Iran hawks cement ties to former US-designated terrorist group
United Against Nuclear Iran's CEO embraces the MEK as his group prepared to host Pompeo.
NEW YORK — Leading Iran hawks are increasingly open about their ties to a controversial opposition group, triggering Iranian retaliation and posing a quandary for the Donald Trump administration.
On the eve of the hawkish United Against Nuclear Iran's annual summit featuring Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, UANI CEO Mark Wallace Tuesday convened a gathering of Iranian opposition groups. The event was billed as an unprecedented gathering of diverse opposition groups, including Kurds, Balochs and Azerbaijanis.
“This is the first time in history, since the Iranian revolution in 1978 and 1979, that such a broad cross-section of the leaders and delegates from Iranian dissident … groups have gathered in a convention for Iran's future,” Wallace said. “This gathering demonstrates the willingness of many here today to set aside many of the disagreements of the past.”
But attendance was dominated by the Mujaheddin-e-Khalq (MEK) and its allies. Iran considers the MEK a terrorist group, as the United States did until 2012.
