Dr. Majid Rafizadeh
The Iranian opposition is
gaining momentum due to a growing consensus in the US Congress over the
necessity for regime change in Iran. A senior delegation of US senators went to
Albania’s capital Tirana this week to meet Maryam Rajavi, who heads the National
Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), a political coalition calling for regime
change in Iran and considered the main threat to the ruling mullahs.
They also met members of the People’s Mojahedin of Iran (MEK), the main member of this varied coalition of groups and individuals. The high-profile visit comes at a time when Washington has slapped major new sanctions on Iran, including its Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), for its ballistic missile drive, its support for terrorism and its human rights violations. Given that the IRGC controls over 40 percent of Iran’s economy, these new sanctions are a heavy blow to Tehran’s ambitions.
Ties between Iran’s opposition and US officials are strengthening, and the number of high-level officials supporting the opposition is rising. They recognize the opposition as a legitimate representative of many Iranians who seek democracy in their country. Rajavi expressed her gratitude for the US Senate’s tireless efforts to protect thousands of MEK members in Iraq and relocate them to Albania.
Previously, in a Senate briefing, several US officials strongly condemned Iran’s destructive role in Iraq. Sen. Roy Blunt joined an initiative demanding the urgent transfer of MEK members stationed in a former US military base known as Camp Liberty near
They also met members of the People’s Mojahedin of Iran (MEK), the main member of this varied coalition of groups and individuals. The high-profile visit comes at a time when Washington has slapped major new sanctions on Iran, including its Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), for its ballistic missile drive, its support for terrorism and its human rights violations. Given that the IRGC controls over 40 percent of Iran’s economy, these new sanctions are a heavy blow to Tehran’s ambitions.
Ties between Iran’s opposition and US officials are strengthening, and the number of high-level officials supporting the opposition is rising. They recognize the opposition as a legitimate representative of many Iranians who seek democracy in their country. Rajavi expressed her gratitude for the US Senate’s tireless efforts to protect thousands of MEK members in Iraq and relocate them to Albania.
Previously, in a Senate briefing, several US officials strongly condemned Iran’s destructive role in Iraq. Sen. Roy Blunt joined an initiative demanding the urgent transfer of MEK members stationed in a former US military base known as Camp Liberty near
Tehran fears the
opposition’s soft power more than the hard power of foreign governments. That
is why Iranian leaders and media outlets react forcefully and anxiously to such
visits and opposition activities.
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh
In
April, Sen. John McCain, a longtime supporter of the Iranian opposition,
visited the MEK in Albania and met with Rajavi. MEK members were able to leave
Iraq after a four-and-a-half-year ordeal in Camp Liberty following their forced
transfer from their 26-year home in Camp Ashraf, northeast of Baghdad.
From 2009, following the transfer of security
from the US military to the Iraqi government, the MEK came under eight major
ground and rocket attacks by Iran-backed proxies against Ashraf and Liberty.
This was in parallel with a seven-year siege. After losing more than 160 of
their colleagues to the attacks and blockade, MEK members were finally able to
leave Iraq for European countries, mainly Albania.
This latest visit sends a strong signal to
Tehran that the NCRI is gaining momentum. This time last year, Tehran was
hell-bent on destroying the MEK. Now the tide has turned, with the opposition
on the offensive.
Tehran fears the opposition’s soft power more
than the hard power of foreign governments. That is why Iranian leaders and
media outlets react forcefully and anxiously to such visits and opposition
activities. The opposition can be a very powerful tool to pressure Tehran
without the need for direct military confrontation.
Souce: http://www.arabnews.com/node/1146531
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