Latest news with #Mujahideen-e-Khalq
New Straits Times
13 hours ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Up to Iranians to decide future, says dissident leader
PARIS: The leader of a Paris-based Iranian opposition group said after the announcement of a ceasefire in the Iran-Israel air war on Tuesday that the Iranian people should now bring down Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's system. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, spoke a day after the last heir to the Iranian monarchy urged Western states to accept that "regime change" is needed to bring lasting peace and regional stability. She made her comments before Defence Minister Israel Katz said he had ordered the Israeli military to strike Tehran after Iran fired missiles in violation of the ceasefire. "The proposal for a ceasefire and ending the war is a step forward for the third option: neither war nor appeasement," Rajavi said in a statement after US President Donald Trump said a ceasefire between Israel and Iran was now in place in the aerial war that began on June 13. "Let the people of Iran themselves, in the battle of destiny, bring down Khamenei and the dictatorship." She added: "We seek a democratic, non-nuclear republic, with the separation of religion and state, gender equality and also autonomy for Iran's nationalities." After the United States bombed Iranian nuclear facilities on Saturday, Trump raised the possibility of Iran's hardline clerical rulers being toppled but his administration said the aim was solely to destroy Iran's nuclear programme. The Iranian authorities did not immediately comment on Rajavi's remarks. Teheran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes and denies seeking a nuclear weapon. The Paris-based NCRI, which is banned in Iran, is also known by its Persian name Mujahideen-e-Khalq (MEK). It was listed as a terrorist organisation by the US and the European Union until 2012. Critics question its support inside Iran and how it operates, but it remains one of the few opposition groups widely considered able to rally supporters. "The people of Iran, in their century-long struggle, at tremendous and bloody cost, have repeatedly rejected the dictatorships of the Shah and Sheikh through successive uprisings," Rajavi said. Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the toppled Shah, on Monday urged the police, military and security apparatus to abandon Iran's leadership. But opposition to Iran's clerical government is fragmented, with no clear recognised leader and a multitude of ethnic groups. Any direct challenge to the Islamic Republic would be likely to require some form of popular uprising. Political analysts familiar with the situation have said that whether such an uprising is likely - or imminent - is a matter of debate. The NCRI had remained in the background during the air war, communicating little as it sought to avoid publicly supporting a foreign war led by Israel, sources aware of its actions said. The Mujahideen joined the 1979 Islamic Revolution but later broke from the ruling clerics and fought against them during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. During earlier mass demonstrations against the Iranian authorities, the NCRI was active on social media, documenting as much as it could from sources in Iran. Iran regularly accuses the group of fermenting trouble and several of its activists have been executed over the last year. In 2002, the group was the first to publicly reveal that Iran had a uranium enrichment programme.
Voice of America
08-02-2025
- Politics
- Voice of America
Emboldened by Trump, Iranian dissidents demand overthrow of rulers
Thousands of opponents to Iran's authorities rallied in Paris on Saturday, joined by Ukrainians to call for the fall of the government in Tehran, hopeful that U.S. President Donald Trump's 'maximum pressure' campaign could lead to change in the country. The protest, organized by the Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran, which is banned in Iran, comes as two of the group's members face imminent execution with a further six sentenced to death in November. "We say your demise has arrived. With or without negotiations, with or without nuclear weapons, uprising and overthrow await you," NCRI President-elect Maryam Rajavi said in a speech. People from across Europe, some bussed in for the event, waved Iranian flags and chanted anti-government slogans amid images deriding Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Hundreds of Ukrainians accusing Iran of backing Russian President Vladimir Putin in the war against Ukraine joined the protest. Iryna Serdiuk, 37, a nurse turned interpreter originally from Ukraine's embattled Donbas region and now exiled in Germany, said she had come to Paris to join forces against a common enemy. "I'm happy to see these Iranians because they are opposition. They support Ukraine and not the Iranian government which gives Russia weapons. We are together and one day it will be victory for Ukraine and Iran too," she said. The NCRI, also known by its Persian name Mujahideen-e-Khalq, was once listed as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union until 2012. While its critics question its support inside Iran and how it operates, it remains one of the few opposition groups able to rally supporters. Mohammad Sabetraftar, 63, an Iranian in exile for 40 years and who now runs a taxi business in the United Kingdom, dismissed criticism of the NCRI saying that it was the only alternative capable of achieving democracy in Iran. "What we expect from Mr. Trump or any Western politician is to not support this government. We don't need money, we don't need weapons, we rely on the people. No ties with the regime, no connections and put as much pressure on this government." Tehran has long called for a crackdown on the NCRI in Paris, Riyadh, and Washington. The group is regularly criticized in state media. In January, Trump's Ukraine envoy spoke at a conference organized by the group in Paris. At the time, he outlined the president's plan to return to a policy of maximum pressure on Iran that sought to wreck its economy, forcing the country to negotiate a deal on its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and regional activities. Homa Sabetraftar, 16, a schoolgirl in Britain, said she felt it was her duty to come to the event to represent the youth of Iran. "Some people in Iran don't have that voice and aren't able to vocalize as freely as we are able to here," she said. "We need to push for a better future."
Asharq Al-Awsat
08-02-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Emboldened by Trump, Iranian Dissidents Demand Overthrow of Rulers
Thousands of opponents to Iran's authorities rallied in Paris on Saturday, joined by Ukrainians to call for the fall of the government in Tehran, hopeful that US President Donald Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign could lead to change in the country. The protest, organized by the Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), which is banned in Iran, comes as two of the group's members face imminent execution with a further six sentenced to death in November. "We say your demise has arrived. With or without negotiations, with or without nuclear weapons, uprising and overthrow await you," NCRI President-elect Maryam Rajavi said in a speech. People from across Europe, often bussed in for the event, waved Iranian flags and chanted anti-government slogans amid images deriding Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Hundreds of Ukrainians accusing Iran of backing Russian President Vladimir Putin in the war against Ukraine joined the protest. Iryna Serdiuk, 37, a nurse turned interpreter originally from the embattled Donbass region, and now exiled in Germany, said she had come to Paris to join forces against a common enemy. "I'm happy to see these Iranians because they are opposition. They support Ukraine and not the Iranian government which gives Russia weapons. We are together and one day it will be victory for Ukraine and Iran too," she said. The NCRI, also known by its Persian name Mujahideen-e-Khalq, was once listed as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union until 2012. SUPPORT INSIDE IRAN While its critics question its support inside Iran and how it operates, it remains one of the few opposition groups able to rally supporters. Mohammad Sabetraftar, 63, an Iranian who has been in exile for 40 years and now runs a taxi business in the United Kingdom, dismissed criticism of the NCRI saying that it was the only alternative capable of achieving democracy in Iran. "What we expect from Mr. Trump or any Western politician is to not support this government. We don't need money, we don't need weapons, we rely on the people. No ties with the regime, no connections and put as much pressure on this government." Tehran has long called for a crackdown on the NCRI in Paris and Washington. The group is regularly criticized in state media. In January, Trump's Ukraine envoy spoke at a conference organized by the group in Paris. At the time he outlined the president's plan to return to a policy of maximum pressure on Iran that sought to wreck its economy, forcing the country to negotiate a deal on its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and regional activities. Homa Sabetraftar, 16, a schoolgirl in Britain, said she felt it was her duty to come to the event to represent the youth of Iran. "Some people in Iran don't have that voice and aren't able to vocalize as freely as we are able to here," she said. "We need to push for a better future."
