Despite the Iranian regime’s relentless reliance on executing political prisoners to instill fear in the public, the spirit of resistance across Iran remains unbroken. Across the country, PMOI Resistance Units have launched a widespread campaign of defiance to honor the 54th anniversary of the execution of the founders of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Against the backdrop of the regime’s brutal crackdowns, these activities demonstrate that the regime’s efforts have completely backfired, and the movement is stronger than ever.
Widespread and daring activities of Resistance Units
In highly visible and coordinated efforts, Resistance Units carried out daring activities in major cities including Tehran, Tabriz, Sanandaj, Amol, Karaj, Shiraz, Rasht, Kerman, Arak, Lahijan, and Babolsar. In the capital, activists bravely laid flower wreaths directly on the graves of PMOI founders Mohammad Hanifnejad, Saeed Mohsen, and Asghar Badizadegan.
May 24—Iran
PMOI/MEK Resistance Units honor the memory of PMOI founders Mohammad Hanifnejad, Ali Asghar Badizadegan, and Saeed Mohsen, on the 54th anniversary of their execution by the brutal regime of the shah on May 25, 1972. pic.twitter.com/6WQKYZzWJW— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 25, 2026
Activists are adopting increasingly bold tactics to send a clear message of defiance to the regime. In Tehran, units marched publicly with images of the founders. In Shiraz, armed PMOI Resistance Units held placards reading, “Hanif’s blood is alive as the Mojahedin roar.” This exact message was echoed by activists in Rasht and Lahijan.
Furthermore, Resistance Units hung large posters of the founders and Iranian Resistance leader Massoud Rajavi from pedestrian bridges and public walls. Banners in Tehran and Karaj displayed the message: “Through their ultimate sacrifice, Hanif, Saeed, and Badizadegan shattered every deadlock and paved the way forward.” In Sanandaj, a large placard honored the anniversary, noting the founders were executed “at the command of the treacherous shah and the executioners of the SAVAK in 1972.”
The historical context of sacrifice
The unparalleled courage of today’s Resistance Units is deeply rooted in the legacy established by the PMOI’s founders. May 25 marks the execution of Hanifnejad, Mohsen, and Badizadegan, along with Central Committee members Mahmoud Asgarizadeh and Rasoul Meshkinfam, by the Shah’s dictatorial regime in 1972. After their arrest, the Shah’s secret police, the SAVAK, brutally tortured them, offering to spare their lives if they repented and renounced their struggle. They refused to back down.
Amol
Poster of PMOI founder Mohammad Hanifnejad pic.twitter.com/UG5DZUnp8Y— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 25, 2026
Hanifnejad revolutionized the struggle for freedom. At a time when fundamentalist mullahs sought to divide society between believers and non-believers, he established that the true demarcation line lies between the oppressor and the oppressed. This ideology founded a professional, scientific struggle that united freedom-loving people and ensured the movement would survive beyond opportunism and cost-free tactics.
A legacy that renders executions ineffective
The current regime’s strategy of mass executions is fundamentally flawed because it confronts a movement built by leaders who embraced the ultimate sacrifice. Hanifnejad was the pioneer of selfless sacrifice, a conviction that resounded in the halls of Evin prison when he knocked on his cell door and told his torturers, “I am ready! Why don’t you take me?”
This steadfastness echoed throughout the 1988 massacre of political prisoners, where PMOI members mocked executioners like Ebrahim Raisi by shouting, “I am a Mojahed! Come and take me too!” and more recently in the heroic stance of PMOI members who did not bow before the regime’s executioners and remained steadfast even in the regime’s dungeons.
The regime sentenced six PMOI/MEK members to death but did not manage to break them. In a brave act of defiance, they chanted the "Rise Battalion" anthem in Ghezel Hesar prison, proving that not even death will stop them from pursuing the cause of freedom in Iran. pic.twitter.com/Tt0eFE4KlG
— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) May 22, 2026
Today, the Resistance Units inherit this exact faith. Through actions like installing posters in Tabriz declaring, “Mohammad Hanif and his comrades rose up to fulfill their historic mission,” the Iranian youth prove that they will not shy away from paying any price. Five decades of executions have failed to crush the PMOI, because its members know that revolutionaries always see the sun of freedom, even through the darkest clouds.