Exclusive interview: The exiled Crown Prince of Iran
I don't think any nation's salvation depends on others. Israelis understand this better than anybody else. You only can count on yourselves and nothing else, but life becomes easier when you're not alone, that you have more help.
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I'm sure this is something that Lech Walesa had to face, Gandhi had to face, Nelson Mandela had to face. And eventually the world catches up. It is critical for people to tell us we're not alone in the fight.
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What is that strong leadership that could change the face of history? Trump? Depending on how he looks at it. Is he seeing this as a legacy that can change the face of the region? But this is not a real estate deal that he can cut with a regime that is very corrupt, right?
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So then we can divest from the region, putting America first, which is his slogan, but you cannot say America first and leave a mess behind. You want to have lasting stability, so that people in Riyadh or people in Jerusalem don't have to worry any longer about what Tehran is about to do or not.
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What do you see as Canada's role?
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It can take the moral approach of saying, they are on the side of the dissidents and the freedom-seeking people, and will not bow and bend to their oppressors. You are not facilitating our struggle for freedom by trying to approach a policy of appeasement and isolation, which hasn't worked.
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I think it's a message that Canada can loudly send to Iranians back home. Canada should ask the G20: Why aren't you listing the IRGC as a terrorist entity?
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Right now you have every time there's a fire, this or that government is dispatching a fire truck to go and put out the fire. But how many times has anyone bothered to go after the arsonist?
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I'm not running for any office or position, but I think that the trust that Iranians have in me puts me in a position that I can play that role for them, and that's exactly what I'm doing.
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They know my commitments to these democratic values. They actually asked me to intervene, because they think that I'm probably the best person playing that role for them right now. I'm not saying I'm the only one, and I'd like to work with everybody, but that puts me in a prime position to play that role.
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3 hours ago
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Vancouver Sun
3 hours ago
- Vancouver Sun
Man planning to bomb Toronto synagogues 'to kill as many Jews as possible' gets house arrest as punishment
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'At a time of rampant antisemitism in Canada and elsewhere, it sends an alarming message that threats to slaughter Jews and bomb synagogues may be met with leniency. That is extremely disappointing and profoundly unsettling for our community,' Kirzner-Roberts said after Akbari's sentencing. That is extremely disappointing and profoundly unsettling for our community The court heard community impact statements from five Jewish community groups that outlined a deep sense of fear and despair as news of the threats spread. 'The result of the unprecedented rise in antisemitism has left a palpable dread hanging over the community. This atmosphere of despair is only amplified by the actions of Mr. Akbari,' Richard Robertson, a director with B'nai Brith Canada told court at the sentencing hearing. 'Jewish Canadians did not and do not feel safe in their own communities. 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