PARIS—Iranians and supporters gathered Sunday at Place de la Bastille in Paris to express solidarity with the Iranian people oppressed by the Islamic regime amid a war currently paused by a fragile ceasefire.

Samuel Davoud, whose real name is Mohammad Hossein Davoudabadi and who is affiliated with Association Homa, a Paris-based NGO “dedicated to giving voice to the revolutionary protests of the Iranian people,” joined the protest to support family and friends in the Islamic Republic.

Davoud lived in Iran for 23 years until he was shot in 2009 while demonstrating in Tehran as part of the Iranian Green Movement. He was struck by a shotgun cartridge from which pellets spread out throughout his body. Hit by 94 pellets, he collapsed.

“It’s like what hunters use—when it explodes, it spreads everywhere and causes heavy bleeding. It’s similar to what they used during the Mahsa Amini movement, where many people lost an eye. One pellet passed just a millimeter from my eye—if it had gone in, I would have lost it,” Davoud told JNS.

He lost consciousness and later woke up in a women’s hair salon, a business typically hidden and discreet.

“I thank those two women a million times, they are angels. They left their door open to take in the wounded,” he said.

At the time, Iranians protested against then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after backing a reformist candidate in the recent election. Davoud said he supported neither side and already sought an end to the Islamic Republic.

Shortly before the shooting, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned during Friday prayers that protesters risked their lives.

“That only gave us more strength; we wanted to confront the regime directly,” Davoud said.

The next day, security forces opened fire on protesting crowds. Davoud said some shooters did not appear to be Iranian.

“We recognized that many were from groups like Hezbollah. They didn’t understand our language when we insulted them. Iranian forces would respond; these ones couldn’t—they were there to eliminate us,” he said.

He said France, Germany and Italy helped the wounded. Taken to the French embassy, Davoud was told he needed to leave Iran to survive.

“With friends, I crossed into Turkey, where the French were waiting. I spent a month in a Turkish hospital, then went to France as a refugee. I spent a year in hospital in France. They removed the most dangerous pellets, especially from my head. I still have many today, I have 52 left in my body,” he said.

‘People are no longer afraid’

He arrived in France in September 2009. His family remained in Iran, except for a sister in Canada. After media coverage, he said authorities arrested his younger sister, barred her from university and beat his father.

Davoud learned French, rebuilt his life and married. Later, he joined protests during the Mahsa Amini movement in 2022.

“I am not left-wing or right-wing; I stand for the voice of my people. Many Iranians abroad don’t understand Iran because they didn’t live there. We simply want freedom without the Islamic Republic,” he said.

“Iran is a rich country, yet people search for food in garbage. The regime has spent national wealth funding groups like Hamas and Hezbollah while imposing strict ideology,” he added.

He said many Iranians see President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as potential allies, despite differing views on foreign policy.

Many, he added, view Reza Pahlavi, son of the former shah, as a possible transitional figure to guide Iran toward democratic elections, noting Pahlavi has said he does not seek power.

“Iranians have sacrificed greatly. Many have been killed. People are no longer afraid; even bombs near their homes do not stop them. I, like many, am ready to sacrifice myself so future generations can live in a free Iran,” Davoud said.

He told JNS he has worked with Jewish student groups and organizations such as the CRIF [umbrella organization representing French Jews], and after Oct. 7, 2023, helped bring Iranians to pro-Israel demonstrations, including in Jerusalem.

“It showed unity between the Iranian and Israeli peoples,” he said.

After the murder in October 2020 of Samuel Paty, a French secondary school teacher, by an Islamic terrorist, Davoud adopted the name Samuel. “I decided I would rather stand with Samuel than with those committing violence in the name of ideology,” he said.

‘I love the Israeli people’

Alexandre Mostowfi attended the protest wrapped in the Iranian flag and carrying an Israeli one.

“The Iranian flag is because I am Iranian, and the Israeli flag is because I love the Israeli people and our interests align. I am not Jewish at all, but it is out of friendship and shared values. Israel is our ally, just like during the Second World War when there were the Allies. For us, it is the same. We are facing a fight against religious fascism. We need an ally, and they came voluntarily to help us, and we thank them,” he told JNS.

Mostowfi, Franco-Iranian since 1980, said, “Iranians can count on us until the very end. We are committed to overthrowing this fascist regime. We stand for freedom and will fight until the very end. This religious fascist regime has no respect for human rights, for women, or for freedom,

“The only thing they understand is force, confronting them directly. Only then do they accept negotiation, and negotiation is meaningless—we do not negotiate with fascists,” he added.

