Construction Company Liebherr to End Its Business in Iran Following UANI Cranes Campaign

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 24, 2011
Contact: Nathan Carleton, [email protected]
Phone: (212) 554-3296   

Construction Company Liebherr to End Its Business in Iran Following UANI Cranes Campaign

New York, NY - On Wednesday, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) applauded Swiss-German construction equipment manufacturer Liebherr for pledging to end its business in Iran.

In recent correspondence with UANI, Liebherr executives stated that Liebherr "will cease all business operations in Iran."

Further, Liebherr informed UANI that as of May 2011, it had "informed [its] former customers and business associates in Iran that the companies of the Liebherr Group will cease their business activities with them."

UANI applauds Liebherr for its decision, which it made after learning about the Iranian regime's use of construction cranes for gruesome public hangings.

Said UANI President, Ambassador Mark D. Wallace:

Liebherr is the fourth major crane company to pull out of Iran following UANI's Cranes Campaign. UANI applauds Liebherr for its decision and good judgment and appreciates Liebherr's willingness to work with UANI on this serious human rights issue.

The Iranian regime's use of cranes to publicly hang its citizens is truly disturbing, and it is driving more and more companies away from Iran. The world is showing the regime that its violations of international law and human rights abuses will be met with consequences.

As part of its "Cranes Campaign," UANI first called on Liebherr to stop supplying cranes to Iran in April, and noted that the government of Germany had expressed concerns about the possibility of Liebherr cranes being used by blacklisted Iranian shell companies to support Tehran's missile program.

UANI's "Cranes Campaign" highlights the Iranian regime's abhorrent record of public executions by hanging its citizens from cranes. On July 6, Ambassador Wallace, in a Los Angeles Times op-ed, "Iran's Execution Binge," detailed the Iranian regime's use of foreign construction cranes for public hangings and called on Liebherr and other crane manufacturers to "take the principled stand of renouncing their business ties with the regime until Iran becomes a civilized member of the international community."

Liebherr joins crane manufacturers Tadano, Terex, and UNIC in announcing an end to its business in Iran following the Cranes Campaign.

Click here to learn more about UANI's Cranes Campaign.