Iran says ‘intrinsically terrorist’ MKO poses constant threat to its hosts

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman has pointed to the terrorist nature of the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) and its latest clashes with Albanian police forces, insisting that the anti-Iran terror group will always pose a threat to the security of its host countries.

Nasser Kan’ani further explained in a series of tweets on Wednesday that the Iraqi government expelled MKO members from its territory as many other governments have also refused to accept them due to their terrorist nature.

He then expressed hope that Albania, which has played host to the terror group and thousand of its members for a decade at the urging of its Western backers, would “make up for its mistake of hosting this terrorist cult.”

His statements followed reported cashes that erupted on Tuesday after Albanian police forces raided a camp belonging to the MKO due to its engagement in “terror and cyber attacks” against foreign institutions.

At least one person was killed and dozens of others were injured during the clashes at the camp, known as Ashraf-3, in the northwest of the capital Tirana.

Albania police raid anti-Iran MKO camp over terrorist acts

Police in Albania have raided a camp home to the anti-Iran terrorist cult of the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO).

Citing press reports on the incident, Kan’ani explained that the Albanian police entered the Ashraf-3 camp for an inspection based on a legal ruling issued by Albania’s Special Court Against Crime and Corruption on June 20.

It was announced that “criminal and terrorist” measures by MKO members in Albania were the reason for the raid, he added.

Kan’ani further said that the relevant Albanian officials announced the seizure of a number of electronic systems and drones that the MKO members had used to track and direct their terrorist moves.

The Albanian officials were cited as saying that through its terrorist and cyber actions, the MKO violated the 2014 agreement that allowed its members to reside in Albania, he added.

MKO members spent many years in Iraq, where they were hosted and armed by the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. They sided with Saddam during the 1980-88 imposed war against Iran and then helped him quell domestic uprisings in various parts of the Arab country.

Albania began hosting the terrorists after the group was shunned by the government of former Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The European country is estimated to have been accommodating some 3,000 members of the terror cult since 2016.

MKO social media accounts blocked

Following the Albanian police raid, many accounts of the MKO terrorist group were reportedly deactivated on social media networks.

In a statement, Albania’s Interior Ministry said the MKO’s refusal to respect the 2014 agreement was the reason behind the country’s police operation on Tuesday.

It added that the group had carried out actions that contravened the commitments it made when it “settled in Albania for humanitarian purposes alone.”

“Unfortunately, this group has not adhered to these commitments,” the ministry said.

Albania’s interior minister and the police, who released footage of their operation, denied responsibility for the reported death of one MKO terrorist.

Interior Minister Blendi Cuci told a press conference that police did all they could to avoid causing “incidents,” and no MKO members were hurt by officers.

“In no case (was) the death of a person on Tuesday in the Mujahedin camp... caused by police forces,” he said, adding that officers were awaiting a forensics report into the death of the man who was in his seventies.

He also denounced MKO’s “intolerable” violence against the police.

MKO collaborated with Daesh terrorists against resistance forces

Meanwhile, according to documents cited by Iran's Tasnim news agency, the MKO terrorists in Iraq and Syria had been collaborating with the two countries' opposition and Takfiri groups against the resistance front.

It said such cooperation included collecting information, online spying, transferring money, and even helping to recruit and send troops for the Takfiri groups.

Tasnim added that the MKO terrorists held several meetings with the Daesh terrorist group’s leaders at the beginning of the Takfiri group’s emergence in Iraq. During these meetings, the Daesh commanders were convinced that the MKO had no interest in religious discussions and would help any group that works against Iran’s interests.

When the former dictator Saddam Hussein was in power, the MKO terrorists had a close relationship with the army commanders of Saddam’s banned Ba’ath party. Several former Ba’ath Party members joined the Daesh terrorist group after its formation and prepared the ground for communication and cooperation between the MKO and Daesh.

The MKO terrorists have also given a significant part of the information about the resistance front to the Israeli regime and US forces in Iraq, the report added.

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