TEHRAN- Iran's foreign ministry on Tuesday harshly criticized the United States for endorsing the chief of the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO), a terrorist group that has killed thousands of Iranians.

Nasser Kanaani, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, tweeted, “The American regime's alliance with the terrorists and killers of more than 17,000 Iranian citizens became just clearer.”

“The recent move of some politically-bankrupt American figures to try to 'whitewash terrorism' and reprehensibly sanctify the terrorist MKO ringleader and criminal mercenary of former Iraqi dictator Saddam, have further shown the bogus image of American human rights,” he added. 

An alleged "meeting of Iranian opposition groups" was held in Washington on Saturday, according to American sources. Maryam Rajavi, the notorious MKO leader, as well as other former American officials, including former secretary of state Mike Pompeo, attended the summit. 

All of them espoused "regime change" in Iran and extolled the foreign-backed riots that have been occurring in certain cities in recent weeks.

The U.S. and its allies have openly expressed support for the rioters, trying to turn peaceful demonstrations into violent uprisings trigged by the death of a young Iranian woman named as Mahsa Amini.

The MKO has a checkered history of killing people and detonating bombs in opposition to the Iranian government and people. During Iraq's 1980–88 war with the Islamic Republic, it is well documented that it supported former Iraqi tyrant Saddam Hussein.

But the MKO has been removed from the list of terrorist organizations in Western nations, including the U.S. 

Kanaani further said that "the American regime's reliance on bankrupts and criminals to impose greater pressure on the Iranian government and people bespeaks its empty-handedness."

The foreign ministry official said, “However, this does not lessen the fact that the US is legally liable for its violation of the rights of the Iranian people and its backing for a known terrorist group.”