Two-time Oscar-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi called on artists and filmmakers around the world to protest the US and Israeli bombing of Iran to “prevent the destruction of civilian infrastructure in the country.”
On Monday, Iran rejected a US 45-day ceasefire offer and said it wanted to end the war permanently, but US President Donald Trump appeared to extend the threat to civilian targets and infrastructure.
President Trump said in a social media post Tuesday morning that if a deal is not reached, “an entire civilization will perish tonight, never to rise again.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres also warned the US that attacks on civilian infrastructure are prohibited under international law.
Farhadi, who won Oscars for “A Separation” in 2011 and “The Salesman” in 2016, has lived outside Iran since 2023, just before protests erupted in his home country following the death of Martha Amini.
His new film, Parallel Tales, set in Paris and featuring a top-notch French cast including Isabelle Huppert, Vincent Cassel and Catherine Deneuve, will be released at the Cannes Film Festival in May.
Farhadi’s accusations were popularized Tuesday by independent Iranian journalist Mansour Jahani and confirmed to Variety by Farhadi’s Paris-based producer, Alexandre Maret Ghai.
Read Farhadi’s full complaint below.
I call on artists and filmmakers around the world to raise their voices in any way possible in these critical days and hours to stop this destructive invasion that is increasingly destroying civilian infrastructure.
Infrastructure that belongs to the Iranian people and is related to the basic needs of daily life. The destruction of infrastructure is not just the destruction of buildings, it is an attack on human life and dignity.
Attacking a country’s infrastructure is a war crime. Regardless of your beliefs or attitudes, let’s unite to stop this inhumane, illegal and destructive process.
