Statements of His Eminence in Meeting with a Large Group of Warriors of Operation Beit al-Muqaddas on the Anniversary of the Liberation of Khorramshahr

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

Dear brothers and sisters, proud and honorable warriors; welcome. Thanks be to God, our gathering has been honored and perfumed with the noble names of our great martyrs - Martyr Mohammad Jahan Ara, Martyr Syad Shirazi, Martyr Mohammad Boroujerdi, and the other esteemed martyrs.

Thousands of devoted and aware individuals, with an understanding of the situation and recognition of the needs of the time, gathered at the very point where they needed to be; resulting in a historical and lasting epic. The epic of the liberation of Khorramshahr and the great Operation Beit al-Muqaddas will remain in the history of this country. Both on the day this incident occurred and whenever such events are explained and clarified for the thoughts of the people, it serves as a means for the renewal of national life and facilitates the path of dignity and greatness for a nation. My dear ones! The Operation Beit al-Muqaddas and the great operations that took place during those days were a complex and significant endeavor composed of two factors:

The first factor was the military knowledge, the strength of command, the alertness, and the talent of our faithful youth. On that day, some pretended - and perhaps today some still think - that operations like Operation Beit al-Muqaddas were merely a massive human assault! They are gravely mistaken. No human waves, without capable, decisive, and vigilant command, can accomplish any operation. In military warfare, organization, operations, command, tactics, precision, situational awareness, and dozens of factors together create military knowledge and demonstrate military talent and genius. This event occurred in the Operation of the liberation of Khorramshahr - that is, the same Operation Beit al-Muqaddas - where our dear martyr, the late Martyr Syad Shirazi, was one of the main directors of this operation, and he himself, like at noon on this day, called me from there and announced the victory, saying that Iraqi soldiers had lined up to come and surrender! See how intelligent, strong, and comprehensive this operation was that the enemy forces felt compelled to surrender themselves to save their own lives! On that day, thousands of the invading enemy forces - who had shouted with pride and arrogance - came and willingly surrendered themselves to the warriors of Islam! Therefore, one of the two important factors for such significant victories was the power of command, knowledge, mastery over the complex operations of war, and the ability to deploy forces, which on that day our enemies concealed in their propaganda, claiming that Iran sent human waves to war! Can human waves achieve victory?! If a few machine guns are set up from several sides, they will mow down all human waves. No, it was not just human waves; it was not merely a mass of people; it was the strength of organization, the strength of will, and military power.

The second factor, which is more important than the first, was the force of faith and courage stemming from the strength of the faith of the warriors, the people, and the youth; that is, a love of faith - not animalistic love, not material love, not love for trivial and insignificant things - love for values; love for divine and Islamic ideals; the very thing that makes martyrdom in the way of God sweet for someone who possesses such love; not that it makes it easy, it makes it sweet. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said to Amir al-Mu'minin: "O Ali! On the day when a blow is struck to you that will lead to your martyrdom, how will your patience be?" Amir al-Mu'minin replied: "O Messenger of God! This is not a position of patience; this is a position of gratitude." The one who is martyred in the way of God is the greatest grateful servant of God for this incident, for God Almighty has granted him such a great blessing. What is it that brings a warrior, a youth, and a human being to such enlightenment in various fields? It is conscious faith. My dear ones! This conscious faith in the warriors made them disregard danger. In the commanders, it made them not think for a moment about their own comfort or risk. They worked day and night; they disregarded their own petty dignity; for God, for the goals of Islam, and for the freedom and dignity of the Muslim nation, they were willing to give their lives. Any nation that has such feelings within it cannot be defeated. Who can defeat such a nation? All the bullying of the world's tyrants is based on threatening someone's life; that is the highest form of it. If someone is willing to give their life for a cause, what threat can work against them?

I want to say that even the first factor - that is, the strength of command and military knowledge and mastery over military affairs - stemmed from this second factor. It was this force of faith that enabled the army, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, and the other elements participating in the war - such as the popular forces, the construction jihad, and the tribes - to reach a point where they could create a massive military force with strong and decisive command. It was this faith and this spiritual love that brought forth that talent within them; otherwise, we had wars in this country before this where our forces could not achieve their rightful place. It was this strength of faith that created the power of command. Therefore, everything returns to the fact that if the youth and people of a country strengthen their faith in God, their faith in the goal, their sense of sacrifice for the goal, and their feeling of being part of the party of God and the soldiers of God, this nation becomes invincible.

I want to immediately follow this statement with another point, and that is if this nation, which has been able to accomplish a great task with the force of faith and the courage stemming from faith, has an enemy, what does this enemy do? Think for yourselves. What is the enemy's way to overcome such a nation? The enemy's way to overcome is to take this spiritual factor away from this nation. This enemy knows that as long as this spirit of faith - that sincere devotion, that courageous faith, that attachment to goals - exists in these people, this nation is not accessible. What must they do? They must strive to weaken faith in them; to diminish the divine ideals in their minds; to create distance between them and those great aspirations. This cannot be done with swords or modern and ultra-modern tools; this is done through propaganda. After the war, indeed during the war, this enemy propaganda began and continues to this day.

I say that anyone who cares about the fate of this nation and this country must strive to strengthen the faith of this nation, to strengthen the faith of the youth, to strengthen the religiosity of the youth, and to strengthen the bond of the youth with Islamic ideals. Anyone who acts against this is not interested in the fate of this nation; they are either part of the enemy's forces or they have been deceived. This is where the duty of the aware, the intellectuals, the speakers, the writers, and every element that can influence the minds of the people becomes clear. The enemy has been struck by the faith and religious zeal of the people; they have the right to be hostile to religious zeal; however, friends should not assist them. Those who care about the dignity of Islamic Iran must strive to increase the religious zeal of the people and the youth and their commitment to it. Thanks be to God, the youth of the country are faithful and healthy. Fortunately, our young generation is a healthy generation. Do not look at the exceptional cases here and there that, under the influence of enemy propaganda, show incorrect behaviors, words, and mentalities; these do not represent our young generation. Our young generation is the one that today, if the test arises, if the bloody city scene arises, if the field of struggle in the way of God arises, will show that they are firmly committed to Islam.

On that day, our youth were able to accomplish great tasks with the outpouring of their talents; today we also have great tasks ahead of us. Even if they are not of the type of war and presence in the front lines; however, great tasks are always great and always require faith, purity, religious zeal, steadfastness in the way of God, and an uncompromising stance against the enemy. Our youth possess these qualities and, God willing, will continue to do so. We hope that by the blessing and sanctity of the fragrant and pure blood of our youth who have been shed in the Operation Beit al-Muqaddas and the operations before and after it, and throughout the revolution until today, God willing, our youth and people will always remain steadfast and resolute in the way of God and thwart the enemy, and the enemy will not be able to find a foothold in our nation, and God willing, they will not find one.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.