Iran Curtain: Mullahs Say Pay No Attention to Those Hangings Backstage
While headlines around the world fixate on missiles, military strikes, ceasefire rumors, and the geopolitical chess match between Washington, Jerusalem, Tehran, and other world capitals, a far more urgent story is unfolding largely out of view: the Iranian regime is continuing its campaign of political executions against its own people.
- Political prisoners face execution for peacefully opposing the regime.
- More than 100,000 are expected at June 20 Paris rally.
- Iran’s opposition demands an immediate end to executions.
- June 20 symbolizes resistance to decades of clerical repression.
- NCRI advocates a democratic alternative to the ruling theocracy.
NCRI Speakers Available:
Alireza Jafarzadeh: Deputy Director of NCRI
Shahin Gobadi: Member of NCRI Parliament in Exile
Ali Safavi: Member of NCRI Parliament in Exile
Dr. Kazem Kazerounian: Iranian American Engineer
Shirin Nariman: Former Political Prisoner in Iran
Homeira Hesami: Former Political Prisoner in Iran
Col. Wesley Martin (Ret): Worked with MEK at Camp Ashraf
Senator Robert Torricelli: Former U.S. Senator
Ambassador Robert Joseph: Special Envoy Nuclear Nonproliferation
**Other Speakers, to include former Political Prisoners in Iran available upon request**
As television networks and policymakers focus on the latest developments in the regional conflict, ordinary Iranians are being imprisoned, tortured, and executed for the simple act of opposing a dictatorship. Political prisoners, democracy activists, and protesters are paying with their lives while the world’s attention remains fixed on the international dimensions of the crisis rather than the human tragedy inside Iran itself. According to the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), the regime’s escalating wave of executions has become one of the most pressing human rights emergencies in the world today.
The NCRI argues that the conversation about Iran has become dangerously detached from the reality experienced by millions of Iranians. While governments debate nuclear programs, sanctions, military responses, and regional security, the Iranian people continue to endure systematic political persecution under the ruling clerical regime. The victims are not combatants. They are citizens calling for freedom, democracy, and an end to repression.
Iranians Taking to European Streets
In response, the Iranian opposition is mobilizing what is expected to be one of the largest demonstrations for a free Iran ever held in Europe. On June 20, more than 100,000 supporters of the Iranian Resistance, members of the Iranian diaspora, human rights advocates, and democracy supporters are expected to gather in Paris. The date carries profound significance for Iranians, marking the anniversary of June 20, 1981, when the regime violently crushed a peaceful demonstration and launched a new era of political repression that continues today.
The message of the rally is remarkably simple.
First: Stop the executions and end the persecution of political prisoners.
Second: End the rule of the clerical dictatorship and allow the Iranian people to determine their own future through democratic means.
Organizers say the demonstration will condemn the regime’s execution campaign while advocating for a democratic, secular republic that rejects both the current theocracy and any return to authoritarian rule in other forms. The NCRI presents itself as a democratic alternative capable of helping Iran transition away from dictatorship and toward popular sovereignty.
An NCRI spokesperson or representative can discuss why the world should focus less on the spectacle of geopolitical confrontation and more on the lives being lost inside Iran every day. They can explain the significance of the June 20 anniversary, the growing international movement against political executions, why more than 100,000 people are expected to converge on Paris, and why they believe a democratic alternative to the current regime already exists.
At a moment when the world’s cameras are pointed toward governments, armies, and diplomatic negotiations, the NCRI argues that the real story is about the Iranian people themselves—and their demand for freedom.
CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE NCRI WEBSITE
Relevant Article(s):
June 20 rally in Paris: A historic turning point and the only path to a free Iran |
Iran News in Brief – June 9, 2026 – NCRI
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- What is the world missing about Iran while media attention remains focused on military conflict and geopolitics?
- How extensive is the Iranian regime’s current campaign of executions against political prisoners and dissidents?
- Who are the people being executed, and what activities led the regime to target them?
- Why is June 20 such a significant date in modern Iranian history?
- What message do organizers hope to send by bringing an estimated 100,000 people to Paris?
- What specifically is the NCRI demanding from the international community regarding executions and political persecution?
- How does the NCRI envision a transition from the current clerical regime to a democratic future for Iran?
- Why do you believe the struggle of ordinary Iranians deserves greater attention than the day-to-day headlines surrounding regional conflicts?
ABOUT ALIREZA JAFARZADEH…
Alireza Jafarzadeh serves as the Deputy Director of the Washington Office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). He is also the author of The Iran Threat (Palgrave MacMillan, New York, 2008).
A recognized expert on Iranian policy, Jafarzadeh has been at the forefront of efforts to prevent the Iranian regime from acquiring nuclear weapons. His groundbreaking work in 2002 and 2003 led to the discovery of key illicit nuclear sites in Iran, including the Natanz uranium enrichment facility, the Arak heavy water plant, the Kalaye Electric centrifuge testing facility near Tehran, and the Lashkar Ab’ad laser enrichment facility. These revelations prompted the first-ever inspections of Iranian nuclear sites by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Jafarzadeh is a frequent guest on major television and radio networks, including CBS Evening News, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, CNBC, Bloomberg TV, and France 24. His insights have also been featured in leading publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Time, and The Hill.
ABOUT SHAHIN GOBADI…
Shahin Gobadi, a U.S.-educated nuclear engineer, is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), Iran’s Parliament-in-Exile.
An astute observer of Iranian affairs for over three decades, Gobadi is an expert on topics including Iranian state-sponsored terrorism, proxy groups in the Middle East, the Iranian nuclear and weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs, Western policy toward Iran, and internal Iranian affairs.
