Latest news with #IranianDiaspora
Le Figaro
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Le Figaro
In "Tehran-sur-Seine," Where Iranian Parisians Fear Escalating Repression
Réservé aux abonnés In the 15th arrondissement of Paris, exiled opponents of Iran's ruling regime are tightening their guard, fearing reprisals against loved ones still in Iran. In the shadow of the towers of the Beaugrenelle district lies the Rue des Entrepreneurs, full of Persian restaurants and grocery stores. In this quiet street, in the 15th arrondissement of the French capital, where members of the Iranian diaspora like to gather, the atmosphere has been tense in recent weeks. Israeli bombings and U.S. strikes are on everyone's mind. When the topic is mentioned, many shopkeepers and customers refuse to talk. Fear of reprisals against their families back in Iran dominates this close-knit community of 62,000 citizens opposed to the mullahs' regime. Locals claim that on the other side of the Seine, in the 16th arrondissement where the Iranian embassy is located, staff comb through the press and track the names of enemies of the Islamic theocratic republic. 'They kill in Iran, they rape women and they gouge their eyes out,' says a restaurant employee who wishes to remain anonymous. Having lived in Paris for several decades, he knows that this deadly violence can…
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Iranian sleeper cells may be targeting opponents on Canadian soil
OTTAWA, Canada - While Iran's retaliatory military attacks against Israel have ended, the Canadian government department responsible for national security is monitoring "the residual impact of the evolving situation in the Middle East," according to a spokesperson for Public Safety Canada. "Canada's law enforcement agencies remain on alert," Noémie Allard said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital in which she indicated that the current national terrorism threat level in Canada is "medium, meaning that a violent extremist attack is a realistic possibility at this time." Meanwhile, Irwin Cotler, a former Canadian justice minister and attorney general and human-rights advocate who has been targeted by the Iranian regime told Fox News Digital in an interview that the Islamic Republic is intensifying its campaign of "massive domestic oppression" against its opponents at home and could embark on "transnational repression" against its opponents abroad. Us Airstrike On Nuclear Facilities Follows Years Of Iranian Plots On American Soil A longtime critic of the Iranian clerical regime, Cotler has been under round-the-clock Royal Canadian Mounted Police protection since 2023 when Canadian intelligence officials identified a death threat against him from Iran. "Iranian diaspora groups, human rights defenders, journalists, Jews and Israelis have all become potential targets," Cotler told Fox News Digital in an interview. "This is a moment in which we need to be on alert." Read On The Fox News App He noted that this week, three political prisoners were executed in Iran over charges of espionage for Israel, and during the 12-day war with Israel, another 700 Iranians were arrested under allegations that they collaborated with Israel. Montreal-born Cotler, an 85-year-old international human rights lawyer who established the Raoul Wallenberg Center for Human Rights 10 years ago, is trying to secure the release of Ahmadreza Djalali – a Swedish Iranian physician accused of being an Israeli spy, who had been imprisoned for nine years at Iran's notorious Evin Prison in Tehran until this week when he was moved to an undisclosed location. He is facing what Cotler described as "an imminent threat of execution." He fears that sleeper cells have been activated in Canada to target those who oppose the Iranian regime and is urging the Canadian government to prioritize the establishment of an independent agency to address external threats of repression and assassination from such rogue countries as Iran, China and Russia. Cotler also noted that Iranian-born Canadian human rights lawyer Kaveh Shahrooz, who he said has also been targeted by the Iranian regime, believes the number of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) agents operating in Canada are "underrepresented" and "that the threat is greater than we appreciate." Trump Says Us Would Strike Again If Iran Rebuilds Nuclear Program Fox News Digital was unable to reach Shahrooz for further comment. Canada should also follow the lead of the U.S. Justice Department and prosecute those who collaborate with Iranian-led sleeper cells, said Cotler, who in 2008 called for the IRGC to be listed as a terrorist entity – a designation that Canada finally adopted in 2024. Last October, the Justice Department formally accused Ruhollah Bazghandi, a senior IRGC official, of involvement in a 2022 plot to kill Iranian American dissident Masih Alinejad – a friend of Cotler's – in New York City. During a virtual news conference from the NATO summit at The Hague on Tuesday, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said that her government is "very concerned about [both] foreign interference, including the types that were highlighted by" Cotler and "about the Iranian regime," which is why she said that Canada declared it to be a "terrorist entity" in 2022 and has not had diplomatic relations with Iran since 2012. Anand also said that she had a call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi last Saturday before the U.S. airstrikes against Iran, during which she reaffirmed Canada's continuing desire to seek accountability from the Islamic Republic for the downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 in 2020, which resulted in the deaths of 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents. Cotler said that the victims' families in both Iran and Canada have been "harassed and threatened" since the air tragedy. On Wednesday, The Globe and Mail reported that the Canada Border Services Agency had identified 20 people deemed inadmissible because they are believed to be senior Iranian article source: Iranian sleeper cells may be targeting opponents on Canadian soil
