379]

On June 28th of this year, 70,000 Iranians came together in Paris to voice their support for the MEK/PMOI and members of the Iranian opposition in Camp Ashraf.
http://ncr-iran.org/images/stories/IL/IL-latest/IL-latest.pdf

It is precisely these advancements of the Iranian opposition and an unstable domestic situation that has created over 5,000 antigovernment protests over the past year in Iran, that now has Iran's front man in the US coming out of the closet to pursue a campaign to demonize the Iranian opposition.

As for the terror allegations, the MEK was exonerated of any ties to terror in 2004 after a 16 month investigation by our nations intelligece and security agencies.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/27/politics/27iran.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5090&en=1be651587a5ff8dd&ex=1248580800&partner=rssuserland

For decades the West has trampled the rights of the Iranian people and their just resistance against Tehran's rulers in return for lucrative economic concessions. Demonizing the Iranian opposition has been a major part of this policy. Trita Parsi and his allies in the oil mafia are a major part of that machine.

[vegas9999]

Wow, to read someone on this site say that there were crimes against Iraqi people is unbelievable. I was starting to believe it was just a rumor. By the way, has anyone heard what is going on over there?

[navy62802]

The really ugly, embarrassing and corrupt part of all of this is that we are the ones who really gave muscle to this group in order to win an immediate victory over the Russians back in the 80s. Now the chickens have come home to roost. We left these people to fend for themselves once they helped us defeat the USSR back then. No wonder they harbor deep resentment and hate. Not that I agree with their basic tenets of society, but I can definitely understand the angst toward our nation.

[BarackMarley]

This is interesting. McCain actually referred to the Afghan Mujahedin as freedom fighters in the debate.

Read About it Here
http://newsone.blackplanet.com/nation/mccain-called-bin-laden-a-freedom-fighter/

[navy62802]

They were freedom fighters. We propped them up to drive the Russians out of Afghanistan...they fought bravely with our weapons systems. Then we turned our backs on them once they drove the Russians out. It's truly amazing how many Americans are so ignorant about this situation and how we got to where we are today. It isn't as simple as the "they just hate us because we're wealthy" BS that is repeatedly floated out there. It's much much deeper than that.