Iranian Quebecers were out on the streets of Montreal and Quebec City on Saturday, some waving flags of pre-revolutionary Iran, others carrying photos or Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son Iran’s last shah.
The mood at both rallies was celebratory with music blaring, people smiling, and those in attendance expressing hope for a better future for Iran following a joint American-Israeli attack.
U.S. President Donald Trump described the overnight attack as a massive and ongoing operation to wipe out the country’s military and overthrow its government while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was aimed at eliminating an ‘existential threat.’
Late Saturday afternoon, Trump said that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a strike, with Iranian authorities confirming his death on state media. Khamenei, 86, has been Iran’s top leader and highest authority since 1989.
In Quebec City, a group of demonstrators gathered by Place George-V in support of the American and Israeli intervention, some holding posters saying “thank you” to Donald Trump and the U.S.
“For a large part of the Iranian community, this is something we’ve wanted for months,” said Foad Goodarzi, an activist and nurse in Quebec City who is from Iran.
“It might be a bit difficult for people to understand that a community wants a war in their country … but our community was already at war with the Islamic Republic,” he said.
Goodarzi said he hopes military intervention will end the massacre of Iranian people by the regime.
“It’s not possible to fight this government without intervention from elsewhere,” added Shima Hosseini.
“We all have family left in Iran but they are pleased too. They were ready for this and it’s the Iranian government that caused this situation.”
Many of those who attended the rally in Montreal expressed similar thoughts and feelings.
“I’m feeling amazing,” said Khashayar Hoseinzad, adding he’s also thankful for the American and Israeli military intervention.
“We’ve been fighting for so long, and we needed this help for decades. And finally it came,” he said.
Khashayar Hoseinzad said Saturday was a celebration and he’s hopeful that the military attacks on Iran will lead to a regime change. (Gloria Henriquez/CBC)
Hoseinzad recounted how his 32-year old cousin was recently killed in Iran while attending an anti-government protest. He said he had been beaten so badly that his own mother could not recognize him.
Nationwide protests in Iran broke out on Dec. 28 in response to soaring prices, then turned into wider anti-government protests against the clerical rulers who have governed the country for nearly 50 years.
In the crackdown that followed, more than 7,000 people were killed according to the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.
Iran’s only official statement on the death toll was a state broadcast Jan. 21 that said 3,117 people were killed.
Concerns for civilians over military intervention
Atena Barforoushi, an Iranian chef and activist based in Montreal, said she was not attending Saturday’s rally.
She said she couldn’t sleep last night for fear and worry, not only for her family in Iran, but for everyone living under the threat of bombs.
WATCH | Iranians in Montreal hope for regime change :
Iranians show support for military intervention at Montreal rally
Iranian Montrealers are reacting to the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. Some who took to the streets in celebration are hoping it leads to regime change, while others are worried about the possible impacts of foreign interference.
Barforoushi said there is no infrastructure to keep people safe, no sirens to warn civilians of incoming attacks and a government which is “not there to protect” the most vulnerable.
“I always preferred the other political pressures against this brutal government that can save people’s lives. It’s my first priority,” she said.
She’s not alone in her thinking.
Nima Machouf, a member of the Association des femmes iraniennes de Montréal, said that while some hope this will finally put an end to the Iranian regime, she fears that civilians could lose their lives in the process.
“I am really terrified because we don’t know the outcome of this war,” she said.
Machouf also questioned American motives, saying the U.S. might not have the best interest of Iranians at heart. “For them it’s the nuclear, the geopolitical situation, gas and minerals in Iran that they want.”
Meanwhile, UN Secretary General António Guterres called the military escalation by all three countries “a grave threat to international peace and security.”
He made the remarks during an emergency session held by the UN Security Council on Saturday afternoon, saying “there is no viable alternative to peaceful settlement of international disputes.”
And while Guterres could not at the time confirm Khamenei’s death, he said the UN could confirm that about 20 cities across Iran have been attacked, several high-ranking Iranian officials have been killed and that there have been “significant” civilian casualties.
Still, many in Quebec’s Iranian community hope the attacks will pave the way for the return of Reza Pahlavi and a transitional government. The exiled prince has long pushed for an end to Iran’s theocratic rule.
“He’s got a transitional plan ready, Iranians have called for his name and now it’s the time to be brave and to unite together,” said Drew Michael, an Iranian Montrealer.
Others also threw their support behind Pahlavi, but whatever comes next, the overall hope is for a country free from oppression.