Several thousand Iranians rally against Iranian regime president’s visit to the UN

Several thousand Iranians from across the US took part in a large and boisterous rally in New York on Tuesday to protest the UN address by the Iranian regime President Ebrahim Raisi. 

The event held across the UN Headquarters, featured speeches by prominent Iranian Americans and senior US politicians. The rally also featured a powerful photo exhibition, spotlighting Raisi's human rights violations. 

Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) addressed the rally in a video message. 

Former Senators Joseph Lieberman and Robert Torricelli as well Ambassador Sam Brownback were among the speakers. 

In the summer of 1988, at least 30,000 political prisoners, 90 percent of whom were members and supporters of the principal Iranian democratic opposition, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (MEK) were executed based on a fatwa (religious decree) by the regime’s founder, Ruhollah Khomeini. Ebrahim Raisi, then the Deputy Prosecutor of Tehran, was one of the four members of Tehran “Death Commission” that ordered the mass killings. According to prominent jurists, the 1988 massacre was one of the most hideous acts of crime against humanity after World War II. 

A mock session of “Death Commission” was on display. 

In her message that was welcomed by the enthusiastic and flag waving crowd, Rajavi said the presence of Raisi, the henchman of the 1988 massacre, contradicts the United Nations’ raison d'être and is an affront to the people of Iran. “Today is among the ugliest and darkest days of the UN because the bloodthirsty president of the mullahs’ regime is present there,” she told the crowd.

Rajavi stressed that Raisi’s “hands are tainted with the blood of thousands, including MEK members and other combatant prisoners who were massacred in 1988. He must be held accountable for his crimes against humanity. But these shameless theatrics, namely welcoming the mullahs’ criminal president at the UN headquarters, can never obscure the profound, ongoing, and major developments in Iran, no matter how much the mullahs and the IRGC publicize them.”

 “Despite the regime’s relentless repression, the social readiness for the eruption of an uprising has increased, the regime is at an impasse, the Iranian people's protest movement and their Resistance Units have found their way, and the next uprising is looming,” the NCRI President-elect added.

The opposition leader strongly condemned the West’s appeasement policy visi-a-vis Tehran and called the international community to “stop giving aid to the godfather of terrorism, which included six6 billion dollars given to Khamenei and the IRGC in recent days, as well as the return of some of the regime's agents to Iran, imprisoned in the US on criminal charges, terrorism, or violation of sanctions.   She called on Western countries to prosecute Khamenei and Raisi in an international court for genocide and crimes against humanity and place the clerical regime under Chapter VII of the UN Charter as a threat to world peace and security. 

“They should recognize the struggle of the Iranian people to overthrow the regime and the legitimacy of the resistance waged by the rebellious youths against the IRGC,” Mrs. Rajavi emphasized.

In parts of his remarks, senators Lieberman said, “Raisi is a murderer and has the blood of thousands of people on his hands, and yet he gets the right to speak at the podium of the United Nations General Assembly,” adding that “The sun is shining on the movement for a free Iran. The sun is setting on Raisi and the regime in Tehran.”

Senator Robert Torricelli: “When Raisi walks to the #UNGA78 podium today and shakes the hands of the leaders of the UN, know that his hands have the blood of thousands of martyrs of the #1988massacre.Behind every one of you is someone you love and who was martyred, someone important to you who was tortured. There are thousands behind you. You honor their memories and lives,” the former Senator, Robert Torricelli told the crowd.

Senator Sam Brownback and Ambassador Marc Ginsberg also addressed the crowd and condemned the presence of Raisi at the UN. 

 “The ruling mullahs have had control of Iran for nearly 45 years. It’s fair to ask: How have those decades been for the people of Iran? They have been disastrous. Now, if you were one of the rulers, one of the rulers over the past 45 years, it’s been very good. You’re now rich and have power. For now, but not for long. The end is coming,” Senator Brownback said.

Amb. Marc Ginsberg added, “Ebrahim Raisi, the man whose radical fanaticism led to the murder of that beautiful woman Mahsa Amini. The man who ordered the murder of thousands of imprisoned Iranians The protesters included three generations of Iranians, who carried the pictures of Massoud and Maryam Rajavi, the leaders of the Iranian Resistance and waved the Green, White and Red Iranian flag with the Lion and Sun insignia. 

They called for the prosecution of Ebrahim Raisi for crimes against humanity, denounced any concession given to Raisi and the ruling theocracy in Iran and expressed support for the uprisings of the Iranian people, which rejects both dictatorship of the monarchy and theocracy, sand seeks to establish a democratic republic. 

