On September 6, 2025, tens of thousands of Iranians and NCRI supporters rallied in Brussels, Belgium, to celebrate the PMOI’s 60th anniversary. The event, organized by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), gathered international dignitaries including:
- Mike Pence – Former U.S. Vice President
- Guy Verhofstadt – Former Belgian Prime Minister
- John Bercow – Former Speaker of the UK Parliament
- Kris Van Dijck – Belgian MEP
- Patrick Kennedy – Former U.S. Congressman
- Alejo Vidal-Quadras – Former Vice President of the European Parliament
Maryam Rajavi’s Keynote
NCRI President-elect Maryam Rajavi called sixty years of PMOI struggle “sixty years without a single day or even an hour of pause.” Despite torture and executions, she declared: “The Shah fell, the mullahs will fall too.”
She said the movement “wants nothing for itself” but seeks “freedom and the transfer of sovereignty to the people of Iran,” stressing that “there is an alternative — well-organized, fully prepared, and perfectly qualified.”
Presenting her vision, she called for democracy, gender equality, secularism, and a republic based on human rights. Highlighting women’s leadership as “the foundation for the Iran of tomorrow,” she urged the West to “designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization, enforce UN resolutions on the regime’s nuclear program, and support the Resistance Units.” She ended: “The time for uprising has arrived. You will liberate Iran. It can be done — and it must be done.”
Mike Pence
Former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence praised six decades of PMOI’s resilience: “Today, that movement — the PMOI — is stronger, more inspired, and more powerful than ever.”
Addressing Iranians inside the country, he said: “You are not alone. You are not forgotten. The day of your freedom is closer than ever.” He hailed the Resistance Units as “the driving engine of change, igniting uprisings and sustaining protests.”
Pence warned: “The greatest threat to this regime is not America, not Israel — it is the Iranian people themselves. We will not be silent. We will support the Resistance with everything we have.”
Guy Verhofstadt
Former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt said the massive rally proved “there is effectively a democratic alternative to the cruel and criminal mullahs’ regime.”
He condemned decades of appeasement: “Talking to the regime about everything, even nuclear weapons, has only made things worse.” He urged Europe to adopt a new strategy based on three steps: designate the IRGC as terrorist, expand sanctions, and engage with the democratic opposition using Rajavi’s Ten-Point Plan.
John Bercow
Former UK Parliament Speaker John Bercow called claims of “no alternative” to dictatorship “an abominable insult.” He dismissed monarchy: “We don’t mean some baby Shah… Not needed, not wanted, not of any use whatsoever.”
He praised NCRI’s strength, saying its Resistance Units are “greater in number, bigger in scale of activity, and superior in reach… than at any time.” He described Maryam Rajavi as one who has “sacrificed everything to serve the cause of a free Iran.” Closing, he pledged: “For as long as I have breath in my lungs, I will support the cause of freedom for Iran.”
Kris Van Dijck
Belgian MEP Kris Van Dijck praised Iranians fighting for freedom: “Wherever people have the courage to fight for human rights, I stand on their side.” He demanded release of political prisoners, condemned hostage-taking, and said, “We are pushing the EU to blacklist the IRGC.” He added: “My dream is your dream: a free Iran.”
Patrick Kennedy
Former U.S. Congressman Patrick Kennedy praised decades of sacrifice: “Every single year, MEK members have been tortured, jailed, and murdered — but have they stopped? No, they haven’t.”
He warned: “Appeasement never gets us security. Appeasement invites fascism to prevail.” Framing the struggle as universal, he declared: “This isn’t just an Iranian issue. This is a human rights issue.” He closed: “President Kennedy said, ‘Ich bin ein Berliner.’ Today… I proudly say, ‘Man Irani hastam’ — I am Iranian.”
Alejo Vidal-Quadras
Former European Parliament Vice President Alejo Vidal-Quadras told the crowd: “You are not a fringe… You are the heartbeat of a nation.”
He praised Rajavi’s Ten-Point Plan, rejected monarchy, and highlighted the Resistance Units: “I have seen them inside Iran — fearless, challenging.” He pledged loyalty despite surviving an assassination attempt: “I will remain a proud soldier in your ranks all the way to a free Iran.”
Iranian Voices
Young supporter Andrin Mohseni said: “Sixty years later, the organization is stronger than ever. Today, it terrifies the regime.”
Farzaneh Hosseini honored her family’s sacrifices, saying, “Under Maryam Rajavi’s motto, ‘we can and we must,’ generations of women have risen to lead a movement daring to challenge the world’s most misogynistic regime.”
Vida Niktalean, an Iranian-German community leader, called PMOI “the national treasure of 90 million Iranians… poised to break every bond of this regime.”
The Brussels rally underscored growing international recognition of NCRI and PMOI as the democratic alternative to Iran’s regime. From global leaders to young activists, participants echoed Maryam Rajavi’s declaration: “Uprising and overthrow are on the way. You will liberate Iran. It can be done — and it must be done.”
