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Israel-Iran war, what is the situation in Manez, the camp where 2800 mujahideen, opponents of Ali Khamenei, are located?

2025-06-19 15:03:38Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
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TIRANA- Albania, a small country on the map, but with big positions in foreign policy, has expressed its position regarding the latest conflict in the Middle East, that of Israel between Iran. But where does Albania stand between these two countries, taking into account the strategic relations with Israel and the presence of the Iranian Mujahideen (MEK) camp in Durrës.

The MEK is an organization with a military structure, described as "terrorist" by Iran itself, but does their presence put Albania at a real risk of indirect involvement in a new conflict?

Specifically, around 2,800 MEK members have been living in Albania for several years, in a camp (Camp Ashraf 3) built especially for them in the Manzë Administrative Unit, in the Durrës District. Their arrival did not pass without incidents in Albania, from the cyberattack to tensions within the camp in Manzë. Today, Albania has no diplomatic relations with Iran. Not only because of the cyberattacks, but also because Tehran has openly threatened our territory because of the MEK.

The current situation in Albania one week after the Israel-Iran conflict

The alarm for Albania was raised when, a day before the start of the conflict, a video of the Mujahideen of Manza circulated on the network, warning that Israel would attack Iran. The video with AI accurately warned of the targets being hit. But the footage was simply a speculation of the network. The Chief of Anti-Terror, Alban Dautaj, declared to ZËRI that the situation in the camp is calm and they are on alert, while emphasizing that the videos on the network are speculation.

"The situation is calm. We are monitoring the camp at all times, the alert for that area is permanent, and even more so now in this situation of global threat ," said Dautaj.

But why is the MEK seen as a threat? What is the MEK and how did it take refuge in Albania?

The settlement of the mujahedeen in Albania dates back to 2012, when the government led at the time by Sali Berisha accepted the request of the US government to host around 210 MEK mujahedeen. The US government was supposed to relocate them from its military base in Iraq, after withdrawing from that country. Later, in 2014, the government with Prime Minister Edi Rama, accepted the shelter of hundreds more mujahedeen, who have been arriving continuously since then in different groups.

In February 2016, 22 Mujahideen arrived in Albania from their camp in Iraq, bringing the total number of Mujahideen sheltered in our country to around 750. But in total, around 3,000 Mujahideen have been sheltered in Albania so far. The MEK was among the main instigators and supporters of the 1979 Iranian Revolution, which overthrew the Shah's regime. After the revolution, an Islamic theocratic system was established in Iran under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini, which met with fierce opposition from the MEK, which was against Islamic autocracy. As a result, the Iranian regime began persecuting members of the organization, forcing its leaders and thousands of members to emigrate.

Incidents in Albania

A cyberattack in 2022 would spell the end of Iran's diplomatic relations with Albania.

Homeland Justice cyberattack

Albania faced a cyber attack, which completely brought the Albanian state to its knees. The attack came from Humeland Justice, an organization supported by Iran. Initially, all systems with citizen data in the country were attacked, starting from the e-Albania application, where every citizen's record is located, from medical documents, civil data to any sensitive information of the Albanian state. The cyber attack also continued by blocking the TIMS system and even the ANA data. According to information and data from world organizations and the State Department, they concluded that this attack was carried out by Iran. After this, the Albanian government made the decision to completely remove the Iranian embassy and employees from Albania.

But a year later the danger would continue... In 2023, SPAK's action in the MEK camp, against terrorism and cyber attacks, would also bring a victim.

A search for suspected "Iranian regime infiltrators" would trigger everything! At the request of SPAK and the decision of the Special Court, thousands of police forces intervened to carry out checks in this camp. The Mujahedin opposed the police intervention, resisting and thus leading to a confrontation between the two sides and the use of tear gas by the blue uniforms. One person lost his life, after the residents there were accused of plotting cyber attacks against the Albanian government. The residents of the camp claimed that he was killed by the Albanian Police, but the expertise revealed that he had actually died of cardiac arrest. After the June 20 clash, more than a week later, the Albanian Police re-entered Camp Ashraf-3 and security forces were stationed at the entrance to the camp and checked all vehicles leaving the country. A total of 150 computer devices, suspected of being linked to terrorist activities, were seized.

But the incidents date back years.

In August 2018, it was reported that members of this community had assaulted a British film crew that was filming the Manza camp from outside its perimeter.

The clash was confirmed by the MEK itself through a public statement.

"On Friday, August 10, 2018, a three-person television crew, secretly and without prior notice, filmed and photographed inside the residence of members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI-MEK), refugees in Albania from a neighboring country. Local Albanian security agents, who spotted this suspicious and illegal act, asked them to stop filming and to hand over the footage. However, the crew members, who introduced themselves as British people working for the British television Channel 4 TV, ignored this request and continued working until Albanian police arrived and escorted them to the police station ," the statement said.

The MEK justified this reaction of its members with the fact that the footage of the camps and its members later ends up in the offices of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence, which later uses it to denigrate the mujahedeen and their cause for a free Iran.

Given the incidents over the years, is Albania again in danger? Albania itself has no defense capacity, but relies on the early warning system that the US and Great Britain have that alerts about missiles./ VOICE

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