Speaking to FRANCE 24, Masih Alinejad, an Iranian journalist and women's rights activist exiled in the US, called Iran’s ongoing protest movement "a revolution". Iran is currently seeing unprecedented demonstrations ignited by the death of Masah Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died in the custody of the morality police after being arrested for improperly wearing her headscarf. Alinejad expressed confidence that, unlike previous failed movements, this one was "the beginning of the end" for the regime.
Alinejad urged Western countries and activists to grant their full support to the protest movement, instead of negotiating with Tehran. The exiled activist also urged the West to recall its ambassadors to Iran and cut off diplomatic and business ties.
She said that the mandatory headscarf was "the main pillar" of the Islamic Republic of Iran and that rejecting it was the Iranian equivalent of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Alinejad rejected criticism that she and other women's rights activists in Iran were propagating Islamophobia.
The exiled activist said she was "receiving death threats every day" and living under the protection of the FBI but added that she was not scared of dying. She expressed confidence that this protest movement was different from previous ones, concluding that "this is the beginning of the end" of the Islamic Republic.
Click on the video player to watch the full interview.
