Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to another episode, a couple of nukes. As always, I'm your host, Mr. Whiskey, and today we are gonna be getting into a subject that many would consider political, and it certainly is a political topic, but it's also just about. Human beings and human rights and freedom, and we're gonna get into that today as well as, you know, a lot of stuff going on in the world.
We are here with Zal Habibi, and we are gonna be talking about Iran today in particular. She is a, the Foreign Affairs Committee national Council member of the. Sorry, mess up. She is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, and so we are gonna be getting into that today. But we're gonna start with a proper, brief overview of Iranian history and current existing.
'cause a lot of the mainstream media narratives have painted certain pictures depending on what country you're listening into or from, and, you know, kind of what is going on. We're gonna get into the perspectives of people who are Iranian American, actual, you know, Iranian, and then as well as American. So we've got a lot to discuss today.
And Ms. Oal, I would love for you to introduce a little bit about yourself. Well, first of all, thank you for having me and I'd like to greet everyone who's tuning into the podcast today. It's a pleasure to be able to join as you said. I am a activist with the Resistance and a member of the National Council of Resistance of Reruns Foreign Affairs Committee.
I have you know, dedicated, I guess the last 26 years of my life to the cause of freedom. Iran and this is an issue that's very close to my heart because unfortunately we are the generation that was born. After the 1979 revolution. So we've seen nothing but this regime. But the reality is that the quest for freedom in Iran and this fight for freedom in Iran has been continuing for 120 years.
And both against the current dictatorship and the previous dictatorship the people, everyone have never given in and have never given up. And that's what's important. And we feel that these days. It's a turning point in the history of Iran, and hopefully we will finally be able to see that true freedom and that true democracy that the people of Iran deserve.
And we'll be able to create a, you know, secular democratic republic in Iran where everyone will be, you know, respected and people would be given those. God-given rights that they have, but they've been denied systematically for, for a century practically. Right. And this is a dictatorship that slaughters the Iranian people sometimes by thousands in just a week.
In the past when we've seen protests and oftentimes peaceful protests, nonetheless, they have slaughtered thousands of innocent Iranian people. So can you tell us a little bit about that history? Yes. Unfortunately, the uranium regime regime has only been able to keep its grip on power these 45, 47 years now through suppression and execution and torture.
Unfortunately, 120,000 people have just been executed for supporting the Iranian resistance movement in Iran. But even if you look in 2025, 2,200 people were executed in Iran. And Iran is the number one country in execution per capita. Unfortunately, so it is a leading country in violation of human rights.
On the other hand, on Ja, on December 28th 2025 uprisings broke out in Iran, which the, the spark of these uprisings was a strike by the baar. Which the bazaar is, you know, the merchants in Iran and they are like the backbone of Iran's economy. So it's kind of like the Wall Street of Iran. And it was, I mean, initially it was because of the the fall of Iran's currency and, you know, the, the economic crisis that we are facing right now in Iran.
But within the first few hours it was clear that the target and the. The ideal or the goal of these strikes and protests that broke out was the overthrow of this in its entirety. And we saw, like one day later, the students in different universities joined the merchants. So we saw, you know, the this, the different generations coming together in this fight, and then it soon spread throughout society and to all 31 provinces of Iran.
And unfortunately after. About the first 10 days, the uranium regime realized that it can't continue to keep its balance this way, and so they cut off. All forms of communication and they actually, you know, created a blood bath and a massacre and thousands and thousands of people were killed in the protest.
We do not have the exact numbers, but we are working on verifying them. Just because there was a 19 day communication blackout, it's very difficult to be able to verify the numbers. But what's clear, it's that it is in the thousands and thousands and. We have been able to verify the name and you know, information of about over 2,500 of those who have been killed with a specific, you know, name, location, where they were killed and whatnot.
But we are still working on that and over 50,000 people have been arrested and their lives are in limbo right now because, it's uncertain what the regime in intends to do. Right now, just in the past few days, the regime has handed down execution sentences for many of those who, whose only crime is that they took part in the demonstrations that broke out.
