Message from Prime Minister Netanyahu to the Iranian People

Message from Prime Minister Netanyahu to the Iranian People
21 January 2017
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1569149399766466&id=124149704266450

I plan to speak soon with President Trump about how to counter the threat of
the Iranian regime which calls for Israel’s destruction.

But it struck me recently that I’ve spoken a lot about the Iranian regime
and not enough about the Iranian people, or for that matter, to the Iranian
people.

So I hope this message reaches every Iranian—young and old, religious and
secular, man and woman.

I know you’d prefer to live without fear. I know you’d want to be able to
speak freely, to love who you want without the fear of being tortured or
hung from a crane. I know you’d like to surf the Web freely and not have to
see videos like this one using a virtual private network to circumvent
censorship.

You have a proud history. You have a rich culture. Tragically, you are
shackled by a theocratic tyranny.
In a free Iran you will once again be able to flourish without limit. But
today, a cruel regime is trying to keep you down.

I’ll never forget the images of brave young students hungry for change
gunned down in the streets of Tehran in 2009; and I’ll never forget
beautiful Neda Sultan gasping for her last breath on that sidewalk.
This ruthless regime continues to deny you your freedom. It prevents
thousands of candidates from competing in elections. It steals money from
your poor to fund a mass murderer like Assad.

By calling daily for Israel’s destruction, the regime hopes to instill
hostility between us.
This is wrong. We are your friend, not your enemy. We’ve always
distinguished between the Iranian people and the Iranian regime.

The regime is cruel – the people are not; the regime is aggressive – the
people are warm.
I yearn for the day when Israelis and Iranians can once again visit each
other freely in Tehran and Esfahan, in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

The fanatics must not win. Their cruelty must not conquer our compassion.

Our two peoples can work together for a more peaceful and hopeful future for
both of us. We must defeat terror and tyranny and we must ensure that
freedom and friendship win the day.