Israeli expert: MEK’s character not changed

Founding director of the Center for Iranian Studies, Tel Aviv University, says he is not enthusiastic ‎‎about the US decision to delist terrorist MEK group from the List of Foreign Terrorist Organizations ‎‎‎(FTO). ‎

According to a report published by Habilian Association, Israeli newspaper Haaretz quoted Prof. David ‎‎Menashri, Iran expert, as saying that the terrorist MEK group “has not been popular with the Iranian ‎‎public, aside from during a brief period following the fall of the Shah and the rise of Ayatollah ‎‎Khomeini.”‎

‎“While it is one of the few opposition groups that has managed to create centers of influence in ‎Iran, ‎Iranians have not forgotten that it sided with Saddam Hussein when Iraq invaded Iran ‎‏22‏‎ ‎years ago,” ‎he added.‎

Menashri went on to say that he can't discern any recent changes in the MEK's character, and ‎wondered how the change in the American government's ‎view of it meshes with Washington's claim ‎that it is ready to begin a dialogue with the Iranian ‎regime.‎

‎“This move will provide ammunition to those Iranians who say the United States is using the nuclear ‎issue to overthrow their regime,” he cautioned.‎

After paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to a high profile team of former Members of Congress ‎and ex-administration officials, the terrorist Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization, whose hands are ‎smeared up to the elbow in the blood of hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians bought its way out ‎of the U.S. list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO).