With an electoral “mandate” in his pocket, Rouhani can double down on persecution of dissidents. A second term for Rouhani is unlikely to bring about any significant policy changes. The regime is more divided and thus weaker and more vulnerable; in addition, the NCRI has gained much more public standing.

By Raymond Tanter
Friday, 16 Jun 2017 12:14 PMCurrent | Bio | Archive

Iran held its latest national elections in May 2017, resulting in a second term for President Hassan Rouhani. But the country’s banned democratic opposition groups, mainly the National Council for Resistance of Iran (NCRI), universally dismissed the elections as a mere parody of democracy.

 The People’s Mujahedeen of Iran, (PMOI) aka the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq or MEK, is the largest unit within the NCRI. Such dissenting voices are always barred by clerical authorities who select candidates who can run.

About a week after the elections, President Trump delivered a major speech to leaders of 55 Muslim-majority countries; it marked his first effort to reach out to the world’s 1.6 billion Muslims.

 In his address, Trump made a gesture to the Iranian people but did not provide a mechanism for doing so. Here is 

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