Statements in Meeting with Officials of the Martyrs Foundation and a Large Number of Esteemed Families of Martyrs, Captives, and Veterans

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

I ask the Almighty God for His grace, favor, and special divine attentions for all of you brothers and sisters who have come from various places and distant paths, and I hope you will be included in the special favors of the Lord and the prayers of His Holiness the Imam of the Age (may God hasten his reappearance), and I personally thank all of you. Our esteemed gathering today, especially with the presence of the esteemed families of the martyrs and the dear veterans—who are the most valuable mementos of the era of the sacred defense—carries the fragrance and delightful aroma of martyrdom.

There is a connection between the behavior of our people today and what has been narrated to us from the lives of the Immaculates (peace be upon them). Whatever is observed in the short lives of the Immaculates (peace be upon them)—whether the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), Fatimah Zahra the Pure (peace be upon her), or the twelve Imams (peace be upon them all)—in a brilliant and dazzling manner, today we see a reflection of it in the public life of our great nation more clearly, and in past times more weakly.

These days are the days of the martyrdom of Fatimah Zahra (peace be upon her). That great lady, on one hand, is the epitome of devotion and submission to divine duty and the epitome of struggle and oppressed martyrdom, and on the other hand, she is the epitome of greatness and splendor and enlightening the thoughts of the general public of the Islamic nation throughout the centuries. You may know that the name of Fatimah Zahra (peace be upon her) has always been a very great name for nations and individual Muslims, accompanied by reverence and veneration, throughout the centuries after Islam until today; while this great lady was a young woman or in the prime of her youth. Our life today is a reflection of the lives of our divine leaders in the early days of Islam; that is, the same devotion and sacrifice and compassion for religion and the same belief and sincerity in religious values. Of course, they are the origin and source, and what is in our society is a reflection of what was in those great ones. Likewise, the greatness that was in them is also in our society.

Today, the individuals of our people possess greatness within themselves. No one in the Islamic society—if they are believers in Islam and the revolution—feels inferior within themselves. This is a very great phenomenon. An Islamic society should be like this. The enemies have wanted to make Muslims feel weak and inferior from within themselves. After the Islamic Revolution came into being and drew the world's attention, the inferiority of nations was greatly reduced. The backward and oppressed nations that felt inferior became somewhat invigorated with the Islamic Revolution and felt their existence; because they saw how this revolution and this nation could disregard the strongest powers in the world, neutralize their power, and triumph over them in fields of confrontation and competition. This was seen by both the great nations of the world and the backward nations and the Third World countries, and it stirred them.

What you observe from ten years ago until now, nations breaking chains with various names and doing everything with struggle and confrontation and peaceful methods and secret methods and powerful methods, is due to the blessing of the Islamic Revolution. Now even the mercenary writers of the Zionist-paid pen in the world are forced to admit that the era is the era of nations; not the era of arbitrary decision-making by powers. This is due to the blessing of the Islamic Revolution. When the Islamic Revolution triumphed, nations became alive and found vitality and hope. Of course, in some corners, they were also greatly suppressed, and not everywhere was accompanied by success; but the important thing is that this flame of hope was kindled in hearts.

The cruelty that the arrogant powers have shown in recent years in various parts of the world is a reaction to the awakening and courage of nations. When humiliated nations shake off the dust of humiliation from their clothes and cast aside the feeling of humiliation and stand tall, the humiliating powers are forced to be cautious. They will be struck, and they have been struck, and more will come. In Islamic societies, the wave of inclination towards revolutionary Islam is a living wave; they cannot do anything about it. Of course, they suppress and impose hardships, they slander, they label them as terrorists, even if they have no connection with the Islamic Republic; but to crush both sides, they claim this connection. The enemy does these things; but what they cannot do is eliminate this wave of inclination towards revolutionary Islam among nations. They cannot do it, they have not been able to, and they will not be able to do it in the future.

One of the things that is noteworthy in this regard is the methods that governments and so-called civilized powers employ in the face of the waves of human will and the cruelties and heartlessness they practice—which truly makes one ashamed to call the methods of today's dominant and oppressive powers civilized—this itself awakens nations. These should be conveyed to all the people of the world. The people of the world should know what methods the great powers and the arrogant power of America use today to advance their work. The leaders of America very calmly kill people, commit massacres, and invade another country. What America used to do secretly through its intelligence apparatus—the CIA—and orchestrated coups and overthrew governments, today it has reached a point where it is forced to do the same behavior openly and explicitly; that is, to enter countries and overthrow a government!! We have nothing to do with those governments. We neither know the inner workings of those individuals and governments well nor do we approve of the methods of many of these governments. The issue is the issue of nations. The issue is a country and a nation whose rights America easily and calmly violates. This is the meaning of arrogant power.

Today, thanks be to God and by divine grace, the most lively, vibrant, strongest, and bravest nations in the world are you, the Iranian nation, and the great nations of the world accept and understand and have accepted this. Preserve this for yourselves. Your martyrs today are at the top of the honor roll among the nations that know the Iranian revolution and have some awareness. Today, your veterans are great examples of honor and courage and sacrifice and mementos of the era of epic. Today, your dear and esteemed families of martyrs are those whom all the fair-minded people of the world—those who know the issues of Iran and the Iranian revolution—consider them great, noble, patient, and strong. You must preserve this. This is due to the blessing of Islam and the leadership of the great Imam and the blessing of your unity of word. Keep these for yourselves. The devils must be disappointed from infiltrating the thoughts of the Iranian nation.

We hope, God willing, you will always be included in the grace, favor, help, and assistance of God.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings