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This is the way we’ve been created. Follow us: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Panahianen/ ... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/PanahianEN/... Twitter: https://twitter.com/PanahianEN Telegram: https://telegram.me/Panahianen/ ============================== Human beings don’t seek to achieve anything unless they have an inner knowledge of it. People don’t start with learning and experiencing. People start every action and their life with a kind of restlessness. What does being restless mean? They understand something is within themselves and they look for it. There is some obscure asset, but we don’t know exactly what it is and we don’t know why we’re restless. So we try to find it. It’s the same when people are choosing a goal. They constantly think, “What goal is better for me?” An inner knowledge helps them in choosing their goal. When you reach this goal, you say, “You are what eases my restless heart.” More than trying to choose our goal, we must try to find our goal within ourselves. We ourselves must discover what our goal is, not what our goal should be. We have an inner knowledge within us for choosing our goal. God hasn’t created us without a goal. So choosing a goal is not in our hands. Our goal in life has been chosen for us from before. “O human beings, surely you must strive (to attain) to your Lord, a hard striving until you meet Him.” [Qur’an 84:6] You will eventually meet God, but you will suffer on this path. This won’t be easy. It’s complicated and difficult. [God says,] “I’ve created you in this way. So go wherever you want.” This is the only suitable goal for a person. Not being suitable doesn’t mean being valueless. It means it’s impossible. [So we’re not saying,] “Try not to choose any other goals!” No, you aren’t able to choose another goal. Other things can’t be your goal. They won’t set you on fire. This is our nature. “The nature made by God in which He has made men.” [Qur’an 30:30] We have been created in a way that this is what we want. How did the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (as), choose his goal? One is surprised at this. What was the Imam’s feeling about his goal - getting close to God? Imam Husayn (as) said, “Whenever I saw my father, the Commander of the Faithful (as), he was crying.” O Imam, what is this goal doing to you? We know in general that this goal is probably God and getting close to Him. We don’t have Imam Ali’s (as) wisdom. We can’t imagine, “O Imam, you constantly cried for this? You cried for it every night. What had this goal done to you?! Tell me a little so that it may affect me some too. Why am I so unfeeling?!” In the story narrated by Nauf, he said the same thing. He saw Imam Ali (as) was restless as he was moving away. He asked the Imam, “Where are you going?” See what Imam said. “I’m going toward my longings.” O Imam, may I be sacrificed for you. What are your longings? Nauf asked the Imam, “What are your longings?” He knew the answer in general but wanted to know more. Do you know how the Imam responded? What innocence! What glory! He said, “The One Who should know my longings, knows.” He didn’t answer. He wanted to talk to God Himself. Imam, so you have a longing, but you can rest now. God knows you. You love Him. And He loves you. So why do you want to go and cry?! You’re friends with God! One cannot understand this. The fact that we can’t understand Imam Ali (as) shows that we haven’t yet found this goal and it hasn’t set us on fire yet. We should be calm, like a still water in which the bottom of the pond can be seen. O goal, pull us to you and captivate us. Introduce yourself to me. So choosing a goal is not in our hands. Our goal in life has been chosen for us from before. “O human beings, surely you must strive (to attain) to your Lord, a hard striving until you meet Him.” [Qur’an 84:6] You will eventually meet God. We have been created in a way that this is what we want. [So we’re not saying,] “Try not to choose any other goals!” No, you aren’t able to choose another goal. Other things can’t be your goal. They won’t set you on fire.

Clip Pay attention to Me Ali Reza Panahian Salam my dear. How are you? “May I come up?” Come dear. Do you want to sit here while I’m talking? Shall I talk while you’re sitting here? “Read.” *** During the days and nights of the holy month of Ramadan, we should reap the most benefit. How can we receive light from this month? How can we benefit from God’s Grace in this holy month of Ramadan? By paying attention! This is the main factor. The most important capacity we have in our soul and which we don’t usually benefit from is paying attention. Paying attention is not usually considered to be something that valuable. No matter how much you stand behind a store window and say, “I have truly paid attention to this car behind the window,” this is not something valuable in this world. People say, “You shouldn’t have paid attention to it.” But it is exactly the opposite when standing before God. Whoever has gained something, he has gained it by paying attention to God wholeheartedly and by beseeching Him. In the beginning, paying attention happens in one’s mind. “I have turned my face to Him Who has created the heavens and the earth…” [Qur’an 6:79] A person should pay attention to God in his thoughts. Gradually, when this paying attention becomes deeper, it turns into paying attention with one’s heart. A person faces Him with his heart. “I have turned my face to Him…” “Salam.” Salam my dear. How are you? “May I come up?” Come dear. Come. It’s fine. Come up. Do you want to sit here while I’m talking? Shall I talk while you’re sitting here? Sit here; I’ll talk. You sit, I sit, and we’ll talk. It’s not a problem if I talk? “No. Read.” Read? She says read. Do you want to go down or are you comfortable sitting here? Do you want to go down? She says she won’t come. Let her be. “Candy…” No, no, leave her. “I’ll take her. She’ll be distracting.” No, will you be distracted? “No.” [Audience,] “Haj Aqa, we shouldn’t pay attention [as you were explaining].” Don’t pay attention. She got the candy from you but didn’t come. Of course I am happy to be in the presence of this luminous child. She’s so pure. See. This dear child reminded me of Mr. Baha’udini. His son-in-law related, “Once, I came home, and I saw the children were very noisy. But he was sitting and thinking deeply. I said, ‘Children, be quiet!’ I quieted them. Then, Mr. Baha’udini noticed me. He said, ‘What do you want with the children?!’ I said, ‘I thought they shouldn’t be noisy and bother you.’ He replied, ‘What do they have to do with me?’ I realized that children do not distract Mr. Baha’udini at all.” This ability to pay attention is very valuable. Paying attention means that my face, my soul and my heart are turned toward You God. I’m paying attention to You now. “I have turned my face to Him Who has created the heavens and the earth…” Paying attention to whom? To the One Who has created the heavens and the earth! God doesn’t want anything from His servant. He says, “Just pay attention to Me.” God gives everything to His servant. He’s not stingy at all. God has created us so that He may give to us. God doesn’t want anything. God doesn’t like negligence. He says, “Why aren’t you paying attention to Me?” When a person pays attention, that’s it. Don’t leave your soul unattended to pay attention and become busy with everything it wants. Say, “Wait, I should have a program for myself now.” In order to strengthen your attentiveness, you should pay attention to your sorrows, my dears. Nothing will drag a person’s attention to itself like sorrows. Find beautiful spiritual sorrows and pay attention to them. This is what supplications do. This doesn’t mean we should be sad. It means we should pay attention. If crying and sorrows help, even better. Now what if sorrows distract us from God? That’s a nasty sorrow. Having a sorrow that does not cause a person to pay attention to God and which distances him from God is very bad. This doesn’t mean having sorrows. It means paying attention, and we should gain this ability. O God, help us to leave this holy Month as people who are attentive. There were times when we paid attention to other things besides You. Especially if we have enjoyed them too - very bad! “I ask for Your forgiveness for every pleasure other than remembering You.” [Imam Sajjad (as), Al-Dhakirin Supplication] God doesn’t want anything from His servant. He says, “Just pay attention to Me.” God gives everything to His servant. He’s not stingy at all. God doesn’t want anything. God doesn’t like negligence. During the days and nights of the holy month of Ramadan, it is by being attentive that we benefit. How good it is to recite the Qur’an while being attentive. How good it is to pray while being attentive. Do your work while being attentive. Do your work, but your heart should be with God. ***

