NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) announced that New York City’s Warwick Hotel will not host Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and the Iranian delegation during September’s UN General Assembly.
UANI applauds this decision, and announces an end to its boycott of Warwick properties.
The Warwick, under previous management, hosted former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his delegation during the 2011 and 2012 UN General Assemblies. UANI led demonstrations inside and outside the Warwick during both years, which were covered by dozens of print, radio, and TV news outlets.
Said UANI CEO, Ambassador Mark D. Wallace:
We applaud the Warwick and its new General Manager Peter Walterspiel for deciding not to host the Iranian delegation this year. Iran may have a new President, but responsible businesses must not accommodate him until Iran ends its nuclear program, state sponsorship of terror, and human rights abuses.
Given Iran’s current policies, President Rouhani should not be welcomed at any New York City hotels or venues. To date, President Rouhani has offered rhetoric, but no real reform. Until his words are joined by action, the international community must continue to isolate Iran.
President Rouhani should stay at Iran’s mission to the UN, and not expect private businesses to accommodate him.
This year, the Warwick made the right decision. Any hotel that hosts Rouhani and the Iranian delegation will be putting profit above principle, and subjecting its guests and the New York community to great inconvenience. We call on all city hotels to bear in mind the negative publicity and reputational harm borne by those that have hosted Iran in the past.
In 2012, UANI was headquartered inside the Warwick Hotel, and led demonstrations outside including signs, bicycle and truck billboards, and activities. UANI's campaign was covered by CNN (here and here), the Associated Press, Reuters, Inside Edition, BTR Pulse, USA TODAY, The Christian Science Monitor, the New York Daily News (here and here), the Times of Israel, PIX 11 News, Fox 5 News, CBN News, CBS 880 Radio, Agence France Presse, 1010 WINS Radio, and the New York Post (here, here, here), as well as by local television stations in Alabama, California, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and radio stations in Georgia, Maryland, and New York.
UANI's 2011 Warwick protest, led from inside the Warwick, was featured in media outlets including CBS New York, AFP, NBC New York, CNN, The Atlantic, Huffington Post, The Daily Caller, CBS Radio, and the New York Post. UANI put up a Times Square billboard, reading “AS WE REMEMBER 9/11 TEN YEARS LATER, AL QAEDA’S SILENT PARTNER IS COMING TO NEW YORK”
Click here
to learn more about UANI’s 2012 Warwick campaign.
Click here
to learn more about UANI’s 2011 Warwick campaign.
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to learn more about UANI’s Hotels Campaign.