The Message of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution and The Islamic Republic of Iran

His Excellence Ayatullah al-Udhma Sayyed Ali Khamenei to the pilgrims of Hajj Dul-Hajjah 1424 In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful Once again, the Muslim Ummah is holding its great annual congregation and is giving an appropriate response to the call: ﺞﺤﻟﺎﺑ سﺎﻨﻟا ﻲﻓ نذاو This unique duty, similar to other duties, is a treasury of Allah’s compassion which is offered to the believers in its due time. It is an opportunity for them to benefit from His infinite divine blessings. Hajj is unique and exceptional in that, on the one hand, it purifies hearts and souls, and every individual pilgrim can benefit from this resource of Allah’s mercy, and, on the other hand, the whole Islamic Ummah as a body comprising various peoples, races, nations, and cultures can reach a high level of coherence, bravery, awareness, and selfconsciousness. And this is the urgent need of today’s world of Islam. The world of Islam, after its long weakness and slumber, which ultimately caused the political and cultural preponderance of foreign powers and led to the submission of its material and human resources to its enemies’ growth and dominance, has now rediscovered its identity and has opened a front against wrongdoers and invaders. A new breeze of Islamic awakening has blown to the world of Islam, and the actualization of Islam has become a very serious demand. The theory of a “Political Islam” has now preoccupied the minds of the intellectuals and elites and has opened bright horizons and a prospect of a hopeful future in their minds. With the decline of imported, fake, and chaotic ideologies such as Socialism and Marxism, and particularly with the unveiling of the deceit and hypocrisy of the western liberal democracy, the justice- and freedom-seeking nature of Islam has now emerged more clearly than ever, and has surpassed rivaling ideologies amongst the seekers of justice and freedom, intellectuals and experts. A large number of youths and brave people in Islamic countries, following Islam and longing for the establishment of governments based on Islamic justice have become engaged in political, cultural and social jihad. They disseminate the firm decision of resisting the imposition and hegemony of arrogant foreign powers in their societies. In some parts of the world of Islam, the most important of which in the occupied and oppressed Palestine, a large number of men and women have sacrificed their lives to this end and, in the name of Islam and with the motto of independence, honor and freedom, have created some everlasting legends. They have humiliated the materialistic and arrogant powers with their bravery. It is this Islamic awakening that has changed all the international equations sought by arrogant powers and has falsified all their calculations. On the other hand, the advent and progress of new Islamic thoughts in the framework of the basics and principles of Islam, and the emergence of innovations in political and scientific arenas, have proven, in practice, the dynamism inherent in our great religion, and have opened vast horizons before the thinkers and intellectuals of the world of Islam. Yesterday’s colonial powers that have emerged as today’s coercive powers intended to keep Muslim societies in a constant conflict between fanaticism and frustration on the one hand and submissiveness and eclecticism on the other, but they now find themselves face to face with an overwhelmingly assertive dynamism of Islamic thought. Thought and movement, faith and good deeds are flourishing in the world of Islam. This favorable phenomenon has severely threatened the very center of arrogant powers. Now the Muslim Ummah must be prepared to face a series of hysterical and evil reactions which will be imposed on them by the arrogant powers. There is no doubt, however, that in the struggle between Haqq (Right) and Batil (Wrong), Right will be victorious and Wrong is doomed to defeat. This will happen provided that Right benefits appropriately from its spiritual and physical resources and finds the right path and paves it with wise efforts, resistance, hope and trust in Allah, and self-confidence. In that case, divine help and victory, as promised in the Holy Quran, will certainly occur: نَا ،ﻢُﻜَﻣاﺪﻗَا ﺖّﺒَﺜُﻳ Ùˆ ﻢُآﺮﺼﻨَﻳ ﷲا اوﺮﺼﻨَﺗ ّنَﺮُﺼﻨﻴَﻟ ﷲا ﻩُﺮُﺼﻨَﻳ ﻦَﻣ ا ّنِ نﻮﺤِﻟﺎّﺼﻟا َيِدﺎﺒِﻋ ﺎﻬُﺛِﺮَﻳ َضرَﻻا . The cancerous network of Zionism and the evil warmongers in the U.S. administration, now the most serious threats to the Muslim Ummah, have employed all sorts of tactics, including psychological and propagating warfare, economic conflicts, hostile political actions, violence, terror and military operations to secure their illegitimate interests by committing every possible crime in the world. A quick glance at the horrific crimes of occupying Zionists in Palestine, committed with American support, as well as the study of the occupiers’ behavior in Iraq and Afghanistan clearly indicate the very brutal and merciless nature of the powers hypocritically pretending to be defending human rights and democracy. In the name of fighting against terrorism, they commit the most horrendous terrorist activities. In the name of bringing democracy and freedom for nations, they impose their dictatorship and plundering