We’ve been created for a continually increasing, warming love. Follow us: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Panahianen/ ... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/PanahianEN/... Twitter: https://twitter.com/PanahianEN Telegram: https://telegram.me/Panahianen/ ============================== When you look at the collection of religious teachings and guidance, you usually feel they mostly tell us what not to do. [Religion says,] “Don’t do that. Detach yourself from this world. Abandon your wishes.” Religions guidance and commands mostly want us to put things aside. That is why many people don’t like religion. They feel that religious recommendations are mostly prohibiting, bitter and unpleasant. Is it really like this? Are most of religion\'s recommendations and teachings really about \"cutting off, detaching, giving something up and leaving\"? Is this true or is this a false belief? The fact is, yes, it is like this. The beloved Prophet of Islam (s) both warned and gave good tidings. He gave good news. But it’s clear that the Holy Prophet (s) is mostly addressed as a warner in the Qur’an. And his being a warner is more than his being one who gives good tidings. Why is it like this? It’s because a person doesn’t need to be told, “Be good. Be in love. Connect with God. Reach Him. Live with love.” You know, human beings don’t need such recommendations. Why? Because a person is in love. He wants to connect [with God]. People have all these good features. They are not apparent. They are hidden in a human being. If you abandon some things in your life, these will naturally show themselves. A person won’t fall in love by your saying, “Be in love. Be enthusiastic.” Love should come from within. Effective recommendations for people are words such as, “Abandon it. Leave it. Stop. Don’t say it. Don\'t say these words.\" In fact, religion’s way of training is a bit like looking for treasure. You have to open the way. Pick up this and that. Pick up this rock. Break that rock. Pick these up until you reach that shining gem, or until you reach that clear source of water, for example. It is like digging a well. Some are very pure. With a little digging you reach water. For others, you must dig a deep hole to reach water. So, you see religion’s recommendations mostly tell us what we shouldn’t do. They’re more about abandoning, prohibiting and warning. Religion wants to detach a person from some things instead of advising him to become connected [to God]. Because there is no need to advise people to become connected. We are all in love and have been created in love. If one abandons some things, love will show itself. So religion’s recommendations are prohibiting in appearances or at least there are more prohibiting ones. Religion truly wants to make people fall in love. But one doesn’t fall in love by telling him to do so. One should remove the obstacles. A person doesn’t need to be told, “Be good. Be in love. Connect with God. Reach Him. Live with love.” Why? Because a person is in love. He wants to connect [with God]. People have all these good features. They are not apparent. They are hidden in a human being. We’ve been created for a deep, lasting love. We’ve been created for a continually increasing, warming love! How can we gain this? By abandoning many things and detaching our heart from them.

DAMASCUS, (SANA)-President Bashar al-Assad gave an interview to al-Manar TV broadcasted on Thursday, Following is the full text of the interview: Al-Manar: In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful. Assalamu Alaikum. Bloodshed in Syria continues unabated. This is the only constant over which there is little disagreement between those loyal to the Syrian state and those opposed to it. However, there is no common ground over the other constants and details two years into the current crisis. At the time, a great deal was said about the imminent fall of the regime. Deadlines were set and missed; and all those bets were lost. Today, we are here in the heart of Damascus, enjoying the hospitality of a president who has become a source of consternation to many of his opponents who are still unable to understand the equations that have played havoc with their calculations and prevented his ouster from the Syrian political scene. This unpleasant and unexpected outcome for his opponents upset their schemes and plots because they didn’t take into account one self-evident question: what happens if the regime doesn’t fall? What if President Assad doesn’t leave the Syrian scene? Of course, there are no clear answers; and the result is more destruction, killing and bloodshed. Today there is talk of a critical juncture for Syria. The Syrian Army has moved from defense to attack, achieving one success after another. On a parallel level, stagnant diplomatic waters have been shaken by discussions over a Geneva 2 conference becoming a recurrent theme in the statements of all parties. There are many questions which need answers: political settlement, resorting to the military option to decide the outcome, the Israeli enemy’s direct interference with the course of events in the current crisis, the new equations on the Golan Heights, the relationship with opponents and friends. What is the Syrian leadership’s plan for a way out of a complex and dangerous crisis whose ramifications have started to spill over into neighboring countries? It is our great pleasure tonight to put these questions to H. E. President Bashar al-Assad. Assalamu Alaikum, Mr. President. President Assad: Assalamu Alaikum. You are most welcome in Damascus. Al-Manar: Mr. President, we are in the heart of the People’s Palace, two and a half years into the Syrian crisis. At the time, the bet was that the president and his regime would be overthrown within weeks. How have you managed to foil the plots of your opponents and enemies? What is the secret behind this steadfastness? President Assad: There are a number of factors are involved. One is the Syrian factor, which thwarted their intentions; the other factor is related to those who masterminded these scenarios and ended up defeating themselves because they do not know Syria or understand in detail the situation. They started with the calls of revolution, but a real revolution requires tangible elements; you cannot create a revolution simply by paying money. When this approach failed, they shifted to using sectarian slogans in order to create a division within our society. Even though they were able to infiltrate certain pockets in Syrian society, pockets of ignorance and lack of awareness that exist in any society, they were not able to create this sectarian division. Had they succeeded, Syria would have been divided up from the beginning. They also fell into their own trap by trying to promote the notion that this was a struggle to maintain power rather than a struggle for national sovereignty. No one would fight and martyr themselves in order to secure power for anyone else. Al-Manar: In the battle for the homeland, it seems that the Syrian leadership, and after two and a half years, is making progress on the battlefield. And here if I might ask you, why have you chosen to move from defense to attack? And don’t you think that you have been late in taking the decision to go on the offensive, and consequently incurred heavy losses, if we take of Al-Qseir as an example. President Assad: It is not a question of defense or attack. Every battle has its own tactics. From the beginning, we did not deal with each situation from a military perspective alone. We also factored in the social and political aspects as well - many Syrians were misled in the beginning and there were many friendly countries that didn’t understand the domestic dynamics. Your actions will differ according to how much consensus there is over a particular issue. There is no doubt that as events have unfolded Syrians have been able to better understand the situation and what is really at stake. This has helped the Armed Forces to better carry out their duties and achieve results. So, what is happening now is not a shift in tactic from defense to attack, but rather a shift in the balance of power in favor of the Armed Forces. Al-Manar: How has this balance been tipped, Mr. President? Syria is being criticized for asking for the assistance of foreign fighters, and to be fully candid, it is said that Hezbollah fighters are extending assistance. In a previous interview, you said that there are 23 million Syrians; we do not need help from anyone else. What is Hezbollah doing in Syria? President Assad: The main reason for tipping the balance is the change in people’s opinion in areas that used to incubate armed groups, not necessarily due to lack of patriotism on their part, but because they were deceived. They were led to believe that there was a revolution against the failings of the state. This has changed; many individuals have left these terrorist groups and have returned to their normal lives. As to what is being said about Hezbollah and the participation of foreign fighters alongside the Syrian Army, this is a hugely important issue and has several factors. Each of these factors should be clearly understood. Hezbollah, the battle at Al-Qseir and the recent Israeli airstrike – these three factors cannot be looked at in isolation of the other, they are all a part of the same issue. Let’s be frank. In recent weeks, and particularly after Mr. Hasan Nasrallah’s speech, Arab and foreign media have said that Hezbollah fighters are fighting in Syria and defending the Syrian state, or to use their words “the regime.” Logically speaking, if Hezbollah or the resistance wanted to defend Syria by sending fighters, how many could they send - a few hundred, a thousand or two? We are talking about a battle in which hundreds of thousands of Syrian troops are involved against tens of thousands of terrorists, if not more because of the constant flow of fighters from neighboring and foreign countries that support those terrorists. So clearly, the number of fighters Hezbollah might contribute in order to defend the Syrian state in its battle, would be a drop in the ocean compared to the number of Syrian soldiers fighting the terrorists. When also taking into account the vast expanse of Syria, these numbers will neither protect a state nor ‘regime.’ This is from one perspective. From another, if they say they are defending the state, why now? Battles started after Ramadan in 2011 and escalated into 2012, the summer of 2012 to be precise. They started the battle to “liberate Damascus” and set a zero hour for the first time, the second time and a third time; the four generals were assassinated, a number of individuals fled Syria, and many people believed that was the time the state would collapse. It didn’t. Nevertheless, during all of these times, Hezbollah never intervened, so why would it intervene now? More importantly, why haven’t we seen Hezbollah fighting in Damascus and Aleppo? The more significant battles are in Damascus and in Aleppo, not in Al-Qseir. Al-Qseir is a small town in Homs, why haven’t we seen Hezbollah in the city of Homs? Clearly, all these assumptions are inaccurate. They say Al-Qseir is a strategic border town, but all the borders are strategic for the terrorists in order to smuggle in their fighters and weapons. So, all these propositions have nothing to do with Hezbollah. If we take into account the moans and groans of the Arab media, the statements made by Arab and foreign officials – even Ban Ki-moon expressed concern over Hezbollah in Al-Qseir – all of this is for the objective of suppressing and stifling the resistance. It has nothing to do with defending the Syrian state. The Syrian army has made significant achievements in Damascus, Aleppo, rural Damascus and many other areas; however, we haven’t heard the same moaning as we have heard in Al-Qseir. Al-Manar: But, Mr. President, the nature of the battle that you and Hezbollah are waging in Al-Qseir seems, to your critics, to take the shape of a safe corridor connecting the coastal region with Damascus. Consequently, if Syria were to be divided, or if geographical changes were to be enforced, this would pave the way for an Alawite state. So, what is the nature of this battle, and how is it connected with the conflict with Israel. President Assad: First, the Syrian and Lebanese coastal areas are not connected through Al-Qseir. Geographically this is not possible. Second, nobody would fight a battle in order to move towards separation. If you opt for separation, you move towards that objective without waging battles all over the country in order to be pushed into a particular corner. The nature of the battle does not indicate that we are heading for division, but rather the opposite, we are ensuring we remain a united country. Our forefathers rejected the idea of division when the French proposed this during their occupation of Syria because at the time they were very aware of its consequences. Is it possible or even fathomable that generations later, we their children, are less aware or mindful? Once again, the battle in Al-Qseir and all the bemoaning is related to Israel. The timing of the battle in Al-Qseir was synchronized with the Israeli airstrike. Their objective is to stifle the resistance. This is the same old campaign taking on a different form. Now what’s important is not al-Qseir as a town, but the borders; they want to stifle the resistance from land and from the sea. Here the question begs itself - some have said that the resistance should face the enemy and consequently remain in the south. This was said on May 7, 2008, when some of Israel’s agents in Lebanon tried to tamper with the communications system of the resistance; they claimed that the resistance turned its weapons inwards. They said the same thing about the Syrian Army; that the Syrian Army should fight on the borders with Israel. We have said very clearly that our Army will fight the enemy wherever it is. When the enemy is in the north, we move north; the same applies if the enemy comes from the east or the west. This is also the case for Hezbollah. So the question is why is Hezbollah deployed on the borders inside Lebanon or inside Syria? The answer is that our battle is a battle against the Israeli enemy and its proxies inside Syria or inside Lebanon. Al-Manar: Mr. President, if I might ask about Israel’s involvement in the Syrian crisis through the recent airstrike against Damascus. Israel immediately attached certain messages to this airstrike by saying it doesn’t want escalation or doesn’t intend to interfere in the Syrian crisis. The question is: what does Israel want and what type of interference? President Assad: This is exactly my point. Everything that is happening at the moment is aimed, first and foremost, at stifling the resistance. Israel’s support of the terrorists was for two purposes. The first is to stifle the resistance; the second is to strike the Syrian air defense systems. It is not interested in anything else. Al-Manar: Mr. President, since Israel’s objectives are clear, the Syrian state was criticized for its muted response. Everyone was expecting a Syrian response, and the Syrian government stated that it reserves the right to respond at the appropriate time and place. Why didn’t the response come immediately? And is it enough for a senior source to say that missiles have been directed at the Israeli enemy and that any attack will be retaliated immediately without resorting to Army command? President Assad: We have informed all the Arab and foreign parties - mostly foreign - that contacted us, that we will respond the next time. Of course, there has been more than one response. There have been several Israeli attempted violations to which there was immediate retaliation. But these short-term responses have no real value; they are only of a political nature. If we want to respond to Israel, the response will be of strategic significance. Al-Manar: How? By opening the Golan front, for instance? President Assad: This depends on public opinion, whether there is a consensus in support of the resistance or not. That’s the question. Al-Manar: How is the situation in Syria now? President Assad: In fact, there is clear popular pressure to open the Golan front to resistance. This enthusiasm is also on the Arab level; we have received many Arab delegations wanting to know how young people might be enrolled to come and fight Israel. Of course, resistance is not easy. It is not merely a question of opening the front geographically. It is a political, ideological, and social issue, with the net result being military action. Al-Manar: Mr. President, if we take into account the incident on the Golan Heights and Syria’s retaliation on the Israeli military vehicle that crossed the combat line, does this mean that the rules of engagement have changed? And if the rules of the game have changed, what is the new equation, so to speak? President Assad: Real change in the rules of engagement happens when there is a popular condition pushing for resistance. Any other change is short-term, unless we are heading towards war. Any response of any kind might only appear to be a change to the rules of engagement, but I don’t think it really is. The real change is when the people move towards resistance; this is the really dramatic change. Al-Manar: Don’t you think that this is a little late? After 40 years of quiet and a state of truce on the Golan Heights, now there is talk of a movement on that front, about new equations and about new rules of the game? President Assad: They always talk about Syria opening the front or closing the front. A state does not create resistance. Resistance can only be called so, when it is popular and spontaneous, it cannot be created. The state can either support or oppose the resistance, - or create obstacles, as is the case with some Arab countries. I believe that a state that opposes the will of its people for resistance is reckless. The issue is not that Syria has decided, after 40 years, to move in this direction. The public’s state of mind is that our National Army