Friday, July 16, 2010

U.S. Court Tells State Department: Review Iranian Mojahedin 'Terrorist' Designation.

Great news: A federal appeals court in Washington today ruled that the U.S. State Department must reexamine the government's decision to designate the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (Mojahedin-e-Kalkh) a "terrorist" group. The three-judge U.S. Court of Appeals panel issued a 22-page per curiam judgment in favor of the PMOI, finding that the State Department did not give the PMOI due process protections that the circuit outlined in previous decisions.

This was behind my visit to Paris a couple of weeks back. (see Why Is Ottawa Demonizing Iran's Opposition?) Now maybe Canada will take notice.

Further background: Tehran's Worst Nightmare.

"The legal and logical conclusion of this judgment requires the Secretary of State to revoke the terrorist designation of the PMOI and remove all its adverse consequences without any delay. This designation has been from the very start an abuse of power and an attempt to assist the Iranian regime’s machinery of execution and torture. From this point on, maintaining the PMOI on the list would be a brazen defiance of law and the judgment of the court of appeals".

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home