Overview

"In the 1960s, a group of student intellectuals formed to oppose the Shah of Iran and became an enemy of the clerical regime of Ayatollah Khomeini following the 1979 Revolution. U.S. officials twisted the students' story in a misguided attempt to appease the Iranian government. In ""The Ayatollahs and the MEK: Iran's Crumbling Influence Operation,"" Ambassador, Lincoln P. Bloomfield, Jr. - a former senior defense and foreign policy official who served three presidents over five administrations in the Pentagon, the White House and the U.S. State Department - presents breaking revelations and documents compelling evidence that the Islamic Republic of Iran's organized opposition, the Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK), and its parliament-in-exile, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), have been falsely portrayed in Washington and around the world for years. Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Executive Director of the School of Public and International Affairs, at the University of Baltimore writes in the book's Foreword: ""A careful examination of the facts supports this conclusion and tells a very different story than the one authored by Tehran and too often echoed in Washington."" Ambassador Bloomfield's pathbreaking book has received widespread praise from former senior leaders in the national security, counter-terrorism and law enforcement communities, including a former Director of the F.B.I., a former U.S. National Security Advisor, and a former U.S. Attorney General. ""The Ayatollahs and the MEK"" unravels the regime's disinformation campaign and brings a fresh perspective to the Iran policy conversation."

Full Product Details

9780578536095

Table of Contents

Reviews

The surest way to kill a lie is to pour truth on it. In this monograph, both methodical and compelling, Lincoln Bloomfield Jr.--who served in national security positions in both the State and Defense Departments of three presidents--kills at least six lies about the MEK, an organization of Iranian dissidents dedicated to replacing the theocratic tyranny of the mullahs in Tehran with a republic committed to democracy and gender equality. These accusations range from the bizarre--that the MEK promotes an extremism rooted improbably in both communism and Islam--to claims of violence against Americans and the Iranian people, and suggests that the laziness of journalists who will not examine these canards critically is exploited by regime sympathizers in the United States. This essay should be read by anyone concerned about the security of the United States and the world. -- Michael B. Mukasey, U.S. Attorney General, 2007-2009 --------------------- Once again, Ambassador Bloomfield has brought clarity and truth to the forefront of one of the most embarrassing episodes of our involvement in Iraq. Our 'non-action' policy was one which inflicted great damage to our national moral authority on human rights issues, tacitly enabling the overt (but under-reported) massacre of hundreds of innocent men and women on the orders of both the Iraqi and Iranian governments, all in the misguided and false hope that the persecution of the MEK would curry favor with the regime in Iran. For anyone who continues to believe the lies regarding the only opposition group Tehran truly fears, Ambassador Bloomfield's essay is necessary reading. For our diplomats and elected leaders, it should be required reading. -- General James L. Jones, USMC (Ret.), U.S. National Security Advisor, 2009-2010; NATO Supreme Allied Commander, 2003-2006; and Commandant, U.S. Marine Corps, 1999-2003 --------------------- There was no credible factual or legal basis for putting the MEK on the FTO list in 1997. Unfortunately, it was a misguided foreign policy gimmick by the Clinton Administration to curry favor with the Tehran regime, and to pave the way for some fantasy U.S.-Iran 'rapprochement.' In addition to murdering 19 U.S. Airmen at Khobar Towers in 1996, and relishing its role as the largest state exporter of terrorism, the mullahs never had any intention to act as a lawful nation state. Conversely, the MEK saved countless U.S. military lives in Iraq, and has been thanked and praised by America's senior military leaders. -- Louis J. Freeh, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1993-2001

Author Information

"Ambassador Lincoln P. Bloomfield is a Distinguished Fellow and Chairman Emeritus at the Stimson Center in Washington, D.C. He has served as a senior national security official in the administrations of Presidents Reagan, G.H.W. Bush and G.W. Bush. Amb. Bloomfield was appointed by President Bush to be the U.S. Special Envoy for MANPADS Threat Reduction from 2008-09 with the rank of Ambassador. From 2001-2005 he was U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Political Military Affairs, also serving as Special Representative of the President and Secretary of State for Humanitarian Mine Action. He previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (1992-93), Deputy Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs (1991-02), and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs (1988-89). Amb. Bloomfield founded Palmer Coates LLC in 2005. His education and professional career have centered on international affairs, including foreign policy and defense. A graduate of Harvard College (a.b. cum laude, 1974) and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (M.A.L.D., 1980) where he was Director of The Fletcher Forum, the school's foreign affairs journal. Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is an Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs at the University of Baltimore where he serves as Executive Director of the School of Public and International Affairs. Dr. Sheehan's scholarship - including his first book and numerous journal articles - has involved quantitative analyses of terrorism incident data and the impact of preemptive force on terrorist activity. He has published in peer-reviewed journals on topics related to evidence-based counterterrorism policy, terrorism studies, foreign terrorist organizations, counterinsurgency, suicide terrorism, and regime change in the Middle East. The author of more than eighty publications, Dr. Sheehan's writing has appeared in The National Interest, Foreign Policy, Fox News, Al Jazeera, The Washington Times, The Hill, Roll Call, The Washington Examiner, The Baltimore Sun, Haaretz, The Jerusalem Post, National Post, United Press International, Townhall.com, Newsmax, The Daily Caller, Independent Journal Review, Modern Diplomacy, International Policy Digest, New York Daily News, Citiscope, and La Tribune. His writing has been translated into French and Farsi and has been cited in official testimony before the Canadian parliament. Dr. Sheehan previously served as the director of the Negotiation and Conflict Management graduate program and was the founding director of the Global Affairs and Human Security graduate program in the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore. An award-winning professor, Dr. Sheehan is the recipient of the 2015 University of Baltimore President's Faculty Award, the 2016 University System of Maryland Board of Regents Award, and a 2017 citation from the Maryland State Senate in recognition of ""Exceptional leadership and Service to the University of Baltimore."" He previously taught at the University of Massachusetts Boston, Bentley University, Tufts University, and George Mason University."

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available