As Iran’s president delivered his initial address to the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, accusing both the United States and Israel of “savage aggression,” thousands of Iranian Americans and dissidents gathered outside the venue to condemn what they termed the UN’s hypocrisy for providing a platform to Tehran’s leaders.
Inside the assembly hall, Pezeshkian asserted that June’s attacks on nuclear facilities represented a “grave betrayal of diplomacy” and a violation of international law. He claimed these assaults resulted in the deaths of civilians, scientists, and intellectuals, while maintaining that Iran “never sought weapons of mass destruction.”
Outside the U.N., however, a distinctly different message was conveyed. Protesters, displaying Iranian flags and holding signs, declared that Pezeshkian did not legitimately represent the Iranian populace.
Mitra Samani, a former political prisoner who spent four years in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison in the early 1980s, traveled from Los Angeles to attend. She informed Digital, “We are here to state that the seat in the U.N. does not belong to those murderous regime agents. It belongs to the people of Iran and their representatives, and we believe that is the National Council of Resistance of Iran.”
Samani mentioned her attendance at the rally annually for three decades. “I vowed to myself when I was released from that dungeon that I would be the voice of my friends whom I lost. That’s why I’m here every year.”
Nasser Sharif, chair of the Iranian American Community of California, reported that thousands traveled from 40 states to participate in the demonstration. Sharif told Digital, “We’re here to support the Iranian Resistance, the National Council of Resistance of Iran, and to demand accountability for its crimes against humanity.”
He further elaborated that the movement champions a plan for a free, secular, democratic republic in Iran, stating, “We are urging the U.S. administration to impose greater pressure on the regime and align with the Iranian people and their aspirations for democratic change.”
Alireza Jafarzadeh, deputy director of the U.S. office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, characterized the rally as “an impressive display of strength.”
“Thousands of protesters endorsed the overthrow of the Iranian regime by the Iranian people, without any need for foreign military presence or the provision of money and arms,” he stated.
Jafarzadeh also criticized the UN for granting Tehran a platform despite repeated condemnations of its human rights record. “It is appalling to see the world’s leading executioner play any role in any U.N. body dealing with human rights. It is comparable to appointing a serial killer as a judge to preside over his own killings.”
Richard Goldberg, a senior advisor at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), noted that the UN’s readiness to elevate Iran reflects “an alternative reality.”
“The U.N. is quite similar to the Netflix show ‘Stranger Things.’ You step through the door, the characters are the same, but it’s a horrifying alternative reality where a tyrannical, women-oppressing, nuclear-weapons-pursuing regime can serve as a leader of human rights, women’s rights, and nuclear nonproliferation organizations,” Goldberg remarked.
He added that Pezeshkian arrived in New York “with nothing — neither popular support at home nor a nuclear weapons program to alarm the rest of the world,” while concurrently facing impending U.N. sanctions that could destabilize Iran’s economy.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of FDD’s Iran program, described the speech as “short but not pleasant.”
“Regrettably, such events have become anticipated from the U.N. concerning Iran. While the fact-finding mission on Iran falters due to insufficient funding and staff, the regime continues to be offered a platform to spout its vitriol and propaganda,” he told Digital.
Taleblu underscored the irony of Iran’s leadership positions in international organizations, asking, “Can anything be more ironic than the Islamic Republic of Iran, a long-standing proliferator and seeker of a nuclear weapon, holding a vice presidency at the IAEA?”
He further commented that Pezeshkian’s statements were eclipsed by recent remarks from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. “While Pezeshkian and [Iranian negotiator Abbas] Araghchi were in NYC attempting to delay and avert SnapBack sanctions, Khamenei did not equivocate when it came to avoiding negotiations with America. The title ‘Supreme Leader’ is, after all, intended to be taken quite literally.”
Steve Witkoff, the U.S. President’s Middle East envoy, stated on Wednesday that Washington was engaged in discussions with Iran and that the U.S. held a “desire” to achieve a permanent resolution to the dispute. However, Iran’s Foreign Ministry informed Reuters on Thursday that the U.S.’s claim of wanting a diplomatic solution to Iran’s nuclear program amounted to “deception.”
“America’s assertion of a desire for diplomacy is nothing more than deception and a blatant contradiction; one cannot simultaneously bomb a country while engaging in diplomatic negotiations and speak of diplomacy,” ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei declared.