As we are speaking right now, it is 40 days after the, you know, start of the uprisings practically end. Persian culture. We have a thing that usually when someone passes away, they hold ceremonies for them on the third day of their passing, the seventh and the 40th. So this week in the past few days, it started the different ceremonies and different, you know, locations throughout Iran.
People are com commemorating the memory of those who have lost, who've been, you know, who've been killed. And these ceremonies that are being held for the 40th day in different cities for different people who have been killed are also turning into. A place where people come to show their defiance and to, it's a form of resistance in itself.
So the regime is now cracking down on that. They opened fire on. Gatherings in cities like Duan, and they have arrested many people who, for just attending these memorial services. So this fight is continuing the message that we are receiving from Iran on the ground especially after the, the end of this internet blockade.
Yes, it's still trickled. It's not full. Extent, you know, connectivity, but people are trying to give their message out and their messages. Look, first of all, try to, I guess, convey what the crimes that were perpetrated in these past few weeks in Iran because it was crimes against humanity in war crimes that have been perpetrated by this regime.
On the other hand, they want to give a message that, you know, we're still continuing. It hasn't stopped. Forms have to change a bit because there's like martial law in place, but people keep on reiterating that this is not over. We're going to continue because we're not going to allow these lost lives to be lost in vain, and we have to continue till the fall of this regime until the dawn of freedom in Iran.
To give everyone some historical context, could you go over how the Islamic regime got into power and, and took over Iran in the first place? Yeah. Well, to be able to explain that, I might have to go back a bit more. Be like, what was the situation even before the revolution? Right? The reality is that.
Before this regime there was the Shah and he was his father Han, he was brought in by the British in a military coup. He was a member of the military of the, in the, during the Haja dynasty. And so he was put in place by the British and once he didn't serve their purposes anymore, he was. Taken into exile and then his son was rein, brought in.
And during that time, at the beginning well, Hamad is a, avi didn't have that much power, but so especially since it was like after 1906 where there was a constitutional revolution, anyone, the constitution had formed, people wanted. Representation. So the Prime Minister was chosen and the people of Iran chose Dr.
Moad Mos as Prime Minister. That is the only democratic government that Iran has ever seen in the last century. But it was unfortunately very short lived because Dr. Mossad actually nationalized Iran's oil and that was not too in the interest of Western powers. And unfortunately the us so the CIA and MI six.
They carried out a and had Dr. Moda removed and reinstated after that, Dessan knew that he has to rule with the iron grip because otherwise his days will be numbered. So we saw, you know, the growth of the Sak. The notorious secret police of the Shah who executed thousands of people in the, their methods of torture are still.
Unfortunately unmatched in many fields, and they served actually as the blueprint for what the regime currently is doing. So it's the continuation of the same crimes. And there was a one party state the Shah said he after the Kuta against Dr. Mo, he. Banned all organizations parties, associations and whatnot, and announced that Iran is only has one party, and that's the Rasta party.
And anyone who doesn't like it, they could either leave the country or they will be arrested. And that is how the Shah rule. So, in 1976, president Carter came into power. He came into office and he. Had the human rights diplomacy, that was his, you know, issue. And so he told the Shah that you need to stop execution and torture because what they felt was, well, these execution and tortures, they are making the people, you know, resentful of the regime.
So if you want to keep a balance suit, you need to stop that. But what he didn't understand was it was already too late. People already right. Had seen so many people be killed and the tortures and whatnot. So it had already made its impact. So the minute the shots stopped executing, torture, people in I run knew that, hey, if you go to a protest, the risk is being killed in the streets.
But if you're arrested, there's no torture, there's no executions. So people were willing to take that risk a lot more. And yes you know, just. One protest on September 8th 1970 1977, the s Shah killed a thousand people just in in Tehran to keep himself afloat. But so it was brutal. The protests were like the, what we are seeing now they, they used force to suppress the protesters, but it was already too late.
And so the people of Iran actually revolted against the Shah. To be able to put an end to monarchy and dictatorship in Iran. Unfortunately, those who had actually created the revolution, they were, those true revolutionaries were still in prison when the SHA left the country escaped Iran and when Khomeini was brought in.