Fox News
28-06-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Iranian sleeper cells may be targeting opponents on Canadian soil
OTTAWA, Canada - While Iran's retaliatory military attacks against Israel have ended, the Canadian government department responsible for national security is monitoring "the residual impact of the evolving situation in the Middle East," according to a spokesperson for Public Safety Canada. "Canada's law enforcement agencies remain on alert," Noémie Allard said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital in which she indicated that the current national terrorism threat level in Canada is "medium, meaning that a violent extremist attack is a realistic possibility at this time." Meanwhile, Irwin Cotler, a former Canadian justice minister and attorney general and human-rights advocate who has been targeted by the Iranian regime told Fox News Digital in an interview that the Islamic Republic is intensifying its campaign of "massive domestic oppression" against its opponents at home and could embark on "transnational repression" against its opponents abroad. A longtime critic of the Iranian clerical regime, Cotler has been under round-the-clock Royal Canadian Mounted Police protection since 2023 when Canadian intelligence officials identified a death threat against him from Iran. "Iranian diaspora groups, human rights defenders, journalists, Jews and Israelis have all become potential targets," Cotler told Fox News Digital in an interview. "This is a moment in which we need to be on alert." He noted that this week, three political prisoners were executed in Iran over charges of espionage for Israel, and during the 12-day war with Israel, another 700 Iranians were arrested under allegations that they collaborated with Israel. Montreal-born Cotler, an 85-year-old international human rights lawyer who established the Raoul Wallenberg Center for Human Rights 10 years ago, is trying to secure the release of Ahmadreza Djalali – a Swedish Iranian physician accused of being an Israeli spy, who had been imprisoned for nine years at Iran's notorious Evin Prison in Tehran until this week when he was moved to an undisclosed location. He is facing what Cotler described as "an imminent threat of execution." He fears that sleeper cells have been activated in Canada to target those who oppose the Iranian regime and is urging the Canadian government to prioritize the establishment of an independent agency to address external threats of repression and assassination from such rogue countries as Iran, China and Russia. Cotler also noted that Iranian-born Canadian human rights lawyer Kaveh Shahrooz, who he said has also been targeted by the Iranian regime, believes the number of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) agents operating in Canada are "underrepresented" and "that the threat is greater than we appreciate." Fox News Digital was unable to reach Shahrooz for further comment. Canada should also follow the lead of the U.S. Justice Department and prosecute those who collaborate with Iranian-led sleeper cells, said Cotler, who in 2008 called for the IRGC to be listed as a terrorist entity – a designation that Canada finally adopted in 2024. Last October, the Justice Department formally accused Ruhollah Bazghandi, a senior IRGC official, of involvement in a 2022 plot to kill Iranian American dissident Masih Alinejad – a friend of Cotler's – in New York City. During a virtual news conference from the NATO summit at The Hague on Tuesday, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said that her government is "very concerned about [both] foreign interference, including the types that were highlighted by" Cotler and "about the Iranian regime," which is why she said that Canada declared it to be a "terrorist entity" in 2022 and has not had diplomatic relations with Iran since 2012. Anand also said that she had a call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi last Saturday before the U.S. airstrikes against Iran, during which she reaffirmed Canada's continuing desire to seek accountability from the Islamic Republic for the downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 in 2020, which resulted in the deaths of 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents. Cotler said that the victims' families in both Iran and Canada have been "harassed and threatened" since the air tragedy. On Wednesday, The Globe and Mail reported that the Canada Border Services Agency had identified 20 people deemed inadmissible because they are believed to be senior Iranian officials.
