Tehran on Wednesday condemned a planned move by Washington to remove an Iranian opposition group based abroad, the People’s Mujahedeen of Iran, from its blacklist of designated terrorist groups. “The United States’ double standard in dealing with terrorism and instrumental use of these groups for political gain is not a new issue,” foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast was quoted as saying by state media. “If the US government goes ahead with this move, then it will be accountable for the blood of thousands of Iranians and Iraqis spilt by this cult… and it weakens world efforts in combatting terrorism,” he said. The US is poised to remove the group, also known as the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (MEK), from the list of terrorist groups, US lawmakers said on Friday. The move comes just days ahead of an October 1 deadline set by a US appeals court by which Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had to decide on the fate of the group. The MEK, whose leadership is based in Paris, has invested much money and years of intense lobbying to be taken off the list. The leftwing group was founded in the 1960s to oppose the shah of Iran, and after the 1979 Islamic revolution that ousted him it took up arms against Iran’s clerical rulers. The MEK says it has now laid down its arms and is working to overthrow the Islamic regime in Tehran through peaceful means. It has no support in Iran itself, and no connection to domestic opposition groups.
