Mojahedin’s flag, which is both Marxist (sickle and star), militant (weapon) and Islamic (Quran verse at the top)

It has not escaped anyone that a large-scale revolution is underway in Iran. What many people do not know, however, is that at the same time there is an extensive conflict between the various opposition groups in exile. One of these opposition groups, the Mojahedin , which has an extensive history of violence and terror, has now threatened, albeit subtly, to shoot me in the forehead. However, before I go into this, you as a reader need a brief background.

An Islamic revolution swept over Iran in 1979. The leader of the revolution was Rohollah Khomeini and he was supported by all groups that opposed the Shah and the Iranian monarchy. After that all groups participated in the mass executions that immediately took place where supporters of the Shah were murdered, Khomeini turned on those who supported him. He was in no way willing to share power.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has today three major groups of opponents in exile: (1) Iranian monarchists who want a constitutional monarchy to be restored in Iran, (2) Iranian communists who want a communist Iran, and (3) Mojahedin wich is a Marxist -Islamic organization. It is this third grouping, the Mojahedin, that we shall discuss.

The Mojahedin

Mojahedin is officially called “People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran” and is abbreviated PMOI. In Farsi they are called “Mojahedin-e Khalgh” and abbreviated MEK. They were founded in the 1970s and waged armed warfare against the then imperial government. They carried out a large number of terrorist attacks and, in addition to civilians, could also kill Americans who worked in Iran.

In connection with the establishment of the Islamic Republic, the Mojahedin and its leader Masoud Rajavi continued to support terrorism. In the picture you see, for example, Masoud Rajavi together with Yaser Arafat.

After Khomeini refused to share power, the MEK went into opposition and soon they were forced to leave Iran. The entire MEK, from its leadership to its rank-and-file members, took refuge in Baghdad, Iraq, with Saddam Hussein. Masoud Rajavi and Saddam (see picture) got together. Saddam armed the MEK which together with Saddam attacked Iran, i.e. their own country. At the same time, the MEK helped Saddam crack down on Saddam’s opponents .

In connection with the fall of Saddam, the MEK was forced out of Iraq and now has its camp in Tirana, Albania. Their leader is nowadays Maryam Rajavi, wife of Masoud Rajavi. Maryam is the self-selected president of Iran in exile. Masoud Rajavi has instead had the role of some form of “spiritual leader”. However, Masoud Rajavi has been missing since 2003. The MEK refuses to say anything about his disappearance. Interestingly, before marrying Masoud Rajavi in ​​1985, Maryam Rajavi was married to a high-ranking member of the MEK, Mehdi Abrishamchi.

The above has contributed to the MEK being seen as more of a sect and a cult than a political organization. It is also of interest to know that the MEK was on the EU’s terror list until 2009. The USA, Canada and Japan also had the MEK on their respective terror lists until the second half of the 2000s.

The MEK’s history of terror and violence, their massive support for Khomeini, their massive support for Saddam in attacking Iran, their behavior as a cult as well as their ideology which is a mixture of Marxism and Islamism, have made the organization very hated among Iranians. Information such as that the MEK conducts torture and forced sterilization in its bases, as well as rape and sexual abuse, has also contributed to the enormous opposition that exists against the organization.

The threat against me

On November 8, I wrote a tweet in Farsi (see below). Translated into English, I wrote the following:

“Many times I have heard people say, is there anything worse than the Islamic Republic? My countrymen, my sisters, my brothers… do not doubt that there is worse: Maryam Rajavi and the Mojahedin cult.”

Until I write this post, the tweet has received 711 retweets , 47 quote-tweets , 387 comments and 3463 likes .

One of those commenting with an anonymous twitter account (see below) has posted a picture of me and writes (translation into English):

“Who pissed on this bastard from the Amar base?”

The Amar base or more correct, Ammar Cyber ​​Headquarters, is an organization founded by the Islamic regime in Iran to, among other things, conduct cyber activities against the Iranian opposition.

So for so good. This is however when it gets very uncomfortable. One of the Mojahedin living in Hamburg, Germany, writes the following (see below) in response to the previous tweet. Translation:

“He resembles to the executed Lajevardi. Even Lajevardi had a spot on his head, however, after being shot by the young hero.”

By “he resembles” the author of the tweet means me. Who then is Lajevardi? Assadollah Lajevardi was just like the Mojahedin a hard-line Islamist. In fact, before the Islamic revolution, he himself was a member of the Mojahedin. After the revolution, he became a prosecutor and head of the infamous Evin prison. During his many years of service to the islamic regime, he was responsible for the murder of thousands of opponents of the Islamic Republic, including members of the Mojahedin against whom Lajevardi had now turned.

On August 23, 1988, Lajevardi was gunned down in Tehran. A young man had shot him dead. The Mojahedin claimed the deed.

The person writing to me on twitter means my birthmark that I have on my forehead is similar to the one Lajevardi got when the Mojahedin shot him to death. This cannot be interpreted as anything other than a threat.

So why am I sharing this with you? It is the first time that I have done so despite all the threats that my family and I have received during the decades we have been politically active in Norway and Sweden. The reason is that those of you who may not be fully aware should understand the difficult situation that a large number of exiled Iranians live in. Not only are we threatened, murdered and harassed by the Islamic Republic and its embassies in each country, but also parts of the fundamentalist opposition to the regime pursues the same modus operandi.

The more serious the situation in Iran becomes, the more tensions we will see. Much suggests that the democratic opposition will have to fight on two fronts: partly against the regime in Iran, partly against the fundamentalists of the Mojahedin.

The header image shows Mojahedin members in their base where veiling is compulsory.