Iranian Journalist, Activist: Expressions of Sympathy over Raisi Death Will 'Embolden' Regime

During an interview with ABC News on Monday, Iranian journalist and activist Masih Alinejad said that she celebrated the death of Iran's Ebrahim Raisi and didn't mourn like the international community and the expressions of sympathy over Raisi's death are “a slap [in] the face” of Iranian dissidents which will “embolden the regime to go after Iranian women.”

Alinejad said that she “started to dance” when she found out about Raisi's death and other Iranians did likewise.

She added, “[P]eople are happy because they have been suffering a lot. You see a lot of jokes on social media. Why? Because this is how oppressed people react to the death of the butcher, unlike the European leaders, unlike the United Nations members now taking one minute of silence, the Iranian people are happy.”

Alinejad further stated, “What can help us right now [is] the leaders of democratic countries understand the time has come, instead of showing sympathy to the Islamic Republic leaders, to stand [on the right side of history], to support Iranians, especially dissidents within the country, women [in] prison saying that we want an end to [the] Islamic Republic.”

She concluded, “[T]he problem is, as I mentioned from the beginning, that they don't see — they're not seeing any signal from [the] international community to show sympathy and actions, to make [the] decision that — whether they're going to stand with the people of Iran to have a secure democracy or not. I'm telling you, today, when I saw one [minute] of silence at the United Nations…Security Council, it was a slap [in] the face of Iranian women, who got killed simply for showing their hair. It's a slap [in] the face of men getting executed simply for protesting. … Unarmed people…cannot be successful if the whole world's supporting these killers, the butcher of the Islamic Republic, Ali Khamenei. So, I want to say that they are watching us, they are watching the whole situation, the reaction of the international [community], and that is going to embolden the regime to go after Iranian women.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett

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