Globe and Mail
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Globe and Mail
Iranian-Canadians gripped with fear and uncertainty trying to reach family after U.S., Israeli attacks
Saeed Abdollahi had just returned to his Calgary home after work when a friend phoned with the news that U.S. air strikes had targeted his hometown of Isfahan, in central Iran. His heart sank; this was the moment he had feared. The 31-year-old architect turned on the television, desperate for more information from news channels. He frantically tapped out messages to family and friends in Iran, knowing that a near-complete internet blackout meant they wouldn't be received. The government has said it ordered the shutdown because of cybersecurity concerns. Mr. Abdollahi tried calling, but got no answer – he hoped because it was the middle of the night in Iran. 'I was kind of having this nightmare that it is possible to lose my whole family and everybody that I know from home at the same time,' he said in an interview. 'It was hard times. I can't even describe that.' Unease spreads through Iranian-Canadian communities after U.S. strikes The U.S. air strikes on Iran's Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites followed more than a week of attacks by Israel on Iran. The fallout of the conflict has reverberated thousands of kilometres away, including to the Iranian diaspora in Canada who have watched and worried from afar. Mr. Abdollahi, who moved to Canada in 2021 to complete his master's degree, had been on edge throughout the escalation of the long-simmering conflict. After warnings of an imminent offensive by Israel aimed at Iran's nuclear program and military targets, some family members had fled Tehran to seek safety in Isfahan, only for it, too, to be targeted a week later. Mr. Abdollahi would learn a short time later that his family and friends were safe. But the anxiety of an uncertain future remains. 'I keep following the news, the experts on the situation. But even they don't know what's going to happen,' he said. 'The uncertainty is going to remain. My friends and family over there have the same feeling, that it's not over yet.' A timeline of the Israel-Iran conflict and tensions between the two countries Amir Samani moved to Canada at age 12, which was difficult, but he has grown up to understand why his parents left Iran in 2012. The country requires young men to serve in the military – one of the reasons Mr. Samani's last visit was as a teenager. When missiles first struck Iran weeks ago, most of his family left Tehran and took refuge in safer, more rural areas of the country. Mr. Samani's grandmother, who can't travel, stayed behind with his uncle in the city. Not everyone could leave areas targeted by Israeli forces. Many Iranians live in densely populated cities such as Tehran, and residents have work, school and familial responsibilities, said Mr. Samani, who works for a creative agency in Vancouver. Mr. Samani still can't clearly communicate with his family because of sporadic internet outages. He stays in touch through his cousin, who accesses the internet via a VPN, a method he says is uncommon in Iran because it's expensive and requires bypassing firewalls. 'There's a bottleneck on information to a point that locals have a tough time communicating, even by phone calls or lines, because everything's been outed,' Mr. Samani said. Canadians fleeing war in Iran face obstacles in absence of diplomatic ties Sanaz Safa's mother had travelled to Iran shortly before Israel's strikes on the country to visit her ailing mother. After Israel launched its offensive and Iran closed its airspace, Ms. Safa's mother told her daughter in a short phone call that her return flights were cancelled, but that she was not worried. 'And then after that, there was no communication at all,' said Ms. Safa, a medical esthetician in Vancouver. 'There was no internet, there was nothing. I tried to call direct with my own phone, and there was no connection at all.' In a vacuum of information, Ms. Safa feared the worst. Her mind went to 2019, when Iranian authorities shut down internet access during widespread protests to quell information sharing and hide the killing of hundreds of protesters by the country's security forces. 'I was really worried because when government disconnects the internet, that means that they are doing something to the people,' she said. 'I was worried they would do something to civilians and blame it on Israel or the U.S.' Ms. Safa heard from her mother about a week later, when internet connectivity improved. With her mother expected to fly out of Tehran in coming days, and most of their family now living in Europe, Ms. Safa says her thoughts are now with the people of Iran.
ABC News
26-06-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Is regime change in Iran possible without a united opposition or clear alternative leader?