So who is Khomeini? Khomeini was a clergy who was in, had spent 20 years in exile in Naja, in Iraq. And he was six months before the fall of the show, he was transferred to, to France. And there, Western Powers actually met with him. There was a conference in Guo where they had decided that, well, the Shah is on the verge of falling apart.
And because it was a Cold War era, they needed to make sure that who comes next. Like, what is that power vacuum going to look like? And, and their mentality or then their thoughts was. These revolutionary groups, they are progressive. So we don't know exactly where they stand in regards to USSR or whatnot.
So it's better for us to bring someone like Khomeini, who's a fundamentalist, but he's, he has a stance against USSR and that is what happened. And so with the help of, you know, foreign with foreign intervention, really Khomeini was placed in, even though the people had revolted and Khomeini had the network of the mosques.
Iran because during za Mohammad S time, the number of mosque in Iran went from 500 to 5,000. Because he actually also used religion to try to legitimize his power. That's why like for instance, if you look at their names, it's all something Reza, it's re zo, you know, they all have Reza because Reza is the eighth.
Ima Shi Ima who was Iranian, who is buried in Mashhad. So they wanted to get gain legitimacy. Like we are the right, you know, the dis. The scent of, you know, the, you know, prophet and whatnot. And so he used the clergy to try to legitimize his power because he said at the time he would say that I am the shadow of God on earth.
So that's why these. This network of the clergy and the mosque had grown while all the actual revolutionaries were, you know, or any group who tried to do resist, they were dealt with, they were executed, they were tortured, they were in prisons. And and they were dismantled in a, in the sense of it, you know, they had to be underground.
So that net network stepped in and filled that. Power vacuum. And unfortunately for the last 47 years, the people of Iran have been suffering under this regime. Khomeini, when he was coming to Iran, he said, I don't wanna have anything to do with power. I'm just a father figure. And once I arrive in Iran and things get, you know, on their feet, I'm just gonna go to O and continue my, you know, studies.
But that is not what happened. And his Rhine of terror began very early on and he did everything in his power to be able to, you know, keep himself afloat in this regime afloat. And that was through suppression, internally execution, tortures and export of terrorism and fundamentalism or war monering in the region.
That's why Iran is yet now the number one state sponsor of terrorism. We see it's. Proxies in the region and their effect, and also Iran's destabilizing role in the region and in the world at large. Right. And I wanna get into some personal background as well with you being, you know, Iranian American, where were you born and raised, and how has it shaped, you know, your perspective on all of this?
I was born and raised in the DC area, so in Northern Virginia. My parents came to the US before the revolution, so I've actually never been to Iran, even though I think there hasn't been a day in my life that I haven't thought about the plight of the people in Iran. So, yeah, I, I grew up in a family that was active.
Against the regime. My father was a prominent writer and a human right activist, so I got introduced to human rights violations in Iran when I as a child. I still remember vividly meeting people who were victims of torture when I was about four or five years old. And they were like my hero roles and my role models because I was like, oh my god, these people have.
Survive this and they're continuing to fight, right? And but I always thought that that's an Iran and we're here, so we're safe. But very early on I learned that the regime sees no borders when it comes to its crimes. And, you know, I knew already that the regime, you know, executed children as young as 13 years old.
Elderly mothers, pregnant women. You know, the captain of Iran's national football team, I mean, the regime wanted to share, give that message to people that I see no borderers. And I, I will, I have no mercy toward anyone. But in summer of 1988, I felt that first hand because my father was killed by the regime.
And that summer, over 30,000 people were executed in the prisons of Iran 30,000 political prisoners. And just with. They were just asked a few questions, so it wasn't a trial. A lot of 'em had sentences. Some of them even had finished their sentence and they were waiting to be released. But despite that, they were just asked, you know, a few questions of do you still stand by your beliefs in supporting the immune resistance and the MEK?
And if they said yes, they were taken to the gallows straight. And unfortunately, 30,000 people were executed. With that, Khomeini was able to spread fear in society for generation, really because every family had either lost someone or they knew someone who had been killed or whatnot. So, that was the situation and coming face to face with this reality as a 7-year-old.
