At a hearing held in the US congress entitled “Solidarity with Ashraf, Iran’s threats and Solutions” a number of US Congresspersons, their aids, human rights activists and representatives of Iranian-American societies from 40 states attended and condemned the explosion of water pumping station supplying water to Ashraf City and 20,000 people of the villages in Ashraf vicinity

Congress hearing in defense of Ashraf was held by the parliamentarian group of “Human Rights and Democracy in Iran”, and was sponsored by 50 clergy leaders, human rights activists and other NGOs from across the US. Reps. Bob Filner, California Democrat and chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Tom Toncredo, member of the Foreign Relations Committee and Republican from Colorado, Phil Gingrey, Republican and member of Armed Forces Committee, Ted Poe, Republican member of Foreign Relations Committee and former judge were present in this hearing. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs also sent her message to the solidarity hearing.

Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the Iranian Resistance in her message to the hearing that was read by Ms. Sona Samsami referred to the current situation in Iraq and the devastating role of the mullahs’ regime and said: “ Two years ago in the middle of what seemed to be a sectarian war in Iraq, I said in a similar address to a meeting at the US congress: “Today the underlined problem in Iraq is not a sectarian war, the forces loyal to the clerical regime are on one side, and democratic and nationalistic forces to oppose strongly the Iranian regime meddling in Iraq are in the other. They have rightly distinguished that establishing democracy in Iraq passes through ending hidden occupation of this country by the Iranian regime. They expect the US to stand by them for eviction of the Iranian regime from Iraq.”

Congressman Toncredo in his speech congratulated the victories of the Iranian Resistance in the courts in Britain and the European Union and referred to the threats of the mullahs’ regime against peace in the region, support of terrorism, and producing WMDs by the mullahs’ regime and recent suppression of students in Iran and added: “These events Make that government much more dangerous every day. Even today Iran’s activities are evident in fighting in Iraq to Lebanon”

Regarding the future of Iran he said: “That is of course what I hope: a government, a place, a country where the people’s words, the people’s feelings and desire can be expressed openly, where they can live in peace with their neighbors, seek economic opportunities that today evade them because of the suppressive nature of the regime. This is what of course I hope for Iran.”
Ted Poe, Republican member of Foreign Relations Committee said in his speeches: “The Iranian people want to be freed of despotism. As all human beings in the history of humanity, I personally hope that as a country, as the Congress, do our best to support the activities of the Iranian people in their struggle against despotism, against the suppressive government of Iran; a government that even the UN says that violates the rights of its own people.”