| The movement is tied to Saddam Hussein, for whom it carried out the dirty work to keep its “residency rights”... |
The special correspondent of Liberation reported in May 2003 on the Ashraf Camp, main base of the PMOI. He confirms their route:
“The main base of the People’s Mujahedin is about 100 kilo- meters northeast of Baghdad on the Kirkuk road. It is situated just before the village of Khaliss. The movement is tied to Saddam Hussein, for whom it carried out the dirty work to keep its ‘residency rights”...
Their main office, in downtown Baghdad, was one of the first buildings pillaged and sacked by the population. The people hate them. It is now occupied by squatters. But, at the Ashraf camp, nothing seems to have changed.
Two guards watch the entrance. Further on, visitors must go through a chicane and then wait at a control point for inspection. The movement’s flag, white with a lion and the sun, is next to the Iranian flag...
The war stopped at the gates of Camp Ashraf, or so it seems. Life seems peaceful. It is a small town in the middle of the desert with its own mini electrical station, and a field hospital.
“We are prepared to govern our country. A small base like this is child’s play to manage”. In all, it covers 36 square kilometers. Barbed wire separates the camp from the huge, surrounding desert.
Iran is about sixty kilometers away to the East. The movement is no longer young and the victory over the mullahs’ regime’ is still awaited. So what! The discipline is still iron and the mouth is full of jargon.
On 8 April, an air raid killed seven Mujahedin and wounded ten others. The desert around the camp is full of lorries destroyed by the American bombers,” reported Christophe Ayad.