The MEK's Religious Beliefs

The People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) is a political group dedicated to bringing freedom and democracy to Iran.

They derive their political beliefs from a modern and tolerant version of Islam that is fully compatible with modern society – the exact opposite of the ruling mullahs’ Sharia Law, which is intolerant, extremist, genocidal, non-democratic, and misogynist – and the MEK believe that their interpretation is the true meaning of Islam.

In 1982, MEK leader Massoud Rajavi, said: “The Islam we want is nationalistic, democratic, progressive, and not opposed to science or civilization. We believe there is no contradiction between modern science and true Islam, and we believe that in Islam there must be no compulsion or dictatorship.”

This combination of tolerant religion and politics means that the MEK enjoys broad public support amongst the Iranian people and people all over the world, but it is also why the mullahs fear the MEK.

Today, we will look at some of those beliefs in more detail and explore why the MEK believe that Islam that the Quran, the Prophet Mohammad, and other religious leaders espouse the ideological principles of freedom, gender, ethnic and religious equality, human rights, and peace.

A Dynamic Islam

While the mullahs see Islam as mechanical and deterministic, the MEK believes that the real interpretation of Islam is dynamic and never impedes social progress. The MEK believes that Islam promotes science, technology and civilization, which improves the lives of ordinary people.

The MEK explain this through the story of Prophet Mohammad’s 23-year mission during which time some Quranic verses were declared ‘resembling’ to reflect changes and advancements in society.

The MEK does not see the Quran as prescriptive, explaining that less than 10% of verses in the Quran are edicts, so it should not be seen as a legal text that does not allow for humans to make their own laws that are suitable for the period in time that they are living.

Fundamentalists see the edicts as unchangeable dogma that must be obeyed at all costs – unless, of course, it is the fundamentalist that breaks them – but the MEK believe that the Quran emphasizes that these edicts are subject to change over time.

In fact, the MEK see fundamentalists as frankly un-Islamic.

A Democratic Islam

The MEK believe that democracy is a key feature of Islam, highlighting the Quran and the Prophet Mohammad as saying that freewill and individual responsibility is what separates the humans from the animals and God’s will is realised through democratic governance.

In 1980, Massoud Rajavi said: “Freedom is a divine blessing…Anyone trying to restrict human freedom has neither understood Islam nor mankind and the [anti-monarchist] revolution. Freedom is indispensable to the survival of mankind as human beings. Otherwise, human beings would be no different from animals and could not be held responsible for anything.”

That is why the MEK see the ballot box as the sole condition for political legitimacy, as a free and fair election offers the people free will.

The MEK believe that fundamentalist mullahs who reject free will, individual choice, and democracy are spreading an interpretation that is incompatible with Islam and therefore meaningless. The process of installing an unelected head of state and rigging elections to ensure that your party wins is also undemocratic and therefore un-Islamic.

US ties with Iranian opposition strengthening

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 Baghdad. 

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.
• Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a Harvard-educated, Iranian-American political scientist. He is a leading expert on Iran and US foreign policy, a businessman and president of the International American Council. He serves on the boards of the Harvard International Review, the Harvard International Relations Council and the US-Middle East Chamber for Commerce and Business. He can be reached on Twitter @Dr_Rafizadeh. 

Opposition convention in Paris calls for evicting Iran from the Middle East

Heshmat Alavi, Special to Al Arabiya EnglishSaturday, 1 July 2017

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A vast convention hall located north of Paris was the scene of a massive Iranian Diaspora gathering who voiced their demand for a better future through regime change in Tehran.

Hundreds of dignitaries from the Arab World, United States and Europe stood alongside the Iranian opposition coalition National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and its President Maryam Rajavi in condemning Tehran’s meddling throughout the Middle East as the main obstacle to establish peace and security in at least four regional states.

Saturday’s keynote speaker was Rajavi, who called on the international community to recognize the NCRI as the voice representing the Iranian people, evict Iran from the Middle East end the appeasement policy and welcome a strong strategy of standing shoulder to shoulder with the Iranian people’s call for regime change.

