America’s enemies are bolder than ever. And they’ll stop at nothing to harm us.
But now Russian assassins were sentenced for a terrifying plot against this American.
Russian Mobsters Sentenced for Iran’s M*rder Plot
In a Manhattan courtroom, two Russian mobsters, Rafat Amirov and Polad Omarov, were handed 25-year sentences for their role in a chilling m*rder-for-hire scheme orchestrated by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps to silence Iranian-American dissident Masih Alinejad.
The professional criminals, linked to Russia’s underworld, were promised $500,000 in “blood money” to k*ll the journalist at her Brooklyn home, a brazen attempt to crush her outspoken criticism of Iran’s repressive regime.
Judge Colleen McMahon, presiding in the Southern District of New York, condemned the plot, stating the defendants tried to “take a human life for no reason at all,” leaving Alinejad and her family to live with fear “for the rest of their lives.”
The plot unraveled in 2022 when Khalid Mehdiyev, an Azerbaijani-born accomplice, was arrested outside Alinejad’s home with an AK-47, 66 rounds of ammunition, and a ski mask. Caught on security footage pacing her yard, Mehdiyev turned informant, revealing Amirov and Omarov’s orders: “Shoot the journalist. K*ll the journalist.”
The scheme, tied to Iran’s terror apparatus and allegedly directed by Revolutionary Guard official Ruhollah Bazghandi, who remains at large, exposes Tehran’s ruthless global reach and Russia’s complicity in enabling such violence. McMahon rejected a 55-year sentence but imposed the maximum 10 years for m*rder-for-hire, plus additional time for money laundering and conspiracy, emphasizing, “It is not fair that Ms. Alinejad should live in constant fear.”
Iran’s Campaign Against Dissent
Alinejad’s activism, urging Iranian women to reject forced hijabs and the Islamic Republic’s coercion, made her a prime target for Iran’s vindictive regime. Prosecutors noted her defiance “enraged” Tehran, prompting a plot to strike within U.S. borders.
This was not Iran’s first attempt; in 2021, a foiled kidnapping scheme aimed to abduct Alinejad from Brooklyn and drag her back to Iran. Facing her would-be k*llers in court, Alinejad called justice “beautiful,” stating, “Because of these criminals, I have to watch over my shoulder.”
She highlighted the irony: “Once upon a time, a little girl in Iran was taught to shout Death to America so loud the White House would shake. Life’s irony: the same country she was told to hate gave her a second life.” Her adopted nation, she noted, arrested Iran’s hired k*llers, sentencing them to 25 years for targeting her “sunflower garden in New York.”
On CNN with Jake Tapper, Alinejad expressed relief but resolve: “I was nervous to see them face-to-face, but seeing a female judge—this is the dream we are fighting for in Iran.”
Her platform, amplifying millions of Iranians rejecting the regime, made her a symbol of resistance Tehran sought to extinguish. Her warning was stark: “Negotiation or talking to this regime is not going to save the lives of Americans,” a rebuke to any appeasement of Iran’s terror-driven agenda.
Russia and Iran’s Dangerous Alliance
The involvement of Russian mobsters in Iran’s plot highlights a troubling nexus between Moscow’s criminal networks and Tehran’s state-sponsored terrorism.
Amirov and Omarov’s willingness to execute Iran’s orders for profit reveals Russia’s role as a haven for operatives who enable global violence. Hillel Neuer of UN Watch, present at the sentencing, noted, “Tyrannical regimes always fear the truth,” a truth Alinejad embodies.
Her defiance, echoed by her 10 million followers, threatens both Iran’s oppressive clerics and the Russian networks that profit from their schemes. As Bazghandi remains free, the case signals the urgent need to confront Iran’s extraterritorial plots and Russia’s complicity, which together endanger free speech and safety on U.S. soil.
