NCRI President-Elect tells Washington rally that Iran’s future lies in democratic change, resistance, and national sovereignty

In a message to a demonstration by Iranians and supporters of the Iranian Resistance in Washington, D.C. on May 16, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the NCRI said lasting peace in the region can only be achieved through the overthrow of the “Velayat-e Faqih dictatorship.” Addressing compatriots, international guests, and supporters of the Resistance, she described the rally as a message of solidarity with the Iranian people’s struggle against religious fascism and a call for international recognition of the National Council of Resistance of Iran as the democratic alternative to the current regime.

Mrs. Rajavi: Clerical Regime Faces a Deepening Crisis

Mrs. Rajavi said the Iranian regime is trapped in a political and social impasse and can neither return to conditions before the uprisings and massacres of January 2026 nor find a path forward. According to her message, the authorities have intensified repression through arrests, internet shutdowns, street searches, and executions.

She stated that eight members of the PMOI/MEK and seventeen protesters had been executed, but argued that these actions would not stop a new uprising. Mrs. Rajavi also referred to what she described as an assault by 250 MEK freedom fighters on Khamenei’s headquarters shortly before the forty-day war, saying the operation inspired a new generation to join the resistance and move toward the “Army of Liberation.”

Resistance Units Continue Operations Despite Repression

Mrs. Rajavi emphasized that Resistance Units continue daily activities despite wartime conditions and severe repression. She said the regime’s executions are intended to intimidate younger generations but claimed the strategy has failed.

She highlighted the words of PMOI member Vahid BaniAmerian before his execution, quoting him as saying that executions would only strengthen the movement and accelerate the regime’s downfall.

“The Only Path to Freedom”

In her remarks, Mrs. Rajavi described slain MEK members and protesters as the vanguard of victory and said their political vision rejects both the Shah and the ruling clerical establishment.

She reiterated a statement attributed to Massoud Rajavi that “The Army of Liberation is the only way to freedom.” Mrs. Rajavi also recounted an anthem sung by a six-member MEK unit in Ghezel Hesar prison before execution, portraying it as a symbol of resilience, defiance, and continued resistance among the Iranian people.

According to Mrs. Rajavi, the Iranian population has not surrendered despite the deaths and repression following the January uprising. She said the Resistance Units represent organized forces prepared for future uprisings inside Iranian cities.

Rejection of Both Religious and Monarchical Dictatorships

Mrs. Rajavi warned against what she described as threats from both supporters of appeasement toward the current regime and remnants of the former Shah’s dictatorship.

She criticized monarchist groups for opposing the aspirations of Kurdish, Baluchi, Turkmen, and Arab communities and accused them of seeking authoritarian rule and martial law. Referring to comments attributed to members of the British House of Commons, she described such groups as “wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

Mrs. Rajavi declared that Iran would neither remain under religious dictatorship nor return to monarchy, insisting that the country’s future lies in a democratic revolution based on freedom.

The struggle of the Iranian people against religious tyranny is being targeted by betrayal and daggers from two sides. On one side are those who, for years, have sought the path of appeasement to preserve the regime. On the other side are the remnants of the Shah's dictatorship,… pic.twitter.com/l5W94cdOEl

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) May 16, 2026

Call for International Support and Democratic Change

Addressing supporters of the Resistance, Mrs. Rajavi said regime change in Iran would not happen automatically or through foreign intervention, but through the Iranian people, their uprisings, and the National Liberation Army.

She argued that lasting peace in the Middle East is impossible without the overthrow of what she called the “warmongering, terrorist dictatorship” ruling Iran. Mrs. Rajavi called on all political forces seeking the regime’s overthrow to unite behind the establishment of a democratic republic based on the separation of religion and state.

She also urged the international community to support the Iranian people’s struggle, expel agents of the Iranian regime from foreign countries, provide tools for unrestricted internet access inside Iran, and prosecute Iranian leaders for crimes against humanity and genocide.

Mrs. Rajavi further stressed that ending executions must become a mandatory condition in any international agreement with Tehran.

Vision for Iran’s Future

Concluding her message, Mrs. Rajavi said the Iranian people are moving toward a future based on pluralism, elections, autonomy for ethnic nationalities, equal participation of women in leadership, and separation of religion and state.

She described the struggle for freedom and national sovereignty as being closer than ever to victory after more than a century of sacrifice and resistance.