Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), who is facing a number of charges related to bribery and corruption, has reportedly been receiving money from individuals aligned with a terrorist group to fund his legal defense. If these allegations are true, it could add another layer of intrigue to the lawmaker’s troubles.
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A report from The Intercept notes that a significant chunk of the money Menendez has raised for his defense comes from figures aligned with the Mojahedin e-Khalq (MEK), which was once labeled as a terrorist organization by the United States government.
Much of the cash in the fund — he has raised over $400,000 — comes from sources one might anticipate. New Jersey and New York donors with various business and political interests in his home state, including the real estate firm led by Jared Kushner’s family, have given the fund money. There are, however, many lesser-known donors. One is Ahmad Moeinimanesh, an electronic engineer from Northern California. Another is Hossein Afshari, also from California.
At first blush, these smaller contributions to Menendez Legal Defense Fund might appear to come from a smattering of individual donors. An analysis of the donor rolls by Responsible Statecraft and The Intercept, however, shows that about 15 percent of the people who gave to Menendez — including Moeinimanesh and Afshari — are linked to an Iranian exile group called the Mojahedin e-Khalq, or MEK.
Menendez and the MEK have a relationship going back a decade. Shortly after the group was removed from a State Department list of “foreign terror organizations,” Menendez advocated for the MEK following an attack on its members by the Iraqi government.
Menendez’s elevation of the group as a viable alternative to the Islamic Republic continued since then. The senator met with its leader, Maryam Rajavi, last May and heaped praise on the National Council of Resistance of Iran, a so-called political wing indistinguishable from the MEK, at a 2022 Capitol Hill event organized by the Organization of Iranian American Communities, a group allied with the MEK.
Afshari has described Menendez as “a man with principle and integrity,” and said he does not “believe all of the negative things some media put out.”
MEK was originally founded in 1965 by leftist Iranian students opposing the Shah’s regime. The group sought to replace it with a government that fused Islam with revolutionary Marxism. It played a critical role in the 1979 Iranian Revolution but has now found itself at odds with the Islamic Republic that cropped up after the Shah was overthrown. The organization has carried out violent attacks against the Iranian regime and Western targets.
The group was labeled a terrorist organization by several countries. However, this designation was lifted between 2009 and 2012, and it now operates as a political advocacy group headquartered in Albania.
The revelations are particularly ironic given that Menendez has been accused of working on behalf of the Egyptian government without registering as a foreign agent. The lawmaker and his wife have denied all the charges. They could be facing decades in prison if convicted.
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