Published:
Iranian-American Community of Northern California Joins DC Rally Demanding Continued Protection of Iranian Refugees in Iraq
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Some 3500 members and
affiliates ofIran's largest democratic movement, the People's Mojahedin
Organization ofIran (PMOI) are currently residing in a camp inIraq, named
Ashraf. This group of refugees, many of whom have been inIraq since 1986,
voluntarily surrendered its weapons to U.S. forces in 2003. Since the
residents of Ashraf remained neutral during the invasion ofIraq and were not
involved in hostilities that followed, all of them have been designated as
"Protected Persons" under the "Fourth Geneva Convention."
Now, as the UN Mandate covering the Multi-National Forces' occupation of
Iraq is nearing its end; U.S. and Iraqi officials are trying to get new
agreements in place to formalize the status of military forces that will stay
inIraq past the 2008 deadline.
In the last few weeks, there have been scores of media reports, in Persian
and Arabic, in which Iranian sources have claimed that "an agreement has been
reached where camp Ashraf's protection is going to be transferred to the Iraqi
government," and that "they will then be expelled fromIraq."
If this transfer of protection happens, it would pave the way forTehran
to massacre the dissidents in Ashraf. The Ayatollahs inTehran have no fear or
shame in undertaking the mass execution of political opponents. These weeks
mark the anniversary ofIran's 1988 "Prison Massacre," when over the span of a
few months, according to Amnesty International, "between 4,500 and 5,000
prisoners are believed to have been killed, including women."
As part of the nationwide network of Iranian American Communities, we are
joining our colleagues from all overthe United States on Monday September 8,
2008, in front of The White House (in Lafayette Park, at 11 AM), to demand the
continued protection of unarmed camp Ashraf residents inIraq.
We also stand in solidarity with our fellow Iranians in exile, who have
since August 25, 2008 staged an open ended sit-in in front of UN's European
Headquarters inGeneva, asking the International Committee of Red Cress (ICRC)
to intervene to prevent the transfer of 3,500 Iranian dissidents, threatened
with expulsion.
Contact: Iranian-American Community ofNorthern California
Phone: (925)361-8279
e-mail: info@iacNorCal.com
SOURCE Iranian-American Community ofNorthern California
Copyright © 2008, PRNewswire
Copyright © 2008, NewsBlaze,
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