In a separate event in Tehran’s Evin prison, all inmates in ward 350 gathered in his honor on Wednesday, February 22. In this gathering which lasted over an hour, participants lit candles and sang nationalist songs. At the end of the ceremony inmates pledged to continue on the same path as Hojjat and never surrender to mullahs’ tyrannical rule.
Hojjat was deeply respected and very much loved for his character, his compassion and above all his dedication to the cause of Iranian people, freedom and democracy.
Hojjat, a member of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, was 31 when he was hanged on February 7. Those with experience of clerical regime’s prisons admired his determination in defense of his ideals. He tolerated a variety of the most horrific physical and mental tortures for over four years but in the end it was the mullahs’ henchmen who conceded defeat before his will to rid Iran of the Islamic fundamentalism, the enemy of humanity. His firmness was a source of courage for everyone in particular his fellow prisoners.
Hojjat’s hanging was a clear admission by the regime that it cannot break the resolve of Iranian people to bring about changes to Iran. He was a symbol of resistance and his execution will only spread further his message to Iranians that the end of the regime is close.
One of his friends described his death as a price paid by the Iranian Resistance in its campaign to stop mullahs’ program to acquire nuclear weapons. This was indeed announced by prison authorities that if the regime’s nuclear file was referred to the UN Security Council, most of the political prisoners would be executed.
In secret ceremonies in Iran, supporters of the Iranian Resistance held memorial services and sent messages of sympathy to Hojjat’s family and the Iranian Resistance. A special massive ceremony was held in Camp Ashraf, Iraq, where thousands of PMOI members reside. Iraqi tribal leaders and social figures also attended the ceremony and paid respect to Hojjat. Supporters of the PMOI and the Resistance also held ceremonies and protest rallies in more than 40 locations across Europe, North America and Australia, condemning mullahs’ brutal murder and paying respect to Hojjat.
Hundreds of messages of sympathy and solidarity with the Iranian Resistance have poured in from many political and human rights organizations and personalities throughout the world. While reaffirming their support to the Resistance many of them praised the PMOI and its members for their steadfastness and appreciated the price they are paying to free Iran and secure peace and tranquility in the region.
Paulo Casaca, Member of European Parliament, and chairman of the Friends of a Free Iran expressed his condolences to the family and friends of Hojjat Zamani and the Iranian people in a letter to Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the Iranian Resistance. Casaca wrote that although the news of killings, torture and brutalities in Iran make him sad but they also make him "conscious of the urgency of the need to overthrow this regime."
The chairman of the French New Human Rights Organization, Pierre Bercis also sent a message to Mrs. Rajavi and expressed his condolences over the slaying of Hojjat Zamani. He said international pressure and condemnation of Iranian regime for pursuing its nuclear ambition is the outcome of the blood spilt from people like Hojjat.