Editor’s Note: Yesterday, after I heard that the State Department was set to take the Iranian group Mujahideen al-Khalq (MEK) off the Foreign Terrorist Organization list I emailed Nima Shirazi to ask him his thoughts. Here’s his response. – Adam Horowitz
My thoughts are these:
US State Dept probably made such a decision for the following reasons:
1. The political pressure from MEK’s highly-paid lobbyists (e.g. Dersh, Rendell, Dean, Townsend, Giuliani, Ridge, Ros-Lehtinen, Mukasey, Jim Jones, Wesley Clark) was probably not as powerful a tool as the fear of these people getting prosecuted for supporting a declared terrorist organization. With all the recent attention and mainstream reporting on MEK tactics, events and money funneled to these public figures, I think State worried about DOJ actually having to act upon its own “material support” laws (which obviously were only intended to target Muslims, not fine, upstanding, establishment scumbags like Sheila Jackson-Lee.)
2. The US and Israel are already funding, training and arming the MEK. Delisting the group, in real terms, barely does anything in a tangible sense. It’s far more of a de-moralizing tactic to punish the Iranian people for not doing the bidding of regime change advocates here in the West.
3. The decision may be designed to distract the Iranian delegation during its UN General Assembly visit next week. Rather than having to focus on the obvious threats and lies coming from Netanyahu (which has been in the news so much lately that people are starting to catch on), the Iranian delegation – lead as usual by Ahmadinejad himself – will now have to address this decision all week, rather than the overhyped warmongering.
Also, an interesting element of this is that, if the US doesn’t believe the allegations about Mossad’s backing of the MEK to murder Iranian scientists, that probably means that the US believes (read: knows) that Mossad itself is responsible for the attacks (without using MEK operatives as proxies), as revealed by Yossi Melman and Dav Raviv.
Just some thoughts…
I’ll put money on that in the de listing language that they will be passing there will be retroactive exemptions for those who have dealt with or received money from anything having to do with MEK. You know excuse any dealings that our so called allies the Israeli’s have been doing with MEK as well as all of the thugs in congress etc who have been receiving some kind of payment from all of this lobbying for MEK to be de listec
What a corrupt government we have
Clearly, it is silly to list as terrorists organizations that work for USA.
Should we impose sanctions on Brunei government for their funding of terrorist Contras?
Perhaps State Department should also consider organizations that worked for us in the past, like Hizb-I Islami Gulbuddin and Hakkani Network. They are not making worse mayhem when they are against us than when they were “for us”.
And what will we do if some rogue operator in State Department list US government as a terrorist organization? Impose sanctions on countries that do not impose sanctions of USA?
NICE PHOTO: Rudy Giuliani consorting with MEK’s political wing leader Maryam Rajavi in Paris – http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&safe=off&sa=N&biw=1824&bih=1081&tbm=isch&tbnid=IJ1AFPq1BY2esM:&imgrefurl=http://www.activistpost.com/2012/09/us-to-delist-and-arm-american-killing.html&docid=eUXImA7TtGUKaM&imgurl=http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ggYCvo_8kxI/UF3Z9r1VNbI/AAAAAAAACy0/HQcCUqsqM4Q/s1600/giuliani1_0.jpg&w=625&h=426&ei=RGRfUMSnOoSu9ATVzYCwAw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=161&vpy=142&dur=4598&hovh=184&hovw=272&tx=147&ty=128&sig=108313880650733849730&page=1&tbnh=111&tbnw=152&start=0&ndsp=56&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:74
P.S. What a couple of creeps!
Sharp analysis, and a perspective one never encounters in our hideous travesty of a press.
“Also, an interesting element of this is that, if the US doesn’t believe the allegations about Mossad’s backing of the MEK to murder Iranian scientists, that probably means that the US believes (read: knows) that Mossad itself is responsible for the attacks (without using MEK operatives as proxies)…” — Nima Shirazi
I think it’s most likely the MEK were involved*, but that the US govt conveniently chooses to ignore the assassinations (and multiple facilities bombings). I can even hear the State Dept’s ‘logic’: The MEK were acting as subcontractors to our BFF Ally, the Eensiest-Weensiest Lil’ Gay-Friendly Democracy in the Whole Big Mean Scary Middle East. Everyone knows, if we or our buddies do it, it can’t be terrorism. Sillies!
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* If Mossad had done it themselves, by now Iranian TV would’ve played us the videos showing twelve guys in tracksuits, with bad wigs and identical Groucho Marx disguises, lobbing those big, black, bowling-ball-with-a-fuse, ‘anarchist’ bombs…