​Condemning the Killing of Protesters in Iran and Supporting a Democratic Transition

We, the undersigned Iranian academics, scholars, researchers, university teachers, and alumni working in the diaspora, affirm our moral, professional, and civic responsibility to speak out against the ongoing and well-documented violence perpetrated by the theocratic Islamic Republic regime against the people of Iran.

As current and former members of academia, we are committed to truth, evidence, and ethical responsibility. Silence in the face of sustained state violence is incompatible with the values of scholarship, intellectual integrity, and human dignity. The deliberate targeting of students, academics, healthcare workers, and young people makes clear that this repression is directed not only against individuals but against the very possibility of a free, informed, and critical society.

We further recognize and amplify the recent public declarations issued by students from dozens of universities across Iran, who have independently and explicitly expressed solidarity with Reza Pahlavi and articulated their vision for democratic change. That these statements have emerged from within the country, under conditions of surveillance and repression, underscores both the courage of the student movement and the depth of generational rupture with the political order established in 1979.

We therefore:

- Unequivocally condemn the widespread killing of protesters and the systematic repression carried out by the ruling Islamic Republic regime of Iran, including arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, torture, and the denial of due process.

- Express our solidarity with the Iranian people—particularly with those killed, imprisoned, injured, or disappeared, and with their families—as well as all those who continue to resist oppression at grave personal risk.

- Call on the international academic community, including universities, research institutions, and professional bodies, to move beyond symbolic statements and to take concrete action in support of:

i. independent accountability mechanisms;

ii. protection of at-risk scholars and students; and,

iii. the institutional isolation of state bodies demonstrably complicit in repression.

- In light of the declarations from within Iran, and recognizing the urgent need for an organized, credible, and peaceful transition away from authoritarian rule, further express our support for Reza Pahlavi as a transitional leader who has publicly committed to:

i. a secular and democratic political order;
ii. the territorial integrity of Iran;
iii. free and fair elections determined by the Iranian people; and,
iv. a transitional process grounded in justice, reconciliation, and the rule of law.

This support is grounded in a commitment to transparency, pluralism, and continued accountability to the Iranian people throughout the transitional process. It does not pre-empt the sovereign will of the Iranian people. Rather, it reflects the need for a unifying and internationally credible figure capable of facilitating a peaceful transition and creating the conditions for democratic self-determination.

We sign this statement in our personal capacity, not as representatives of our institutions. We do so bound by conscience, scholarly responsibility, and commitment to the future of Iran.

Signed in defence of academic freedom, human dignity, and the future of Iran, because silence is incompatible with our scholarly and civic responsibility.

Academics of the Iranian Diaspora