Submission to the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Full Article

Click to view the full submission

Introduction

NGO Monitor, a project of the Institute for NGO Research,¹ an organization in Special Consultative Status with UN ECOSOC since 2013, respectfully submits the following information to the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. We hope that the information provided will aid in the preparation of the report to the 58th session of the Human Rights Council.

This submission focuses on the rampant campaign of antisemitic violence and anti-Israel incitement within the Islamic Republic of Iran. This campaign of incitement is endemic throughout Iranian society and is especially aimed at inculcating hatred within many generations of Iranian children. Iranian incitement and funding of armed terror proxies in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, and Syria is responsible for the ongoing armed conflict with Israel and countless deaths of both Palestinians and Israelis. Iran is also behind the murder of Jews abroad in terror attacks carried out in South America, Europe, and Asia. Iran has also driven global antisemitic propaganda and riots that have disrupted life in Western capitals and university campuses since October 7, 2023.

The Islamic Republic of Iran Promotes Hatred and Violence Against Jews and Israelis

The Islamic Republic of Iran systematically promotes hatred and violent incitement against Jews and Israelis. Much of this campaign is aimed at poisoning the minds of children, inculcating antisemitic hatred. Iran floods Iranian society with racist and antisemitic messages, encouraging participation in violence, and heroicizing those who engage in antisemitism and extreme violence.

From the north, south, east, and west, Israel is confronted by adversaries (namely Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, IRGC militias in Iraq and Syria, and the Islamic Republic of Iran) that are acting in concert with what is a genocidal intent to destroy it and its population. This specific intent is reflected in official statements, policies, and actions of these organizations. 

Iranian government officials have – repeatedly and publicly – stated an intention to destroy Israel. 

In April 2024, a poster featuring the pictures of senior Israeli military officers with the words “We take revenge” was seen hanging throughout the streets of Tehran.² A second billboard called Israel “weaker than a spider’s web.”³

In September 2024, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman described Zionism as a “threat to the whole world.”⁴ In November 2024, IRGC General Mohammad-Jafar Asadi appeared on Iranian TV referring to Zionism as a “cancerous growth” and a “mark of shame on humanity.”⁵

And on November 5, 2024, a large billboard hung on the side of a building in Mashhad contained an image of Tel Aviv being bombed and the word “Telashima” – in essence, threatening to use nuclear weapons on Tel Aviv and to turn it into Hiroshima.

The Islamic Republic of Iran is also a leader in state-sponsored antisemitism in the world today, propagating anti-Jewish propaganda and Holocaust denial. Current Iranian textbooks teach children that Zionism is fundamentally evil and that the Jewish state is the spearhead of global imperialism. In 2021, the Anti-Defamation League published a report surveying Iranian state textbooks, exposing blatantly hateful and antisemitic depiction of the Jewish people.⁶ One such textbook geared toward 8th grade students featured a quote that “The only way on the path of confrontation with Israel until it is completely eradicated is to unite the Muslims, continue the resistance, and strengthen the courageous protests and popular struggle of this country (intifada).”

Islamic Republic of Iran’s Funding to Armed Groups

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s support for terrorism is well known. Iran has provided political and military support to militant movements such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). The Islamic Republic of Iran spends billions of dollars to support these terrorist organizations and extend its influence. 

In August 2019, the Islamic Republic of Iran agreed to increase its monthly payments to Hamas to $30 million per month in exchange for intelligence in Israeli missile capabilities.⁷ Iran’s support goes further than mere funding, and in 2014, IRGC missile commander Ahmed Hosseini disclosed that Hamas operatives had been “armed and trained by Hezbollah…Some of them even came to Iran for training.”⁸ In May 2021, during the latest round of fighting in Israel, the commander of Iran-backed militia Kataib al-Imam Ali Abu Azrael announced that some Iraqi officials “were deployed” to join the war against Israel. In an interview, Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar stated “We have sufficient financial resources… a large part of which are from Iran.”⁹

