Exiled Iranian singer Ashraf-o-Sadat Mortezai, known to her fans as Marzieh, died on October 13 in Paris at the age of 85, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports.
Marzieh left Iran and joined the main opposition coalition National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) organized by the People's Mujahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) in Paris in 1994. The PMOI is considered a serious political threat to the Tehran regime.
She traveled to Camp Ashraf in Iraq in the late 1990s and spent several years with PMOI members there.

NCRI head Maryam Rajavi expressed her condolences at the death of Marzieh to the people of Iran, Iranian artists, and Iranian freedom fighters, particularly those in Camp Ashraf. Rajawi described Marzieh as the shining star of Iranian music.

Rajavi also declared three days of national mourning for Marzieh.

Marzieh performed more than 1,000 songs during her career, often together with the most famous masters of Persian music.

Not Ahmadinejad but the opposition should be our partner in progress 

...This also was very evident at the rally outside the U.N. when Mr. Ahmadinejad spoke inside. Thousands of Iranians from all age groups and all strata cried no to Mr. Ahmadinejad, and yes to Rajavi, referring to Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the opposition.

Iranians called for removal of the PMOI from the State Department's list of terrorist organizations. They were joined by the former mayor of New York, Rudolph W. Giuliani, and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton, among others (myself included).

The lifting of the ban on the opposition is more justified now in light of the fact that on July 16, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said the decision of former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to maintain the designation of the PMOI violated the group's due-process rights. The court cast doubt on the accuracy of information used against the PMOI and remanded the case to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Removing the terrorist tag would enjoy the backing of Congress. A bipartisan group of more than 80 members co-sponsored House Resolution 1431, explicitly calling for the delisting of the PMOI, "thereby denying the regime the pretext to crack down on dissidents inside Iran."

It is ironic that as Mr. Ahmadinejad keeps lashing out against the very principles of the United States, the U.S. keeps the main opposition enchained.

The time has come for a new Iran policy, with the opposition at its core, instead of further rounds of futile negotiations. Is there any red line for the West, or is everything open to compromise and negotiation? The next time Mr. Ahmadinejad challenges Western civilization, and the time after that, his quiver might not be limited to words.