We strongly condemn Iran’s plot to kidnap journalists
We, The Union for Secular Republic and Human Rights in Iran, strongly condemn Iran’s plot to kidnap journalists
The Islamic Republic of Iran has a long history of most barbaric Human Rights abuse which has deep ideological roots. Journalists and human rights activists, who expose the brutality and the institutionalized corruption of the regime, have been systematically targeted and severely punished by the government, with numerous journalists murdered or arrested in the 42-years reign of terror. As a result, many journalists have fled the country to save their lives. The Iranian regime has not only attempted to silence its critics inside the country but also abroad by abduction or assassination of exiled activists since 1979. In 2019, Ruhollah Zam, a French based Iranian journalist, was lured from Paris to Iraq where he was abducted and trafficked to Iran, facing imprisonment and finally his execution in 2020. The recent despicable plot to kidnap a US citizen and a prominent human rights activist, Masih Alinezhad, on US soil indicates that this regime is willing to pay any price to get rid of its critics inside and outside of its borders without worry of international political or trade consequences.
Today, the Iranian government is facing a fundamental crisis of legitimacy across the nation as a result of its brutality, institutionalized corruption, mismanagement, and incompetence. The Iranian people have repeatedly shown their disapproval and demanded change over the past years. The 2021 sham Presidential election had the lowest turnout post the 1979 Islamic revolution.
For years the International community has observed the crimes against humanity by the Islamic Republic of Iran’s regime in blissful silence. Every now and then entering into hostage negotiations to exchange Iranian terrorists in foreign jails against Iranian dual or foreign nationals who are kept at ransom in Iran on a case by case basis.
The International community has continually engaged Iran politically and commercially with full knowledge of its crimes against humanity and with evidence of these crimes in abundance. It is now more critical than ever for the International communities to take serious action against Human Rights violations of the Iranian government. The Union for Secular Republic and Human Rights in Iran urges the International community to stand unanimously and forcefully against the Islamic Republic of Iran’s crimes against humanity committed internationally as well as across its nation.
July 19, 2021
