BRIEF ON IRAN	
No. 554
Monday, December 9, 1996

Representative Office of
The National Council of Resistance of Iran
Washington, DC


Mrs. Rajavi to 10,000 Combatants: The Cleric Regime "Nearing an End," Agence
France Presse, December 8

	BAGHDAD - On Sunday, the reporters found out that Mojahedin Khalq, the
Iraq-based Iranian opposition, held a gathering in Baghdad's suburb.  10,000
combatants of the National Liberation Army of Iran, the military arm of
Mojahedin, had gathered.
	Mrs. Maryam Rajavi said: "The era of dictatorship in Iran is over."
	"The end of the 20th century will be the beginning of the era of democracy,
peace and justice in Iran," she added.
	In 1993, Mrs. Rajavi was elected as "the future president of Iran" by the
National Council of Resistance of Iran.
	She told her supporters: "I am proud of you and very happy to be near the
borders of my country."


Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, Iranian Resistance's President-elect, Visits NLA Base,
Reuters, December 8

	BAGHDAD - Maryam Rajavi... told a gathering of several thousand supporters
on Sunday that the days of the clerical government in Tehran were nearing an
end.
	She was greeted by a cheering crowd of about 8,000 combatants of the army
of the Mujahideen Khalq opposition group.
	About 2,000 heavily armed Mujahideen fighters guarded the entrances to a
military base in the outskirts of Baghdad where she delivered her address....
	"Today, near the borders of my homeland...the dark age of the mullahs is
reaching the end," Rajavi told the crowd. Mujahideen officials said her
speech was broadcast via satellite to supporters in 13 cities in Europe and
America.
	Anti-aircraft guns guarded the approaches to the base. Women Mujahideen
fighters in red headscarves and shapeless khaki fatigues carried
rocket-propelled grenades on their shoulders....


Absolute Majority of Iranians Support the Resistance's President-elect, Iran
Zamin News Agency, December 8

	During a gathering at a base of the National Liberation Army of Iran, also
attended by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi,	the NCR President Massoud Rajavi offered his
greetings and  commented: The rule of the mullahs has entered its final
stage... Foreign experts and diplomats in Tehran point to the "increasing
deterioration" of the economic and social conditions in Iran...
	Mr. Rajavi cited a 200% increase in the number of executions and another
300% rise in the assassination of opponents abroad in 1996 and the endless
chain of suppressive military and security maneuvers in various regions of
the country.
	The NCR President declared: In the past three years, the support of the
absolute majority of Iranians for the Resistance's President-elect was
confirmed in their consecutive acts of protest and publicity campaigns at
home and in the massive gatherings of Iranians abroad.  Therefore, in
contrast to the sham presidential elections of the mullahs' illegitimate
regime, the Iranian Resistance feels completely confident about taking part
in a democratic presidential election held under the supervision of the
United Nations on the basis of the principle of popular sovereignty...


Five Killed in Iran Riots, Associated Press, December 8

	BAKHTARAN, Iran - Clashes over the death of a Sunni Muslim religious leader
left five people dead last week, a senior security official in this western
city said Sunday.
	The unrest was sparked by the death of Mullah Mohammad Rabii, who officials
said suffered a heart attack.  His supporters claim he was killed by
government agents.
	The security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The
Associated Press that three rioters and a security officer were killed in
Bakhtaran, 280 miles southwest of the Iranian capital, Tehran.
	Hundreds of protesters also clashed with security police in Ravansar and
Javanrud, towns 40 miles northwest of Bakhtaran.  The official said one
protester was killed in Ravansar... He said 40 people were arrested.
	The security official blamed the riots on "anti-revolutionary elements," a
term usually used to refer to supporters of the outlawed Iranian opposition
group, the Mujahedeen Khalq, which is based across the border in Iraq....
	The Mujahedeen said nine people were killed and 60 wounded in Bakhtaran,
and that dozens were killed and hundreds wounded elsewhere in the province.
	The group did not claim responsibility for the unrest, but Mujahedeen
president Maryam Rajavi, in Baghdad on Sunday, praised it as a "courageous
uprising."...