In a setback to France’s war against terrorism, a Paris appeals court today ordered the release on bail of a leader of a long-established armed Iranian opposition group. The decision ran counter to a recommendation by the public prosecutor this week that Maryam Rajavi, who heads the People’s Mujahedeen, or Mujahedeen Khalq, with her husband, Massoud Rajavi, should remain in police custody as a threat to public order. It also hinders the effort by the French counterintelligence service, the Directorate for Territorial Surveillance, to shut down the organization’s operation in France. In an interview on Friday, Pierre de Bousquet, the agency’s director, accused the organization of being a dangerous cult that was “expanding its terrorist operations.” He expressed concern that it could “start organizing and planning attacks from French soil.” Ms. Rajavi was arrested June 17 in a huge sweep that led to the detention of more than 150 members of the group. The police also seized more than $8 million in $100 bills. The top antiterrorism judge in France, Jean-Louis Bruguière, ordered the raids after uncovering what was called a “criminal conspiracy with the intent to prepare acts of terrorism and financing of a terrorist enterprise.” Full Story
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