is carrying out its duties to protect and liberate our land. Had there not been an army, as was the situation in Lebanon when the army and the state were divided during the civil war, there would have been resistance a long time ago. Today, in the current circumstances, there are a number of factors pushing in that direction. First, there are repeated Israeli aggressions that constitute a major factor in creating this desire and required incentive. Second, the army’s engagement in battles in more than one place throughout Syria has created a sentiment on the part of many civilians that it is their duty to move in this direction in order to support the Armed Forces on the Golan. Al-Manar: Mr. President, Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would not hesitate to attack Syria if it detected that weapons are being conveyed to Hezbollah in Lebanon. If Israel carried out its threats, I want a direct answer from you: what would Syria do? President Assad: As I have said, we have informed the relevant states that we will respond in kind. Of course, it is difficult to specify the military means that would be used, that is for our military command to decide. We plan for different scenarios, depending on the circumstances and the timing of the strike that would determine which method or weapons. Al-Manar: Mr. President, after the airstrike that targeted Damascus, there was talk about the S300 missiles and that this missile system will tip the balance. Based on this argument, Netanyahu visited Moscow. My direct question is this: are these missiles on their way to Damascus? Is Syria now in possession of these missiles? President Assad: It is not our policy to talk publically about military issues in terms of what we possess or what we receive. As far as Russia is concerned, the contracts have nothing to do with the crisis. We have negotiated with them on different kinds of weapons for years, and Russia is committed to honoring these contracts. What I want to say is that neither Netanyahu’s visit nor the crisis and the conditions surrounding it have influenced arms imports. All of our agreements with Russia will be implemented, some have been implemented during the past period and, together with the Russians, we will continue to implement these contracts in the future. Al-Manar: Mr. President, we have talked about the steadfastness of the Syrian leadership and the Syrian state. We have discussed the progress being achieved on the battlefield, and strengthening the alliance between Syria and the resistance. These are all within the same front. From another perspective, there is diplomatic activity stirring waters that have been stagnant for two and a half years. Before we talk about this and about the Geneva conference and the red lines that Syria has drawn, there was a simple proposition or a simple solution suggested by the former head of the coalition, Muaz al-Khatib. He said that the president, together with 500 other dignitaries would be allowed to leave the country within 20 days, and the crisis would be over. Why don’t you meet this request and put an end to the crisis? President Assad: I have always talked about the basic principle: that the Syrian people alone have the right to decide whether the president should remain or leave. So, anybody speaking on this subject should state which part of the Syrian people they represent and who granted them the authority to speak on their behalf. As for this initiative, I haven’t actually read it, but I was very happy that they allowed me 20 days and 500 people! I don’t know who proposed the initiative; I don’t care much about names. Al-Manar: He actually said that you would be given 20 days, 500 people, and no guarantees. You’ll be allowed to leave but with no guarantee whatsoever on whether legal action would be taken against you or not. Mr. President, this brings us to the negotiations, I am referring to Geneva 2. The Syrian government and leadership have announced initial agreement to take part in this conference. If this conference is held, there will be a table with the Syrian flag on one side and the flag of the opposition groups on the other. How can you convince the Syrian people after two and a half years of crisis that you will sit face to face at the same negotiating table with these groups? President Assad: First of all, regarding the flag, it is meaningless without the people it represents. When we put a flag on a table or anywhere else, we talk about the people represented by that flag. This question can be put to those who raise flags they call Syrian but are different from the official Syrian flag. So, this flag has no value when it does not represent the people. Secondly, we will attend this conference as the official delegation and legitimate representatives of the Syrian people. But, whom do they represent? When the conference is over, we return to Syria, we return home to our people. But when the conference is over, whom do they return to - five-star hotels? Or to the foreign ministries of the states that they represent – which doesn’t include Syria of course - in order to submit their reports? Or do they return to the intelligence services of those countries? So, when we attend this conference, we should know very clearly the positions of some of those sitting at the table - and I say some because the conference format is not clear yet and as such we do not have details as to how the patriotic Syrian opposition will be considered or the other opposition parties in Syria. As for the opposition groups abroad and their flag, we know that we are attending the conference not to negotiate with them, but rather with the states that back them; it will appear as though we are negotiating with the slaves, but essentially we are negotiating with their masters. This is the truth, we shouldn’t deceive ourselves. Al-Manar: Are you, in the Syrian leadership, convinced that these negotiations will be held next month? President Assad: We expect them to happen, unless they are obstructed by other states. As far as we are concerned in Syria, we have announced a couple of days ago that we agree in principle to attend. Al-Manar: When you say in principle, it seems that you are considering other options. President Assad: In principle, we are in favour of the conference as a notion, but there are no details yet. For example, will there be conditions placed before the conference? If so, these conditions may be unacceptable and we would not attend. So the idea of the conference, of a meeting, in principle is a good one. We will have to wait and see. Al-Manar: Let’s talk, Mr. President, about the conditions put by the Syrian leadership. What are Syria’s conditions? President Assad: Simply put, our only condition is that anything agreed upon in any meeting inside or outside the country, including the conference, is subject to the approval of the Syrian people through a popular referendum. This is the only condition. Anything else doesn’t have any value. That is why we are comfortable with going to the conference. We have no complexes. Either side can propose anything, but nothing can be implemented without the approval of the Syrian people. And as long as we are the legitimate representatives of the people, we have nothing to fear. Al-Manar: Let’s be clear, Mr. President. There is a lot of ambiguity in Geneva 1 and Geneva 2 about the transitional period and the role of President Bashar al-Assad in that transitional period. Are you prepared to hand over all your authorities to this transitional government? And how do you understand this ambiguous term? President Assad: This is what I made clear in the initiative I proposed in January this year. They say they want a transitional government in which the president has no role. In Syria we have a presidential system, where the President is head of the republic and the Prime Minister heads the government. They want a government with broad authorities. The Syrian constitution gives the government full authorities. The president is the commander-in-chief of the Army and Armed Forces and the head of the Supreme Judicial Council. All the other institutions report directly to the government. Changing the authorities of the president is subject to changing the constitution; the president cannot just relinquish his authorities, he doesn\\\'t have the constitutional right. Changing the constitution requires a popular referendum. When they want to propose such issues, they might be discussed in the conference, and when we agree on something - if we agree, we return home and put it to a popular referendum and then move on. But for them to ask for the amendment of the constitution in advance, this cannot be done neither by the president nor by the government. Al-Manar: Frankly, Mr. President, all the international positions taken against you and all your political opponents said that they don’t want a role for al-Assad in Syria’s future. This is what the Saudi foreign minister Saud al-Faisal said and this is what the Turks and the Qataris said, and