On the 8th of November 2017, the 52-year-old Leader of The Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Al-Ahwaz, Ahmad Mola, was assassinated by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards. The perpetrator of the assassination has not yet been officially identified.
Ahmad Mola had been on Iran’s ‘wanted list’ for a long time. The Iranian regime even tried to bring Ahmad Mola back to Iran, through Interpol, to execute him in Iran. In 1997, the Ahwazi separatist leader established The Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Al-Ahwaz. Since its founding, the main goal of the organization was to seek independence from Iranian occupation.
Ahmad Mola escaped Ahwaz after the 2005 protest, where thousands of political and human rights activists were killed or captured and brutally tortured before being put to death by the Iranian regime.
The biggest demonstration in Ahwaz was on the 15th of April 2005. It was brought about by the publication of a letter that outlined how the government planned to change the population of Al-Ahwaz via ethnic cleansing and forced migration of Arabs from the region.
During these 2005 protests, thousands of political and human rights activists were killed or captured by the Iranian regime and charged with being “Enemies of God.” Since then, Ahwazi Arabs have shown their resistance against the Iranian regime by protests which occur every year at this time.
These protests are firstly, to commemorate the anniversary of the 1925 occupation of Ahwaz and secondly, to commemorate the anniversary of the 2005 April Intifada.
On a regular basis, Ahwazi Arabs are being arrested, imprisoned, tortured and executed by The Ministry of Intelligence of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Vezarat-e Ettela’at Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran).
Before the Iranian occupation, Ahwazi Arabs had land by the name of Al-Ahwaz, or as it used to be called, ‘Arabistan’.
Al-Ahwaz’s last ruler was Prince Khazaal Al-Kaabi who reigned from 1861 to 1936. He struggled to keep his country self-governing, even though his larger neighbours, such as Iran, showed a great interest in Al-Ahwaz.
But there was much tumult between the west and the east at that time. Friends became enemies, and various countries became oppressive over their neighbours. It was during this unrest that the Iranian government, ruled by the racist and cruel Reza Khan, started to invade Al-Ahwaz in April 1925. Reza Khan entered with force and aggression to occupy Al-Ahwaz, my home, my land.
They captured the Leader of Al-Ahwaz, Prince (Shaikh) Khazaal Al-Kaabi and transported him to Tehran. They executed him in 1936. When the Iranian regime occupied Al-Ahwaz they disregarded all human rights and started executing any Arab Ahwazis who opposed them.
The assassination of Ahmad Mola proves how scared the Iranian regime is of the Ahwazi Arab movement and what Ahmad Mola represents. It is easy to see how important Al-Ahwaz is from an economic point of view to the Iranian government. Ahwaz has some of the richest agricultural lands in the Arabic region as well as having an aboundance of water, fish, fruit, wheat, and palm tree resources.
Ahwaz is also one of the most oil-rich nations in the world. Ahwaz is now the backbone of Iran. When the oil industry was in its infancy, Ahwaz became the first country in the middle east to enter it – oil was discovered there in 1908 and exported from Abadan refinement in 1911 – exactly 14 years before the Ahwaz occupation. The Iranian regime has been exporting 5 million barrels a day for decades now to be used in Iranian and international markets. That makes up to 82% of the Iranian national income, according to Iranian economic exports.
Terrorizing Ahmad Mola will do nothing for Iran, as there are many Ahmad Molas around the world to keep fighting the fights for Ahwazi Arabs – the people without a voice.