It really changed my perspective on a lot of things in life. And over the years as I learned more, I mean, logically, I mean, things changed. I mean, I started understanding more like what had happened and what was the history and what had happened, you know, what was happening in Iran. So I became active as a teenager, like trying to face awareness, trying to draw attention to this issue.
I remember like. When I was 12, walking down the halls of, you know, the Congress to try to, you know, garner support for Iran and things like of that nature. But still I was living my life in the US and I, I, and I always, you know, I always understood that, you know, there are a lot of things that we take for granted living in a democratic, you know, society.
But I always knew that. I need to value it and I need to safeguard it because a lot of people are denied these same basic rights, and so it just you know, changes your perspective on, or outlook on what needs to be done or what is important in life. But as a Iranian America, I mean, I think anyone who knows people from the.
Iranian society, you know, community, both in the US or anywhere else, or Persian culture. They know that education is like really important. And so, I mean, from childhood, I was always told, you know, be you need to study and become something so you could one day go and serve your own people. And that, you know, Iranians, they only accept, like, you have to either become like a doctor, lawyer or engineer that's like, right. And how that society is. And so, that I was also on that way in that path. I, after graduating from high school, I was on the path of going to college and then pursuing medicine. But that summer student uprisings broke out in Iran, and it was the first time since the 1980s that we were seeing.
Protest at such large scale throughout Iran and it was the new generation coming into the scene, you know? So our generation and I felt like that brings on like a responsibility. And it was the first time I was being actually. You know, broadcast it because it was the beginning of the satellites television or cable television, actually cable television, CNN and whatnot.
So, cable news, and we were seeing these footages coming out of Iran, and that was the first time. And so that really shook me. And I was like, what are you doing? Are you going to sit here and be a bystander or are you going to do something? So. You could free Iran and so people can actually return to Iran and be able to serve their people because Iran right now is the number one country and brain drain in the world.
So just imagine if all these people were able to actually go and serve their own people and their own country, Iran could be a, you know, prosperous country. But so that was the crossroads that I came to at the age of 18, and I decided to join the resistance. Since then I have been a member of the Iridium assistance.
Yeah. So going back to your father's writing, what was he writing about, like kind of calling for, and if I'm understanding correctly, did they come find him here in the US or he had gone back to Iran? My father, like a lot of the, he wrote a few books which were like, about the history of revolution in Iran or you know, what is happening trying to.
I guess make sense of the whole process for people, especially because the people of Iran revolted with so much hopes, you know, that they'll be able to see like a free Iran or Democratic Iran, and then that was stolen away from them, that their revolution was hijacked. And so coming to terms with that understanding like the history of revolutions in Iran and understanding like the effects of.
You know what each revolution lacked or what is needed to make sure that this time we can be successful. So the most of his writings and things were about that, but also about the human rights situation. Anyone, like, for instance, you know, just articles and whatever, and publications to try to draw awareness and raise awareness in regards to the situation.
Anyone, as I said, like for instance, I remember. These people who were victims of torture, who were staying with us, they stayed with us for like two, three weeks. So they could go to the UN and Testify and also at the US Congress and whatnot. So, my, my dad was doing a lot of that work, that type of work.
In 1988, he had, he was working on a project in the border area, Iran and Iraq, and that's when he was killed. I was at the time in. In the us with my aunt. And so I actually found out about it. Like they, they tried to hide it from me for about a month, but then I actually found out about it from a newspaper actually, because I saw like a newspaper with like three pictures of my dad and a poem.
And I was like, what is that? And so started reading it and it said. Dedicated to Soia, as they say, farewell to a father who's like in Fari would be traveled, but like who's gone or passed away. Mm-hmm. And so I was like, so since when do they write, you know, poems about my dad when he goes here and there, because my father was always traveling because of you, the nature of his work and documentation and whatnot, giving speeches or whatever.
So, yeah, that's how I came across it. But wow. Yeah. And then. My mom at that point, she, after my father was killed, she decided to join the uranium resistance. And so, she was 25 with two, you know, children. But she decided to take that path and she has been a member of the resistance since then, since 1988.
