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‘The Butcher of Tehran’: Diaspora Iranian Jews Celebrate Death of Raisi, Iran’s Hardline President
Former Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi addresses a Hamas solidarity rally in Tehran. Photo: Reuters/Sobhan Farajvan
Iranian Jews in the diaspora this week have been celebrating the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, whose long record of human rights abuses, Holocaust denial, and calls for Israel’s destruction have earned him infamy among Jewish communities worldwide.
Raisi, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, and several others died on Sunday in a helicopter crash in the mountainous forested region of northern Iran amid heavy fog that impeded rescue efforts.
News of Raisi’s death was quickly accompanied by reports of celebrations among diaspora Iranians of all backgrounds. For Jews, their reactions were set against a backdrop of anger directed at the Iranian regime, which drove the vast majority of Iran’s ancient and thriving Jewish community into the diaspora during and immediately after the 1979 Islamic Revolution — reducing a community that had previously numbered over 100,000 to a few thousand within a few years.
Dr. Sheila Nazarian, a celebrity plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills, California, published that she “would shed no tears for Ebrahim Raisi, the ‘butcher of Tehran.’”
“As a woman born in Iran, I feel not just a sense of celebration at the death of this evil man, but of relief,” she wrote. “It is a feeling I share with a great many of my countrymen, and — in particular — countrywomen.”
Nazarian pointed to Raisi’s stint as deputy prosecutor of Tehran, where he sentenced thousands of political prisoners to death in “sham trials that lasted mere minutes” during Iran’s 1988 political purge.
Nazarian further mentioned Iran’s extensive support — including money, weapons, and training — for terrorist organizations across the Middle East during Raisi’s presidency. Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in the Palestinian territories, Shi’a militias in Iraq, and the Houthis in Yemen are among the armed groups backed by Tehran.
Along with blatant Holocaust denial and violent repression of women and popular dissent in the 2022 anti-government “Women, Life, Freedom” demonstrations, Raisi has been widely criticized by human rights organizations.
The deceased Iranian president has also consistently called for the elimination of Israel, saying he would “celebrate its end.”
“From his early days, Raisi epitomized the worst of Iran’s theocratic regime,” Nazarian wrote.
Others expressed hope that the death of Raisi could ultimately foster positive change in Iran.
“We hope that the death of President Raisi will usher in an era of freedom for the Iranian people and a quieter and more peaceful Middle East,” Elie Alyeshmerni, president of the Iranian American Jewish Federation, told The Algemeiner.
Meanwhile, comedian Menachem Kashanian released a video on Instagram highlighting the connections between Raisi’s death and the trial of Arvin Netanel Ghahremani, the 20-year-old Iranian Jewish man who was sentenced to death after reportedly killing an assailant in self-defense. On Sunday, Ghahremani’s execution was postponed until next month.
Kashanian compared the events to those of Purim, the Jewish holiday that commemorates the saving of the Jewish people from annihilation at the hands of the Persian emperor’s antisemitic minister Haman, an official in ancient Achaemenid Iran. Haman was ultimately hanged.
Elsewhere on social media, youth activists and commentators chimed in with comedy in the wake of Raisi’s death.
They especially pounced on a message on a Telegram channel affiliated with the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, which said Raisi had been assassinated by Mossad agent “Eli Copter.”
It is unclear whether the original post was intended to be humorous, trolling, or fake news. Either way, the post went viral, and social media users posted slews of memes parodying and lauding the fictitious Mossad agent allegedly responsible for the demise of Raisi. Other memes included edits lampooning Raisi set to the song “Helikopter” by Bosnian singer Fazlija.
Raisi’s funeral was held on Wednesday and attended by leaders of some of Iran’s terrorist proxies, including Hamas and Hezbollah. The Iranian president will be buried in his home city of Mashhad on Thursday.
The post ‘The Butcher of Tehran’: Diaspora Iranian Jews Celebrate Death of Raisi, Iran’s Hardline President first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.