Western Governments Grant Asylum to Terrorists and Their Affiliated Groups

The Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism recently interviewed Dr. Manouchehr Mottaki, former Iranian Foreign Minister under President Ahmadinejad. He was asked, “What is your opinion in regard to granting asylum to a terrorist by the Dutch Government and Netherlands’s responsibility towards the victims of the June 28, 2019 terrorist attacks in Iran?”

Before I delve into Dr. Mottaki’s response, I will give you a short briefing on his background:

Manouchehr Mottaki was born in 1953 in the city of Bandar-e-Gaz which is located in Iran’s northern Province of Golestan, southeast of the Caspian Sea. After the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, he entered the Iranian Parliament in its first parliamentary elections. He held his seat in parliament until 1984 during which he served in various committees, including the Leadership as well as the Foreign Policy Committees. After the end of his term in office, he entered Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in 1985 he became Iran's Ambassador to Turkey. After four years in that position, ​​Dr. Mottaki was promoted to the General Directorate of the Western Europe branch of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and then the Deputy Minister of International Affairs in Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1989. In 1996, he was appointed Iran's ambassador to Japan and in 1999 he was further promoted to a senior advisory position to the Iranian Foreign Minister on International Affairs. He served in that capacity for two years. Finally, Dr. Mottaki served as Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2010.

What is ADVT?

ADVT is an Iranian Non-Governmental Organization (NGO). It is a cultural institution whose members are the family members of victims of terrorism. It serves as a safe haven for gathering these families in which they can share their experiences and relieve some of their pains and sufferings for the loss of their loved ones. ADVT is a forum for addressing these concerns [and demands] of the families of victims against various terrorist organizations. Supporting victims of terrorism and fighting against terrorist groups such as the MKO are on the top of ADVT’s agenda. MKO stands for “Mujahideen Khalq Organization”. This is an expat terrorist group based in Paris, France with their shrinking [but still effective] terrorist operational arm located in Albania after having been kicked out of Iraq after the downfall of Saddam Hussein who used this group at his behest to suppress his own people and plan terrorist operations against Iran.

ADVT also tries to minimize the number of victims of terrorism and reduce the recruitment efforts of terrorist groups. The Association formulates its activities in both national and international levels. Giving voice to the families of the victims of terrorism and ultimately seeking a world free from terrorism are the aims sought by the Association for Defending Victims of terrorism. ADVT has played an important role in revealing the truth about various terrorist groups who have murdered over 17,000 Iranian citizens and rising.

At the beginning of the interview, Dr. Mottaki thanked the Association for its unrelenting activism during the past two decades and how ADVT’s awareness campaigns has produced positive results especially in exposing the true nature of those guising themselves as “human rights activists”. While exploiting democracy and their connections with those in high positions of power [in the west], these terrorists have been inflicting devastating damages to the Iranian nation and have murdered many Iranian citizens. By this, we are directly referring to the MKO.

Does Washington Act With Expediency in Regard to Terrorism?

Dr. Mottaki added that some years ago, due to various terrorist attacks and surgical assassinations of several Iranian high officials perpetrated by the MKO, Washington finally enlisted this heinous group as a terrorist organization. However, years later, the MKO was removed from this list due to their persisting lobbying of both the European Parliament as well as the US Congress.

Has the Dutch Government Set a Negative Precedent by Neglecting Human Rights and Violating International Law?

Further into the interview in regards to the illegal actions of the Dutch Government in granting asylum to a terrorist by the name of Mohammad Reza Kolahi, the former Iranian Foreign Minister stated that unfortunately Netherlands has a negative history in terms of not respecting the rights of other nations and negligence of international law.

Netherlands Was the First Country That Sold Chemical Weapons to Saddam Hussein and Was Actually Convicted in Its Own Courts!

