Statement no. 6
Preposterous and suppressive act against Ashraf residents, a new criminal ploy by Nouri al-Maliki before elections
Maryam Rajavi calls on UN and US to end siege on Ashraf, holding al-Maliki accountable for any crisis and incident
NCRI – Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, described the preposterous and suppressive show by the Iranian regime’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and dispatch of a number of its agents under the cover of families of Ashraf residents to Iraq and setting up the stage for media shows as new criminal acts by the Iraqi committee responsible for suppression of Ashraf residents under Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s control to serve the religious fascism ruling Iran in the run-up to the Iraqi parliamentary elections.
Al-Maliki and his partners who have been functioning as a branch of the clerical regime’s Council of Guardians for the elections in Iraq by disqualifying candidates opposed to the domination of Ali Khamenei, mullahs’ Supreme Leader, and the terrorist Qods force over Iraq, are now facing Iraqi people’s outrage and hatred and international condemnation. In these circumstances, they are now trying to create a crisis to prepare the grounds for new suppressive measures on Ashraf at the behest of the Iranian regime. This is indeed what the regime needs in the midst of the nationwide uprising.
Mrs. Rajavi calls on the United Nations Secretary General, Security Council, Special Representative of the Secretary General for Iraq, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), the United States President, US Secretary of States, US Ambassador and the American forces in Iraq to take urgent measures to stop these criminal conspiracies and end unjust and unlawful siege on Ashraf. She also called for an end to a ban on visits to Ashraf by families of its residents, their lawyers, human rights activists and parliamentarians. The Iraqi Government and al-Maliki will be held accountable for any crisis and incident in Ashraf that is created by the agents of MOIS who are fully backed by the Iraqi forces according to documents and video clips available, she noted.
The Iranian Resistance’s President-elect reiterated: Measures by the Iraqi Government against Ashraf residents in recent days are blatant violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention and liable for international prosecution. The Spanish court is prosecuting Iraqi authorities for their crimes on July 28 and 29, 2009 and the violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention that offers protection to Ashraf residents, as perpetrators of crimes against humanity. The recent measures only add to their criminal records.
Since nine days ago, the MOIS and the Iraqi committee have deployed some of the agents at the entrance gates of Ashraf under the cover of the resident’s families. These are aimed at creating chaos and psychologically torture of the residents. The so called families are kept at the premises of the Iraqi battalion outside the camp and on daily basis they are escorted to the camp's entrance by Iraqi forces to chant slogans against Ashraf using high powered loudspeakers supplied to them.
This morning, under the orders of al-Maliki, the Government Spokesman Ali Dabagh, and the Iraqi committee took a group of reporters to Ashraf to see the agents of the regime who have gathered outside the Camp. They set the stage for the reporters in a manner to portrait that the residents of Ashraf refuse to see their families.
Since the beginning of 2009, contrary to previous years, none of the families of Ashraf residents were given visas to go to Iraq. A few who managed with great difficulties to get to Ashraf they were prevented from going into the Camp by the Iraqi forces. They were insulted, treated violently and forced to return. In the meantime, the families of Ashraf residents across Iran are under enormous pressure and many of them have been arrested for having visited their loved ones in Ashraf and are now on trial charged with “mohareb” (enemy of God).
Furthermore, during the past 14 months, the Iraqi forces have prevented the journalists interested in visiting Ashraf from going there. Except for a selected few journalists of their own choice for the purpose of reporting on ridiculous stage-managed shows similar to those organized for past few days at camp's entrance, the Iraqi forces have not permitted any other journalist to reach Ashraf.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
February 16, 2010
