Speech of Colonel Wes Martin (Ret.), Former Base Commander of Camp Ashraf, on 26 August Rally- Washington DC.
Ladies and gentlemen would like to thank the opportunity to be here. I grabbed a quote from Edmund Burke, “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good people to do nothing”. It is a pleasure this morning to be with you doing something to correct a serious wrong, the serious wrong was placing the MeK on the list. That serious wrong continues by keeping them on the list. Keeping them on the list does not support security and liberty throughout the world it supports the repressive Iranian fundamentalist regime. The MeK’s surrendered to American forces, they turned over their weapons, they accepted consolidation at Camp Ashraf, they renounced terrorism, even though they were not terrorists they renounced it as I would renounce it, and they accepted the protected person status.
When America did not know what to do with the MeK they then revoked the protected person status and turned them over to an enemy government that is loyal to the fundamentalist Iranian regime, they turned them over to Maliki. Now, no one detests war than the warrior, no one despises the breaking of certain treaty more than the warrior. I take personal exception that they were were turned over to somebody who means them total harm and elimination. Unlike State Department employees, who visit Ashraf for a few hours and then walk away claiming, self pro-claiming to experts. The Mujahedin and I have worked very closely together and we have learned a lot from each other I would like as their spokesman here today to share some of that knowledge and some of the lessons.
In combat we have a saying, a belief, you fight for the one on your left and the one on your right, I was honored many times, numerous times, to go outside the perimeter into hostile territory. Although they were not armed the mujahedin was on my flank and I was very proud to have them there. There is a bunch of rumors going around by the Iranian friendly, the Iranian government friendly media, and State Department employees which I have been going head-to-head with I would like to address here. First the denial of access to the compound is being claimed while at Ashraf I was able to and did go into every compound and even without notice, and just go in.
The only group that has ever been denied access to Ashraf is the US congressmen this year who wanted to go and Maliki personally refused. The rumor is the people of Ashraf are being held against their will, just like before we stood up here today I took a walk through the crowd and meet with many of you. That was always done it Ashraf and the shaken hands if anybody wished to leave all they had to do was keep hold of my hand and they can walk out with me. Yet every member of Camp Ashraf stayed because that’s where their mission was, they were very loyal to it they were not being held against their will. The rumor is being spread the MeK has no influence in Iran, if that is true then why is Khamenei and Ahmadinejad spending so much effort trying to keep the MeK on the list and trying to get Maliki give them the MeK. Recently adding to that, ambassador Butler claims that the MeK has provided no valuable intelligence. Well ambassador Butler, I believe the intelligence on Iran's nuclear weapons program is very significant. Ambassador Butler is one more federal bureaucrats who is quick to speak about something he knows nothing about.
These these classified reports that we keep hearing about that State Department has, already the seniors of the CIA and the FBI is clearly stated there is no critical good information and yet the State Department clings to it, let's remember this is the same State Department that paid Chalabi $33 million to provide misinformation that led us into the war in Iraq in the first place. The bureaucrats of the State Department are serving secretary Clinton no better than they served secretary Collin Powell when they sent him to the United Nations with the information on weapons of mass destruction, and I have yet to figure out why the MeK is being placed and left on the terrorist list when Mookhtad Assad and his Mahdi Army is not on that terrorist list. Hundreds of Americans to include two of my own were killed by Mahdi Army and yet the bureaucrats of this establishment can’t get it through to them that they are terrorists and Mookhtad Assad is not a friend of the United States. When our founding fathers built the Constitution they put the legislative branch of government first because that represented the will of people, the executive came second to carry out that will, State Department wasn't even mentioned in the Constitution, and the judicial branch was mentioned was stated third is to ensure that justice was done.
Yet the State Department has ignored the Congress recently at congressional hearings they were too busy to even send a representative and they are now six months overdue in complying with the judicial branch. It’s like they have become the law upon themselves and we've yet to see the State Department aggressively condemn the attacks of 2009 and 2011 If you want to see who the terrorists are watch the videos they’re the ones wearing Iraqi Army uniforms killing innocent unarmed people. We have three actions for solution: one let's get the MeK off the terrorist list they never should've been there in the first place. Two let's have the MeK secured by US forces and I'm willing to put a uniform back on and head back over there and lead those forces, and let's move Iraq, let's move the Mujahedin out of Iraq to a secure location. To my friends at Camp Ashraf I close with this message, we were together in the last decade, we won’t be together decade, we will be together always.
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