Thousands rally in Washington against Iran executions and dictatorship

By AI, Created 10:43 PM UTC, May 18, 2026, /AGP/ – Thousands of Iranian Americans and supporters gathered in Washington, DC, on May 16 to back a democratic republic in Iran and condemn the regime’s surge in executions. The rally amplified support for Maryam Rajavi’s Ten-Point Plan, the NCRI, and opposition to both clerical rule and a return to monarchy.

Why it matters: - The rally put public pressure on Iran’s ruling system at a time of intensified executions and repression. - Organizers and speakers framed the event as support for political prisoners, Resistance Units inside Iran, and a transition to a democratic republic. - The gathering also aimed to reject both clerical dictatorship and any restoration of monarchical rule.

What happened: - Thousands of Iranian Americans and supporters gathered in Washington, DC, on Saturday, May 16, 2026, for a rally and march. - The National Council of Resistance of Iran–U.S. Representative Office helped organize the event. - Participants included American political figures, former senior officials, human rights advocates, youth leaders, and Iranian-American community members. - The demonstration called for an end to executions in Iran and support for the organized resistance movement.

The details: - Protesters carried banners and placards condemning executions as a tool of intimidation and repression. - The rally honored political prisoners and activists killed by the regime, including members of the PMOI/MEK and young protesters executed for supporting democratic change. - Speakers backed the provisional government framework announced by the National Council of Resistance of Iran and Maryam Rajavi’s Ten-Point Plan. - The Ten-Point Plan calls for universal suffrage, free elections, gender equality, separation of religion and state, abolition of the death penalty, judicial independence, autonomy for Iran’s ethnic nationalities, a non-nuclear Iran, and a democratic republic based on the will of the Iranian people. - Maryam Rajavi said Iran is moving toward a future defined by the ballot box, pluralism, autonomy for diverse ethnic nationalities, women’s leadership, and separation of religion and state. - Rajavi condemned escalating executions and said repression has failed to extinguish resistance among Iranian youth and organized opposition networks. - Rajavi said Resistance Units across Iran show the regime cannot stop a coming uprising. - Retired Gen. Wesley Clark said the regime is “crumbling under fear” and described the MEK and NCRI as the only force capable of averting a global catastrophe. - Clark said recent Western military action targeted the regime’s nuclear and military equipment, not the civilian population. - Clark argued that peaceful protest alone will not bring change, citing the January 26 protests and the killing of thousands by state authorities. - Former U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Carla Sands said the future of Iran must belong “neither to the turban nor the crown.” - Sands said the Iranian people already rejected dictatorship once and will not accept another form of authoritarian rule. - Sands praised the NCRI as a democratic alternative and urged the United States and Western governments to recognize the organized resistance as a legitimate partner for democratic change. - Former Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy said the executions of political prisoners reveal the regime’s fear of another nationwide uprising. - Kennedy said Resistance Units carried out coordinated operations across 15 Iranian cities last week and hit IRGC and Basij bases. - Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani said regime change in Iran is a matter of when, not if. - Giuliani praised Rajavi’s Ten-Point Plan and warned against appeasement toward Tehran. - Hejar Berenji, representing the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan to the United States, said the current regime cannot be moderated or reformed. - Berenji called for no dictatorship “with turban” and no dictatorship “with crown.” - Iranian-American youth leaders and activists said younger Iranians reject both the Shah and the mullahs and want a democratic republic. - Anahita Sami read the names of executed political prisoners and said every martyr strengthens the movement for freedom. - Kimia Arya said women have shattered fear and obedience under Rajavi’s leadership. - Ali Ziaie said Iranian youth will not allow the blood of more than 120,000 martyrs to be used to revive monarchical tyranny. - Bishop Dr. Angel L. Nuñez called for an immediate end to domestic executions and voiced solidarity with the Iranian Resistance. - Speakers called for accountability over crimes against humanity, including torture, arbitrary detention, massacres of political prisoners, and the recent surge in executions. - The rally ended with a march through Washington, DC, featuring Iranian Lion and Sun flags and signs reading “No to Executions” and “No to the Shah, no to the mullahs—yes to a democratic republic.”

Between the lines: - The event was as much a political message to Western governments as it was a protest against Tehran. - Speakers repeatedly pushed the idea that the NCRI and MEK are the organized alternative to both the current regime and the old monarchy. - The heavy focus on youth, women, and ethnic minorities suggested an effort to present the opposition as broad-based and future-facing. - The rhetoric on regime change and armed resistance reflects the belief among speakers that pressure and protest alone will not dislodge the clerical leadership.

What’s next: - Speakers urged the U.S. government and the international community to recognize the Iranian people’s right to overthrow the clerical dictatorship. - They also called for support for democratic aspirations, accountability for regime and IRGC officials, an end to appeasement, and recognition of the NCRI as a democratic alternative. - Organizers said the struggle will continue inside Iran through Resistance Units and among supporters abroad.

The bottom line: - The Washington rally tried to turn anger over executions into international support for a post-theocracy Iran led by an organized opposition.