on the people. The United States publicly declares military actions against sovereign countries a right for itself. The Zionists openly keep threatening Palestinian political figures. They kill Palestinian civilians, children, old men and women, and destroy people’s houses. In Iraq, British and US forces attack and open fire on defenseless demonstrators, and they have no respect for people’s privacy or public decency. With the flames of fire still raging in these countries, they talk about repeating this military adventurism in other parts of the world of Islam. These wicked and hysterical behaviors are more instigated by sheer nervousness and fear rather than by self-confidence or power. The enemies can sense the Islamic awakening, and they feel severely jeopardized by the spread of the ideology of “Political Islam” and the emergence of the sovereignty of Islam. They tremble to think of the day when the Muslims will rise up hopeful and united. On that day, the Muslim Ummah, benefiting from their natural wealth and their great cultural and historical legacy, along with their geographical expanse and their large number of population, will not allow the aggressive powers, which have sucked their blood for two hundred years and have demolished their honor and dignity, to go on with their aggressions and intimidations. Today the political scholars and elites of the world of Islam have a crucial responsibility toward the Ummah. They should help all people hear the liberating message of Islam. They have to recognize the Islamic identity of Muslim nations clearly. They must offer the Muslim youth the brilliant teachings of Islam on such topics as human rights, liberty, democracy, women’s rights, struggling against corruption, eliminating discrimination, and fighting poverty and backwardness in science. They should make the deceit of the western media concerning its campaign against terrorism and mass destruction weapons clear to all. Today, it is the western world that should be challenged in these areas, both theoretically and practically and must offer reasonable justifications to the world for its actions. Today, the western world must be held responsible for the massacre of young children in Palestine, for ignoring women’s rights and dishonoring their dignity, for nations’ self-determination rights, the peoples’ right to benefit from their own resources, and even for the freedom of their own citizens. Does the banning of Hijab in some European countries not indicate the falsehood of their claims regarding freedom? Politicians and officials in Islamic countries have certain great historical responsibilities, too. The most important ones are for them to rely on their own nations and to reject the imposing and infinite requirements of arrogant powers. They should never forget the great and powerful identity of the Islamic Ummah, which can solve many of their problems. As far as the problems of the world of Islam are concerned, the determining factors in their decision making should be the interests of the Islamic Ummah and its power. Today, the main interests of the Islamic Ummah are: evicting the occupiers of Iraq and stabilizing its national sovereignty; evicting the foreign military troops from Afghanistan and emphasizing Afghanistan’s being an Islamic and independent country; helping the oppressed Palestinians and providing material and spiritual support for the people who are struggling to defend their lives, property, honor and independence against the occupiers; expanding religious rites and beliefs throughout the world; strengthening the ties among Muslim governments and resolving their disputes; activating the Islamic Conference Organization (OIC) and pursuing its veto right in the United Nations Security Council. Therefore, all of these should be incorporated in the policies and efforts of all Islamic governments. The peoples and the elites should claim these from their governments. The people and the government of Iran, who are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the victory of their Islamic Revolution these days, have gained very precious experiences on this noble path, and have provided an ideal model for everybody to follow. Through our reliance on Allah the Almighty and through the power of the nation equipped with faith and knowledge, we will continue to pursue our noble goals and firmly go ahead with them. We have learnt and practiced technology and scientific knowledge intertwined with our moral and spiritual values, independence and freedom intermingled with our belief in and our devotion to faith, and democracy adopted from Quranic teachings. In the intervening years, our country has suffered the most from the threats, animosity, and wickedness of the global arrogance, and our nation has achieved utmost faith, endurance, and honor. We have experienced, in practice, the Quranic teachings that say: ﺎﻔﻴﻌﺿ نﺎﮐ نﺎﻄﻴﺸﻟا ﺪﻴﮐ نا نﻮﻨﺴﺤﻣ ﻢه ﻦﻳﺬﻟا Ùˆ اﻮﻘﺗا ﻦﻳﺬﻟا ﻊﻣ ﷲا نا … … ﺮﻳﺪﻘﻟ ﻢهﺮﺼﻧ ï»°ï» ï»‹ ﷲا نا Ùˆ . We foresee a bright and brilliant future for our country and for the world of Islam. Relying on the Divine Promise, we continue, more resolute than ever, to march ahead on the path shown to us by our great leader, Imam Khomeini. ï»¦ï»´ï»˜ïº˜ï»¤ï» ï»Ÿïº”ïº’ï»—ïºŽï»Œï»ŸØ§Ùˆ . ﻦﻴﺤﻟﺎﺼﻟا ﷲادﺎﺒﻋ ï»°ï» ï»‹ مﻼﺴﻟاو Sayyed Ali Khamenei 28 Jan. 2004 6 Dul-Hajjah 1424 Source: al-shia.org