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Iran: Militant leader Žadmits linkŽ with MKO
[ADN Kronos] The leader of the Jundullah militant group, Abdulmalik Rigi, has admitted receiving assistance from Iranian opposition group, Mojahedin e-Khalq or People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, Iranian state media has claimed. Jundullah, a Sunni militant group, claimed responsibility for last week's bomb attack against a Shia mosque in the southeastern city of Zahedan, where at least 25 people died and 180 were injured."They (MKO) have had good intelligence collaboration with us and have provided us with much information about the activities of the Iranian regime," Rigi told US-based satellite TV station ABC News, according to Iran's Press TV. "They inform us about the regime's activities in our areas of operations and let us know about the regime's forces and send us most of the intelligence of interest by email and messages." Rigi also said the MKO currently had certain restrictions because they were based outside the country. "We have treaties of friendship with all groups who act against Iran, and, among these, the MKO can do some things for us and we too can transit their members," Rigi said. "But I guess that they have certain limitations and are in countries where they cannot carry out their intended actions the way they want." However, the PMOI's secretariat on Thursday responded to Rigi's claims in the Iranian media via a statement on their website. "This is not the first time that the clerical regime attributes various events to the PMOI in order to pave the way for increasing suppressive measures and executions," it said. "In addition, as the regime's plots to annihilate Ashraf, home to members of the PMOI in Iraq, have failed, it is now trying to intensify pressure and suppressive measures against Ashraf by resorting to such lies." The mosque attack took place on 28 May during a public holiday, when worshippers marked the death of Islam's Prophet Mohammed's daughter Fatima. Zahedan is mainly Sunni Muslim and the remote province is one of the most deprived in Iran, which is largely a Shia country. According to Iranian media, Jundullah has claimed responsibility for a dozen terrorist operations in Iran and the group's leader has escaped punishment as militants escape into neighbouring Pakistan after staging attacks inside Iran. The MKO is listed as a terrorist organisation by Iran, Iraq, Canada, and the United States, but was recently removed from the list in the European Union. Zahedan, the capital of Sistan-Baluchistan province, is 1,600 kilometres from the capital Tehran. Posted by: Fred 2009-06-04 |
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