Thousands Gather Outside the United Nations
On Tuesday, September 24, thousands of Iranian Americans and supporters of the Iranian Resistance gathered for the second consecutive day outside the United Nations headquarters in New York.
The demonstrators condemned the presence of regime president Masoud Pezeshkian at the UN General Assembly and declared their support for the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and its President-elect Maryam Rajavi.
The crowd’s unified chant was loud and clear: “No to the Shah, no to the mullahs—yes to a democratic republic.”
Maryam Rajavi: The People’s True Voice
In a video message, Maryam Rajavi saluted the protesters, calling them “the true voice of the Iranian people before the United Nations.”
She stressed that the demonstrations in New York mirrored uprisings across Iran—in Tehran, Mashhad, Ahvaz, Tabriz, Zahedan, and even inside prisons.
“The message is very simple and clear: Overthrow and democratic change—a democratic republic, with freedom and democratic rights,” Rajavi said.
Mrs. Rajavi emphasized the regime’s brutality, noting that 1,817 executions had taken place in just 14 months. She called for accountability in international courts for crimes against humanity and urged world leaders to stop appeasing the clerical rulers.
Rejecting all forms of dictatorship, Rajavi declared:
“We want neither a mullah nor a Shah. The era of all dictatorships, whether religious or monarchical, is over. Our message for Iran’s future is simple: the sovereignty of the people—the people’s republic.”
Message to the New York Rally
You are the voice of the Iranian people, not the president of the Supreme Leader!
So, we have every right to ask: What is the representative of such an anti-human regime doing here?#2025FreeIranNYRally pic.twitter.com/LZCrfmxPgx— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) September 24, 2025
Judge Michael Mukasey: The Regime Is at Its Weakest
Former U.S. Attorney General Judge Michael Mukasey addressed the crowd, highlighting the regime’s vulnerability despite its intensified repression.
“Conditions are more favorable now for the collapse of the regime than they have been in decades,” he said.
He dismissed Pezeshkian as “a mouthpiece for the mullahs,” noting that being a physician did not make him any different from past killers like Assad.
Mukasey urged the international community to gather evidence of the regime’s atrocities:
“We should be compiling testimony and documentation of what they did—the massacres, the phony trials, the executions—so that the evidence is at hand.”
He also warned against false alternatives, making clear that Maryam Rajavi’s Ten-Point Plan is the only credible path to a democratic, secular, non-nuclear republic.
Soona Samsami: Defiance and Hope
Soona Samsami, NCRI’s U.S. Representative, told the rally that the demonstration represented both resistance and optimism.
“We are here for one reason: to reject the president of a regime that massacres prisoners, suppresses women and youth, and races for nuclear weapons,” she said.
She underlined that the movement carries a hopeful message:
“There is an organized resistance and a leader with a vision: Mrs. Maryam Rajavi.”
Judge Ted Poe: Freedom Is a God-Given Right
Former U.S. Congressman Judge Ted Poe drew on America’s own history of resistance.
“Whenever any government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish that government. That sounds like something y’all would say,” he remarked.
Poe praised the Iranian Resistance for its historic role in defeating tyranny:
“It didn’t start with the mullahs. It started with removing another dictator, the Shah.”
He rejected any attempt to restore monarchy:
“You gave your lives to get rid of a dictator because you wanted to be free. Now some are talking about replacing that dictator with one of his family members. That is not a good idea.”
Highlighting the courage of Iran’s women and youth, Poe added:
“So many young women have given their lives just for what you’re standing here for today. Woe be to the mullahs—they do not know what they’re dealing with.”
Ambassador Marc Ginsberg: Decades of Solidarity
Former U.S. Ambassador to Morocco Marc Ginsberg reflected on over 40 years of support for the Iranian Resistance.
“I have stood against the mullahs, inspired by the democratic ideals of the people’s resistance and Madam Maryam Rajavi, who I respect and admire so much as a friend and as a leader.”
He praised the Resistance Units inside Iran and emphasized the futility of monarchist nostalgia:
“The Iranian people will not turn back the clock to the days of kings doling out little bits and pieces of democracy while they rule from the throne.”
Ginsberg highlighted the NCRI’s intelligence work that blocked Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and hailed Ashraf 3 as “an aspiration for freedom and justice.”
Voices of the Young Generation
Several young Iranian Americans also spoke, tying their family histories to the ongoing struggle.
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Maryam Hosseini, daughter of a former political prisoner:
“Even in the darkest prisons, they cannot extinguish the light of freedom. No to the Shah. No to the mullahs. Yes to a democratic republic.”
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Emma Vali Beigi, cousin of a victim of the 1988 massacre:
“The Shah’s regime was also a repressive force. We cannot afford to choose between one dictatorship and another. Iran deserves better… Down with the dictator! Down with the oppressor! Be it the Shah or the mullahs!”
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Mani Mansourpour, holding a photo of his uncle executed in 1988:
“Pezeshkian represents Khamenei and all the crimes associated with him for over four decades. The UN must act to stop executions and recognize the Iranian people’s right to overthrow the regime.”
Hadi Shakibanejad:
“Our beloved Iran is under occupation by a murderous regime that calls itself the Islamic Republic. But this regime is neither Islamic nor a Republic. No to the Shah, no to the mullahs! Our choice, Maryam Rajavi.”
A Movement with One Message
The rally’s unifying message was echoed throughout the day: the Iranian people reject both monarchy and theocracy, demanding instead a democratic republic built on freedom, equality, and justice.
The second day of protests in New York reinforced that the Resistance, led by Maryam Rajavi and supported by Iranians worldwide, continues to gain strength—inside and outside Iran.
Highlights of the second day of the #2025FreeIranNYRally: Freedom-loving Iranians rallied for a democratic republic in Iran, supporting the NCRI and its President-elect's ten-points plan. Speakers included: Amb. @ambmcg, @JudgeTedPoe and Judge Michael Mukasey. pic.twitter.com/mJVl12KDJx
— SIMAY AZADI TV (@en_simayazadi) September 24, 2025