More than 46 years after the Iranian Revolution, there is still talk among Iranians — both those living in the country and among the diaspora — that the end of the regime is nearing. "It [the Islamic Republic of Iran] will not survive … whether they like it or not change is coming," says one Iranian in Hamadan in western Iran speaking to ABC News. It's the early hours of the morning in Iran. US President Donald Trump has just announced on social media that he's brokered a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. Eventually Israel and Iran agree to end attacks on each other, and Mr Trump will change his tune on the possibility of regime change in Iran, saying he doesn't want to see 'chaos" in the Middle East. But at this moment, when I join the chat group with Iranians speaking in Farsi, talk of a ceasefire is still up in the air and attacks are continuing. These Iranians are debating — some joking — about which airports Iran's leaders may be using to escape to other countries. I introduce myself and ask them how they are feeling post news that there may be a ceasefire. The feelings are mixed. Some are happy that the conflict could be over and say regime change should come from within rather than through any foreign intervention. But some also didn't want Iran's government to be thrown a lifeline and say had Israel further weakened the regime's apparatus, it could have paved the way for another uprising. I have promised to keep the identities of these young Iranians — aged in their late 20s to late 30s — anonymous as revealing it could endanger their lives, especially at a time when human rights groups including Amnesty International report scores of arrests across the country for alleged "espionage" or "collaboration" with Israel, along with "chilling" orders for expedited trials and executions. These young Iranians believe that after decades of civil unrest, and with Israel's recent attacks on the regime, there is no way the country's rulers can indefinitely cling on to power, but they seem less certain about how change will happen and who will lead it. In fact, there's much disagreement over who should step in to lead if the regime falls — should it be political dissidents locked up in Iranian jails or so called 'reformist' elements of the regime? Or should it be Iranians outside the country — like the US-based exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi — who have for decades floated the idea of a secular democracy? This is as contentious among the Iranians in this chat group as it is among experts who have spent decades researching and writing about Iran. Experts who spoke to ABC News say unless and until large factions of the regime's military, police and intelligence forces begin defecting, it will be hard for the people of Iran to overthrow the regime. And, as history in the Middle East has shown, while citizens may desire democratic change, the pathway to freedom is often fraught. US-based writer and historian Arash Azizi, who has firmly been opposed to the regime, argues the Islamic Republic knows that its ideals are not popular in society, yet its general apparatus is still intact. The Islamic Republic, he argues, stays in power for two primary reasons: "One; sheer brutality, and two; a lack of an organised alternative." "The regime's heavy repression and its jailing of opponents inside and killing them in Iran and abroad has helped keep it that way," Mr Azizi says. For the people to overthrow the regime, he says there would need to be an organised opposition with "political heft" that can unite Iranians of different faiths, ethnicities, and political persuasions. "This could theoretically be a liberal democracy that's a common demand for the opposition, but the Iranian opposition is more divided and incoherent than ever," Mr Azizi says. It was the major difference in 1979 when there were organised efforts against the shah, and it was "the unifying leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini who brought Marxists, Islamists and nationalists together against the shah". Some Iranians now living around the world still long for a return of the Pahlavi dynasty and see the son of the former shah, exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, as the best option. Crown Prince Pahlavi has been talking of regime change for 46 years. He has spent most of his life outside Iran, in the United States. The crown prince has consistently said he would only play a "transitional role" towards a new secular democratic Iran. Then, he says, it is up to the people of Iran to choose their own leader from within. "I am stepping forward to lead this national transition — not out of personal interest but as a servant of the Iranian people," he said at a press conference in Paris on Monday. He added that he would establish a "secure platform" for military, security, and police personnel who wish to defect from the regime to directly contact him and his team. On the chat group I ask the young Iranians participating whether they think the exiled crown prince can lead a transition. The Iranian man living in Iran near Hamedan thinks it's not possible, saying it would take time to establish a liberal democracy. He mentions potential leaders could come from "reformist" elements of the regime such as Hassan Rouhani, an Iranian religious cleric and politician who previously served as president of Iran. He also mentions political dissidents including Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi — who has been a vocal critic of the regime using sexual violence against women. She was arrested 13 times and sentenced to 31 years in prison and 154 lashes. In October 2023, when her selection as the Nobel Peace Prize laureate was announced, she was locked in Tehran's notorious Evin prison. "These are the liberals of Iran ... and they have power within Iran," the Hamadan Iranian argues focusing again on Rouhani. But before he can elaborate on this thought, another Iranian in the chat group interjects, saying: "If Rouhani or any of the reformist elements [of the regime] are brought forward, they are not motivated to bring down the regime … Their hands are dirty." For that reason, he thinks Reza Pahlavi is a far better choice. "Bring Pahlavi's name and every Iranian knows him. It's very important to have recognition," he says. "I am not a monarchist. I don't want a monarchy. But I think