Straw Rejects Call to Support Iranian Opposition Groups

Islamic Republic News Agency:

Foreign Secretary Jack Straw Tuesday rejected a call from a supporter of the MKO terrorist group to start talks with Iranian opposition groups to overthrow the country's government.

"Regime change in Iran is not part of the policy of Her Majesty's government, nor do I think it would be wise," Straw told MPs. READ MORE

The foreign secretary was urged in parliament by Conservative MP Brian Binley, who was paid by the so-called National Council of Resistance to travel to the UN General Assembly in New York in September to rally support for the MKO's front group.

The rejection came after Foreign Office Minister Kim Howells dismissed a call from Binley to back his campaign to deproscribe the MKO as a terrorist group.

"The Mujahideen-e Khalq Organization (MKO) is proscribed in the UK under the Terrorism Act 2000. It has a long history of involvement in terrorism in Iran and elsewhere and is, by its own admission, responsible for violent attacks that have resulted in many deaths," Howells said.