BEHIND THE IRAN HEADLINES Series, July 5, 2024, Alireza Jafarzadeh, NCRI-US Deputy Director
During the Free Iran 2024 Summit in Paris and Berlin, prominent bipartisan U.S. Senators announced the introduction of a Senate Resolution titled “Protecting the Iranian political refugees, including female former political prisoners, in Ashraf–3 in Albania.”
In a joint message, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat from New Hampshire, Chair of the Subcommittee on Europe of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a senior member of the Armed Service Committee and the Appropriations Committee, and Senator Thom Tillis, Republican from North Carolina, a senior member of the Committee on the Judiciary, and a Co-Chair of the Senate Human Rights Caucus, addressed the 2024 Free Iran Summit and highlighted S.Res. 599 with significant bipartisan support in the U.S. Senate.
Senator Tillis said, “The United States stands with you and your fight for freedom and democracy. That’s why Senator Shaheen and I have recently introduced Senate Resolution 599, calling on the protection of the Iranian political refugees at Ashraf 3 in rejection of the Iranian regime’s demands and stating that they must be afforded their fundamental rights of freedom of expression and of assembly, and legal, political activities in Albania.”
Senator Shahin added, “Maryam Rajavi, thank you for your continued leadership, and to those who gathered in person and those joining from around the world, thank you for your continued dedication too and believe in democracy and freedom.”
The resolution calls on the United States “to ensure and uphold all fundamental rights of Ashraf–3 residents within the framework of the above conventions, including the right to life, liberty, security, protection of property, and freedom of expression and assembly.”
Finally, S.Res. 599 emphasizes that “the United States Government strongly opposes Iran’s misuse of the INTERPOL Red Notices to impose restrictions or limitations or set in motion the extradition of Iranian dissidents to Iran.”
One can easily see that the more the Iranian regime steps up threats and plots against the Iranian Resistance, the more it generates support and recognition in the United States and around the globe because the movement is ready to confront the challenges and pay the price for moving forward.