someone different needs to step in and help lead a revolution," he says, again citing Pahlavi as the best person to head that transition. But revolutions don't occur without mass civil uprising. Roya Boroumand, the executive director of the Washington-based Abdorrahman Boroumand Center, which works to promote human rights and democracy in Iran, says while she wants to remain hopeful, she's not certain Iranians can, once again, mobilise and protest for regime change. "This [regime change] requires a really mobilised and unified opposition, asking people to strike, asking people to show resistance in a very intelligent way," she says. She also rejects the idea that regime "reformists" can lead Iran to a democracy. She says during the 2009 Green Movement protesters disputed the election of the then incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. They turned to the streets in support of opposition candidates including Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi. This, she explains, was based on the idea at the time that they were more centrist politicians. She says up until this point, the survival of the Islamic Republic was not under threat. "It was more discussion about reform of the Islamic Republic rather than getting rid of it, and the so-called reformist movement was part of the ruling elite," Ms Boroumand says. By 2019, the idea that the regime could reform itself was waning, as the Iranian people's deep economic troubles saw their discontent grow into anti-government protests. A 50 per cent plus spike in fuel prices led to calls to overthrow the regime. This became known as the Bloody Aban (Bloody November) protests, which spread across Iranian cities and left up to 1,500 people dead according to Reuters. By 2020, Ms Boroumand says support for the regime continued to diminish. That was the year Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was shot down by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) shortly after take-off, killing all 176 occupants on board. And by 2022, with the death-in-custody of Mahsa Jina Amini, protests spread from the cities to rural areas. Once again, these protests were met with regime brutality. The Human Rights Activist News Agency estimated about 500 people were killed and more than 20,000 were arrested, with Amnesty International accusing Tehran of conducting "sham trials" that resulted in executions. Ms Boroumand says the 2022 protests and the resulting violent crackdown by the state, have brought out a "more diverse spectrum of the population that is clearly against the state and want it gone". She says the international community has brought greater focus on the regime's human rights violations, citing the UN Fact Finding Mission on Iran, the expelling of Iran from the UN Commission on the Status of Women, and world leaders globally expressing solidarity with the women of Iran as examples. Mariam Memarsadeghi, a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute in Washington, also argues the road map to regime change is not clear when dealing with a "totalitarian regime that is really bad in almost everything other than taking on the opposition". She doesn't throw her support behind any individuals but says before there can be talk of regime change, there needs to be systems created that enable a democracy to evolve. "Honestly, it's very premature to talk about political leadership when we don't even have a situation where the regime is gone and there is security and rule of law," Ms Memarsadeghi says. "It's really important, particularly in the case of a country like Iran coming off of nearly half a century of totalitarianism, that security is established, a sense of stability is felt across the country. "That the beginnings of democratic institutions are taking shape — an independent judiciary, a school system that is democratic, that actually focuses on development of children and learning opportunities rather than Islamist ideology. "When you have all of that … people feel the freedom and the critical thinking to be able to elect leaders that represent them and represent their interests." Kylie Moore-Gilbert, Australian academic and former political prisoner in Iran, explains that in every major revolution in history we've seen defections. "And unfortunately, in every protest movement in Iran since the [1979] revolution, that hasn't happened — the protesters haven't convinced significant individuals within the regime to step away and join them," she explains. Dr Moore-Gilbert says there is also the reality that there are "sizeable ethnic groups like the Kurds, who will be calling for greater autonomy as well, and they could act as spoilers if some kind of central opposition government was established". "A lot of these issues need to be ironed out," she says. While US President Donald Trump has said he wants the war to stop, she fears that if regime change is once again on the table, there is a danger of Israel or the US "attempting to force their will on the people of Iran". Saeed Ghasseminejad, a senior adviser on Iran at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) — a Washington DC-based think tank that is viewed by some to be pro-Israel's government and anti-Iran's government — argues Israeli attacks on Iran have weakened it and paved the way for defection. He says there is a segment of supporters of the regime that are "brainwashed" and will never defect. But there are others who serve the regime because "they are getting lot of benefit in a society" including economic gains, and that "there is a chance of defections". He fears a greater level of oppression and violence if the regime remains in power in the wake of the conflict with Israel and the US. "There will be mass executions, there will be rape, there will be torture at a level that you have not seen before," he says. Back in the chat group, there's a young woman who moved from Iran to Europe in 2017 but seeks to return one day. She is in constant talk with family and friends in Tehran. "They [Iran's authorities] are checking everyone's mobiles — to see if they can find collaborators with Israel," she says. Asked whether regime change towards a democracy will now eventuate, she says it "will inevitably happen because that is the will of the Iranian people". She says Iranians spread around the world left Iran for a better life but seek to return under a democracy.
