Open Letter from  Women of the Middle East United Against the Global Terror of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Source: https://www.openletterfromwomenofthemiddleeast.com/

As women of the Middle East, we stand united against the global threat of terrorism of the Islamic Republic of Iran and all its proxies. It is this same terror that is claiming the lives of Israeli women, Iranian women, and is leading to the deaths of Palestinian women in Gaza as well.

The complete lack of regard for innocent life has been demonstrated by the Islamic Republic of Iran since 1979, and is now being exported throughout the Middle East.

In the Islamic Republic, Iranian women, including some of the undersigned names, have experienced the terror of the morality police first hand. We have seen the kidnapping, assault, and murder of Iranian women and girls for decades, including the gassing of thousands of Iranian school girls to silence dissent, and the murder of Mahsa Amini, Nika Shakarami, Armita Gerawand, by the regime in Iran.

We have witnessed the regime repurposing ambulances, schools, and even religious sites as tools for their terrorist activities. We have seen how the regime steals resources from the Iranian people and exports them to terror proxies in the Middle East.

In Israel, Islamic regime proxy Hamas documented themselves brutalizing, kidnapping, and murdering Israeli women and girls on October 7th, and dragged the bodies of victims through the streets of Gaza in celebration. One of the victims was Iranian-Israeli Shirel Haeimpour.

Hamas has also blocked humanitarian corridors for the Gazans, preventing Palestinians from exiting to safety, has used ambulances for terrorist activities, and has stolen fuel, electricity, water, and humanitarian aid from the people of Gaza.

The tactics of Hamas and the tactics of the Islamic Republic of Iran are the same, because it is the Islamic Republic which funds, trains, and supports Hamas with $100 million dollars per year.

The hatred, misogyny, sexual crimes as a method, and disregard for human life disproportionately impacts women and children, which is why the call for freedom from the Iranian people, is also a call for freedom through the entire region. As women of the Middle East, we will not be silent in the face of such evil.

We call on world leaders to:

Acknowledge and condemn the links between Hamas and the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization and take action against their activities.

For Mahsa, for Nika, for Armita, for Shirel. For the women of Iran, Israel, and Gaza:

Women, Life, Freedom.

Signed,

• Maryam Banihashemi, Strategy Advisor and Human Rights Activist, Iranian
• Emily Schrader, Journalist, Israeli
• Nazanin Afshin-Jam MacKay, Human Rights Advocate and Co-Founder Stop Child Executions and Founding member Iranian Justice Collective, Iranian
• Nada Higuera, Civil Rights Lawyer, Palestinian
• Lisa Daftari, Journalist, Iranian
• MPP Goldie Ghamari, Canadian MPP, Iranian
• Elaaheh Jamali aka LilyMoo, Human Rights Activist, Iranian
• Dr Nargess Eskandari- Grünberg, Mayor of Frankfurt am Main, Iranian
• Muqadasa Ahmadzai, social activist politician and poet, Afghanistan
• Shiva Negar, Actress and Human Rights Advocate, Iranian
• Liraz Charhi, Singer, Israeli-Iranian
• MP Daya Safaei, Iranian 
• Shirin Taber, Executive Director of Empower Women Media, Iranian
• Gadeer Kamal Mreeh, Senior Envoy of The Jewish Agency for Israel to Washington D.C., Israeli
• Marziyeh Amirizadeh, Author, Speaker, Religious Freedom Activist and former Iranian political prisoner, Iranian
• Dalia Al-Aqidi, Journalist and Congressional Candidate, Iraqi
• Rasha Alahdab, Human Right Defender, Former member of the Syrian National Council, Syrian
• Ahdeya Ahmed Al Sayed, Former President of the Bahrain Journalists Association, Bahraini
• Ensaf Heidar, Human Rights Activist, Saudi Arabian
• Dalia Zaida, Writer and Activist, Egyptian
• Yasmine Mohammed, President of Free Hearts Free Minds, Egyptian
• Norah Al Awaidi, Peace Activist, Emirati
• Shirin Tabari, Political Scientist and Journalist, Iranian
• Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem, Israeli
• Sarai Idan, Miss Iraq, Human Rights Activist and Congressional Candidate, Iraqi
• Orin Julie, Entrepreneur, Israeli
• Dr. Sheila Nazarian, Plastic Surgeon, Iranian
• Nitsana Darshan Leitner, CEO of Shurat Hadin, Israeli
• Lorena Khateeb, Druze Activist and Former Content Manager for Israel in Arabic, Israeli
• Hayvi Bouzo, Journalist and Co-Founder and Host of ‘Yalla’, Syrian
• Maria Maloof, Journalist, Lebanese
• Mahsa Pirayi, Activist, Iranian
• Mahsa Townsend, Activist, Iranian
• Arezo Rashidian, Iranian American Activist, Iranian
• Zara-Forouq Kanaani, Researcher and Human Rights Activist, Iranian
• Ruth Wasserman-Lande, Former MK and Chair of the Parliamentary Caucus for the Abraham Accords, Israeli
• Mandana Dayani, Lawyer and Co-founder of ‘I am a voter’, Iranian
• Dr. Sona Kazemi, Assistant Professor at University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Iranian
• Banafsheh Zand, Journalist & Activist, Iranian
• India Naftali, Journalist, Israeli
• Catherine Perez Shakdam, Director Forward Strategy Ltd, French-Tunisian
• Shoshannah Keats-Jaskoll, Director and Cofounder of Chochmat Nashim, Israeli
• Zina Rakhamilova, COO Social Lite Creative and Journalist, Israeli
• Becca Wertman-Traub, Director of Research at CIJA, Israeli
• Sarah Raviani, Human Rights Activist, Iranian
• Dr. Efrat Gold, Postdoctoral fellow at University of Buffalo, Israeli
• Sana Ebrahimi, Human Rights Activist, Iranian
• Maryam Blumenthal, Iranian-German Politician and Leader of Green Party Hamburg, Iranian
• Arielle Mokhtarzadeh, Activist, Iranian
• Ashira Solomon, political commentator, Israeli
• Rolene Marks, World WIZO Head of Public Diplomacy, Israeli
• Ysabella Hassan, Lawyer and Activist, Jewish-Moroccan 
• Ellie Cohanim, Former US Envoy for Combatting Antisemitism, Iranian
• Nataly Dadon, Influencer and Pro-Israel activist, Israeli
• Carrine Bassili, Christian Singer, Lebanese
• Michelle Rojas-Tal, Israeli educator, Israeli
• Ateret Shmuel, Director of Indigenous Bridges, Israeli