also the Syrian opposition. Will President Assad be nominated for the forthcoming presidential elections in 2014? President Assad: What I know is that Saud al-Faisal is a specialist in American affairs, I don’t know if he knows anything about Syrian affairs. If he wants to learn, that’s fine! As to the desires of others, I repeat what I have said earlier: the only desires relevant are those of the Syrian people. With regards to the nomination, some parties have said that it is preferable that the president shouldn’t be nominated for the 2014 elections. This issue will be determined closer to the time; it is still too early to discuss this. When the time comes, and I feel, through my meetings and interactions with the Syrian people, that there is a need and public desire for me to nominate myself, I will not hesitate. However, if I feel that the Syrian people do not want me to lead them, then naturally I will not put myself forward. They are wasting their time on such talk. Al-Manar: Mr. President, you mentioned the Saudi foreign minister Saud al-Faisal. This makes me ask about Syria’s relationship with Saudi Arabia, with Qatar, with Turkey, particularly if we take into account that their recent position in the Arab ministerial committee was relatively moderate. They did not directly and publically call for the ouster of President Assad. Do you feel any change or any support on the part of these countries for a political solution to the Syrian crisis? And is Syria prepared to deal once more with the Arab League, taking into account that the Syrian government asked for an apology from the Arab League? President Assad: Concerning the Arab states, we see brief changes in their rhetoric but not in their actions. The countries that support the terrorists have not changed; they are still supporting terrorism to the same extent. Turkey also has not made any positive steps. As for Qatar, their role is also the same, the role of the funder - the bank funding the terrorists and supporting them through Turkey. So, overall, no change. As for the Arab League, in Syria we have never pinned our hopes on the Arab League. Even in the past decades, we were barely able to dismantle the mines set for us in the different meetings, whether in the summits or in meetings of the foreign ministers. So in light of this and its recent actions, can we really expect it to play a role? We are open to everybody, we never close our doors. But we should also be realistic and face the truth that they are unable to offer anything, particularly since a significant number of the Arab states are not independent. They receive their orders from the outside. Some of them are sympathetic to us in their hearts, but they cannot act on their feelings because they are not in possession of their decisions. So, no, we do not pin any hopes on the Arab League. Al-Manar: Mr. President, this leads us to ask: if the Arab environment is as such, and taking into account the developments on the ground and the steadfastness, the Geneva conference and the negotiations, the basic question is: what if the political negotiations fail? What are the consequences of the failure of political negotiations? President Assad: This is quite possible, because there are states that are obstructing the meeting in principle, and they are going only to avoid embarrassment. They are opposed to any dialogue whether inside or outside Syria. Even the Russians, in several statements, have dampened expectations from this conference. But we should also be accurate in defining this dialogue, particularly in relation to what is happening on the ground. Most of the factions engaged in talking about what is happening in Syria have no influence on the ground; they don’t even have direct relationships with the terrorists. In some instances these terrorists are directly linked with the states that are backing them, in other cases, they are mere gangs paid to carry out terrorist activities. So, the failure of the conference will not significantly change the reality inside Syria, because these states will not stop supporting the terrorists - conference or no conference, and the gangs will not stop their subversive activities. So it has no impact on them. Al-Manar: Mr. President, the events in Syria are spilling over to neighboring countries. We see what’s happening in Iraq, the explosions in Al-Rihaniye in Turkey and also in Lebanon. In Ersal, Tripoli, Hezbollah taking part in the fighting in Al-Qseir. How does Syria approach the situation in Lebanon, and do you think the Lebanese policy of dissociation is still applied or accepted? President Assad: Let me pose some questions based on the reality in Syria and in Lebanon about the policy of dissociation in order not to be accused of making a value judgment on whether this policy is right or wrong. Let’s start with some simple questions: Has Lebanon been able to prevent Lebanese interference in Syria? Has it been able to prevent the smuggling of terrorists or weapons into Syria or providing a safe haven for them in Lebanon? It hasn’t; in fact, everyone knows that Lebanon has contributed negatively to the Syrian crisis. Most recently, has Lebanon been able to protect itself against the consequences of the Syrian crisis, most markedly in Tripoli and the missiles that have been falling over different areas of Beirut or its surroundings? It hasn’t. So what kind of dissociation are we talking about? For Lebanon to dissociate itself from the crisis is one thing, and for the government to dissociate itself is another. When the government dissociates itself from a certain issue that affects the interests of the Lebanese people, it is in fact dissociating itself from the Lebanese citizens. I’m not criticizing the Lebanese government - I’m talking about general principles. I don’t want it to be said that I’m criticizing this government. If the Syrian government were to dissociate itself from issues that are of concern to the Syrian people, it would also fail. So in response to your question with regards to Lebanon’s policy of dissociation, we don’t believe this is realistically possible. When my neighbor’s house is on fire, I cannot say that it’s none of my business because sooner or later the fire will spread to my house. Al-Manar: Mr. President, what would you say to the supporters of the axis of resistance? We are celebrating the anniversary of the victory of the resistance and the liberation of south Lebanon, in an atmosphere of promises of victory, which Mr. Hasan Nasrallah has talked about. You are saying with great confidence that you will emerge triumphant from this crisis. What would you say to all this audience? Are we about to reach the end of this dark tunnel? President Assad: I believe that the greatest victory achieved by the Arab resistance movements in the past years and decades is primarily an intellectual victory. This resistance wouldn’t have been able to succeed militarily if they hadn’t been able to succeed and stand fast against a campaign aimed at distorting concepts and principles in this region. Before the civil war in Lebanon, some people used to say that Lebanon’s strength lies in its weakness; this is similar to saying that a man’s intelligence lies in his stupidity, or that honor is maintained through corruption. This is an illogical contradiction. The victories of the resistance at different junctures proved that this concept is not true, and it showed that Lebanon’s weakness lies in its weakness and Lebanon’s strength lies in its strength. Lebanon’s strength is in its resistance and these resistance fighters you referred to. Today, more than ever before, we are in need of these ideas, of this mindset, of this steadfastness and of these actions carried out by the resistance fighters. The events in the Arab world during the past years have distorted concepts to the extent that some Arabs have forgotten that the real enemy is still Israel and have instead created internal, sectarian, regional or national enemies. Today we pin our hopes on these resistance fighters to remind the Arab people, through their achievements, that our enemy is still the same. As for my confidence in victory, if we weren’t so confident we wouldn’t have been able to stand fast or to continue this battle after two years of a global attack. This is not a tripartite attack like the one in 1956; it is in fact a global war waged against Syria and the resistance. We have absolute confidence in our victory, and I assure them that Syria will always remain, even more so than before, supportive of the resistance and resistance fighters everywhere in the Arab world. Al-Manar: In conclusion, it has been my great honor to conduct this interview with Your Excellency, President Bashar al-Assad of the Syrian Arab Republic. Thank you very much. President Assad: You are welcome. I would like to congratulate Al-Manar channel, the channel of resistance, on the anniversary of the liberation and to congratulate the Lebanese people and every resistance fighter in Lebanon. Al-Manar: Thank you.

