Iran Praises U.S. Closure of Dissident Group's Offices as Positive Move

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http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGA4R920GJD.html

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran conferred rare praise on the United States on Saturday when its foreign minister said the State Department's closure of the offices of Iranian dissidents was a "positive" act.

Secretary of State Colin Powell on Friday shut down the Washington offices of the National Council of Resistance of Iran and the Mujahedeen Khalq. The council claims to be an umbrella organization for dissident groups, including the Mujahedeen Khalq, but U.S. government officials say the two are virtually interchangeable.

Mujahedeen Khalq is on the State Department's list of terrorist groups, but the United States allowed the council to operate on their territories with little interference. Following Powell's order, the U.S. Treasury froze the council's nearly $100,000 worth of financial assets in the United States.

Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi called the U.S. action "a positive step that conforms to its international responsibilities," the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

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