Human Lives Human Rights: The Mojahedin al Khalq, or MKO, is, after the Iranian regime itself, the most hated group inside Iran . It allied with Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to enable the Islamic Revolution but, after a falling out, launched a terrorist campaign inside Iran. The MKO also cast its lot with Saddam Hussein in Iraq . Its leader, Maryam Rajavi, rules with an iron fist over the organization and insists upon the same head covering that Iranians risk their lives to shed. Far from supporting women’s rights, the group tells women whom they can marry and forcibly divorces them. In short, it is a cult.
OYAK vs. NIAC
Ramesh Sepehrrad, director of OYAK’s advisory board, spoke on the Voice of America TV channel about OYAK’s close cooperation with the People’s Mojahedin Organization and emphasized that his organization tried to gain the support of the representatives of the American Congress from both the Democratic and Republican parties for Maryam Rajavi’s 10-point program. Interestingly, Ramesh Sepharrad is a cyber security and conflict resolution lecturer at Baltimore and George Mason universities in the United States.
In this sense, the Mojahedin Khalq organization has even changed its media strategy. This organization tries not to send its members and sympathizers to the media with the label of the organization. This is another strategy of Mojahedin Organization for rebranding.
The Iranian viewer who watches these news programs sees the Mojahedin organization’s propaganda not from the organization itself, but from the words of other people who either hold university professorships, are lawyers, or are members of organizations that are financially supported by the Mojahedin organization.
Another interesting point is the name similarity between “OYAK” and “NIAC”. NIAC is an abbreviation of the National Iranian American Council, which has been active in America for a long time. This council has set its agenda as opposing war and establishing peace, and improving Iran-US relations. In this regard, this organization has always supported the improvement of Iran-US relations and the completion of the JCPOA. However, recently, there have been many attacks against this organization in the West, and some of Iran’s opponents have identified this organization as Iran’s lobbying arm in the United States.
Subversive groups and movements have launched a campaign on Twitter against NIAC, and have announced that NIAC is trying to dissuade the American government and Congress from increasing pressure on Iran and to cooperate with it by using the facilities and extensive connections it has.
One of those who has always led the attacks on NIAC is Mark Dubowitz, the executive director of the Defense of Democracy think tank, who has always supported the necessity of “regime change” and maximum pressure on Iran, and has made many efforts to influence American policies.
Considering OYAK’s agenda, which is completely defined in front of NIAC, it seems natural that a competition between these two organizations will develop and OYAK will have sufficient and necessary motivation to attack NIAC.
The Mojahedin Khalq terrorist organization is a notorious group in itself. No matter how much some figures and people want to erase the history and bloody past of this terrorist organization, there are documents of the terrible activities of this organization in Iran and Iraq that cannot be erased from the world’s history.
Incidentally, this is the reason why this terrible organization, which uses closed and dictatorial methods in its internal organizational structure, such as inquisition, when it comes to freedom, they try to use these slogans not directly in their own words, rather, they speak from the words of some other figures close to them. These figures do not necessarily confirm their direct affiliation with the Mojahedin organization.
It seems that the People’s Mojahedin Organization has learned that in the era of information explosion and today’s world, the best strategy is to use the beads that are present in the universities, media and think tanks as unlit lights. These figures have a close relationship behind the scenes with the organization. Some are members of this organization, but they receive money from this organization, and others are sympathizers of the organization.
These figures do not speak with the flag of the People’s Mojahedin-e-Khalq Organization, nor with the official clothing of this organization, but in a liberal face and clothes and with academic literature. It is for this reason that considering the terrorist organization of Mojahedin Khalq as dead is a simplistic thinking.
This organization has not disappeared, rather, it has only changed its face as per the need of time and political and legal considerations in Western countries, but behind the scenes it is the same as it was.