Referring to some illegal actions taken in the 1980s by the Dutch Government at the time, Dr. Mottaki stressed that Netherlands was the first country to be convicted of selling chemical weapons to Saddam Hussein in its own Dutch courts! The actions of the Dutch company that sold these horrifying weapons of mass destruction to Iraq resulted in Saddam Hussein’s chemical attacks against the Iraqi city of Halabja and the Iranian City of Sardasht. In other words, much to Netherlands’s assistance, not only did Saddam Hussein gas the Iranians, but he gassed parts of Iraq’s own population. Needless to say, many were killed. According to a BBC News broadcast on March 17, 2002, in Halabja alone, at least 5,000 people died as an immediate result of the chemical attack and it is estimated that a further 7,000 people were injured or suffered from long term illnesses. According to a March 11, 1991 report by Human Rights Watch, most of the victims of the attack on the town of Halabja were Iraqi Kurdish civilians.

In the Iranian City of Sardasht, Saddam Hussein mustard-gassed the town in two separate bombings runs. Out of the population of 12,000 in Sardasht, according to official reports, 8,000 were exposed, 4,500 required medical care, and 1,500 were hospitalized. Casualties up until 2007 were 130 Iranian civilians. 20 died in the first few hours, 10 during the evacuation to other cities, and about 100 more died in hospitals in Iran and ironically in Europe! Of the civilians who died, 39 were under the age of 18, including 11 under the age of 5. All-in-all, 34 women and girls were among the perished. These official numbers are according to the Society for Chemical Weapons Victims Support (SCWVS) and recorded in an April 2003 report.

Granting Asylum to Terrorist Separatists in Ahvaz While MKO Also Took Responsibility

Further along in the interview, Dr. Mottaki stated that another Dutch Government move was to shelter the Ahvazi separatist terrorists. Some of the leaders of that group were involved in violent secessionist activities in the southwest Iranian Province of Khuzestan and in particular the City of Ahvaz where the bombing took place in June 28, 2019. When a number of these terrorists were arrested in Iran, they arrogantly proclaimed their Dutch citizenship and as such claimed they are not under the jurisdiction of Iranian law.

The former foreign minister added that the Dutch Government has a shameful record in granting asylumship to terrorist expats who had perpetrated other earlier attacks in Iran in which Iranian judiciary officials, as well as Iranian ministers along with several members of the Iranian parliament were killed.

Terrorist’s True Identity Had Been Known by the Dutch, German, and Other Western Intelligence Services for 30 Years

Dr. Mottaki continued, “I was an MP (Member of the Iranian Parliament) at that time. The real name of the terrorist perpetrator (Ali Motamed) was later identified as Mohammad Reza Kolahi. His true identity was fully known to the intelligence services of the Netherlands, Germany, and several other western intelligence services. Regardless, the Dutch Government granted him asylumship and had sheltered him for three decades. 30 years later, family members of people like Mr. Kiavash, are still mourning for him at the Behest Zahra Cemetery where he is buried. I think the countries that are [and have been] sheltering these terrorists and granting them the asylum status are responsible for these evil deeds.”

As was the Case With the 1980’s Saddam Chemical Attack, the Dutch Courts Should Demonstrate Their Independency: Lawsuit Filed by the Families of the June 28, 2019 Terrorist Bombing in Ahvaz.

In another part of the interview, in response to a question about the Dutch Government's responsibility towards the families of victims of the June 28th, 2019 terrorist attack in the City of Ahvaz in Iran, the former Iranian Foreign Minister said, “I think as was the case with the 1980’s Saddam Hussein chemical attacks against the cities of Halabja and Sardasht, today the Dutch courts should re-demonstrate their independency and pay close attention to the lawsuit that has recently been filed by the family members of the June 28, 2019 terrorist bombing in Ahvaz. These family members represent the totality of family members of over 17,000 Iranian citizens who have been killed as a result of terrorism during the past 41 years.”

It is a Shameful for the West to Shelter the Terrorist Culprit of the June 28 terrorist attack

Dr. Mottaki continued by saying, “Given the ongoing investigation about this man in the Netherlands, it has now become clear that he is affiliated with the MKO. The West must be ashamed to shelter the terrorist culprit of the June 28 terrorist attack. This is simply a moral outrage.”

At the end of the interview, former Iranian Foreign Minister Dr. Mottaki said, “I sincerely express my thanks for all the efforts of the Association for Defending Victims of Terrorism (ADVT). To the family members, I humbly request not to lose heart. Please continue your diligent efforts with full determination in the face of all the injustice that have been inflicted upon you.”