Iran’s regime is employing former members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) to demonize the Iranian resistance, according to documents revealed by the dissident group Ghiam ta Sarnegouni. These documents among a vast trove obtained by Ghiam ta Sarnegouni after it seized control of 210 websites, apps, servers, and databases owned by Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Confidential documents leaked from Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs have exposed a startling revelation regarding a self-proclaimed “ex-MEK member” interviewed by Lusia Hommerich, a reporter working for the German publication Spiegel. It has come to light that Gholamreza Shekari, the individual in question, was, in fact, an operative of the Iranian regime, strategically employed by the Iranian Embassy in Tirana and the Ministry of Intelligence. His primary objective was to masquerade as an adversary of the regime, disseminating deliberate falsehoods to tarnish the reputation of the Iranian resistance.
One of the leaked documents is a letter by Shekari’s mother, who clearly acknowledges his cooperation with the regime’s Ministry of Intelligence. In her plea to the Foreign Ministry, she requests that her son be allowed to return to Iran because of his extensive collaboration with various entities, including the Embassy of the Islamic Republic, the Ministry of Intelligence, the Army Protection, and the Nejat Group. She also claims that Shekari has made efforts to convince other members of the MEK to leave the organization.
The text of the letter, translated in English, follows:
I, Zumoroad Amini, the wife of martyr Mir Ali Shekari (mother of Gholamreza Shekari), who for four years did hard work herself and other family members with all the hardships to destroy the organization of the hypocrites, thank God that we were able to play a role with other families. We did play a very important role in this matter, which has finally caused the escape and relocation of the members of the hypocrites from Iraq to Albania.
Considering that my son Gholamreza has announced his separation for a year and a half and has been doing all types of cooperation with the Embassy of the Islamic Republic (Ministry of Intelligence, Army Protection, Nejat Group) and has been trying to free and separate other members and expose the terrorist nature of the mentioned organization publicly and doing so have taken the risk of his life and safety.
Now that the organization is on the verge of destruction… Please consider my efforts and unhesitating cooperation regarding my child’s return (to Iran), take the necessary measures, and show your grace and love to the expectant mother.
Thank you, Zumoroad Amini.
Background
In February 2019, Spiegel magazine released an article titled “Prisoners of the Rebellion,” wherein they interviewed Shekari, who introduced himself as an “ex-MEK member” without disclosing his new ties to the regime. During the interview, he alleged being tortured at the MEK’s hands while leveling a series of accusations against the organization and the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). Promptly responding to the dissemination of falsehoods, the NCRI’s German office lodged a formal complaint with the Hamburg court, contesting the fabrications propagated within the article.
Following an expedited hearing, the Hamburg court ruled in favor of the NCRI office. The court mandated Spiegel magazine to remove the disputed allegations from its February 16 publication concerning the MEK in Albania. Furthermore, the court ordered the magazine to refrain from reiterating or perpetuating such claims in the future.
Shekari has repetitively propagated comparable baseless accusations to various Western media platforms. A notable instance involved an interview with UK Channel 4, where his face was concealed to dramatize the scene. Before the publication of the article by Spiegel and the Channel 4 interview, both outlets were duly cautioned regarding the presence of Iranian regime agents disseminating unfounded claims. Detailed information outlining Shekari’s affiliation with Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) was explicitly shared with Spiegel’s editorial team prior to the article’s release.
Among the regime’s tactics to undermine the MEK is the exploitation of individuals who have left or been expelled from the organization. By secretly recruiting these individuals as agents, the regime seeks to exploit them against the MEK and uses them to give false testimony against the organization. They are instructed to claim opposition to the regime at the same time as they are slandering the MEK.
Gholamreza Shekari is a prime example of an individual enlisted by the Iranian embassy in Tirana, Albania, subsequently operating as an agent for Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence. Over the years, he actively propagated fabricated information about the MEK, assuming the guise of a regime dissenter. Numerous reputable Western media organizations referenced and relied on him as a source in various articles targeting the MEK.
Shekari is one of the operatives employed by the MOIS, operating from Albania. His association with the regime’s intelligence apparatus and suspected ties to the terrorist network led to his arrest on two separate occasions in 2022. Following his apprehension on November 10, 2022, Shekari and 19 other individuals underwent intensive questioning by the Albanian police. Presently, he remains detained within a secure facility designated as a closed camp.
