The Iranian government is now accusing Gholam Shakuri – the supposed Quds Force member who assisted US citizens Mansour Arbabsiar in carrying out an assassination of a Saudi ambassador in DC – of being a member of the Iranian terror group Mujahedeen e-Khalq (MeK), a State Department listed terrorist organization hostile to the Iranian government. The state-backed Iran Times alleges that Interpol has evidence which they can corroborate that Shakuri was in the MeK’s compound in Camp Ashraf.
The obvious corollary here is that, if true, this would absolve the Iranian government of culpability in the attack. The MeK seeks the overthrow of the Iranian government, and the fact that they’re on the State Department’s list of terrorist organizations further detaches them from the Iranian government. This means that the US’s belligerent response to the alleged plot was based on false evidence and entirely misdirected at an uninvolved third party (the Iranian government).
It should also be noted that the extensive doubts and suspicions that almost every sober person had about the accuracy of the DoJ’s and the Obama administration’s official narrative – like, no evidence of Iranian government complicity, totally out of character for the Quds Force, why choose a bumbling idiot like Arbabsiar, no motive whatsoever, etc. – practically dissolve if the narrative is changed to the plot being an MeK operation. Again, we have to wait for the evidence because all we have now are allegations from the Iranian government, but if the evidence is put forth that Shakuri is an MeK, then it is much more in MeK’s character to carry out an amateur, dangerous plot like this. And its obvious they chose a bumbling idiot like Arbabsiar because they needed someone gullible enough to believe they were actually Quds Force. And of course the motive would be to influence the US towards war with Iran, so that they get their long-sought regime change and a chance at a power grab in the transition.
But what’s perhaps more pressing than all of this is the fact that if the MeK actually is responsible, it will make it very awkward for many prominent US leaders. Why? Because many US leaders support the MeK. Such hawkish supporters include former Vermont governor and Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, former New York governor Rudy Giuliani, former Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge, former US Rep. Lee Hamilton, former US ambassador to the UN Bill Richardson, the campaign advisors of former Masschusetts governor and top Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and many others. These people and more are have actively lobbied for the MeK. Read more about these efforts here, here, and here. If the MeK is now found to have come close to not only carrying out a terrorist attack on American soil but to influencing the US towards war with Iran…will these people be held responsible in some way?
I am not surprised that you have bought Tehran's propaganda wholesale.
The Iranian claims has one small problem. Shukri was speaking from Iran and he was recorded by the FBI and the money came from Iran.
Did you bother to think how in the world a senior MEK member would be wondering around in Tehran without detection, talking on the phone on several occasions with Arbabsiar and wiring $100K from Tehran to a U.S. bank.
One would assume Iranian intelligence services, which you are touting so much, would get a wind of what is happening. Would they not?
You may be a critic of the MEK, which is fine. But you should stay within the bounds of reason.
Big problem with your account, it is not possible to wire money from Tehran to a US Bank account. The money came via a third country. As to member of MEK using a phone or wondering around Iran, entirely plausible after all AQ and affiliates have been doing that in many countries despite a host of intelligence agencies being after them.
Moronic argument alexgeorge. Many many MEK members live and operate in Iran. That's the whole point of their value in intellligence gathering for the US/UK/Israel. Don't you remember who outed the Iran nuclear plans 10 years ago? That's right, the MEK straight from Iran.
Money didn't come from Iran. Iran can't transfer money to US directly due to sanctions. The money came from undisclosed bank in a third country. The sources for two wire transfers (bank accounts) are not disclosed either in the complaint. There is no other report that answers these questions.
So hold on to your horses, the source of money will be very interesting when it comes out.
I am just talking to the real ANTI WAR. If the stupidity was and is and will be the cause/reason for any war, this article's author is a dangerous man, that much stupid and naive that can easily buy the regime's "reasons". Don't you know that it was the Iranian regime that used Chalabi to sell his "reasons" for war with Iraq?
Errr, so now the "regime" wants war with america, huh? Moronic again!
