“Were they connected with the Shah in any way?”
They were involved in getting rid of the Shah and were on Khomeini’s side until they had a falling out. Many were then killed by Khomeini and most others fled Iran.
“They seem to be backed by Iranian exile groups here in the U.S.”
They are NOT backed by Iranian exiles in the U.S. in any great numbers. Quite the opposite...they are despised by most exiles. They always greatly inflate the number of members they have, and pay people off the street -indeed bus them in- to attend their rallies to make their numbers appear larger.
“Besides the money, why do you think the Washington types are promoting them?”
Mostly, because they are ignorant, as Lee Hamilton admitted. And those with some background information on MEK, think that they can be used to help bring down the Iranian regime...which is also ignorant. They would be slaughtered in Iran not only by the regime, but by the people. If the U.S. sides with them, we will lose the pro-American sentiments that most Iranians have today.
I suggest reading this, it’s excellent...
http://www.michaelrubin.org/968/monsters-of-the-left-the-mujahedin-al-khalq
I agree. Thanks for the link.
Are there any policy makers arguing against supporting this group?