Javad Mansouri, who is also a former Foreign Minister Deputy, voiced worry about what he described as the regime’s failure to deal with the rising trend of PMOI popularity, saying that historically, “We [the regime] did not take it seriously. We neither grasped the reality of it nor did we suppress it.”
“The issue is still very alive today,” Mansouri said, adding, “You think they [PMOI] have gone away and are only carrying out their activities only in Baghdad and Jordan? No, they explicitly say that they have an organization inside Iran which is active. They have said this repeatedly.”
In response to a question about the PMOI’s influence, Mansouri said, “The PMOI has had an extremely significant role in harming the credibility of the Islamic Republic. Many of the headlines, films and websites were created by them. They were active both inside and outside Iran! But, unfortunately our state organs do not dare to publicize this reality.”
Talking about the unstable situation of the clerical regime, he said, “This year I went on a Hajj pilgrimage. Muslims from all over the world are seriously asking us, ‘will you remain in power?’ ‘Has your state become weaker?’ ‘What happened?’ They all asked serious questions.”
Mansouri also stressed that the Iranian regime’s founder and former supreme leader, Khomeini, considered the PMOI as his number one enemy. He underscored Khomeini’s senseless orders to kill PMOI members and supporters, adding, “The Imam [Khomeini] adopted a serious and decisive decision, which was completely appropriate, because if we had shown even the slightest weakness, the establishment would have faced a serious threat. The PMOI had an extensive organization and did not respect any boundaries or limits. … With such a huge organization, they would certainly have been winners in the next elections and would have taken the reigns.”
“The former IRGC commander also talked about the regime’s attacks against PMOI leaders in February 1981, saying, “This was not a simple issue at all. Therefore, [Khomeini] said that this group must be confronted very decisively because if it were to survive it would be incredibly hard to uproot it.”
Mansouri also pointed to the past year’s uprising by the Iranian people, saying, “Regrettably, during the riots of the past year, we witnessed that many instances of behavior paralleled the PMOI’s acts in June 1981.”