Iran: A Testimony Of Change

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Rajavi’s supporters and a large gathering of the Iranian Diaspora responded to a call made by the Organization of Iranian American Communities for a New York rally protesting the presence of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at the UN General Assembly. The demonstrators made their presence felt, voicing how they do not consider neither Rouhani nor the regime in Tehran as their representatives, and demanding he be expelled from the UN.

Credit Jewel Samad/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Demonstrators protested against President Hassan Rouhani of Iran near the United Nations headquarters in New York on Tuesday. Mr. Rouhani addressed the General Assembly on Wednesday.

Prominent US dignitaries from both sides of the aisle joined the rally and voiced their support for the demonstration’s cause.

Senator Joseph Lieberman, Chairman of the United Against Nuclear Iran, highlighted on the necessity for a collective effort to change the Tehran regime.

While emphasizing Iran’s clerics must not celebrate their 40th anniversary in February and if Rouhani is allowed into the United Nations, Ambassador John Bolton emphasized so should a representative of the Iranian opposition group National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).

Congressman Eliot Engel, a long-standing supporter of the Iranian people’s struggle, also voiced his backing for the rally’s cause.

“I say to the Iranian regime and the mullahs that the people must have freedom to choose whoever they want for their government, and that would not be the current dictators,” he said.

Former Italian foreign minister Giulio Terzi shed light on a perilous humanitarian plight regarding the summer 1988 massacre of more than 30,000 political prisoners in Iran, stressing the international community must hold Tehran accountable.

UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran Asma Jahangir recently issued an unprecedented report recognizing the atrocious carnage and seeking actions on this highly sensitive subject.

For many years the United Nations General has been condemning Iran’s human rights violations. Considering Jahangir’s significant reporting, efforts should elevate to the level of seeking an international inquiry aimed at bringing the perpetrators of the 1988 massacre to justice.

Tehran, however, wasn’t too pleased of these recent developments, responding angrily in an undiplomatic fashion.

“Trump’s ignorant hate speech belongs in medieval times - not the 21st Century UN - unworthy of a reply,” said Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif through Twitter.

Speaking a day after Trump, Rouhani resorted to merely emphasizing Tehran will not be departing the JCPOA. This proves how the regime is in fact desperately needs the nuclear agreement and will seek to keep it intact. Rouhani knows Tehran will be the main, and maybe sole party to see its interests hampered severely in such a scenario.

NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 20: Hassan Rouhani, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, is displayed on monitors as he addresses the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, September 20, 2017 in New York City. The most pressing issues facing the assembly this year include North Korea's nuclear ambitions, violence against the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar, and the debate over climate change. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Despite previous with his American counterpart, French President Emmanuel Macron shed further concerns over Iran's growing belligerence across the region and explaining the JCPOA's limits in this regard. This most definitely will not sit well with Tehran