The President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), Maryam Rajavi, sent her condolences following the passing of French Senator Jean-Pierre Michel on January 24, 2021, at the age of 82.
Maryam Rajavi wrote: “The passing of Senator Jean Pierre Michel, the elected representative of the people of France and a great French politician, deeply saddened me and all the members of the Iranian Resistance. I would like to extend my heartfelt condolences to his family and colleagues, particularly to the members of the French Committee for a Democratic Iran which he co-founded, to the people of Haute- Saône province, the city of Héricourt and all of the people of France.”
Jean-Pierre Michel was born on August 5, 1938, in Nîmes. He served as the mayor of Héricourt between 1983 and 2004, before becoming a member of the Senate of France, representing the Haute-Saône department from 2004 until 2014.
Maryam Rajavi said: “Today, France lost one of its most knowledgeable, responsible and honorable politicians and the Iranian Resistance and the people of Iran mourn the loss of one of their greatest supporters. We saw him as representing the conscience and dignity of the French Republic as the cradle of human rights and the land of asylum.”
She promised, on behalf of the Iranian people, the Iranian Resistance, and the combatants of freedom at Ashraf 3, that his presence would still be felt in the Iranian people’s quest for freedom.
Maryam Rajavi wrote: “Senator Michel was a strong voice for human rights and democracy, having a great impact. We continue to feel his presence as Iran’s ruling religious tyrannical regime remains fearful of his firmness and frankness.”
Following the 2018 discovery and exposure of the clerical regime’s terrorist operation targeting the gathering of tens of thousands of Iranians, as well as hundreds of international dignitaries in Villepente, near Paris, Senator Michel warned that European political leaders must end their “deceitful games” and take a firm stance on Iran to end its terrorism, warmongering, and human rights abuses.
He said: “Like every other tyrant, [Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali] Khamenei does not understand any language but the language of firmness. To stop his terrorism as well as destabilizing meddling in the Middle East and his dangerous nuclear and missile programs, the reactions of French and European officials must be of the same rank as the crimes committed by the mullahs.”
In a related story, Maryam Rajavi sent condolences for another Iranian Resistance ally last month. Former British Conservative MP Brian Binley passed away on December 25, 2020, at the age of 78.
On December 27, 2020, Maryam Rajavi wrote in her statement: “I would like to extend my condolences on the demise of the dear friend of the Iranian people and Resistance, Brian Binley, to his honorable family, the people and parliament of Britain, and to the parliamentary committees for Iran Freedom. The people of Iran will never forget these freedom loving people and true defenders of humanitarian values, democracy and human rights.”