DAMASCUS, (SANA)-President Bashar al-Assad gave an interview to al-Manar TV broadcasted on Thursday, Following is the full text of the interview: Al-Manar: In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful. Assalamu Alaikum. Bloodshed in Syria continues unabated. This is the only constant over which there is little disagreement between those loyal to the Syrian state and those opposed to it. However, there is no common ground over the other constants and details two years into the current crisis. At the time, a great deal was said about the imminent fall of the regime. Deadlines were set and missed; and all those bets were lost. Today, we are here in the heart of Damascus, enjoying the hospitality of a president who has become a source of consternation to many of his opponents who are still unable to understand the equations that have played havoc with their calculations and prevented his ouster from the Syrian political scene. This unpleasant and unexpected outcome for his opponents upset their schemes and plots because they didn’t take into account one self-evident question: what happens if the regime doesn’t fall? What if President Assad doesn’t leave the Syrian scene? Of course, there are no clear answers; and the result is more destruction, killing and bloodshed. Today there is talk of a critical juncture for Syria. The Syrian Army has moved from defense to attack, achieving one success after another. On a parallel level, stagnant diplomatic waters have been shaken by discussions over a Geneva 2 conference becoming a recurrent theme in the statements of all parties. There are many questions which need answers: political settlement, resorting to the military option to decide the outcome, the Israeli enemy’s direct interference with the course of events in the current crisis, the new equations on the Golan Heights, the relationship with opponents and friends. What is the Syrian leadership’s plan for a way out of a complex and dangerous crisis whose ramifications have started to spill over into neighboring countries? It is our great pleasure tonight to put these questions to H. E. President Bashar al-Assad. Assalamu Alaikum, Mr. President. President Assad: Assalamu Alaikum. You are most welcome in Damascus. Al-Manar: Mr. President, we are in the heart of the People’s Palace, two and a half years into the Syrian crisis. At the time, the bet was that the president and his regime would be overthrown within weeks. How have you managed to foil the plots of your opponents and enemies? What is the secret behind this steadfastness? President Assad: There are a number of factors are involved. One is the Syrian factor, which thwarted their intentions; the other factor is related to those who masterminded these scenarios and ended up defeating themselves because they do not know Syria or understand in detail the situation. They started with the calls of revolution, but a real revolution requires tangible elements; you cannot create a revolution simply by paying money. When this approach failed, they shifted to using sectarian slogans in order to create a division within our society. Even though they were able to infiltrate certain pockets in Syrian society, pockets of ignorance and lack of awareness that exist in any society, they were not able to create this sectarian division. Had they succeeded, Syria would have been divided up from the beginning. They also fell into their own trap by trying to promote the notion that this was a struggle to maintain power rather than a struggle for national sovereignty. No one would fight and martyr themselves in order to secure power for anyone else. Al-Manar: In the battle for the homeland, it seems that the Syrian leadership, and after two and a half years, is making progress on the battlefield. And here if I might ask you, why have you chosen to move from defense to attack? And don’t you think that you have been late in taking the decision to go on the offensive, and consequently incurred heavy losses, if we take of Al-Qseir as an example. President Assad: It is not a question of defense or attack. Every battle has its own tactics. From the beginning, we did not deal with each situation from a military perspective alone. We also factored in the social and political aspects as well - many Syrians were misled in the beginning and there were many friendly countries that didn’t understand the domestic dynamics. Your actions will differ according to how much consensus there is over a particular issue. There is no doubt that as events have unfolded Syrians have been able to better understand the situation and what is really at stake. This has helped the Armed Forces to better carry out their duties and achieve results. So, what is happening now is not a shift in tactic from defense to attack, but rather a shift in the balance of power in favor of the Armed Forces. Al-Manar: How has this balance been tipped, Mr. President? Syria is being criticized for asking for the assistance of foreign fighters, and to be fully candid, it is said that Hezbollah fighters are extending assistance. In a previous interview, you said that there are 23 million Syrians; we do not need help from anyone else. What is Hezbollah doing in Syria? President Assad: The main reason for tipping the balance is the change in people’s opinion in areas that used to incubate armed groups, not necessarily due to lack of patriotism on their part, but because they were deceived. They were led to believe that there was a revolution against the failings of the state. This has changed; many individuals have left these terrorist groups and have returned to their normal lives. As to what is being said about Hezbollah and the participation of foreign fighters alongside the Syrian Army, this is a hugely important issue and has several factors. Each of these factors should be clearly understood. Hezbollah, the battle at Al-Qseir and the recent Israeli airstrike – these three factors cannot be looked at in isolation of the other, they are all a part of the same issue. Let’s be frank. In recent weeks, and particularly after Mr. Hasan Nasrallah’s speech, Arab and foreign media have said that Hezbollah fighters are fighting in Syria and defending the Syrian state, or to use their words “the regime.” Logically speaking, if Hezbollah or the resistance wanted to defend Syria by sending fighters, how many could they send - a few hundred, a thousand or two? We are talking about a battle in which hundreds of thousands of Syrian troops are involved against tens of thousands of terrorists, if not more because of the constant flow of fighters from neighboring and foreign countries that support those terrorists. So clearly, the number of fighters Hezbollah might contribute in order to defend the Syrian state in its battle, would be a drop in the ocean compared to the number of Syrian soldiers fighting the terrorists. When also taking into account the vast expanse of Syria, these numbers will neither protect a state nor ‘regime.’ This is from one perspective. From another, if they say they are defending the state, why now? Battles started after Ramadan in 2011 and escalated into 2012, the summer of 2012 to be precise. They started the battle to “liberate Damascus” and set a zero hour for the first time, the second time and a third time; the four generals were assassinated, a number of individuals fled Syria, and many people believed that was the time the state would collapse. It didn’t. Nevertheless, during all of these times, Hezbollah never intervened, so why would it intervene now? More importantly, why haven’t we seen Hezbollah fighting in Damascus and Aleppo? The more significant battles are in Damascus and in Aleppo, not in Al-Qseir. Al-Qseir is a small town in Homs, why haven’t we seen Hezbollah in the city of Homs? Clearly, all these assumptions are inaccurate. They say Al-Qseir is a strategic border town, but all the borders are strategic for the terrorists in order to smuggle in their fighters and weapons. So, all these propositions have nothing to do with Hezbollah. If we take into account the moans and groans of the Arab media, the statements made by Arab and foreign officials – even Ban Ki-moon expressed concern over Hezbollah in Al-Qseir – all of this is for the objective of suppressing and stifling the resistance. It has nothing to do with defending the Syrian state. The Syrian army has made significant achievements in Damascus, Aleppo, rural Damascus and many other areas; however, we haven’t heard the same moaning as we have heard in Al-Qseir. Al-Manar: But, Mr. President, the nature of the battle that you and Hezbollah are waging in Al-Qseir seems, to your critics, to take the shape of a safe corridor connecting the coastal region with Damascus. Consequently, if Syria were to be divided, or if geographical changes were to be enforced, this would pave the way for an Alawite state. So, what is the nature of this battle, and how is it connected with the conflict with