A lawmaker has urged France not to follow in the footsteps of the US government in dealing with terrorist groups (former and present) who have blood on their hands. The call came after Paris hosted a meeting of a banned Iranian opposition group attended by members of the Trump administration.
"France should not follow US foreign policies and avoid being turned into a breeding ground for terrorists," Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, chairman of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, told ICANA at the weekend.
The Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization opened its annual forum in Villepinte in Paris on Saturday by expressing support for recent protests in Iran, Al Arabiya reported.
Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor who now is Trump's personal lawyer, delivered a speech at the meeting.
He claimed that the US administration will suffocate Iran's ruling establishment, suggesting Washington's move to reimpose sanctions was aimed squarely at regime change, Reuters reported.
MKO was once listed as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union. The group sided with Dictator Saddam Hussein during Iraq's bloody war with Iran in the 1980s but fell out of favor with Baghdad after Saddam was toppled by the US-led invasion in 2003.
The notorious group is also responsible for killing thousands of Iranian civilians and officials after the victory of the Islamic revolution in 1979.
More than 17,000 Iranians, many of them civilians, have been killed at the hands of the MKO in different acts of terrorism including bombings in public places, and targeted killings.
On June 28, 1981, the group bombed the headquarters of the Iran Islamic Republic Party in Tehran, killing 72 senior officials.
Double Standards
Falahatpisheh censured the conference and said French officials should stop their double standards on terrorism and not enter into ploys designed by MKO members, who have killed large numbers of Iranians in terrorist attacks and during the 1980-88 war.
"France should distance itself from the US government when it comes to terrorist groups because after taking office, Trump has…imposed inhuman restrictions on the Iranian people.”
The parliamentarian said western coalitions with terrorist groups to confront the Islamic Republic will fail to undermine the resistance of the people of Iran against hostile powers.
Trump supporters and American neocons close to Israel have spoken at MKO meetings in the past, including national security adviser John Bolton, who, attended a similar gathering last July and made irresponsible remarks against the Islamic Republic system.
It is worthy of mention that all former US officials have publicly admitted that they were paid handsomely by the MKO for speaking at the meetings and attacking the ruling establishment in Tehran.
