PRNewswire WASHINGTON, April 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The assault by 2,500 Iraqi forces against 3,400 unarmed residents of Camp Ashraf that began at 4:45 am local time Friday, April 8, has left at least 20 residents, including four women, killed and dozens wounded. The names of 11 of those killed are as follows: Nasser Sepahpour, Saeed Chavoshi, Mohammad Ghayoumi, Zohair Zakeri, Hanif Kefaie, Akbar Madadzadeh, Qassem Etemadi, Fereidoon Eini, Massoud Hajiloui, Mohammad Yazdandoust and Jafar Bareji. Two of the four murdered female residents were Nastaran Azimi and Fa'ezeh Rajabi In the course of savage assault, that began simultaneous with the visit to Iraq by US Defense … [Read more...]
Massacre at Camp Ashraf, USCCAR Statement No. 2: At least 20 Residents Killed as Iraqi Forces Launch Deadly Assault on Camp Ashraf
April 8, 2011 By
US Must Act immediately to Avert Looming Humanitarian Catastrophe in Camp Ashraf as Iraqi Forces Deploy for an Attack
April 7, 2011 By
PRNewswire WASHINGTON, April 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Iraqi forces under orders of Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki are preparing for an extensive assault on Camp Ashraf that is scheduled for Friday, 4:00 AM local time (Thursday, 9:00 PM EDT), according to Iraqi sources. The plan is to occupy all of Ashraf, similar to the attack that took place in July 28 and 29, 2009, which left 11 dead and 500 wounded. Also, in an ominous sign of Maliki's plan to attack Camp Ashraf, the US Forces Command in Iraq has ordered the US contingent that had gone to Camp Ashraf to monitor the situation to leave, according to reports from Iraq. That unit has now left the camp, thus … [Read more...]
USCCAR Condemns Iraq’s Military Deployment into Camp Ashraf, Urges US and UN Intervention to Secure Urgent Withdrawal
April 3, 2011 By
WASHINGTON -- The US Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents (USCCAR) deplores the intrusion by columns of Iraqi Humvees and armored vehicles into Camp Ashraf midnight Saturday and the subsequent deployment of BMP armored personnel carriers and Humvees inside the camp. USCCAR calls on the United States, the United Nations Secretary General and his Special Representative to Iraq to immediately intervene to compel the Iraqi forces end this blatant violation of international law as well as the Fourth Geneva Convention and withdraw from Camp Ashraf, which is a civilian and de-militarized area. Acting at the behest of the Iranian regime, the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ordered the … [Read more...]
USCCAR Welcomes U.S. Senate Leaders’ Emphasis on the Need for U.S. and Iraqi Commitment to Protect Camp Ashraf Residents
February 7, 2011 By
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents (USCCAR) welcomes the remarks by Senate Armed Services Committee Chair and Ranking Member on the need for the U.S. and Iraqi Commitment to protect Camp Ashraf residents in Iraq, home to 3,400 members of Iran’s principal opposition, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). In July 2004, the residents were formally granted "Protected Persons" status under the Fourth Geneva Convention. During a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee on the U.S. policy toward Iraq on February 3, 2011, Senators Carl Levin (D-MI) and John McCain (R-AZ), told the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq James Jeffrey and Gen. Lloyd Austin, … [Read more...]
USCCAR Condemns Execution of PMOI Affiliates in Iran, Calls on Secretary Clinton to Denounce the Executions
January 24, 2011 By
PRNewsWire WASHINGTON, Jan. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents (USCCAR) strongly condemns the vengeful execution today of political prisoners Jaafar Kazemi and Mohammad Ali Haj-Aqai and calls on Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to swiftly and strongly denounce this heinous crime. The Committee also urges Secretary Clinton to promptly remove the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), Iran's principal opposition, from the FTO list. The unjustified blacklisting of the PMOI has not only been a major impediment to democratic change in Iran but has also been used by the governments of Iran and Iraq to subject our loved … [Read more...]
USCCAR Condemns Violent Attack on Camp Ashraf, Urges U.S. Government to Protect the Residents
January 7, 2011 By
PRNewsWire WASHINGTON, Jan. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Committee for Camp Ashraf Residents (USCCAR) condemns in strongest terms the assault on Camp Ashraf, Iraq, earlier today, in which 175 residents, including 83 women, have so far been injured. Camp Ashraf is home to 3,400 members of Iran's principal opposition, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, (PMOI/MEK), who have been all formally granted "Protected Persons" status under the Fourth Geneva Convention. The assault today was organized by the Committee for the Closure of Ashraf in the Iraqi Prime Minister's office in coordination with the Iranian embassy in Baghdad. The assailants were bussed from Basra, … [Read more...]
Massacre at Camp Ashraf, Statement No. 3: So Far 34 Dead, Including 8 Women, and 325 Wounded
PRNewswire WASHINGTON, April 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Three days after the massacre in Camp Ashraf by the Iraqi Army on the orders of Prime Minster Nouri al-Maliki, the number of defenseless residents murdered in cold blood has now reached 34, including eight women. More than 300 are wounded, with the majority suffering from major gunshot wounds. After numerous calls by families of Camp Ashraf residents, humanitarian and human rights personalities and organizations, a U.S. medical team finally went to Ashraf to treat the wounded. As a result of the delay in providing medical assistance, however, several of those wounded died in the past two days. This dire situation is also a … [Read more...]