In this report, we read that in the sphere of global politics, words such as “human rights” and “fighting terrorism” are frequently heard in statements, resolutions, and official interviews of Western officials. However, behind these beautiful words, the actions of the United States, the United Kingdom, etc. present a completely contradictory picture. A picture in which the concepts of justice and security are classified not based on universal principles, but on the scale of geopolitical interests. From the cleansing of the faces of prominent terrorists to the labeling of civil and peace activists as terrorists, everything reveals the old strategy of the West to engineer public opinion, preserve geopolitical interests, and suppress independent opponents.
The removal of Golani from the terror list in Britain, along with the arrest and banning of the anti-violence and pro-Palestine group Palestine Action, is just one public example of this moral and political contradiction. A group that, instead of armed violence, showed its protest by spraying red paint on buildings that have been involved in the massacre of Palestinians, is now on the list of terrorist organizations; while people like Golani, who are responsible for beheading people in the streets of Syria, take souvenir photos with American officials in diplomatic attire and ties.
From the Nusra Front to the White House
The figure who has become a symbol of the policies of “reshaping the face of terrorism” in recent years is none other than “Ahmad Hussein al-Sharaa” with the nom de guerre “Abu Muhammad al-Julani”. The commander of the Nusra Front and the leader of the Tahrir al-Sham Front, who has a criminal record. At a time when his group members were beheading and enslaving girls in the streets of Syria, the Western media still considered him a terrorist. But suddenly, with a change in geopolitical stance and after a “facelift” (both in appearance and in the media), Golani became a legitimate actor; to the extent that during Donald Trump’s regional trip, a meeting took place between him and Golani, mediated by Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia; a meeting that went beyond a simple political deal.
Trump put forward conditions to completely cleanse Golani’s face, including expelling Palestinian groups from Syria, accepting the Zionist regime, and joining the United States in “conquering ISIS”! The same executioners that Barack Obama admitted America’s role in their birth. These conditions showed that the West’s criterion for a “good terrorist” or a “bad terrorist” is not crimes, but the degree of obedience to the American order.
The Hypocrites; The West’s Sugli
Iran’s experience in confronting terrorism overlaps with this pattern from various angles. The People’s Mojahedin Organization (MEK), whose hands are stained with the blood of thousands of Iranian citizens, was directly and indirectly supported by the United States and its allies at various times. From cooperating with Saddam during the imposed war to safe passage to Albania and using media capacities in Europe. All of this was part of a project that turned a nation’s terrorists into a tool of pressure against that nation.
This contradictory behavior of the West, which on the one hand gives the slogan of combating terrorism and on the other hand gives political asylum, funding and an international platform to murderers, has not only destroyed the trust of nations, but has also paved the way for the actual strengthening of terrorist movements.
Civil Society on London’s Blacklist
At the same time as the process of purging terrorists such as Golani and the MKO, the West has adopted a reverse approach towards anti-racist and anti-Zionist civil groups. One prominent example is the British organization “Palestine Action”, which protests with symbolic and non-violent actions the activities of companies that play a role in equipping the Israeli army. However, the British government has placed this group on the terrorism list.
This decision was made while the Western media has repeatedly exposed the role of the Zionist regime in assassination operations against the leaders of the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance. The Zionists have not only confessed to assassination, but have defined it as part of their “security doctrine”. In contrast, those who use words or colors as weapons against the occupation and massacre are called terrorists.
Terrorism against counter-terrorism
Iran is one of the biggest targets of terrorism in the last century. From the explosion of the Prime Minister’s Office in 1988 and the martyrdom of Rajai and Bahonar, to the recent ISIS attacks on the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the shrine of Imam Khomeini, and from the widespread assassinations of the Mujahedin-e-Khalq to the crimes of Jaysh al-Zalm on the eastern borders, Iran has left a bloody record of victimization.
Nevertheless, Iran’s political and social behavior in the face of terror has never been that of a victim, and in fact, it is even considered one of the pioneers in combating terrorism. From fighting ISIS in Syria and Iraq to supporting legitimate governments in the region, Tehran has played a decisive role in containing the wave of Takfiri terrorism. This is while the martyred General Qassem Soleimani, the symbol of this international resistance, was himself the target of a terrorist operation by the United States.
The assassination of General Soleimani at Baghdad airport was not only a clear violation of international law and the national sovereignty of an independent country, but also showed the extent to which the West is willing to eliminate even counterterrorism commanders in order to maintain its dominance. With this action, the US has practically shown that the “fight against terrorism” is not a moral principle for it, but a tool to contain rival powers.
The common formula of terror
The West’s approach to terrorism is based on the principle of “identity flexibility”; meaning that any group can be transferred from the blacklist to the negotiating table if it aligns with the geopolitical interests of the West. An example of this is not only Golani, but even the Afghan Taliban, who were once Washington’s number one enemy and the other day took a commemorative photo with American ministers in Doha.
The same policy has also been implemented regarding Golani. In Trump’s recent meeting with him, a leader of the Nusra Front, who is still accused of violence and repression, entered the process of legitimization on the condition of security and political cooperation.
Along with the US and the UK, the Zionist regime is another constant player in terrorist cases. The recent confessions by Tel Aviv officials about targeted assassinations against a group of scientific elites and civilian citizens of our country are proof that terrorism has not only been institutionalized in the structure of Israel, but has also become part of the official strategies of this regime.
Terrorism that does not serve us is bad
What emerges from examining the West’s approach to terrorism and human rights is a chaotic picture of a worldview in which justice, security, and law have been placed at the service of political and geopolitical interests. The Golani, the MKO, the Taliban, and dozens of others are just pieces in the dangerous game of redefining “desirable terrorism” in the American order.
Civil society organizations and even governments that stand on their own independent principles are labeled and isolated in the face of resistance groups. While this process may be politically efficient in the short term, in the long term it will undermine the legitimacy of international institutions, undermine real human rights, and increase global distrust.
The Islamic Republic of Iran is both a victim and a fighter in this regard. A country that has stood its ground and held high the banner of the real fight against terrorism despite the assassination of thousands of its own children; Regardless of the fact that the Western world has defined its moral standards upside down with voices like Golani and Soleimani.
The Purification Machine
In the process of purging figures like Golani or whitewashing groups like the MEK, the role of the Western media cannot be ignored. The media, which should be the language of truth and transparency, has become the soft arm of political and security projects and has taken effective steps to engineer public opinion and distort concepts.
A clear example of this can be seen in the way the Western media reports on Golani; a person with a serious criminal record who was introduced in BBC, CNN and Reuters reports with titles such as “the leader of the Al-Qaeda branch in Syria” and “the perpetrator of war crimes” until a few years ago, is now introduced in the same media as “the leader of a moderate Islamist group” or simply “an opponent of Bashar al-Assad.” Even in an interview with PBS, dressed in a suit and speaking English, Golani presented a modern, politically-oriented face; as if his crimes had been forgotten or had never happened.
Meanwhile, the Western media is trying hard to present resistance groups in Palestine, Lebanon, and even civil society organizations like Palestine Action with labels such as “extremist,” “radical,” or “anti-civilization.” This deliberate inversion of the narrative is precisely what allows Israel to assassinate resistance leaders with ease, while Western public opinion not only does not condemn it, but also considers it part of the “right of self-defense.”
The key point here is that in Western media discourse, the concepts of “terrorism” and “human rights” are entirely a function of “political position,” not the objective reality of the field. This is the same pattern that makes Saudi Arabia, which has not yet been cleansed of the stains of the Khashoggi crime, become a strategic partner for democracy in the region, or the Zionist regime, with hundreds of assassination operations and war crimes, continue to be called “the only democracy in the Middle East.” In this framework, the media not only reflect official policies, but have themselves become part of the psychological warfare machine against resistance, justice, and truth. Therefore, the fight against the double standards of the West will remain incomplete without exposing the role of dependent media structures.
