House Majority Supports Resolution Backing Iranian Anti-Regime Protesters: Oppressed by ‘Theocratic Thugs’ for ‘Too Long’

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AP Photo, File
Joshua Klein

A bipartisan House majority endorsed resolution H.Res.100 on Thursday, expressing Congress’s support for a democratic Republic of Iran while calling for a new Iran policy in light of continued protests by the Iranian people and increasing repression by the “theocratic thugs who have oppressed them for far too long.”

The resolution, sponsored by 223 U.S. House members, supports Iran’s uprisings for a secular republic. It notes that Iranian opposition MEK (Mujahadin-e Khalq) political leader and President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) Maryam Rajavi’s “Ten Point Plan” to ensure Iranians’ freedom of expression and assembly — as well as the right to choose their elected leaders — is the “path toward a free, secular, Democratic and non-nuclear Iran.”

Having garnered support from 11 committee chairs, 60 subcommittee chairs, and 28 Foreign Affairs Committee members and ranking members, the measure also recognizes that the Iranian people “are rejecting monarchic dictatorship and religious tyranny” and opting “to establish a democratic, secular, and non-nuclear” state in its stead.

In addition, the resolution urges the U.S. to “be involved in any establishment of an international investigation into the 1988 extrajudicial killings” of thousands of political prisoners in Iran. It calls on relevant U.S. government agencies to “work with European allies, including those in the Balkans where Iran has expanded its presence, to hold Iran accountable for breaching diplomatic privileges, and to call on nations to prevent the malign activities of the Iranian regime’s diplomatic missions, with the goal of closing them down and expelling its agents.”

Led by Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) on the anniversary of Iran’s 1979 “anti-dictatorial” revolution, House lawmakers introduced the broad bipartisan resolution last month in support of a free, democratic, secular, and non-nuclear republic in Iran, with over 160 cosponsors before gaining a majority this past week.

McClintock asserted it “expresses our united support for the Iranian people in their struggle for a democratic, secular, and nonnuclear Republic of Iran” while condemning the “violations of human rights and the state-sponsored terrorism” of the Islamic regime.

“I am very pleased to announce that H.Res. 100 – expressing Congress’ support of the right of the Iranian people to a democratic, secular, and non-nuclear Republic of Iran — is now co-sponsored by an absolute majority of the House of Representatives,” he said during a congressional briefing on Thursday.

“222 members of the 435-member House, Republican and Democrat alike, now stand side-by-side with the people of Iran who struggle to rid themselves of the theocratic thugs who have oppressed them for far too long,” he added.

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) noted that “when America is strong the world is strong,” while expressing support for “a democratic process in Iran.” 

“We support your freedom; we support your fight. You’ve literally risked your lives for this freedom. And we stand with you,” she said. 

While claiming to “stand with the people who are revolting right now,” Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) stated that “as a Christian, I do pray that one day that Iran will be free [and] that the people will have a government that protects them – that serves them – and not the other way around.”

Noting the regime’s “brutality” toward its own citizens, Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX) said now is the time for “revolution.” 

“This is the day. This is the cause. The United States is with you. The world is watching. We are all with you,” he said while calling to “take back Iran – for the people of Iran [and] indeed for the world.”

The Washington office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI-US) welcomed the endorsement, while its President-elect Maryam Rajavi commended Congressmen McClintock and Sherman “for their leading role in the bipartisan House Resolution 100” and recognized “the House majority members who stood on the side of the Iranian people to offer a sound policy on Iran.”

Vowing that “Iran will be free,” she thanked “all of the bi-partisan Members of the U.S. House of Representatives for standing on the right side of history by supporting the just cause of freedom and democracy in a free republic Iran.”

The matter comes as massive protests continue to sweep Iran following the September death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the Islamic theocracy’s notorious “morality police” for violating strict requirements for women to keep their heads covered in public.

Amini was reportedly abducted and killed for having exposed some hair from beneath her mandatory Islamic headscarf.

Iranian officials have unconvincingly claimed she died of natural causes after the patrol stuffed her in a van and carted her off to a grim detention center. 

However, her family insists she had no life-threatening health problems. 

Since then, a slew of incidents involving abuses and even deaths at the hands of the regime have been documented amid an ongoing clampdown on protests, with clips circulating showing Iranian regime officers brutally assaulting protesters.

In October, representatives of Iran’s parliament in exile, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) claimed Iran — the largest state sponsor of terrorism worldwide — is currently witnessing a revolution “in the making,” with the Islamic Republic no longer capable of containing the current uprising.

Follow Joshua Klein on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.

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