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| Iraq |
| Iraq seeks to shift Iranian group to desert camp |
| 2009-12-11 |
| Iraq announced plans Thursday to move members of an Iranian opposition group to a former desert detention camp in a sharp escalation of pressure on a faction that poses complications for both Baghdad and Washington. The group, the People's Mujahedeen Organization of Iran, strongly denounced the plans as "unlawful and disgraceful" and said they were part of efforts to force its members to leave Iraq. Having them leave does seem preferable to just shooting them ... About 3,500 members of the group -- which was hosted in Iraq for years by Saddam Hussein -- have been under watch at a camp in northeastern Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. But Iraqi authorities have increasingly taken a hard line toward Camp Ashraf, including a raid by security forces in July that touched off a melee in which 11 people were reportedly killed. Supported by Saddam, influenced by religion, walking around with guns ... what could possibly go wrong? The group would first be housed in Baghdad before eventual transfer to the desert site, Neqrat al-Salman, about 200 miles (120 kilometers) west of the southern city of Basra. The transfer could begin as early as next Tuesday, when Iraqi officials have invited media to visit Camp Ashraf. The Iraqi statement claimed the shift was necessary because of the group's "historical relations" with factions including Saddam's regime and members of al-Qaida. The government has accused al-Qaida and members of Saddam's banned Baath Party of carrying out recent bombings, including Tuesday's blasts around Baghdad that killed 127 people. A statement from the Iranian opposition group called the allegations of al-Qaida ties "ridiculous" and accused Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of bowing to demands from Iran to crack down on the group. |
| Posted by:ed |