But when the, you know, at that time, the base of the Iranian resistance was in Iraq. It was a city called Astra. And you know, so we, we moved from DC to Iraq. It was completely a different world. Wow. But then when the first Gulf War happened, it was a very safe, Richard. For kids. So, my mom sent me and my brother back to the US and we were raised by my aunt.
And, but she decided to remain and continue the fight. And I've always taken great pride in having my parents as my parents because I think they were the best role models for me because they taught me what's important in life. Not through just words, but through their own actions. And I know that it was very difficult for them to make these choices, but they decided to put their people before everything else, and I think that's very valuable.
And now you are following their footsteps, taking action, serving all this time. As an activist, what does that look like? What are you doing and trying to do and how can people help? Well, I think. First and foremost, what's important to me is to actually be able to echo the voice of the Romanian people and to let the world know that there is a solution to Iran.
Especially right now in these critical times, and this is where. Anyone who wants to help can really be of aid and help the people of Iran by echoing their voice. I mean, the message right now, you see since, since yesterday actually, negotiations have started between the US and Iran. So you hear a lot of analysis on it.
So what what is presented is there are two solutions or there are two choices on the, on the table. One is. Negotiations and whatnot, which is positive appeasement toward the regime. The other is war, but and, you know, foreign intervention and whatnot. But the reality is that neither are the solution.
Neither war nor appeasement are the solution to the issue of Iran. And this is something that Mrs. Raja, she's the president elect of the National Council of Resistance, everyone. She has highlighted this issue, not just today, but for over 20 years now. She said there's a third option on your own that's supporting the Iranian people and their resistance because appeasement is actually never leads to Democratic change.
And we have that, you know, the historical facts. I mean, during World War ii, appeasement is what led to. A full fledged war. If they had prevented Hitler beforehand, this wouldn't have happened. But on the other hand, war is also never going to bring democracy, and especially not for Iran. If you look at Iran, I mean, even if you look at it completely from a military perspective, Iran is three times the size of Iraq, four times the population.
The terrain is. We have everything. We have mountains, we have desert, we have, you know, forest, we have sea, whatever. It's not, it's not a viable solution or alternative. And it's also never going to lead to a democracy. On the other hand, the people, everyone have organized resistance, and that's what sets them apart from a lot of the other countries that we have seen in recent years that have gone through such turmoil or revolutions or whatnot.
So we have organized resistance that has withstood the test of time. Everyone knows what it stands for and what, you know, what are their principles, what are their values? And I think that's really important because like for instance, when they speak about. Having gender equality? Well, you see, they have, you know, women in leadership, the president elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran.
For the interim government after the fall of the regime is a woman. 52% of the Parliament in exile are women. The entire leadership council of the MEK, which is the main organization, which is a member of the NCRA, are all women. So they're fighting the misogynist regime with its antithesis. Or like when they say they believe in abolition of the death penalty, you see it in their views and you know their actions.
Or like, they are the ones who call for non-nuclear Iran. They're the ones who actually were the first to reveal Iran's nuclear program to the world. So I mean, every, every. Point that they have raised. You can see facts that support that. And I think that's really important, especially with a country where people's, you know, trust has been betrayed and their previous revolution was hijacked.
On the other hand a lot of people ask, you know, what is the solution on your own? So what happens next? Again, only two options seem to be served. It's either the current regime or going backwards in history and going back to the monarchy, which was a dictatorship too. And that's not the solution that the people of Iran are looking for.
We have, there's a third solution too, and that's supporting the Iranian people who are calling for a secular democratic republic in Iran. So there's people sovereignty for ones. Right. We don't have to choose between two type different types of dictatorships. Hmm. We have that potential and that capability to create that democratic alternative, which actually exists, and to be able to put that in place in half free elections.
And I mean, I think the people, everyone, as I said, I mean. It's a very bright and educated society. They have the capability to build a true democracy, and I think that is what we see, like the Gen Z of Iran. I mean, they are, we're in the, you know, era of communication and social media and whatnot. So they're seeing the world and they know that what they're living right now is not the norm and they want to move forward in the 21st century.
And that is their message. And you could hear it even in the slogans that they have in, in their chance, like their chance are like down with the dictator, down with ho, down, with the oppressor, be it the Sha or the Mullahs, or No to the crown, no to the turban. Freedom and democracy or freedom and equality or things of that, that nature.