Hey Mike 4444 aka Alexgeorge,
How is your buddy Alexgeorge aka Mike 4444?
You nailed it John. ROFLMEK trolls all of a sudden popping up again strongly suggests it.
The level of ignorance displayed on this site is incredible. Its a group of people who know nothing about the mek, Iran, or Middle East geopolitics. the fact that you people would even insinuate that the MEK would be involved in such a plan screams out how uneducated you are regarding the issue. Regurgitating the regimes propaganda is pathetic. Not even the Iranian people read the tabloidesque newspaper that first printed this garbage. The author acts as if he knows something about the MEKs military activities of the past with his amateur comment. Buddy read on the subject matter you speak of because the MEKs military activities still have the mullahs reeling even though none have taken place in
over a decade. I bet the author can’t even name one operation!
Iranian Mullahs with 400+ documented terror attack in over 20 countries is responsible for this terror attempt. Just few months back a top revolutionary guard commander in a speech for royalist said: "We will conduct our operations in 5 continent, our reach is beyond Iraq and Lebanon, we are global". The clip is available in Youtube in Persian.
The telephone calls made to Iran is not a poof that the recipient was actually in Iran because you can divert the calls made to your mobile or landline to another number, this is called Call Forwarding. Most telephone systems (aka Private Exchange) and telephone operators provide this facility, so you call a number in Iran but your call is forwarded (either by the guys private exchange at home or his local telephone operator in Iran) to another number that could be in another country.
Richard Silverstein just published his own confirmation of the report:
http://www.richardsilverstein.com/tikun_olam/2011…
Hmmmm, that really makes sense! Let me make sure I understand. The MEK that has done so much lobbying to get off the US terrorist list and is still hoping to come off the list decided to give $1.5 million dollars to conduct a terror act in the United States against someone who is clearly an enemy of of their enemy, i.e.IRI? Good try! I'm afraid it does not hold. Are you really ANTI WAR or simply pro the rapist regime in Iran?
I'm appalled that so many American politicians actually support the MEK. They do a huge amount of political lobbying, trying to convince politicians that they would be the best replacement for the current Iranian regime and apparently people fall for that. Sure, the MEK have been useful in ratting on Iran's clandestine nuclear program, but they fought with Saddam Hussein against Iranians in the Iran-Iraq war. Frankly, Iranians would rather have the US run Iran than the MEK (although they despise the thought of either).
and don't forget about Mossad's involvement with MEK and the "Smoking Laptop" escapade. ..
Shame on you!
Are you an Iranian agent or uneducated person.
Read the New York times report on this issue.
The New York Times (Web)
October 19, 2011
U.S. Denies Iran Claims That Saudi Plot Defendant Belongs to Exile Group
By SCOTT SHANE http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/world/middleeas…
WASHINGTON — Obama administration officials on Wednesday denied Iranian news reports that a man charged in a plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States is actually an agent of an exiled Iranian opposition group.
“We note that these reports originate solely with Iranian state media sources, which have a documented history of fabricating news stories,” said Rhonda H. Shore, a State Department spokeswoman.
American officials said they are sure that the man, Gholam Shakuri, is an officer of the Quds Force, the foreign operations arm of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, as asserted in the criminal complaint unveiled last week by the Justice Department.
Mr. Shakuri is charged, along with an Iranian-American former used-car dealer, Mansour J. Arbabsiar, with plotting to hire a Mexican drug cartel to kill the Saudi ambassador for $1.5 million. American officials say $100,000 for the plot was transferred from a bank account associated with the Quds Force. Mr. Arbabsiar is in American custody, but Mr. Shakuri’s whereabouts are not known.
The Iranian news reports said that Interpol, the international law enforcement agency, had discovered that Mr. Shakuri was “a key member” of the Iranian opposition group Mujahedeen Khalq. Also known as the National Council of Resistance of Iran, the group is regarded by Iran as a terrorist organization and has a history of sabotage and assassination aimed at overthrowing the Islamic government of Iran.