From its establishment, Hezbollah has been a primary beneficiary of Iranian support. According to the United States’ 2020 State Department “Country Reports on Terrorism,” Iran provides “annual financial backing to Hizballah — which in recent years has been estimated at $700 million.”¹⁰ In 2016, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah admitted the organization’s budget, revenues,  expenses, food, and weapons were all connected to Iran. In a speech that was leaked to the Iranian media, Nasrallah admitted that the “organization regarded itself as a soldier in the service of Iran’s Supreme Leader.”¹¹

In 2018, Israeli media reported that the Islamic Republic of Iran was transferring approximately $30 million a year to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.¹² In May 2021, senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad official Ramez Al-Halabi stated in an interview that “I am proud to say that the rockets that are used to pound Tel Aviv have an Iranian signature on them, the signature of Qassem Soleimani.”¹³ In 2012, Palestinian Islamic Jihad deputy chairman Ziad al-Nahala praised Iran “for the great sacrifices they made to deliver this weapon to us for the sake of defending the Palestinian people.”¹⁴ PIJ spokesman Dawud Shihab further affirmed “It is no secret that we say that the military assistance provided to the Palestinian resistance – from A to Z, from bullet to rocket – is assistance from the Islamic republic, Iranian assistance. This is something we should say, and it is very appropriate for us to say so clearly and without being ashamed.”

The Islamic Republic of Iran was also instrumental in the October 7, 2023 massacre when thousands of Palestinian terrorists poured across the border from Gaza into Israel, slaughtering 1200 people, torturing and maiming thousands, including 36 children who were slaughtered in their homes. Hamas, and other terrorist groups, also kidnapped more than 200 individuals, including women and children. Senior Hamas operatives have publicly thanked the Islamic Republic for its support. In an interview with Al Arabiya, former head of Hamas Khaled Mashaal claimed, “Hezbollah and Iran supported us with weapons, expertise and technology.”¹⁵

Besides aiding and abetting the massacre through supplying weapons, the Islamic Republic of Iran also helped train Hamas to carry out the violence. According to an October 2023 article in the Wall Street Journal, in the weeks leading up to October 7, roughly 500 militants from Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad participated in “specialized combat training” in Iran.¹⁶ In a May 2024 interview, IRGC Qods Force deputy operations chief General Mohsen Chizari said that Qods Force Deputy Commander in Syria and Lebanon Hajj Rahimi, one of the officers killed in the April 1 airstrike in Damascus, had “successfully advanced the resistance front to a certain place, the result of which was Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.”¹⁷

Additionally, in April 2024, Iran launched a wave of 300 attack drones and missiles towards Israel, the first ever direct attack on Israel by the Islamic Republic. In October 2024, Iran once again fired 181 ballistic missiles at Israeli population centers, the single largest ballistic missile attack in history, sending millions rushing to shelters.¹⁸

October 7 Sexual Violence

Iranian proxies have also engaged in sexual violence. Survivors of the barbaric October 7 attack have reported witnessing the brutal raping of women and Hamas has published horrific images on social media showing members of Hamas engaging in sexual assault. Women and girls were paraded naked through the streets of Gaza while onlookers cheered. In one viral video, the near-naked and bloodied body of an Israeli German woman who was abducted from a music festival who was later declared dead is seen being paraded through the streets of Gaza in the back of a pickup truck. Crowds of Palestinian civilians are seen cheering and spitting on her deformed body while chanting “Allah hu akbar.” According to rescue units, there were “bodies of women and girls raped with such violence that their pelvic bones were broken.”¹⁹ The Israeli Police Chief confirmed that a pregnant woman’s stomach was sliced open and her fetus removed while she was alive, and that women’s breasts were sliced off and tossed around.²⁰ Testimony from captured Hamas terrorists revealed they were ordered to rape whoever they came across, and found amongst the bodies of Hamas terrorists was an Arabic-Hebrew transliteration glossary with sexual terminology, including “take your pants off.”²¹

Unfortunately, international women’s organizations and the United Nations have said almost nothing on the brutality faced by Israeli women during Hamas’ aggression, war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity.