NCRI-US: Tens of Thousands Rally in Berlin, Reject Monarchy and Theocracy, Back Iran’s Uprising for Regime Change

Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, addresses the rally by tens of thousands at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate on Feb 7, 2026, to back Iran’s uprising for regime change and a free republic, rejecting monarchy and theocracy.

Tens of thousands rally at Berlin’s historic Brandenburg Gate on Feb 7, 2026, to reject monarchy and theocracy and back Iran’s uprisings for regime change. Iranians of diverse nationalities stood together united for a free, democratic republic.

Young Iranian supporters of the National Council of Resistance of Iran sing the patriotic ‘Ey Iran’ anthem, standing by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, as tens of thousands rally at Brandenburg Gate on Feb 7, 2026, to back Iran’s uprising for regime change and a free republic.

Tens of thousands rally at Berlin’s historic Brandenburg Gate on Feb 7, 2026, to reject monarchy and theocracy and back Iran’s uprisings for regime change. Iranians of diverse generations and nationalities stood together united for a free republic.

Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), pays tribute to the martyrs of Iran’s January 2026 uprising at Brandenburg Gate on Feb 7, 2026, as tens of thousands rally to back Iran’s uprising for regime change and a free republic.

Iranians of diverse nationalities — including Kurds, Azeris, Baluchis, Arabs, Turkmens, Lurs, and Gilakis — stand together in Berlin for a democratic republic.

The Constitution of future Iran will be drafted by a constituent assembly, elected no later than six months after the regime’s overthrow.”

— Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the NCRI

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, February 12, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered at Berlin’s historic Brandenburg Gate on Saturday, February 7, 2026, in freezing temperatures, voicing support for uprisings seeking regime change in Iran. For two days prior to and on the day of the rally, most flights to Berlin were canceled due to severe weather, leaving many speakers and participants unable to attend. Yet the event turned out to be unprecedentedly large.

Marking the anniversary of Iran’s 1979 revolution, the rally became far more than a commemorative event; it was a powerful demonstration of inclusivity, unity, and a shared democratic vision for Iran’s future.

The event brought together Iranians of all nationalities and ethnic backgrounds, including Kurds, Azeris, Baluchis, Arabs, Lurs, Turkmens, Gilakis, and others, symbolizing a future in which unity will be central to Iran's progress.

Across the program, speakers conveyed a common political message: rejection of the tyranny of both the Shah and the ruling theocracy; confidence in the resistance’s organizational capacity—especially the Resistance Units led by the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI, also known as MEK); and support for an orderly post-regime transition anchored in the Ten-Point Plan of the democratic opposition, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).

Addressing the rally in person, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the NCRI, told the crowd that the overthrow “countdown” had begun and cast the Resistance Units as the uprising’s organized backbone.

Stressing the Resistance’s “No to Shah, no to mullahs” demarcation, Mrs. Rajavi presented a preview of post-overthrow Iran: a democratic republic, separation of religion and state, gender equality, and a non-nuclear Iran, with a constituent assembly drafting a new constitution within months. She said, “According to the program of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, the constitution of future Iran will be drafted by a constituent assembly, elected no later than six months after the regime’s overthrow.”

The NCRI President-elect for the transitional period emphasized, “The spirit and constant refrain of what our people demand is: freedom, freedom, and freedom. It is the active and equal participation of women in leadership, and justice for all; the equal participation of all, especially Iran’s ethnic nationalities, in rights and governance, including Kurds, Baluchis, Turkmens, and Arabs.”

Mrs. Rajavi urged international action focused on practical support for Iranians, including open internet access and accountability for the regime’s senior officials, while insisting that regime change must be led by Iranians and their organized resistance.

Mike Pompeo, former U.S. Secretary of State, referring to the January uprising, stressed that the moment was bigger than a cycle of unrest: “This isn’t just a protest movement… This is a revolution.”

Former Secretary Pompeo emphasized that the decisive struggle is internal: “The regime cannot be overthrown from outside,” he said, arguing that outside actors can support but cannot substitute for an organized domestic force. He repeatedly framed the resistance’s strength as its structure—networks that persist under repression—and pointed to the Resistance Units as evidence that the opposition is not merely rhetorical.

Mr. Pompeo also presented the NCRI’s Ten-Point Plan as the practical answer to the two questions he said Western capitals always ask: “Is there an alternative?” and “What happens the day after?”

“For those in the West who continue to labor under the misapprehension that there’s no alternative to the current government, I want to be very clear: You are wrong on every level. This erases the aspirations of millions of Iranians who have risked their lives to demand change, ignores the existence of the organized opposition, and perpetuates the regime’s propaganda that the West must tolerate its brutality because the alternative is chaos. But we see the alternative in front of us here, and in the towns and cities across your beautiful country — and it is a glorious thing.”

Hon. Pompeo described the NCRI’s plan as a transition blueprint toward a secular republic, gender equality, early elections, and a non-nuclear Iran, and warned that any “strongman solution,” including monarchist restoration, would reproduce dictatorship under a different symbol.

Charles Michel, former President of the European Council, linked Berlin’s own democratic rupture to Iran’s trajectory, telling the crowd that “no wall is eternal” and that “freedom cannot be defeated forever.”

