Regime change in Iran: Iran is a ticking time bomb

Your organization (the National Council for the Resistance of Iran) is a pillar for democratic change in a time of turmoil.

Human rights are nonexistent in Iran, and there is no such thing as freedom of the press, freedom of speech or freedom of religion. Iran is not a land of freedom; it’s a land of oppression. Groups like the MEK that have risen up in opposition have seen this firsthand. You have been jailed, exiled, and some members have been executed for protesting the dictatorship.

The United States is holding nuclear weapons talks trying to make a deal with Iran. A nuclear Iran is not only a threat to the Middle East but to America as well. In my opinion, any deal with Iran is going to be a bad deal. On all fronts, Iran is a ticking time bomb that must be disassembled.

Recently, my subcommittee held a hearing on ISIS and its radical Islamic belief. Madame Rajavi testified and told the world how ISIS and Iran have a lot in common, and I want to thank her for outlining to the world the threat of ISIS. She is a true inspiration for all who believe in freedom, and her leadership makes the tyrants in Iran tremble at night. In combating Iran’s Islamic extremism, she said that the ultimate solution is regime change, and I agree. Change must happen by the Iranian people and the resistance.

• Mr. Poe is a Republican House member representing Texas and chairman of the Foreign Affairs subcommittee on terrorism and nonproliferation. The above are adapted and excerpted from remarks he gave at the June 13 event in Paris.