; Whereas the Iranian regime has stepped up hostage diplomacy as a primary tool of its foreign policy, using it against Western nations to release its criminals and terrorists; Whereas Asadullah Assadi, a senior Iranian diplomat based in the Iranian Embassy in Vienna, Austria, was arrested in July 2018 and in February 2021, convicted in Belgium and sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment in connection with the planned terror plot against Free Iran 2018—The Alternative gathering in Paris, France; Whereas the Iranian regime’s survival depends heavily on its internal suppression and terror campaign abroad, using its terror proxies; Whereas significant protests in Iran in the years 2018, 2019, and 2022 have echoed the demand for the rejection of the Velayat-e Faqih (guardianship of Islamic jurist) to safeguard the sovereignty of the people in a republic founded on universal suffrage and pluralism; Whereas, commencing in September 2022, widespread antigovernment protests were triggered by the untimely demise of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman who was detained by the morality police who are tasked with enforcing Iran’s mandatory dress code regulations; Whereas the leadership of the 2022 protests in Iran has been predominantly assumed by women and youth who ardently advocate for social freedoms and political transformation; Whereas, during several months of persistent protests in countless cities across Iran, the security forces of the regime caused the loss of life of hundreds and detained tens of thousands of demonstrators, and among the arrested, several individuals were executed starting in December 2022, and continuing to date, while dozens more face the specter of execution under charges of moharebeh (waging war on God); Whereas the uniformity in slogans and strategies employed by protesters nationwide underscores the overarching aspirations of the Iranian people for freedom and emphasizes the organized nature of these protests