What I want to say, now, is that there are several human rights cases against the US which should be seriously pursued by the UN. These cases are unresolved and unfinished. Some of these cases have never opened up in the first place.
- One of these issues is the burning of a centre which belonged to the Branch Davidians: it happened during the term of Clinton. Why is this issue not pursued? Some people, some group, which is affiliated with the Christian denomination gathered in a building. The government was opposed to this for some reason which might be legitimate or not. We will assume that they had a legitimate reason. Well, what do governments usually do in such cases? They usually arrest and capture them, but the US government did not do this. They set the compound on fire, burning and killing tens of women, men, and children! Why is this not pursued? With this history, does the US have the competence to warn others on human rights issues? The UN should pursue this: this is an important and definite issue and a case which should be pursued.
- The second issue is the Guantanamo Prison Camp. Well, the Guantanamo Prison is visible to everyone. Why did the Americans capture some people and keep them there for several years without any trial, and under the most difficult circumstances? One of the reasons why Obama won the election was that he had promised in his election campaign to close down Guantanamo, but he did not do so. He held office for eight years, but the prison was preserved. In the present time, too, it exists. Even if we assume that it is closed today, the history of this prison and the crimes that have been committed there should be pursued. The United Nations should pursue this case. They capture and transfer some people – primarily from Afghanistan and other places – to that prison, and they keep them there for several years under the most difficult circumstances: in handcuffs, shackles, blindfolds, with terrible food and a very unhealthy environment. Is this a minor event? The United Nations should pursue this matter.
- Another issue is the Abu Ghraib Prison in Iraq. The methods of torture which have been committed in Abu Ghraib Prison are unprecedented among torturers around the world, like the Zionist regime which is the manifestation of torture. It is distinctive even if we consider the tortures which were committed by the Pahlavi regime, and that was controlled by the Israelis as well. The methods of torture committed in Abu Ghraib Prison were worse and more severe than all other examples. Well, now the Americans have been expelled from Iraq. The Abu Ghraib Prison fell into the hands of the Iraqis, but the case is still a case, and it should be pursued: this is a very important issue. There is a prison similar to the Abu Ghraib Prison which is located in Afghanistan. It is an American-based prison located in Afghanistan which was not controlled by the Afghanistan government, rather it was controlled by the Americans. The Afghanis used to complain about it. The Afghani officials were upset, and they used to bring this up with us, and everyone knew about this. The same things which were done in Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib prisons were done in this Afghanistani prison as well. They used to have some prisons in Europe, too, but we do not have a lot of information about them.
- Another case which the UN should definitely pursue is the freedom of selling guns in the US with which so many crimes are being committed. You hear and witness that every day in schools, in universities, in markets, and on the street that a teenager, a man, or a woman fires a volley of bullets at some people because of some problem they have – they are extremely angry, or they are mad and have some personal problems. They kill eight, ten, twenty – more or less – people, and families mourn the loss of their dear ones. Why do they not stop this? The reason is that gun companies prevent this, and the US administrations are under the influence of these companies. This is a very important issue which should be addressed and pursued by the UN.
- Another issue is the criminal behaviour of the US government and police towards African Americans. African Americans that are accused or suspected are condemned to all sorts of hardships. They are even shot to death, and there is nothing wrong with this according to the West! After such events, they fabricate some story in court and release the real sociopathic murderer: that poor victim’s blood was spilt with not justice. This can be pursued as well.
- Another issue is the issue of creating DAESH, which was openly mentioned by the current US president in his election campaign. Of course, we were aware of this before. They had said that the US had a role in creating DAESH, and they had initiated the matter. In some places, they acted as intermediaries and in some places, they were directly involved. We had some information showing that they were helping DAESH in Iraq in various cases. The Americans helped DAESH sell oil and escape from the sieges that had been planted. They helped them in all these cases. Another issue is their assistance to the Zionist regime in the massacre of the people, the last example of which is the recent massacre in Gaza.
- Another issue is helping the Saudi government on the massacre of Yemeni people and helping the Bahraini government in the crimes that they commit against their people. These are matters that the UN should get involved in. If the United Nations is the United Nations, if it is not an organization dependent on the US regime, it should get involved in such events. These are the tasks that the UN should carry out. Are these unreasonable expectations?
The Islamic Republic's statements are cogent, logical and provable. In all the areas that we mentioned, if we are accusing the US, we have cogent and convincing reasons. If we do not trust Europe, we have cogent reasons. Regarding domestic issues, if we believe that we should trust and rely on domestic capacities, there are sound reasons behind this. There are logical reasons behind the things that we demanded from the UN as well. This exact and thorough cogency and rationality is the thing that has, by Allah's favour, preserved the Islamic Republic with power and strength until today.
Imam Khamenei, May 23, 2018
