In the wake of a major cyber operation by Iranian dissidents in response to the Islamic regime’s crackdown on ongoing popular uprisings, exiled Iranian opposition group Mujahadin-e Khalq (MEK) Press Spokesman Shahin Gobadi explained the aims and planning of the undertaking.
In an exclusive statement to Breitbart News on Thursday, Gobadi, who is based in Paris, began by highlighting the significance of the timing of the operation.
“This major operation, planned months in advance by the Resistance Units, who are associated with the MEK, was carried on the occasion of the anniversary of Khomeini’s death,” he said.
Gobadi explained the central reason for the hacks.
“The cameras taken down today were being used by the clerical regime’s intelligence apparatus, the Revolutionary Guards, and the State Security Forces as instruments of surveillance and suppression of the people of Iran,” the spokesman stated.
“In recent years, the regime has used such cameras, installed in many areas of the capital, to identify and detain those who took part in popular uprisings and protests,” he added.
Gobadi also revealed that the actions taken were specifically in response to the theocratic republic’s recent “crackdown on the popular uprisings in several cities” and in Abadan (southwest Iran) in particular.
“The main objective of the Resistance Units who have had a major surge in their activities, is to break the spell of repression and to pave the way for further uprisings by the people who demand complete regime change,” he concluded.
On Thursday, ahead of commemoration events in honor of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini, MEK claimed to have successfully hacked over 5,000 state-owned surveillance cameras in Tehran, and defaced websites with criticisms of Khomeini, bringing significant sites down as a result.
The operation was acknowledged both by The Young Journalists Club, an affiliate of Iranian state television, as well as the semiofficial ISNA news agency.
The incident comes as Iranian authorities struggle to quell an outbreak of unrest after angry protesters calling to overthrowing the system continue to take to the streets throughout the country’s cities in recent weeks, sparked by the poor economic situation, soaring food costs, corruption, as well as water shortages and electricity blackouts, and a recent building collapse in southwestern Iran.
On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray accused Iranian government-sponsored hackers of an attempted cyberattack against Boston Children’s Hospital last year in what he called “one of the most despicable cyberattacks I’ve ever seen.”
Follow Joshua Klein on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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