Regional support

Considering the tumultuous conditions brought about across the Middle East as a result of Iran’s disastrous meddling, the presence of an important name in the Arab World voiced a very significant statement.

“The Iranian people are the first victims of Khomeini’s dictatorship,” said Turki Faisal, former Saudi ambassador in the United States and United Kingdom. “Your effort in challenging this regime is legitimate and your resistance for the liberation of the Iranian people of all ethnicities, including Arabs, Kurds, Baluchis, Turks and Fars of the mullahs’ evil, as Mrs. Rajavi said, is a legitimate struggle.”

Middle East peace hinges on regime change in Iran

Middle East peace hinges on regime change in Iran

 Shahriar Kia

As the Trump administration continues to overhaul and codify a  comprehensive new Iran strategy, the opposition coalition to the mullahs in Tehran held a massive rally on Saturday in the French capital calling for regime change.

An enormous crowd of participants joined hundreds of prominent dignitaries from the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. The entire convention voiced exuberant support for the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and its President Maryam Rajavi as the sole viable alternative for the Iranian regime.

Rajavi emphasized how her movement welcomed statements made during a recent U.S.-Arab-Islamic summit in Riyadh.

“The ultimate solutions to the crisis in the region is the overthrow of the Iranian regime by the Iranian people,” she explained. “With [the recent presidential] election, the mullahs had intended to improve the regime’s situation. But they divided and destabilized the regime. Now, they are planning and threatening to oust Rouhani,” she added.

The NCRI President then emphasized on how her people continue to suffer from the mullahs’ regime, highlighting their main demand for an end to the mullahs’ rule. “Regime change is possible and within reach,” Rajavi said. “The Iranian society is simmering.”

The Iranian opposition leader’s call for the international to once and for all designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist entity received echoes by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and even elevated by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich

Paris convention calls for evicting Iran from Mideast

By Heshmat Alavi

Paris — A vast convention hall located north of Paris was the scene of a massive Iranian Diaspora gathering who voiced their demand for a better future through regime change in Tehran.

Hundreds of dignitaries from the Arab World, United States and Europe stood alongside the Iranian opposition coalition National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and its President Maryam Rajavi in condemning Tehran’s meddling throughout the Middle East as the main obstacle to establish peace and security in at least four regional states.

Saturday’s keynote speaker was Rajavi, who called on the international community to recognize the NCRI as the voice representing the Iranian people, evict Iran from the Middle East end the appeasement policy and welcome a strong strategy of standing shoulder to shoulder with the Iranian people’s call for regime change.

Regional support

“The Iranian people are the first victims of Khomeini’s dictatorship,” said Turki Al-Faisal. “Your effort in challenging this regime is legitimate and your resistance for the liberation of the Iranian people of all ethnicities, including Arabs, Kurds, Balochis, Turks and Fars of the mullahs’ evil, as Mrs. Rajavi said, is a legitimate struggle.”

In a sign of a united Middle East position in the face of Iran’s belligerence, numerous Arab delegations including many former and current officials from more than a dozen regional countries participated in the convention.

In their colorful array of speeches these representatives of hundreds of millions of people who have suffered from the mullahs’ support for terrorism placed their fists down saying enough is enough. Following four decades of endless destruction and misery brewed by Tehran’s mullahs across the region, these nations are more than ever supporting the NCRI platform advocating regime change.

Iranian opposition leader Maryam Rajavi spearheaded Saturday’s convention.

“Our people want a constitution based on freedom, democracy and equality. The time has come for the international community to heed the demands of the people of Iran,” she said.

Rajavi shed light on a subject less taken into consideration about Iran, being the very fact that the roots of Tehran’s foreign wars are found in its domestic crises.

“Out of the past 38 years, the mullahs were engaged in war with Iraq for eight years, have been at war with the people of Syria for six years, and have pursued confrontation with the international community for more than ten years to build an atomic bomb. The Iranian Resistance is proud that it has stood up to the mullahs’ religious fascism in all these three spheres: It has been the flag-bearer of peace and freedom; it has been a vanguard in defending the people of Syria, and it has led the way for a non-nuclear Iran,” Rajavi added.