The mysterious assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist on 12 January, raised questions on who was responsible for a series of similar killings.
Rumours initiated by pro-Iran bloggers made headlines claiming it was a "joint Mossad-MEK" operation. None of the claims were backed by anything beyond an unnamed "secret Israeli source."
A month later, the NBC news ran a piece with the same headline: Israel teams with terror group to kill Iran's nuclear scientists. A story that seemed designed to pour fuel on an almost extinguished fire.
When asked about a possible MEK involvement, an unnamed US official told NBC "All your inclinations are correct." Another unnamed official in the same story cautioned "It hasn't been clearly confirmed yet."
The MEK had rejected any involvement right after the attack. So why would this suddenly be a news story again?
It is very obvious the NBC pitch is designed primly to demonise the MEK/PMOI which constitutes the principal opposition to the Iranian regime today.
The story prompted a series of articles both in favour and against the assassinations. The common denominator remained MEK-bashing, as intended. The mullahs and their US lobbies were pleased as Punch.
A CNN report who tried to verify the NBC claim ended quoting other senior US officials that "they are not sure of the [MEK] connection."
What would the MEK gain from such terror acts? An organisation that stopped its military operations more than a decade ago, showed extreme cooperativeness with US-led coalition forces in Iraq in handing in all its weapons, was successfully removed from European terrorist lists after years of thorough legal investigations; and has won a similar U.S. Federal Court of Appeals' ruling - pending implementation by the State Department for nearly 20 months.
Getting involved in assassinations would certainly be the last thing they need at this stage.
While the MEK remained committed to non-violent means, the Obama Administration abandoned their share of the written commitment which was to protect the unarmed MEK members in Iraq until their final disposition. This has so far cost the lives of some 50 MEK members who were cold-bloodedly murdered during Iraqi army raids on their camp since 2009, while US troops were standing by and watching.
The State Department, unable to produce a shred of evidence to back MEK's Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) designation nearly two years after the D.C. Court told them to do so, obviously feels frustrated by a growing number of high ranking former officials publicly questioning the Administration's hypocrisy when it comes to respecting the rule of law.
These renowned personalities, who served the United States honourably for many years, include former Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, Former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, Patrick Kennedy and Governor Ed Rendell from the Democrats as well as Rudy Giuliani, Andrew Card, John Bolton and others from the Republicans, plus Former FBI and CIA Directors and Joint Chiefs of Staff.
"I call on the State Department of the United States to be honest, to be truthful, and to follow the facts," Kennedy told a conference in New York on Feb. 14, referring to MEK's bizarre FTO designation.
With the elections coming up in a few months, the last thing the State Department needs is the embarrassment of being seen insincere and even incapable of responding to demands of its own courts to provide facts for its claims.
Attributing assassination of Iranian scientists to the MEK which no doubt would serve, most of all, Iran's state of terror, could also serve the US State Department with the following:
A - Short of any proofs, it would help justify MEK's FTO designation with fiction rather than facts.
B - Sending an indirect warning to those former officials who don't buy Tehran-orchestrated defamation of the Iranian resistance that: If you continue, we'll charge you with providing support for terrorism.
C - Fabricating links between MEK and Israel would also fuel the liberal and the left to produce anti-MEK sentiments which help bringing the State Department out of isolation in the public opinion in this case.
D - Justify abandoning protection of the refugees in Camp Ashraf.
Whichever of the reasons, producing phony fiction stories about MEK death squads teaming up with Israel, make those unnamed US Administration officials look more ridiculous than right.
It will certainly further add salt to the wounds of those in Iran who had hopes in President Obama when they poured in millions into the streets of Tehran following the 2009 sham presidential elections only to be disillusioned with Obama's "non interference" which was equal to a green light for their cruel suppression.
Even many Iranians who are not necessarily in love with the MEK see USA's forsaken promise to protect Ashraf and letting the unarmed refugees to be slaughtered by Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki's thugs as a betrayal.
The least expected from this Administration is to distance itself from such ludicrous disinformation by publicly denouncing these baseless accusations.