Mahnaz Samadi

Mahnaz Samadi (; born 1965) is a member of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK).

Activities Iran and Iraq Samadi joined the MEK in 1980 and was an active fighter for them during the 1980s. In 1982, she was accused of leading a terrorist attack against the Iranian government on behalf of the organization. Warren Creates, her lawyer in a 2000 case said she had been penalized for "bombings that were against legitimate targets". She became a commander of the military wing of the MEK based in Iraq, called the "National Liberation Army of Iran", and was responsible for training female fighters at Camp Ashraf. According to Mahan Abedin, she was also a chief liaison officer with the Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS) of Saddam Hussein.

The United States and Canada In 1993, she replaced Robab Farahi-Mahdavieh as the leader of North American operations of the MEK's civilian front. and was granted refugee status in 1996. She lived as a permanent residence in California, and continued her activity with the organization. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) believes she was MEK's cell leader in Los Angeles for a short time, succeeding Golnaz Javaherisaatchi.

Samadi entered Canada illegally in November 1999 through a border crossing in Vancouver, and reportedly held secret meetings with several members of the MEK in Vancouver, Montreal and Ottawa. The Ottawa Citizen carried a prominent front-page headline, "Secret arrest of a Saddam ally", with her illustration on 1 February 2000. The case quickly became a cause celebre for the MEK. According to court documents obtained by Newsweek, Samadi was charged with failing to disclose her "terrorist" past. Samadi was in danger of deportation to Iran, but several senior officials became involved to prevent the process. Ashcroft also issued a joint statement with the MEK at a rally outside the UN building. Later, sixty-two members of the Congress demanded her release in June 2000. "ressure from sympathetic members of Congress helped win her release", according to Aaron Sands of The Ottawa Citizen.

Departure from North America According to a 2004 report by the FBI, Samadi was last seen in Washington D.C. in 2000, and unconfirmed reports allege that she was seen in Auvers-sur-Oise, France in 2001 and 2002. Mahan Abedin claimed in 2003 that she was in Camp Ashraf, Iraq.