Rohrabacher: State Department Must Stand Up for Protection of Camp Liberty Exiles in Iraq
PRESS STATEMENT by Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA)
Washington, D.C., March 28, 2013 – Today, Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) called for major steps to be taken to protect the lives of Mujahideen-e Khalq (MeK) members housed in Camp Liberty, Iraq.
“The 3,100 MeK exiles were pressured by Iraq and the United States to move from the security of their long held compound at Camp Ashraf,” said Rohrabacher. “They were sent to Camp Liberty as a staging area, part of what was expected to be a quick process before transferring them to third countries who would accept them as refugees.
“It is clear now that the MeK was lied to. The exiles are in grave danger and are not being transported to other countries as promised. There was a recent attack on Camp Liberty, which is dramatically less secure then their former encampment (Camp Ashraf), that killed at least 8 people. The lack of security at Camp Liberty puts every one of these lives in jeopardy and it seems U.S. collusion with Maliki put them in this spot.
“At the very least they need to have building structures changed that will permit a certain degree of security from rocket and mortar attacks. If more unarmed innocent people die as a result of further attacks, the State Department will share the blame, however, that will not do the dead and wounded any good.
“Clearly, the Maliki regime forced these refugees into a vulnerable spot and is doing the bloody bidding of the mullah dictatorship in Iran by convincing them to leave the security of Camp Ashraf in the first place.
“We cannot ignore a situation we helped create. The Maliki government is clearly not taking our concerns seriously, so it is time for the State Department to start insisting these refugees be protected, not attacked and murdered.”
Rep. Rohrabacher is Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats.
