October 4, 2022
The American Mideast Coalition for Democracy is urging support for the Iranian Women’s Revolution for all countries in the Middle East as protests continue to spread across Iran.
In Zahedan (Baluchistan), police fired on an angry crowd, killing 41, after reports circulated that a policeman had raped a 15-year-old girl in custody. Fathers, husbands and brothers are standing up for their daughters, wives, sisters and mothers who have been humiliated by the morality police for decades. After Mahsa Amini died at the hands of police for wearing her hijab improperly, the country erupted in defiance of the country’s extreme Shari’a laws and rule by clerical authority.
Women are taking to the streets all over the Middle Eastern region. Demonstrations broke out in Kabul on Sept. 29 in solidarity with their Iranian sisters. Women carried signs that read: “Iran has risen, now it’s our turn!” and “From Kabul to Iran, say no to dictatorship!” They chanted: “Women, Life, Freedom!” in front of the Iranian embassy until Taliban forces arrived and began beating the women and shooting live ammunition over their heads.
Women are protesting in the Kurdish areas of Syria, and protests have broken out in major cities across Europe and Asia. Over the weekend, demonstrations were held across the globe including, Auckland, London, Melbourne, New York, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Stockholm, Sydney and Zurich. A protest was held Sunday in Beirut and after Kurdish women protested in Northern Iraq, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps fired artillery into the area from across the border in Iran’s Azerbaijan province.
In Seattle, Washington, some 1500 people gathered at the Iranian consulate in a protest organized by AMCD members Homiera Bakhtiari and Ali Nassersaeid.
“Brave Iranian women have stepped into the breach and are carrying the torch of liberty,” said AMCD co-chair, John Hajjar. “It’s time for other freedom loving people of the Middle East to do likewise and overthrow the IRI and all of their proxies in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, Yemen and elsewhere.”
During a conference call, AMCD member Homeira Bakhtiari described how her family was harassed by the morality police while vacationing in Northern Iran. Her sister arrested for wearing sunglasses and her mother was arrested for pushing her sleeves up to wash her hands.
Manda Zand Erwin, AMCD member and author of The Ladies’ Secret Society, explained how Islam was brought to Iran by the Arab conquests and then Shi’a Islam was imposed on Iran by the Turks. She said, “The women of Iran have been fighting against it ever since. Women initiated the Constitutional Revolution in 1906 and Iran was making good progress until [President] Carter decided to get rid of the Shah. The clergy are ignorant and corrupt. They must be overthrown once again.”
“There will be no peace in the Middle East as long as radical Shi’a clerics run Iran,” added AMCD co-chair, Hossein Khorram. “Their warped worldview makes them want to usher in apocalyptic destruction which makes them not only a danger to Israel, but a danger to the whole world. The Biden administration is turning its back on the people of Iran just like the Obama administration did in 2009. The idea that the United States would partner with and empower the most illiberal state in the region through the Iran deal goes against everything America stands for. Shame on this administration.”
AMCD stands proudly with the brave people of Iran in their righteous struggle against religious tyranny. We hope new leadership will be found to make Iran once again the modern and prosperous nation it was before the Islamic Revolution of 1979.