What do Republicans and Democrats Find Common Ground On These Days? Promoting Democracy In Iran

June 28, 2020; by Majid Rafizadeh, The National Interest

Democracy for Iran is one cause that effortlessly unites the left and the right in unprecedented ways.

Bipartisan agreement in U.S. politics is extremely rare these days. But democracy for Iran is one cause that effortlessly unites the left and the right in unprecedented ways. On Wednesday, senior lawmakers from both parties joined leaders of Iranian-American communities in a Congressional briefing to introduce House Resolution 374.

The bipartisan resolution, endorsed by a strong majority in the House, condemns Iranian state-sponsored terrorism and expresses unambiguous support for the Iranian people’s desire for a democratic, secular, and non-nuclear republic in Iran.

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Iran’s gamble of military provocations for concessions is not working on Trump

April 26, 2020; by Michael Pregent, Alarabiya 

Iran’s recent military provocations against the US and its western allies in the Gulf are straight out of Tehran’s old strategic playbook: provocations for concessions, and military adventurism designed to prop up the regime’s image at home while deliberately stopping short of an escalation that would lead to a devastating response from the US and its allies.

But even after the US killed its most senior commander Qassem Soleimani in January, the regime in Tehran still doesn’t seem to understand that the rules of the game are changing.

In the past week, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy have harassed US Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz, its militias in Iraq have threatened to attack US bases, and the government launched a military satellite using ballistic technology that is tied to its weapons program.

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Iran's elections were a sham

February 27, 2020; by Struan Stevenson UPI

Feb. 27 (UPI) -- Iran held a general election on Friday following weeks of threats and warnings from the mullahs about the need to vote, so that the theocratic regime could retain some sort of semblance of legitimacy.

In November, over 1,500 mostly young people were shot and killed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps -- the regime's Gestapo -- during a nationwide uprising. Over 4,000 people were injured and an estimated 20,000 arrested. The supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered Iranians to vote, telling them that casting their ballot was even more important than attending Friday prayers.

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Iran could be on the brink of overthrowing its authoritarian government, and the people need U.S. support

November 24, 2019; by Homeira Hesami The Dallas Morning News

The current unrest is indicative of a deep desire for change that has been simmering for the better part of 40 years.

At least 100 people have been killed by the Iranian regime’s security forces in protests that have spread to over 140 towns and cities since Nov. 15, according to news reports, and the actual death toll could be far higher. The scale of the repression far exceeds that deployed the last time around. Around 60 protesters were reportedly killed by gunfire or torture over the course of roughly one month during the nationwide uprising in early 2018.

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Women are crucial to resisting Iran's regime

September 12, 2019 by Maria Ryan; The Hill 

Iran’s leadership has denied basic human rights to the people of Iran, especially women. For 40 years, Iran’s pro-democracy movement has remained active, despite frequent and often severe reprisals by the regime. The international community has witnessed hints of this movement’s potential at various historical moments, such as the 2009 protests and the nationwide uprising that spread across every major city of Iran in early 2018.

That Iranian women have played a unique role in these uprisings is not a coincidence. The sharp edge of the mullahs’ repression has targeted many of them with repressive, misogynistic laws and execution.

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