Israel. President Assad: First, the Syrian and Lebanese coastal areas are not connected through Al-Qseir. Geographically this is not possible. Second, nobody would fight a battle in order to move towards separation. If you opt for separation, you move towards that objective without waging battles all over the country in order to be pushed into a particular corner. The nature of the battle does not indicate that we are heading for division, but rather the opposite, we are ensuring we remain a united country. Our forefathers rejected the idea of division when the French proposed this during their occupation of Syria because at the time they were very aware of its consequences. Is it possible or even fathomable that generations later, we their children, are less aware or mindful? Once again, the battle in Al-Qseir and all the bemoaning is related to Israel. The timing of the battle in Al-Qseir was synchronized with the Israeli airstrike. Their objective is to stifle the resistance. This is the same old campaign taking on a different form. Now what’s important is not al-Qseir as a town, but the borders; they want to stifle the resistance from land and from the sea. Here the question begs itself - some have said that the resistance should face the enemy and consequently remain in the south. This was said on May 7, 2008, when some of Israel’s agents in Lebanon tried to tamper with the communications system of the resistance; they claimed that the resistance turned its weapons inwards. They said the same thing about the Syrian Army; that the Syrian Army should fight on the borders with Israel. We have said very clearly that our Army will fight the enemy wherever it is. When the enemy is in the north, we move north; the same applies if the enemy comes from the east or the west. This is also the case for Hezbollah. So the question is why is Hezbollah deployed on the borders inside Lebanon or inside Syria? The answer is that our battle is a battle against the Israeli enemy and its proxies inside Syria or inside Lebanon. Al-Manar: Mr. President, if I might ask about Israel’s involvement in the Syrian crisis through the recent airstrike against Damascus. Israel immediately attached certain messages to this airstrike by saying it doesn’t want escalation or doesn’t intend to interfere in the Syrian crisis. The question is: what does Israel want and what type of interference? President Assad: This is exactly my point. Everything that is happening at the moment is aimed, first and foremost, at stifling the resistance. Israel’s support of the terrorists was for two purposes. The first is to stifle the resistance; the second is to strike the Syrian air defense systems. It is not interested in anything else. Al-Manar: Mr. President, since Israel’s objectives are clear, the Syrian state was criticized for its muted response. Everyone was expecting a Syrian response, and the Syrian government stated that it reserves the right to respond at the appropriate time and place. Why didn’t the response come immediately? And is it enough for a senior source to say that missiles have been directed at the Israeli enemy and that any attack will be retaliated immediately without resorting to Army command? President Assad: We have informed all the Arab and foreign parties - mostly foreign - that contacted us, that we will respond the next time. Of course, there has been more than one response. There have been several Israeli attempted violations to which there was immediate retaliation. But these short-term responses have no real value; they are only of a political nature. If we want to respond to Israel, the response will be of strategic significance. Al-Manar: How? By opening the Golan front, for instance? President Assad: This depends on public opinion, whether there is a consensus in support of the resistance or not. That’s the question. Al-Manar: How is the situation in Syria now? President Assad: In fact, there is clear popular pressure to open the Golan front to resistance. This enthusiasm is also on the Arab level; we have received many Arab delegations wanting to know how young people might be enrolled to come and fight Israel. Of course, resistance is not easy. It is not merely a question of opening the front geographically. It is a political, ideological, and social issue, with the net result being military action. Al-Manar: Mr. President, if we take into account the incident on the Golan Heights and Syria’s retaliation on the Israeli military vehicle that crossed the combat line, does this mean that the rules of engagement have changed? And if the rules of the game have changed, what is the new equation, so to speak? President Assad: Real change in the rules of engagement happens when there is a popular condition pushing for resistance. Any other change is short-term, unless we are heading towards war. Any response of any kind might only appear to be a change to the rules of engagement, but I don’t think it really is. The real change is when the people move towards resistance; this is the really dramatic change. Al-Manar: Don’t you think that this is a little late? After 40 years of quiet and a state of truce on the Golan Heights, now there is talk of a movement on that front, about new equations and about new rules of the game? President Assad: They always talk about Syria opening the front or closing the front. A state does not create resistance. Resistance can only be called so, when it is popular and spontaneous, it cannot be created. The state can either support or oppose the resistance, - or create obstacles, as is the case with some Arab countries. I believe that a state that opposes the will of its people for resistance is reckless. The issue is not that Syria has decided, after 40 years, to move in this direction. The public’s state of mind is that our National Army is carrying out its duties to protect and liberate our land. Had there not been an army, as was the situation in Lebanon when the army and the state were divided during the civil war, there would have been resistance a long time ago. Today, in the current circumstances, there are a number of factors pushing in that direction. First, there are repeated Israeli aggressions that constitute a major factor in creating this desire and required incentive. Second, the army’s engagement in battles in more than one place throughout Syria has created a sentiment on the part of many civilians that it is their duty to move in this direction in order to support the Armed Forces on the Golan. Al-Manar: Mr. President, Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would not hesitate to attack Syria if it detected that weapons are being conveyed to Hezbollah in Lebanon. If Israel carried out its threats, I want a direct answer from you: what would Syria do? President Assad: As I have said, we have informed the relevant states that we will respond in kind. Of course, it is difficult to specify the military means that would be used, that is for our military command to decide. We plan for different scenarios, depending on the circumstances and the timing of the strike that would determine which method or weapons. Al-Manar: Mr. President, after the airstrike that targeted Damascus, there was talk about the S300 missiles and that this missile system will tip the balance. Based on this argument, Netanyahu visited Moscow. My direct question is this: are these missiles on their way to Damascus? Is Syria now in possession of these missiles? President Assad: It is not our policy to talk publically about military issues in terms of what we possess or what we receive. As far as Russia is concerned, the contracts have nothing to do with the crisis. We have negotiated with them on different kinds of weapons for years, and Russia is committed to honoring these contracts. What I want to say is that neither Netanyahu’s visit nor the crisis and the conditions surrounding it have influenced arms imports. All of our agreements with Russia will be implemented, some have been implemented during the past period and, together with the Russians, we will continue to implement these contracts in the future. Al-Manar: Mr. President, we have talked about the steadfastness of the Syrian leadership and the Syrian state. We have discussed the progress being achieved on the battlefield, and strengthening the alliance between Syria and the resistance. These are all within the same front. From another perspective, there is diplomatic activity stirring waters that have been stagnant for two and a half years. Before we talk about this and about the Geneva conference and the red lines that Syria has drawn, there was a simple proposition or a simple solution suggested by the former head of the coalition, Muaz al-Khatib. He said that the president, together with 500 other dignitaries would be allowed to leave the country within 20 days, and the crisis would be over. Why don’t you meet this request and put an end to the crisis? President Assad: I have always talked about