In a strongly-worded speech in Paris, Mr Ridge also condemned the ‘savagery, violence and inhumanity’ of the ruling Mullahs who brutally oppress their own people.
And he called for Iranian dissidents in Camp Liberty in Iraq to be returned to Ashraf before they can be moved to the safety of third countries.
Mr Ridge was speaking in the French capital on August 3 at a conference of Arab and Islamic Nation marking the holy month of Ramadan.
He told delegates: “I have chosen to speak out against the oppression of the tyrannical regime that today rules the once proud nation of Iran and am honored to join you in that cause today.
“Everyone in this room knows the savagery, the violence and the inhumanity of the Iranian government. This is a regime that brutally oppressed and oppresses its own population, its fellow Muslims.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACjyKIU9HpM
Mr Ridge described it as ‘ironic’ that the conference coincided with the 25th anniversary of the massacre of thirty thousand Muslim prisoners of conscience, based on a fatwa by Ayatollah Khomeini.
He added: “The mullahs’ legacy for the Iranian people has been nothing but suffering, death, decay, destruction, poverty and pain.
“Its record is equally ruthless when it comes to its relationship with the international community. Since its inception Iran has created and funded extremist groups around the world, most notably Hezbollah but there are so many others.
“The killing of innocent Muslims and non-Muslims is embraced by these radical fundamentalists, terrorism is part of the Iranian regime’s DNA.”
Iran had used Syria, Yemen, Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and other places as ‘recruitment markets and alternative battlegrounds’ in their attempt to prevent the blossoming of democracy in the region, Mr Ridge said.
And nowhere was this more evident than in Syria where Assad’s murderous regime had killed more than 100.000 innocent men, women and children while enjoying the full, complete, financial, military and political backing of Tehran, he told delegates.
He said: “I stand with Madam Rajavi and everyone here and commend the people of Syria and the Free Syrian Army for their valiant resistance and perseverance in the face of unspeakable inhumanity.
“The Iranian regime will continue on this path of death and destruction. It’s attempts to acquire weapons of mass destruction are meant to preserve its decaying rule in Iran in the face of a disenchanted population. If the Iranian regime acquires nuclear weapons, make no mistake about it, the world can expect it to spurn more extremism, terrorism an fundamentalism.”
He accused Iran’s mullahs of committing unjustified crimes against the Iranian people, adding: “They stone women to death, torture, rape, carry out draconian punishments such as limb amputations and public executions and they do it all in the name of Islam.
“We all know that Madam Rajavi, the MEK [the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran] and the freedom-loving Iranians are devout Muslims and reject the mullahs and their perverted expression and exploitation of their faith.
“That is why the courageous men and women in Ashraf and Liberty must be shielded from the unholy fundamentalists who seek their destruction and demise.
“I’m here to remind my government that it promised to protect and defend the residents of Ashraf and Liberty under the 4th Geneva Convention and tragically and unconscionably to date have failed to do so.
“I’m here because the Iraqi government has conspired with Iran to terrorize, harass and murder the residents of Ashraf and Liberty and to call on my government to remove them immediately from Iraqi soil to safe haven where the stalled UN resettlement efforts can begin in earnest. If they cannot remove them from Iraq, let them return to Ashraf.
“And if they will not let them return them to Ashraf, call on the Malaki government to provide them defense at Camp Liberty until the United Nations can proceed quickly with its resettlement efforts.
“We are proud to join you, Madam Rajavi, as you lead the efforts to replace the evil and the tyranny of the mullahs and their distortion of your proud and honorable religion with a democratic government committed to the sacred values of peace, harmony and justice.”