The Iranian Holocaust…Mass Killings, Silence, and a Nation Cut Off from the World
By Mohsen Makhmalbaf *
Iran is a wealthy country because of its oil, yet the tables of its people are empty. Iranian youth are educated and modern, but the illiterates rule the country.
Over the past years, the people of Iran have repeatedly launched nationwide political movements to overthrow the religiously fanatical government, but these movements have always been brutally suppressed.
In the recent Iranian uprising, the regime killed more than 12,000 people in the streets within just two days, injured tens of thousands, and blinded thousands with gunfire. Today, in every Iranian family, someone has been killed, injured, or imprisoned.
Many of the wounded dare not go to hospitals, fearing they will be kidnapped and imprisoned. The regime even demands that families pay for the bullets used to kill their loved ones in order to receive their bodies.
For days now, the internet has been completely cut off, allowing these crimes to continue out of the world’s sight. Telephone communication between Iranians and the outside world has been severed, and millions of Iranians living abroad have no information about the fate of their families. The Iranian government has adopted a North Korean-style policy, aiming to isolate the Iranian people from the world.
The Islamic regime has not only oppressed its own citizens but, alongside Bashar al-Assad, has massacred the people of Syria. It has destabilized the Middle East in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon, and Yemen, and now, to suppress the Iranian people, it has brought in proxy forces from Iraq, Afghanistan, and Lebanon.
Thousands of Afghan militants under the name of the Fatemiyoun Brigade, five thousand Iraqi militants under the name of Hashd al-Shaabi, and thousands of Lebanese under Hezbollah are working with the Iranian government in the streets and homes of civilians, committing atrocities. Since 8 p.m., a form of martial law has been enforced in cities.
(Photo: Ribwar Parwizi)
U.S. President Trump, in recent days, promised the Iranian people that he would stand with them and prevent their massacre. Yet, he did not fulfill this promise. Just as the German people could not defeat Hitler without the help of the world, we Iranians cannot overcome Khamenei and his fascist, heavily armed regime alone.
By raising awareness about Iran, now turned into a massive prison, help us make our voices heard by the world.
* Mohsen Makhmalbaf is a world-renowned Iranian filmmaker and writer who led the golden age of Iranian cinema. Through films such as Gabbeh and Kandahar, he received major awards at leading international film festivals including Cannes and Venice, introducing Iran’s artistic achievements to the world.
Living in exile since 2005, he has never ceased resisting oppression through art. Today, he stands as one of the most powerful “voices of conscience,” representing the suffering of the Iranian people under repression. He has consistently raised issues of human rights, freedom, and censorship. He also has many admirers in Korea and was awarded the Manhae Prize (Literature category) in 2014.
