November 2, 2026

US Court Challenges

Timeline: Legal Challenges to MEK’s FTO Designation in US

Oct. 1997	U.S. Department of State includes the MEK in the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. A senior Clinton Administration official told the Los Angeles Times on October 8, 1997, that the decision was a “goodwill gesture to the newly-elect moderate President Mohammad Khatami.”
1997-1998	The MEK files petition with the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia.
Oct. 1999	State Department re-designates the MEK in the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations and adds the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) to the list as an “alias” of the MEK. Martin Indyk, the then Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, tells Reuters that the NCRI was added to the list because “the Iranian regime drew our attention to it.”
1999	The MEK files petition, as does the NCRI with the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia.
June 2001	The Court rules that the constitutional rights of the NCRI are violated and since it is the alias of the MEK, the same applies to the MEK. It says the MEK’s right to a fair hearing has been violated.
Oct. 2001	The Secretary of State re-designates the MEK and the NCRI in the FTO list.
Aug. 2003	The Secretary of State issues an Executive Order to designate the NCRI’s US Representative Office which until then was considered by the administration and the court a separate entity from MEK and NCRI.
Oct. 2003	The Secretary of State re-designates the MEK and the NCRI in the FTO list.
July 2008	The MEK files petition with the Secretary of State for revocation.
Jan. 2009	The State Department maintains the MEK on the FTO list which prompts the MEK to file a petition with the DC Circuit Court of Appeals for revocation.
July 2010	U.S. Federal Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rules unanimously that the Secretary of State had erred in refusing to grant a petition by the MEK to have its terrorist status revoked, strongly suggesting that the Department should remove the group from the FTO list.
July 15, 2011	A year later, the State Department has yet to announce its decision on the MEK’s status, ignoring the statute-mandated 180-day deadline.
February 27, 2012	The MEK files a petition for a writ of mandamus to enforce the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.
February 29, 2012	Prominent US officials file an Amici Brief for MEK’s Mandamus.
April 10, 2012	The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ordered that this matter be scheduled for oral argument on May 8, 2012.
June 1, 2012	The U.S. Court of Appeals orders that “the Secretary of State either deny or grant MEK’s petition not later than four months from the date this opinion issues. Should the Secretary fail to take action within the four-month period, the petition for writ of mandamus setting aside the FTO designation will be granted.”
September 21, 2012	The Washington Post reports that the State Department is preparing to remove the MEK from the U.S. government’s terrorist list.
September 28, 2012	The MEK is officially delisted. In a letter to the US Court of Appeals, the US Department of Justice informs the Court that the Secretary of State has revoked the MEK’s designation.

About MEK

The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), also known as the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), is the principal and best-organized Iranian opposition movement. Founded in 1965 by three Iranian Muslim intellectuals, all three of its founders were executed by the Shah’s regime in 1972. The MEK opposed the Shah’s dictatorship and subsequently the ruling clerical regime.

As a principal member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), it advocates a democratic, secular, non-nuclear republic in which political legitimacy derives solely from the people’s vote, with fundamental freedoms and gender equality guaranteed.

About Camp Ashraf

Camp Ashraf, Iraq, was home to some 3,400 members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), also known as the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK). In 2004, the United States recognized Camp Ashraf residents as “protected persons” under the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Under United Nations auspices, residents moved to Camp Liberty, near Baghdad, in 2012. In September 2016, they were transferred from Camp Liberty and resettled in Ashraf-3, Albania, where they presently reside.

About NCRI

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) is a political coalition of Iranian democratic opposition groups and figures, founded in Tehran in 1981 as an alternative to the ruling religious dictatorship and with the aim of establishing a provisional government following the regime’s downfall.

The NCRI serves as a parliament-in-exile and advocates a democratic, pluralist, secular system of government and a non-nuclear Iran.

Maryam Rajavi, the NCRI’s President-elect for the transitional period, has outlined the principles of a future democratic republic in her 10-Point Plan.

About DelistMEK.com

DeListMEK.com was established by members of the Iranian-American community, including individuals whose family members lived at Camp Ashraf in Iraq. The website was created to document and support efforts to remove the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), also known as the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), from the U.S. State Department’s list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO).

The website now serves as a historical archive of the campaign. It preserves government decisions, court rulings, research reports, and the contributions of Iranian-American communities to this campaign.