So they are trying to send their message to the international community that, look, we want to take our destiny into our own hands. We don't want. First all, someone to be, you know, imposed on us and we don't want to choose between that. And worse we have. The choice to move forward. And I think that's a very key and important message.
And because there is a alternative, there is a viable alternative in the NCRI and like the 10 point plan presented by Mrs. Rajai. I think we have a clear roadmap ahead, especially since over 4,000 lawmakers have supported this plan over, you know, 130. Former heads of state have supported Mr. Rajas 10 point plan, a hundred Nobel prize winners.
And so there, you know, there's a very good understanding of it in the international community and people have looked at it and have touched on it and many have called it like Jeffersonian. And the reality is that we. What's important, as I said, it's not just on paper and just, or just in words. It's in practice that we have seen it.
And so, that is why people, anyone are willing to take that risk to come to the streets because they can be rest assured that there is a viable alternative and there's a bright future ahead. I think one of the major characteristics that a lot of people have touched on in regards to the recent uprising in Iran.
Was, they said, first of all, people on the ground, they said, we've never seen so much hope in people's eyes despite being faced with such brutalities. And, you know, you, you didn't see fear in people's eyes. You saw hope. And because everyone knew that this is a sign of the regime's weakness, that it's becoming so barbaric and, you know, their last resorts.
So. Overcome this one obstacle, we're good to go. You know, that's the message that they had. But the other thing they said was we saw organizational structure on the ground and that was the role that resistance units played in run for over. 12, 13 years now, the Iranian resistance has had, has been working on a strategy inside of Iran, and that is the spread of, or creation of resistance units.
So these are groups of people between two, some are two, three people in one unit. Some are like 20 people. But they work underground. They're all local in their own cities and their own, you know. In their own communities that they understand everything. They know who's who, they know how things work, and so they're able to organize at a local level, but they are able to together, like for instance, throughout the country.
Work together to push forward like different messaging. Like for instance, just in 2024, they carried out over 39,000 activities and they targeted over 3000 centers of oppression. So this time when people came to the streets in the uprisings, they automatically felt like they knew what they were supposed to do, and they found it interesting, but they realized that, look, this is the effect that we, these resistance units have had.
Because they have been, you know, keeping this claim of resistance alive, and they have been, you know, showing the path. So like everyone automatically, once you see something constantly, it just, you know, sits in your head like, oh, this is what you're supposed to do. Or you're supposed to disarm the.
Suppressive forces to be able to defend yourselves. You need to stick together, not be spread out, because that way you guys can, you know, support one another or whatnot. And so you could see that organizational structure even in the uprising and the protests, and you could see it even in some of the videos that have come out.
And I think that that is a major. Point or, you know, in these uprisings, and that is what sets it apart from the previous months. And that is why the regime fears it so much because they know there's nothing more powerful than a people who has made that decision to make that sacrifice. But to make sure that they can.
Gain that freedom because I think that people of everyone have learned that no one's going to give us hand us freedom in a silver platter. Yeah. We have to pay the price for it. We have a saying in far, so no one's going to scratch your back except your own finger. Mm. And that is our policy. I think that that's why we're not looking for foreign intervention.
We have the experience of foreign interventions and we just don't want that repeated again. For sure. But we think that we can be that, you know? We can be that change that's needed for society and we can bring it about with through solidarity and working with one another and to be able to push forward the overthrow of the regime.
What we're asking the international community are very simple points. Actually, Mrs. Ra, I mean the president elective, that Iranian resistance highlighted six points as what it is that our demands are from the international community. We, there was a, actually a huge. Rally in Berlin on February 7th tens of thousands of people you know, attended and there she actually used, she raised these six points.
So the first is, first of all, recognize the people's right to resist recognize the right of the Iranian people to be able to resist in face of. The IRG CS and the suppressive forces. And so I think that's something that is granted in the, you know, declaration of human rights. But it's very important to be recognized for the people, everyone.