European Parliament meeting

On Thursday, September 21, members of the European Parliament from various political groups in a meeting titled “One year after Mahsa Amini's death: the situation in Iran” called for stricter policies on the Iranian regime, including blacklisting of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and imposing comprehensive sanctions to force the Iranian regime to stop ongoing crimes against Iranian protesters, its export of terrorism, missiles and drones and its nuclear ambitions.

The meeting held at the European Parliament, marking the 1st anniversary of the protests in Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini, provided a platform to discuss the ongoing struggle for freedom and women's rights in Iran.

It was organized by “The Parliament Magazine” and focused on the EU's role in supporting the Iranian people, particularly women, addressing the destructive activities of Iranian intelligence services in Europe and discussing the ongoing uprising in Iran.

The panel discussion was moderated by Rogier Elshout and included MEPs Radka Maxova (Vice-Chair, FEMM), Dorien Rookmaker, Anna Fotyga, Javier Zarzalejos (through a video message), Azadeh ZABATI, International human rights lawyer, Co-President of the Committee of Anglo-Iranian Lawyers, and Gérard Vespierre, founding partner of Strategic Councils, Associate researcher at the Middle East Study Foundation (FEMO) in France.

During the meeting, Azadeh Zabeti, the keynote speaker, highlighted the significance of the national uprising in Iran following Mahsa Amini's tragic death in custody. She emphasized that the uprising was not solely about the hijab and the mandatory dress code but rather a call for regime change and the establishment of a free, democratic and secular Republic in Iran. Ms. Zabeti provided distressing accounts of the Iranian regime's brutality, including the killing, unlawful detention, torture and sexual violence against both men and women protestors during last year’s uprising.

Referring to accounts of providing concessions to the clerical regime, such as the release of the convicted terrorist diplomat, Assadollah Assadi, in exchange for the Belgian aid worker kept as hostage in Iran, paying a six billion dollar ransom to release the unlawfully held Iranian-American hostages in Iran, the recent side-meeting between Josep Borrell and the mullahs’ Foreign Minister at the United Nation’s General Assembly and receiving Ebrahim Raisi, the mullahs’ President at the UNGA, who is known for his major role at the 1988 massacre of 30,000 political prisoners among other cases of crimes against humanity, are only a few examples of the appeasement policy, pursued by European governments and the US administration. Criticizing the failed procedure, she emphasized that continued appeasement of religious fascism is both helping the murderers who are firing on the people of Iran and endangering global peace and security, including the security of Europe itself.

MEP Radka Maxova, emphasized the need to support those fighting for change in Iran and not just giving verbal condemnation of the regimes atrocities.

MEP Dorien Rookmaker, stated that the Iranian regime uses misinformation as a tool to vilify the only viable alternative to the theocratic regime in Iran, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and the main Iranian opposition movement, the People’s’ Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Her message to colleagues was that they should carefully consider what they say and do, to determine whether it helps the resistance units and people inside Iran. She also expressed her support for the 10-point plan of Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the NCRI.

MEP Anna Fotyga noted that from its inception, this has been a barbaric regime and drew attention to the 1988 massacre of political prisoners and the fact that the Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is himself responsible and to be held accountable. She spoke of the need to end the impunity that he enjoys and expressed her outraged over the fact that he spoke at the UN. She further underscored the need for more stringent measures and policies towards the Iranian regime.

In a message to the conference, MEP Javier Zarzalejos stated that to guarantee peace and security, strict diplomatic measures are necessary to guarantee freedom and democracy in Iran.

Gerrard Vespier who recently published a study “Iran towards a second revolution?” explained why another revolution is inevitable despite the fierce repression and the diplomatic maneuvers by the regime. According to Mr. Vespire, the steady decline of the economy in the past four decades and a steady increase in inflation shows that this regime has made no investment in the economy and instead has been investing in terrorism and its nuclear program.

Addressing the role of the EU in supporting the progressive movements who strive for a different future for Iran, including the Iranian diaspora and the resistance movement, the speakers at the conference suggested the following practical measures:

• Declaring the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization.
• Recognizing the Iranian people's right to defend themselves against the IRGC and other suppressive forces.
• Prosecuting the regime leaders for four decades of crimes against humanity.

The speakers warned against appeasement of the Iranian regime, who believed would only embolden the oppressors and endanger global peace and security.