Three men charged with conspiracy to kill Iranian-American journalist on US soil

The men – Rafat Amirov, Polad Omarov and Khalid Mehdiyev – have been charged with murder-for-hire and money laundering for their role in a Tehran-backed plot to kill Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American journalist, on American soil. One of the defendants has been held since his arrest last July, another is being held by foreign partners awaiting extradition, and the third is being held by the United States and will appear in court today, said Garland.

Alinejad responded to the news in a video posted to Twitter shortly after the press conference, expressing her gratitude to law enforcement who foiled the plot to kill her, and calling on the US government to respond to the violent crackdown. of the regime against the demonstrators.

“Let me be clear: I’m not afraid for my life. Because I knew that killing, murdering, hanging, torturing, raping is in the DNA of the Islamic Republic,” Alinejad said. “And that’s why I came to the United States of America. Practicing my right, my freedom of expression, giving voice to the courageous Iranians who say no to [the] Islamic Republic”.

Alinejad added that she was “grateful” for the work of the FBI and US law enforcement, but called on the US government to continue to take “strong action” against Iran. “This is the time when we have to pay attention to the innocent people in Iran who have no protection,” she said.

“Law enforcement action today is the latest disruption of U.S. conspiracy activity against this victim and other Americans,” National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said in a statement. “This follows a disturbing pattern of Iranian government-sponsored efforts to kill, torture and intimidate into silence activists for defending the fundamental rights and freedoms of Iranians around the world. Today’s announcement by the Attorney General should serve as a warning of the long reach of the US government in defending Americans everywhere”.

Earlier this week, the United States and its allies hit Iran with new sanctions targeting Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, five of its board members, four senior IRGC commanders and Iranian Deputy Minister of Intelligence and Security.