The second is that. Taking immediate action by the UN Security Council to stop the execution of the, those who've been detained in the uprisings, right? And the political prisoners. And the third is, you know, providing facilities that enable the union people to access communication. What we saw, why was this uprising so brutally, you know, suppressed?
Because 19 days of communication. Blackout. So this is something that the international community can do to help the people of Iran. The fourth would be referring how and the regimes leaders to the UN Security Council for prosecution. And right now, I mean, considering the legal, you know, systems a lot of national courts, like throughout different countries, based on the principle of universal jurisdiction would be able to.
Pursue this issue because what has happened in the last month in Iran, this isn't something that happened years ago. This is just last month in 2026, but, you know, the regime raid hospitals and killed protesters who were wounded on their hospital. Thats that's a war crime or what? I mean, the fact that.
They killed so many people on the streets. That is crime against humanity and the regime needs to be held accountable for these crimes. And I think the fifth would be, you know, closing the regime's, embassies and expelling its dip diplomats and agents of the IRGC and ministry of Intelligence, wherever they are to be able to, you know, cut off their.
Hands from, you know, the region or from everywhere, like here in Europe or in the US and Canada especially. And completely cutting of the financial lifeline of this regime, which is the IRGC. Yes. Right now the EU and the US and Canada have blacklisted the IRGC, but it's really important for the UK to follow suit and also to.
Not limited to that. You know, right now many of the families of the highest ranking people in the regime are living comfortable lives in the us, in Canada and Europe. That needs to be stopped. They need to be held accountable. They need to be, they're, they're. Presence needs to be revoked. Mm-hmm. They need to be sent back to around.
And the reality is that like, how is the regime able to suppress the people every round this way? There are companies who are providing that technology to them, right? Like face recognition or, you know, the different, you know, censorship tools or whatever that they're using, they are being provided by, you know, different companies in the western world.
That needs to stop. And so, that is the call that we have. And I think everyone who's tuning in right now, I mean, reach out to your lawmakers, you know, raise awareness, take part in like demonstrations, rallies or whatever that are being held in your region to find out more about it because there are different.
Groups. It's really important to make sure that you go into the right one. You could reach out in the us you could reach out to OIO iac.org and they can put you in contact with local chapters because there's over they're present in over 40 states. And. Other regions of the world, you could reach out to Iran freedom.org and they will put you in contact with those chapters in your country that you could be active with.
And if you would like to learn more, because I think raising awareness is key and it's very important. So if you would like to learn more about what is going on in Iran. What is the alternative? Who are the who is the National Council of Resistance? Everyone, or who is Mr. Raja? You could visit ncr iran.org or myam raja for change.com and to learn more.
And yeah, if you would like to reach out to me directly or have any questions I'm practically available on most social media platforms. If you search my name on LinkedIn, X and Instagram, so yeah, I'd be more than happy to share or or respond to any questions that you may have. And we're gonna have those links and description below for everyone to checkout.
And again, this episode was just a brief 30,000 foot overview, so if you wanna learn more about. The Iranian history, there's a lot you can find out there, and I definitely recommend, you know, using multiple sources and fact checking, especially nowadays with all the fake content out there and all the different narratives.
I think it's super important. You know, I'm currently in college writing a research paper on Iran and, you know, researching it has been really eye-opening. Looking at the traditions of the people compared to what we see, which is what the regime is doing, right? And that's what people kind of see the whole country as.
And there's a whole group of people living there that are not a part of that, that do not want to be a part of that lifestyle and want to get back to the traditions and lifestyle they had. So I think it's really important that right now we practice worldview and intercultural exchange in really shaping our knowledge of these different places.
And so I encourage everyone listening to. Check it out. You know, there's a lot of stuff about run in the news right now, but I would go deeper than that. And I want to thank you for your time today because you know, this is important that we have conversations like this because every single little conversation can reach someone who has influence or impact.
I always say you never know who knows who or who knows what, and so I think it's important. So I wanna thank you for your time today. You know, it's an honor to be able to host you and spread that impact and awareness. Well, thank you very much for having me and good luck at your studies and yeah, and we hope that Iran will be free soon and we can invite you and host you in a free Iran.
So thank you very much and thank you for everyone for tuning in.
