EU To Remove Iran Group From Terror List

European Union diplomats have reached tentative agreement to remove an Iranian opposition group from the 27-nation bloc's list of terrorist organizations, officials said Friday.

A final decision on the status of the People's Mujahedeen Organization of Iran is up to the EU foreign ministers, who meet Monday, said a diplomat who asked not to be named in line with standing practice.

Another official dealing with the matter confirmed that the panel of EU ambassadors had agreed to recommend to their foreign ministers that the group be removed from the list of banned organizations despite protests by Iran, where the Mujahedeen are an illegal opposition group.

The move could further complicate EU relations with Tehran at a time when the two sides are negotiating on that nation's nuclear program, which the European Union and the United States fear is being used to build atomic weapons.

The Mujahedeen have been on the U.S. State Department's terror list since the mid-1990s.

They were placed on the EU list in 2002. If the foreign ministers agree to remove the Paris-based group, it will be the first time an organization has been "de-listed" by the EU.

The European Court of Justice has repeatedly ruled that EU governments have failed to prove the group is a terrorist outfit.