Maryam Rajavi: The Iranian Regime is the Godfather of the Islamic State

Maryam Rajavi, a leader of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, referred to the Iranian government as the 'godfather' of the Islamic State group during a session of the U.S. Congress. She accused it of wanting to support extremist Islamists by gaining access to nuclear weapons. According to the Associated Press, Ms. Rajavi participated in a conference at the Subcommittee on Foreign Affairs of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, April 28, criticizing a potential nuclear deal with Iran, stating that concessions to Iran would make it bolder and more aggressive. She emphasized that Iran must completely halt uranium enrichment and shut down its nuclear facilities and missile program. This is the first time a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran has testified before the U.S. Congress, albeit from Paris and via conference, yet her speech faced criticism from some former U.S. State Department officials. Among them, Robert Ford, a former U.S. ambassador to Syria, called the invitation to Ms. Rajavi 'shameful' and questioned what the Mojahedin Organization knows about the Islamic State group. Nonetheless, the main part of Maryam Rajavi's remarks about the Islamic State was accompanied by her criticisms of Iran's role in Iraq. She stated, 'The mullahs' regime is not part of the solution to combat Islamic fundamentalism; in fact, they are part of the problem.' Ms. Rajavi asserted that 'the ultimate solution to this problem is regime change by the Iranian people and resistance. This regime is very fragile and vulnerable. As the 2009 uprising showed, a significant portion of the Iranian people is eager for fundamental change in the country, the end of the clerical regime, and the establishment of democracy.' She described the Mojahedin Organization as 'a democratic Muslim movement' that is organized against Islamic fundamentalism and called for certain actions to eradicate this fundamentalism. Among the actions Ms. Rajavi mentioned were 'the expulsion of the Quds Force from Iraq,' 'the participation of Sunnis in power,' 'arming Sunni tribes,' 'assisting moderate forces and the Syrian people to overthrow the oppressive regime of Bashar al-Assad and establish democracy in that country,' 'recognizing the aspirations of the Iranian people to overthrow the mullahs' regime and ending inaction regarding human rights in Iran,' 'closing all pathways for Iran to acquire nuclear weapons,' and 'supporting the rights of the residents of Camp Liberty (members of the Mojahedin Organization) in Iraq.' In this context, France closed the case of nine individuals close to the Mojahedin Organization. The claims of the 'National Council of Resistance' came on the eve of nuclear talks, while Iran denied the Mojahedin Organization's claims about a secret site.