The group claims to have renounced violence. It is classified by the United States as a foreign terrorist organization, but it is lobbying to be removed from that list, as Britain and the European Union have already done with their similar lists.
An Interpol spokeswoman declined to comment. But an American official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Interpol had discovered no link to the opposition group, calling the Iranian news report “pure fiction.”
The first report of the supposed Mujahedeen Khalq connection of Mr. Shakuri, by Iran’s Mehr News Agency on Tuesday, included what was supposedly his passport number, saying that the passport was issued in Washington. American officials said that Mr. Shakuri is not a United States citizen and does not have an American passport. They said the reference might be to an Iranian passport issued by the Iranian Interest Section at the Pakistani Embassy in Washington.
A breakaway faction from the Mujahedeen Khalq was incorporated into Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps when it was established in 1980, so it is conceivable that some current members of the guard were affiliated with the opposition group more than three decades ago.
Experts on Iran have said that the alleged assassination plot seemed uncharacteristically sloppy for the Quds Force, and American officials suggested that Iran is now putting out disinformation to exploit skepticism about the plot. But they say that intercepted phone calls, bank transfers and other evidence tie the plot directly to Quds Force officials.
In what appeared to be a new line of counterattack on Wednesday, Iran’s top judicial official, Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani, authorized an investigation into what he called “crimes perpetrated by the U.S. administration against Iranian and Muslim nations,” the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported. It also quoted him as saying that the assassination-plot accusations “are based on the old hostile American-Zionist attempt to sow discord among Muslims.”
Rick Gladstone contributed reporting from New York.
This article by James Glaser goes to show that among the so called journalist we can find people so stupid and naive to buy into these outrageous and ridicules charges by the mullahs in Iran. Mr. Glaser don't quit your day job you will never win any Pulitzer for reporting or journalism. If you have nothing to contribute or say, you will be better off staying away for complicated topics. Obviously this is not your field.
If Gholam Shakuri is a member of MEK and has been traveling in the US (Washington) – then I want to know where he went, whom he met, when he arrived and left, EVERYTHING
If this is an Israeli Lobby or Israeli 'False Flag Operation' I want it EXPOSED. The Israeli Lobby/Neocons have been tryng to use this as a causus belli – I want all leads on this case EXPOSED.
There should be a criminal/terrorist investigation with publically outed findings if this was in fact a 'False Flag Operation'
The problem with Antiwar.com is that it has to first prove its brotherhood to the Journalist board of ethics, then argue meticulously and not let Clumsy journalism destroy all credits due for the "real Anti-War" movement . The challenge of ethics in journalism is not, then, to facilitate the discovery of moral laws that yield ethical truths, for being ethical requires neither a knowledge of abstract principles nor a familiarity with arcane theories of morality. Rather, being ethical requires the facility to argue articulately
The problem of ethics in Antiwar.com, is not the inability of journalists to know right from wrong but their inability to talk articulately and reflectively about it. I would agree that with such articles as this one, the board has to prove Antiwar brotherhood with the our craft and moral values.
The good gentleman here does not hesitate to ignore journalists manual, Standards and Practices, which is supposed to be the basis for their judgments.
Documents connecting this site and its foundation and cause with the infamous NIAC "Trita Paris" who, if I may say so, who is in contact and receives payments from the Iranian Intelligence Agency as well as Iranian Ambassador, is available. As far as I see it, we have to first filter our movement from the "immoral dilemmas" to be credited for out real and indisputable observations. I am very much dismayed to find a cycle of irresponsible journalism in the site ( for a while now) that is not accountable – as we should be as journalists- and shall not even try to follow up with the site. My judgment is my ethics and conscience and not the balance of power that could shift our judgment to side with propaganda gossip. I suggest the good gentleman reviews his status with retrospect “genuine journalism”. It is an insult to us all. I also suggest the board here at Antiwar, take a more reasonable approach to gossip and be more factual in order to keep hatched out responsive attitude to world events and not be rushed by fiction.