“MEK Is the Undeniable Core of Iran Revolution,” State Media Warn

iran uprising youth streets 1
Written by
Mansoureh Galestan

Iran’s nationwide uprising enters its eighth month, laying bare the regime’s inability to suppress the people’s determination for change. Thus, the question of an alternative to the moribund ruling theocracy has been a hot topic. While foreign media has been fast busy promoting opposition figures with no specific program and history in fighting the regime, Iran’s tightly controlled state media warn about the leading role of Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), and its parent collation, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) in the protests. The growing activities of the Iranian Resistance and its growing network of youths and activists inside Iran have put the regime on high alert. Therefore, the regime wants to clarify for its forces who is their main enemy and the real threat to the mullahs’ grip on power.

“The MEK is the core of this struggle. But the so-called ‘opposition figures’ try to ignore this fact. They walk by and whistle as if nothing has happened and they are the only dissidents around. They are not taking this dynamic uprising seriously and its heart, the MEK,” the state-run Farhikhtegan newspaper on April 17.

This fact was also acknowledged by Vatan-e Emrooz daily on April 18. “All facts on the ground and speculations suggest MEK’s leading role in the riots inside the country, and they are also behind the anti-Iran activities that are taking place abroad,” it writes.

For the past 44 years, the MEK has acted as a trailblazer in the struggle for freedom. More than 120,000 of its members and supporters have laid down their lives in the fight against the mullahs’ regime. Today, the MEK’s Resistance Units network has been acting as a significant driving force behind the recent waves of uprisings in Iran that started in 2018.

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“They deny or try to ignore this fact, but how can they cope with the MEK’s actions? The MEK’s activities and role are the answer to their question of ‘why we have reached this point’. We have witnessed these actions and should await more. In this regard, some of them try to deny their relationship with the MEK, but do they know what they deny?” the state-run Farhikhtegan writes.

Since the beginning of the uprising, the MEK has pursued its activities consistently inside the country. In addition, the NCRI and its president-elect, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, have been endeavoring to mobilize the international community to increase pressure on the Iranian regime while recognizing the Iranian people’s right to self-defense and self-determination. Mrs. Rajavi has participated in several conferences attended by renowned Western politicians and addressed lawmakers in different European parliaments and the United States Congress. The majority of the U.S. House of Representatives has co-sponsored House Resolution 100, supporting the Iranian people’s aspirations to establish a democratic and secular republic. This hasn’t gone unnoticed by Iranian state media.

“Twenty-three days after Mahsa Amini’s death, Maryam Rajavi addressed the European Parliament after nearly a decade to show her official and accepted presence and convey that the West considers MEK the main alternative to the Islamic Republic. This fact seems very irritating for other dissidents,” Farhikhtegan writes in this regard.

“After addressing the European Parliament, Rajavi addressed the UK’s House of Commons, the Italian Senate, the Canadian Parliament, a Conference in Dublin, and the U.S. Senate, where the opposition leader was welcomed. And the list goes on,” the paper adds.

“Considering the situation abroad, we should ask ourselves, who has heard the news of those important meetings? How much did the Persian media cover Maryam Rajavi’s speech at the most vital legal, executive, and lawmaking bodies in the West?” Farkhikhtegan daily wrote.

“The MEK was the core of this struggle. They were advancing this fight, giving advice, and acting,” the state-run newspaper added. “They hit the headlines and brought new faces under the spotlight. The MEK was behind everything, but everyone tried to ignore this reality. The so-called opposition figures unexpectedly tried to ignore the MEK’s strong and effective presence yet made deafening cries of ‘unity’ for ‘overthrowing the Islamic Republic.’”

“They thought that by ignoring the MEK’s leading and effective role, they could keep their utopian unity and portray themselves as the alternative. They gathered around the crown prince Reza Pahlavi, proclaiming him the opposition leader and making a circus like the ‘transitional council.’ But they failed. How on earth did they think they could deny the undeniable presence of the MEK or boycott it? The MEK is leading this riot,” Farhikhtegan acknowledges.

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“It is absurd to think the MEK are a bunch of people in Albania rallying behind Maryam Rajavi every week or two and chanting some slogans. No, this is true. Many have family members in this grouplet,” the paper concludes.

For decades, the official policy of the Iranian regime has been a desperate attempt to ignore, censor and eradicate the MEK from Iran’s history and society. But as the organization’s footprint and impact continue to weigh an undeniable effect on Iran’s restive society, the clerical regime has been forced to change tactics and opt for a different approach. As the mirage of moderation and reform in Tehran has vanished, the regime attempted to promote pseudo-alternatives and while the increasingly radicalized society indicates to turn its back to this scheme, the regime has now no other option but to call on and mobilize whatever force it can garner to attack its arch-enemy.