On November 22, the Iranian diaspora took part in a twitterstorm, expressing their dismay over the international community’s lack of action against Iran’s terror plot. They also shared their personal experience about the Iranian regime’s foiled bomb attack against the Free Iran gathering in June 2018.

There are less than four days left until the historic court case of the trial of Assadollah Assadi, a senior Iranian diplomat. According to undeniable evidence and documents, Assadi was the orchestrator of the bomb attack that targeted a huge Iranian opposition gathering in Paris.

The trial will take place on the 27 November and the Iranian diaspora have taken to social media in the run-up to the momentous occasion to express their ongoing outrage over what could have been the biggest terrorist attack on European soil. 

The Iranian opposition gathering in Paris is an annual gathering, drawing over 100,000 supporters of the democratic Iranian opposition, as well as hundreds of dignitaries from across the world, including Mayor Rudi Giuliani, the former Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, and Ingrid Betancourt, former Senator of Colombia.

Assadi, alongside two other agents of the regime, Amir Saadouni, and his wife, Nasimeh Naami, were attempting to bomb the event, targeting Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), the main opposition to the religious dictatorship ruling Iran. 

In its issue on the 14 November 2020, Peter Conradi wrote in The SundayTimes: “The plot to target it appears to have been hatched after popular protests that erupted in December 2017 in more than 100 Iranian cities and were blamed by Ali Khamenei, the country’s supreme leader, on “enemies of the republic”.

In a speech the following month he claimed the streets were under the control of the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK), the main element in the NCRI, and threatened “retribution”. 

Two years after the event, it is now time for the court to hold those responsible to account. The international community, and European governments, in particular, must not allow the regime to act with impunity.

The Iranian diaspora joined a Twitter storm on the evening of Sunday 22 November, using the hashtag #IWasATarget, to express their dismay at the lack of united action against the regime and their crimes against humanity.

NCRI Condemns Tehran’s Terrorism, Calling EU to Act

They have called for the embassies of the Iranian regime to be closed, and all agencies and affiliated organizations to be locked down, as it is evident that the regime has been using them as a base for terrorist activities and espionage against the opposition. 

Zolal Habibi, an attendee of the 2018 resistance rally, wrote on Twitter on 22 November: “When a ‘diplomat’ hands explosive to operatives to target 100k in Paris, isn’t that enough to expel all Iranian diplomats from European countries and close their embassies? Where do you draw the line? #IWasATarget.” 

Another attendee, Saeid Maghsoodi, wrote on Twitter on 22 November: “#IWasATarget. This wasn’t an ordinary bombing + assassination attempt against an individual. It was an attempted mass murder against a large gathering which could’ve had severe implications for countries represented at the event. Among the plaintiffs of the case are 18 politicians!” 

Afshin Motevalli, who was also present at the gathering, wrote on 22 November: “I took this picture together at the ‘Free Iran’ grand gathering in Paris. 100K people were present, incl. hundreds of political dignitaries, human rights champions, freedom fighters and our dear friends. At this gathering #IWasATarget.” 

Dowlat Nowrouzi, the NCRI-UK Representative, who was participated in the event tweeted:

The religious dictatorship in Iran ordered its terrorist diplomat to bomb the Free Iran Gathering in Paris in June 2018 to silence Iran’s organised opposition & the democratic alternative led by NCRI President-elect Maryam Rajavi. UK must #ExpelIranDiplomatTerrorists #IWasATarget