Massive Iranian-Americans March in D.C., Call for Regime Change in Iran: ‘Down with Terrorist Regime in Iran’

I removed the passages in this Breitbart piece enthusiastically promoting MEK – The People’s Mujahedeen of Iran, commonly known as the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq or MEK.

Iranian activist Amil Imani explains:

MEK is a notorious Iranian resistance group; it was once listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) by the United States for its alleged killing of U.S. personnel in Iran during the 1970s, and for its ties to former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. This group receives funds from many sources, including Saudi Arabia.

MEK also began a multiyear, multimillion-dollar lobbying campaign to remove itself from the terrorist list, including possible financial rewards to American political figures like Rudy Giuliani, Newt Gingrich, Howard Dean, MG Paul E. Vallely, John Bolton and others.

Recognizing the group’s rejection of violence, the State Department delisted the MEK in late 2012, but voiced ongoing concerns about its alleged mistreatment of its members.

Many of these former high-ranking US officials – who represent the full political spectrum – have been paid tens of thousands of dollars to speak in support of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) or MEK. Ironically, these heavy weight politicians never talk about MEK’s violent and anti-American past history, but they refer to them as ‘freedom fighters’ with “values just like us,” as democrats-in-waiting ready to serve as a vanguard of regime change in Iran. Why?

Aside from monetary rewards, some argue that the MEK has provided invaluable information to the US about the Iranian nuclear sites. OK, great! But does this automatically make them freedom fighters, ready to switch places with current mass murderers who have been holding onto power with their fists? Hardly!! Exchanging one Islamist group with another is not a change at all: it’s lunacy!

The number of fees being paid to these officials is vague, but judging by the money handed to certain individuals, the total could well be in the millions. For example, former governor of Pennsylvania, Edward G. Rendell  was allegedly paid $150,000 for seven or eight speeches, Elaine Chao (confirmed) as President Trump’s transportation secretary, received $50,000 in 2015 for a five-minute speech according to reports. Giuliani, who spoke at a conference in Paris, France on behalf of Iranian resistance figures alongside 18 other international guests, has been known to charge up to $100,000 for a single appearance and sometimes demands private jets to charter him to appearances and much more.

More here.

Iranian-Americans March in D.C., Call for Regime Change in Iran: ‘Down with Terrorist Regime in Iran’

Ny Kyle Morris, Breitbart, June 22, 2019:

Thousands of Iranian-Americans took to the streets of Washington, DC, on Friday to march and voice their support for those seeking regime change in Iran, an issue that past presidential administrations have seemed to avoid.

The bi-partisan Free Iran Rally, which began at the U.S. State Department and concluded outside of the White House, was run by the Organization of Iranian American Communities – USA and featured many prominent political voices.

Prominent speakers at the event included retired four-star general and former Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army General Jack Keane, former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, former Sen. Robert Torricelli, California Republican Congressman Tom McClintock, and Democrat California Congressman Brad Sherman.

The rally attendees were also addressed by a pre-recorded message from Maryam Rajavi, the president-elect of the National Council of Resistance to Iran.

“When the mullahs are not held accountable and do not pay a price for their actions, they become more emboldened and intensify their belligerence,” Rajavi stated in her address. “Launching Katyusha missiles in Mosul and Basra and the missile attack against a U.S. drone are very telling examples of this fact.”

As he took to the stage, Gen. Keane commended the Trump administration’s ability to “put Iran on notice.”

“2018 was a major turning point for Iran. The U.S. pulled out of the nuclear deal and for the first time in 39 years, put Iran on notice,” Keane stated as he addressed the crowd. “Using proxies must stop. Building ballistic missiles must stop. Spreading terrorism must stop. And you must stop repressing your people.”

The U.S. has imposed the toughest sanctions against the Iranian regime in 39 years,” Keane continued. “The U.S. designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization … Iran’s economy is in recession. The currency is devaluing. Unemployment is skyrocketing. There’s a food shortage. And the people of Iran are correctly blaming the mullahs.”

He added, “There has never been a time when an American president has been so committed to fundamental change in Iran.”

Keane went on to list some of the regime’s terroristic behavior towards U.S. troops in the Middle East.

Both United States Reps. McClintock and Sherman offered their support for regime change in Iran.

“As the tyranny of the mullahs has become more extreme, the international resistance has become more resolute,” McClintock said. “Iran has been oppressed and plundered by a gang of thugs who have appointed themselves as the rulers of the country. Their claim to power is illegitimate and their time is approaching. Their desperation is showing at home and abroad.”

Sherman stated that the fight for regime change would be a chapter “written by Iranians.”

“We stand in solidarity with brave Iranians who are fighting for a new chapter in the history of this great nation. This chapter will be written by Iranians,” Sherman explained. “This regime may be on its last legs. It is acting with desperation to distract people from its corruption.”

In his speech, former New Jersey Sen. Robert Torricelli claimed that mullahs cannot be changed.

“Terrorists don’t reform,” Torricelli stated firmly. “The reality is the mullahs will never change, they will develop nuclear weapons, they will spread terror. We need regime change and we need it now.”

In an interview with Breitbart News, Delaram Ahmady, a young Iranian-American whose father was imprisoned in Iran for seven years due to his support for the MEK, discussed how regime change is need.

After her father was released from prison, Ahmady says her father faced “constant harassment,” and he eventually decided to move his family to America.

Ahmady, who considers herself “lucky” to have escaped from the regime, also discussed the recent executions of her father’s cellmates and said she has a “responsibility” to “show solidarity with the people of Iran.”

“The chances of regime change, I think, are definitely growing as the years go on,” Ahmady said in regards to Iran. “The youth are becoming more empowered, they’re becoming more organized.”

After the speeches concluded, the Iranian-Americans in attendance began their march to the White House. Along the path, chants of “Down with terrorist regime in Iran” and “Rajavi yes, mullahs no; they are terrorists, they must go” could be heard ringing from the streets.

Powerful signage at the event included phrases like “STOP Executions in Iran” and “Designate Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.”

Wrongful executions, which have drastically grown over the years, have been a focal point for many of those seeking regime change in Iran.