He has been interviewed by major international media outlets, including CNN, Fox News, BBC, Sky TV, GB News, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Times, The Daily Telegraph, Reuters, and the Associated Press. Gobadi’s writings have appeared in prominent media across the U.S. and Europe.
ABOUT ALI SAFAVI…
Ali Safavi is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), Iran’s Parliament-in-Exile.
A sociologist by training, Safavi studied and taught at UCLA, California State University Los Angeles, and the University of Michigan. He was an active participant in the anti-Shah student movement in the 1970s in the United States and has been deeply engaged in Iranian affairs ever since.
Safavi has lectured and written extensively on Iran, Iraq, terrorism, nuclear proliferation, and Middle Eastern politics. He has appeared in interviews on networks such as CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, BBC, Sky TV, Newsmax, and France 24. His articles and commentary have been published in leading outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Hill, The Boston Herald, The Washington Times, and The Financial Times.
ABOUT DR. KAZEM KAZEROUNIAN…
Dr. Kazem Kazerounian is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Connecticut and served as Dean of the College of Engineering from 2012 to 2024.
A passionate advocate for democracy and human rights, Dr. Kazerounian is also an expert on Iran and the Middle East, particularly regarding the Iranian nuclear issue, and human rights situation in Iran. He has contributed widely through scholarly articles, invited talks, and media interviews on regional affairs and the democratic movement in Iran.
Nationally, he has held leadership roles with ASEE and ASME, shaping engineering policy and education. His honors include the ASME Mechanisms and Robotics Award, AIMBE Fellowship, and induction into the Connecticut Academy of Science & Engineering.
An ASME Fellow, his research spans kinematics, robotics, and biomechanics. He has authored over 160 scholarly works and co-founded AcademicKeys.com and AcademicJournal.com, a professional platform and an online journal for academics.
At one point, while Shirin Nariman was a young political prisoner in Iran, she was tortured and buried up to her neck. Today, she is a human rights advocate, and entrepreneur residing in the U.S.
At just 15 years old, during the 1979 Iranian Revolution, she became involved in pro-democracy activities and supported the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI). Less than two years later, she was arrested for her activism—becoming one of the youngest political prisoners of her time and enduring severe torture in Evin Prison. Her case drew international attention and intervention from the Red Cross.
During her imprisonment, Shirin witnessed the regime’s brutality firsthand, including the executions of children, elderly women, and pregnant prisoners. After her release, she eventually sought refuge in the United States, where she has dedicated her life to advocating for human rights, women’s rights, and a free, democratic, non-nuclear Iran.
Shirin holds a bachelor’s degree in management information systems and has worked with leading wireless and financial corporations.
ABOUT HOMEIRA HESAMI…
Homeira Hesami was born in 1966 in Iran. At age 16, she graduated from high school with honors but was denied acceptance to Iranian universities due to her political beliefs and activism. Her activism forced her to spend a significant period of time in prison in Iran as a teenager. She was eventually able to immigrate to the United States, where she pursued her education further, obtaining both her Master’s from The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.
She has remained active in the political scene to help establish a free, democratic, secular, and non-nuclear Iran. Homeira was a member of the Iranian American Women’s Delegation that attended the World Conferences on Women in Beijing in 1995. She has spoken at the University of Virginia to educate students about the current plight of women in Iran. She has also spoken at The National Convention of Iranian Americans in Washington, D.C., as well as the Texas Convention of Iranian Leaders in Houston, TX. She is married with two children, and working as a medical physicist in Irving, Texas.
ABOUT COL. WESLEY MARTIN…
During his combat tours he served as the senior Antiterrorism/Force Protection Officer for all coalition forces in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom 1 and 2, as Senior Operations Officer for Task Force 134 (Detention Operations), and as Commander of Forward Operating Base Ashraf, working with the Iranian Mujahedin (MEK / NCRI).
As the Antiterrorism Officer in Iraq, Colonel Martin’s “lead from the front, and spend as much time outside the perimeter as possible” style of leadership resulted in blocking Al Qaeda from killing the moderate Shia Grand Ayatollah Sistani and blowing up the Baghdad doctors’ convention. He also prevented the theft of over one thousand Cobalt 60 radioactive sources and an attack on the Baghdad trade fair.
As a captain he served in Field Command, Defense Nuclear Agency as a security inspector of U.S. Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Force commands throughout the free world. More can be found at www.colonelwesmartin.com
ABOUT ROBERT TORRICELLI…
Senator Robert Torricelli served 14 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing the 9th district of New Jersey until January 1997, when he was elected as Democratic Senator from the state of New Jersey. While in the Congress, he was the leading voice for a free Iran and has been advocate of a free and democratic Iran for the past three decades.
In 1999, he joined the Democratic Leadership as the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
Senator Torricelli served in the House Foreign Affairs Committee as the chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere.
Senator Torricelli earned his law degree from Rutgers University and completed a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Before becoming a member of the U.S. Congress, Torricelli served as associate counsel to then-Vice President Walter Mondale.
ABOUT AMBASSADOR ROBERT JOSEPH…
Ambassador Robert Joseph was the United States Special Envoy for Nuclear Nonproliferation. Prior to this post, Joseph was the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, a position he held until January 24, 2007. He was Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Proliferation Strategy at the White House.
Ambassador Joseph is known for being instrumental in creating the Proliferation Security Initiative and as the architect of the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism. He was also the US chief negotiator to Libya in 2003 who convinced Qaddafi to give up Libya’s WMD programs.
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