Recently, there have been rumors of President Trump changing the name of the Persian Gulf to the “Arabian Gulf,” causing great concern and even anger among millions of Iranians. At the same time, there are ongoing reports about the US making a deal with the evil Iranian Islamic regime, concerning Israelis, Iranians, and Americans alike. As Trump visits the Middle East and will overfly the body of water separating Iran and the Arabian peninsula, it’s essential to look at what this means today, historically, and the long-term implications for the future.
While I applaud any effort to undermine, weaken, and eliminate the Islamic regime, which should be a US priority, the idea of renaming the Persian Gulf and negotiating with the ayatollahs is contradictory and, in the end, strengthens the regime.
The Persian Gulf is a body of water that separates Persia (Iran) from the hub of the Arab world. Indeed, changing the name of the Persian Gulf will be a slap in the face to the Islamic Republic, but one they will use to rally support against the US, with renewed chants of “Death to America,” and perpetuate the suffering of the Iranian people.
It will anger average Iranians, as it is one of the few physical reminders in the world of the name Persia and its rich culture, which they yearn to restore, free from the atrocities of the Islamic Republic, which most Iranians reject. The term ‘Persian’ connects Iranians with their national identity, beginning with King Cyrus, the first king of the Persian Empire, considered the father of the Iranian people, from the sixth century BCE.
Iranians also know that Arabs have tried many times to destroy Persian culture and its heritage, starting in the seventh century when Arabs conquered Persia. Persia was forced into the Islamic world, and Islam was forced on the Persian people. The rise of Islam in Persia and the forced conversion of Persians still feels like a foreign ideology where Islam was not indigenous. Persians – today Iranians – fought to restore their culture and national inheritance throughout history.
The 1979 Islamic Revolution was another invasion of Iran by extremist Muslims like Ayatollah Khomeini and others, whose origin and ideology were not Persian, but Arab. Iran has been occupied and ruled by evil ayatollahs whose intention is to erase Persian history, purging Iranians’ identity and culture, while forcing them to extremist Islam. They initiated a system of hate and brainwashing to build walls around their own brutal, illegitimate rule. There is no religious freedom, and anyone who converts to any other religion would face prison, torture, and even execution.
Miraculously, I was spared death by hanging because of my faith in Jesus. Millions of others have not been so lucky.
Further purging Persian culture and history, Iranians are forbidden to visit the tombs of Biblical giants such as King Cyrus, Daniel, Esther, and Mordecai, among other pillars of Persian history.
There’s been an awakening among young Iranians who understand that Islam is the root of their problem, and the ayatollahs are their true enemies; that Islamic extremists have occupied Iran with no respect for Persian culture and history.
King Cyrus is an excellent example to many. He did not bring peace and stability by undermining the history of other nations. Instead, through the power of God, he helped Persians and other great nations like the Jewish people rebuild their history and culture.
God used Cyrus, the first King of the Persian Empire, to return the Jewish people to the Land of their fathers after 70 years of exile, rebuilding the Temple, and restoring their ancient prosperity. Cyrus returned the sacred vessels which Nebuchadnezzar pillaged from Jerusalem, restoring their honor from as far back as Abraham, as recorded in 2 Chronicles 36:22-23.
“In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus, king of Persia, to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing: This is what Cyrus, King of Persia, says. ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has appointed me to build a Temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the LORD their God be with them.’”
King Cyrus is also recognized for his human rights, politics, and military strategy achievements. The Cyrus Cylinder is the world’s first charter of human rights, providing the basis for the first four articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and translated into all six official languages of the United Nations.
Iranians have compared President Trump to King Cyrus. I have always supported and admired President Trump and his great leadership. I hope he is not deceived by the malicious advice of the Islamic regime’s agents who have infiltrated America. I pray he does not try to build his own legacy by undermining the proud identity of millions of Iranians.
As an ordinary woman who lived under the tyranny of the evil Ayatollahs for 33 years and experienced many brutalities and misogyny under the harsh rules of Islam, I have never stopped warning my fellow Americans about the Islamic regime and its intentions and tactics to destroy America from within. Through NewPersia.org I educate Americans about Islam, and the Iranian people about their true history, and the importance of restoring our historic friendship with the Jewish people.
President Trump can truly be the next Cyrus to help Iranians who have suffered under the ayatollahs, to restore their freedom and national honor. We must embolden the people, not erase pillars of their national pride by changing the name of the Persian Gulf. And certainly not by negotiating with the evil Islamic Republic. He should support the only opposition respected among Iranians, Prince Reza Pahlavi, to help Iranians to restore their freedom and honor.
Like Cyrus, President Trump can be remembered as a great leader in the minds and hearts of millions of Christians by standing with God’s chosen people, the Jews, who are fighting against our common enemies, the most barbaric terrorists, whose intention is the extermination of the Israeli people.
Trump will be remembered as a great leader if, like King Cyrus, he helps the Jews to live peacefully in their land, without fear of being killed by radical Iranian-backed Muslims. Only a true, genuine, God-fearing leader is capable of making such great things. May God give our president His wisdom in his policies.
Marziyeh Amirizadeh is an Iranian American who immigrated to the US after being sentenced to death in Iran for the crime of converting to Christianity. She endured months of mental and physical hardships and intense interrogation. She is the author of two books (the latest, A Love Journey with God), a public speaker, and a columnist. She has shared her inspiring story throughout the United States and around the world, to bring awareness about the ongoing human rights violations and persecution of women and religious minorities in Iran, www.MarzisJourney.com.
Marzi is also the founder and president of NEW PERSIA, whose mission is to be the voice of persecuted Christians and oppressed women under Islam, expose the lies of the Iranian Islamic regime, and restore the relationships between Persians, Jews, and Christians. www.NewPersia.org.