Pani Shad of the Paris-based Lion et Soleil association helped organize the protest.

“There are about 10 or 11 of us organizing demonstrations, rallies, and direct actions. We are all connected to Iran, working to carry the voice of the Iranian people here in France,” she told JNS.

An activist for several years, Shad has lived in France for 14 years. Her brother remains in Iran, and she has not heard from him for 40 or 50 days.

“We are trying to raise awareness and call on Western countries to stop negotiations with this barbaric regime. We are here every week. Last week there was a marathon, so we were not at the Bastille, but normally we gather regularly. We also want to make it clear that this war is not against the people, it is against the government, the Islamic regime in power. We support an alternative: Reza Pahlavi,” she said.

She added that while public support in France is strong, activists struggle to be heard by political leaders, including President Emmanuel Macron, though some parliamentarians back them.

Among those supporting the movement, we were told, are Shannon Seban and French lawmakers Caroline Yadan and Constance Le Grip. Seban is a city council member in Rosny-sous-Bois, an eastern suburb of Paris, and director of European affairs for the Combat Antisemitism Movement.

Mahsa Mirza Zad Ziabary held a billboard at the rally reading “1,639 executions,” the number carried out by the Islamic regime in 2025.

She told JNS she lived in Iran until age 17 and is now 25, describing the constant anxiety of living under repression.

“For me, it was difficult to accept that I had to wear the veil and always be afraid that those enforcing dress codes could arrest us. We were constantly thinking about it, what side of the street they were on, police vans passing, checking whether you were properly veiled or if they disliked your clothing. They could arrest you,” she said.

“If they feel like arresting you, they arrest you, unless you are wearing a full hijab, which very few people wear,” she added.

Some people, she said, became adept at navigating the system. Those arrested multiple times learned how to place their hands during fingerprinting so their prints could not be properly recorded.

“It also depends on your family’s ability to help get you out, and it can create problems when looking for a job,” she said.

Her family left Iran with the help of a lawyer.

“To leave Iran, you need a lawyer. It’s complicated to get visas, and relations with other countries are poor. Getting out of Iran is like escaping a prison. It’s very difficult—you have to pay a lot to lawyers with embassy connections, and things move forward through money,” she said.

“There are periods when embassies accept people, then say they’ve taken enough and another opens. It’s cyclical,” she added.

‘I have been here since Khomeini’

Emilie Motamedy said she attended the rally “for Iran, for the Iranian people, and for Israel,” citing a shared adversary.

“I want to tell Israelis: There are a little over 10 million of you, and we are about 90 million—together that makes around 100 million. Your country is about 20,000 square kilometers, and now you have around 1,860,000 kilometers—we will work together and live together.

“We share common civilizations,” Motamedy said.

“I have been here since Khomeini—I have not returned for 47 years, since that period. I was 21 years old then. I have friends, I know almost everyone. After 47 years living in Paris, you get to know many people, I have many Israeli friends here,” she continued.

“This is the final battle. Don’t worry, we are here, and we will support Israel. Bibi, our dear Bibi, and Mr. Trump will help us. Together with you, we Iranians will liberate Iran,”
Motamedy said.

Sylvie Roux-Sicsic is part of the Jewish community of France. She told JNS she naturally supports Iran, because the two people’s histories are completely linked.

“Our future and our destiny are shared. We have the same enemy, the Islamic Republic,” she said. “I always remember that my Iranian friends were there to support us when we gathered two days after the Oct. 7 massacre,” she said.

“It was Oct. 9 at Place Victor Hugo, and I will never forget it, because we were completely devastated, we couldn’t find the words. Among the first people there were our Iranian friends with their Lion and Sun flags. Since then, they have always been present at our gatherings for the families of hostages,” she added.

Roux-Sicsic told JNS that attending the rally is a humanitarian issue.

“We do not have the right to abandon them, to stay silent, or to ignore what they are going through. They share the same way we do of remembering their dead, the duty of memory,” she said.

Roux-Sicsic said she will never be afraid to come, even though she remains cautious.

“One very positive thing is that the French police are extraordinary. The gendarmes are always there. Because there have been threats, they walk alongside us during marches. If there are individuals who cause problems, especially in areas like Place de la Bastille—which is historically a pro-Palestinian gathering point—they are quickly contained and handled,” she said.

“Iranians think like the Jewish people. We will not be afraid—fear is not in our DNA,” she said.

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