Former European Council President Michel argued that Europe’s policy must stop treating Tehran as a permanent fixture: “Appeasement does not work,” he said, while also insisting that “no foreign military intervention can bring a lasting and stable solution.” In his framing, the missing ingredient is not anger but architecture—an organized alternative capable of carrying a transition without being captured by power-seekers.

He called the NCRI’s Ten-Point Plan “the right recipe to move from tyranny to democracy,” saying it offers a “solid bridge” from protest to a pluralist republic grounded in free elections, equality, and separation of religion and state. Michel also took aim at monarchist currents, warning Iranians not to let anyone “steal your dreams” or “hijack the future,” portraying such attempts as trading one form of authoritarianism for another.

Sasan Khatouni, Representative of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, argued that Iran’s future hinges on preventing a return to personality-based rule, whether imperial or theocratic.

Mr. Khatouni said nationalities in Iran’s periphery have endured repression under both the monarchy and the theocracy and urged that any democratic transition must guarantee equal rights and political inclusion for Iran’s diverse nationalities. He warned that regime change without dismantling authoritarian habits can reproduce dictatorship, especially when politics becomes “person-centric.”

While endorsing unity around a democratic program, Mr. Khatouni insisted that real legitimacy requires pluralism, safeguards, and equal citizenship — not a new strongman marketed as a shortcut. He closed with a slogan aligned with the rally’s central message: “Neither monarchy nor a supreme leader: democracy, equality.”

Peter Altmaier, former German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, argued that Europe should stop waiting for Iran’s rulers to “modernize” and instead align policy with a defined democratic endpoint.

Mr. Altmaier said Iranians had once hoped that a government “without the Shah” would bring democracy — and warned that the current authorities have destroyed any remaining legitimacy by responding to dissent with violence and repression. He urged a tougher European stance, calling for “more and tougher sanctions” and fewer illusions about reform.

Mr. Altmaier appealed to newsrooms to focus on the NCRI’s Ten-Point Plan as a benchmark for what a democratic transition should guarantee: freedom, rule of law, and equal rights, and ended with an encouragement aimed at perseverance: “Do not despair. You shall overcome!”

Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, former German Federal Minister of Justice, framed the rally as a legal and moral test of Europe’s consistency on rights. “We are in the right place, at the Brandenburg Gate,” she said, tying Germany’s own democratic breakthroughs to Iran’s demand for freedom.

Hon. Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger argued that a credible alternative must be measurable in institutions and liberties — “freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, free elections, and the separation of religion and state” — and said these principles are not abstract but life-or-death under a system of detention and coercion. She urged policymakers to put human rights first in any engagement: “The first demand must be: Release the detainees… imprisoned because they took to the streets for their freedom,” she said, also condemning executions and calling for accountability mechanisms that reach decision-makers, not only foot soldiers.

The former minister highlighted women’s rights as a core democratic indicator, citing the right to live without fear of discrimination in dress, speech, or public presence.

Jalal Khoshkelam, a member of the Central Committee of the Khabat Organization of Iranian Kurdistan, argued that Tehran tried to hide brutal repression by shutting down communications. The clerical authorities, he said, “cut the internet completely” to create “digital darkness” — but “the truth will not remain hidden.”

Mr. Khoshkelam stated that reliable reports and morgue images show the number of dead has “passed thousands,” and said the regime, as always, spilled young people’s blood “without mercy” to survive.

Ending on a unifying note, Mr. Khoshkelam said the struggle would continue “against the Shah and the mullahs” until overthrow, prosecution of perpetrators, and the achievement of freedom.

NCRI supporter Naghmeh Rajabi, speaking at the rally, framed the uprising’s political compass as non-negotiable: no recycling of authoritarianism under a new symbol. The goal, she said, is a democratic republic — “not one that swaps the turban for the crown.”

She argued that symbolic steps are insufficient without recognizing the people’s right to resist repression, highlighting the Resistance Units as central to confronting the IRGC’s violence.

Ms. Rajabi also criticized what she called “fake opposition,” stating that monarchist currents are trying to claim leadership from afar while others “fight” and “shed blood.” Ending with a line aimed at both dictatorships, she said: “Death to the oppressor, whether Shah or the supreme leader.”

Hiva Mohammadi, an Iranian youth speaker at the Berlin rally, focused on organization as the resistance’s core strength. She told protesters inside Iran that diaspora demonstrations are meant to signal continuity and support: “You are not alone.” Ms. Mohammadi framed the resistance’s strength as disciplined endurance — converting fear and grief into coordinated action — and described the Resistance Units as a youth-driven structure that makes protest scalable under heavy repression.

“We do not surrender to grief and paralysis,” she said, describing a shift toward “organized anger” aimed at overthrow. Her remarks echoed rejection of monarchy as a historical lesson, but her emphasis was practical: sustained networks, shared strategy, and a clear democratic destination so that sacrifice is not diverted into another authoritarian project.

The rally was followed by a march of tens of thousands of demonstrators through Berlin’s streets.

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These materials are being distributed by the National Council of Resistance of Iran-U.S. Representative Office (NCRI-US). Additional information is on file with the Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.

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