the basic principle: that the Syrian people alone have the right to decide whether the president should remain or leave. So, anybody speaking on this subject should state which part of the Syrian people they represent and who granted them the authority to speak on their behalf. As for this initiative, I haven’t actually read it, but I was very happy that they allowed me 20 days and 500 people! I don’t know who proposed the initiative; I don’t care much about names. Al-Manar: He actually said that you would be given 20 days, 500 people, and no guarantees. You’ll be allowed to leave but with no guarantee whatsoever on whether legal action would be taken against you or not. Mr. President, this brings us to the negotiations, I am referring to Geneva 2. The Syrian government and leadership have announced initial agreement to take part in this conference. If this conference is held, there will be a table with the Syrian flag on one side and the flag of the opposition groups on the other. How can you convince the Syrian people after two and a half years of crisis that you will sit face to face at the same negotiating table with these groups? President Assad: First of all, regarding the flag, it is meaningless without the people it represents. When we put a flag on a table or anywhere else, we talk about the people represented by that flag. This question can be put to those who raise flags they call Syrian but are different from the official Syrian flag. So, this flag has no value when it does not represent the people. Secondly, we will attend this conference as the official delegation and legitimate representatives of the Syrian people. But, whom do they represent? When the conference is over, we return to Syria, we return home to our people. But when the conference is over, whom do they return to - five-star hotels? Or to the foreign ministries of the states that they represent – which doesn’t include Syria of course - in order to submit their reports? Or do they return to the intelligence services of those countries? So, when we attend this conference, we should know very clearly the positions of some of those sitting at the table - and I say some because the conference format is not clear yet and as such we do not have details as to how the patriotic Syrian opposition will be considered or the other opposition parties in Syria. As for the opposition groups abroad and their flag, we know that we are attending the conference not to negotiate with them, but rather with the states that back them; it will appear as though we are negotiating with the slaves, but essentially we are negotiating with their masters. This is the truth, we shouldn’t deceive ourselves. Al-Manar: Are you, in the Syrian leadership, convinced that these negotiations will be held next month? President Assad: We expect them to happen, unless they are obstructed by other states. As far as we are concerned in Syria, we have announced a couple of days ago that we agree in principle to attend. Al-Manar: When you say in principle, it seems that you are considering other options. President Assad: In principle, we are in favour of the conference as a notion, but there are no details yet. For example, will there be conditions placed before the conference? If so, these conditions may be unacceptable and we would not attend. So the idea of the conference, of a meeting, in principle is a good one. We will have to wait and see. Al-Manar: Let’s talk, Mr. President, about the conditions put by the Syrian leadership. What are Syria’s conditions? President Assad: Simply put, our only condition is that anything agreed upon in any meeting inside or outside the country, including the conference, is subject to the approval of the Syrian people through a popular referendum. This is the only condition. Anything else doesn’t have any value. That is why we are comfortable with going to the conference. We have no complexes. Either side can propose anything, but nothing can be implemented without the approval of the Syrian people. And as long as we are the legitimate representatives of the people, we have nothing to fear. Al-Manar: Let’s be clear, Mr. President. There is a lot of ambiguity in Geneva 1 and Geneva 2 about the transitional period and the role of President Bashar al-Assad in that transitional period. Are you prepared to hand over all your authorities to this transitional government? And how do you understand this ambiguous term? President Assad: This is what I made clear in the initiative I proposed in January this year. They say they want a transitional government in which the president has no role. In Syria we have a presidential system, where the President is head of the republic and the Prime Minister heads the government. They want a government with broad authorities. The Syrian constitution gives the government full authorities. The president is the commander-in-chief of the Army and Armed Forces and the head of the Supreme Judicial Council. All the other institutions report directly to the government. Changing the authorities of the president is subject to changing the constitution; the president cannot just relinquish his authorities, he doesn\'t have the constitutional right. Changing the constitution requires a popular referendum. When they want to propose such issues, they might be discussed in the conference, and when we agree on something - if we agree, we return home and put it to a popular referendum and then move on. But for them to ask for the amendment of the constitution in advance, this cannot be done neither by the president nor by the government. Al-Manar: Frankly, Mr. President, all the international positions taken against you and all your political opponents said that they don’t want a role for al-Assad in Syria’s future. This is what the Saudi foreign minister Saud al-Faisal said and this is what the Turks and the Qataris said, and also the Syrian opposition. Will President Assad be nominated for the forthcoming presidential elections in 2014? President Assad: What I know is that Saud al-Faisal is a specialist in American affairs, I don’t know if he knows anything about Syrian affairs. If he wants to learn, that’s fine! As to the desires of others, I repeat what I have said earlier: the only desires relevant are those of the Syrian people. With regards to the nomination, some parties have said that it is preferable that the president shouldn’t be nominated for the 2014 elections. This issue will be determined closer to the time; it is still too early to discuss this. When the time comes, and I feel, through my meetings and interactions with the Syrian people, that there is a need and public desire for me to nominate myself, I will not hesitate. However, if I feel that the Syrian people do not want me to lead them, then naturally I will not put myself forward. They are wasting their time on such talk. Al-Manar: Mr. President, you mentioned the Saudi foreign minister Saud al-Faisal. This makes me ask about Syria’s relationship with Saudi Arabia, with Qatar, with Turkey, particularly if we take into account that their recent position in the Arab ministerial committee was relatively moderate. They did not directly and publically call for the ouster of President Assad. Do you feel any change or any support on the part of these countries for a political solution to the Syrian crisis? And is Syria prepared to deal once more with the Arab League, taking into account that the Syrian government asked for an apology from the Arab League? President Assad: Concerning the Arab states, we see brief changes in their rhetoric but not in their actions. The countries that support the terrorists have not changed; they are still supporting terrorism to the same extent. Turkey also has not made any positive steps. As for Qatar, their role is also the same, the role of the funder - the bank funding the terrorists and supporting them through Turkey. So, overall, no change. As for the Arab League, in Syria we have never pinned our hopes on the Arab League. Even in the past decades, we were barely able to dismantle the mines set for us in the different meetings, whether in the summits or in meetings of the foreign ministers. So in light of this and its recent actions, can we really expect it to play a role? We are open to everybody, we never close our doors. But we should also be realistic and face the truth that they are unable to offer anything, particularly since a significant number of the Arab states are not independent. They receive their orders from the outside. Some of them are sympathetic to us in their hearts, but they cannot act on their feelings because they are not in possession of their decisions. So, no, we do not pin any hopes on the Arab League. Al-Manar: Mr. President, this leads us to ask: if the Arab environment is as such, and taking into account the developments on the ground and the steadfastness, the Geneva conference and the negotiations, the basic question is: what if the political negotiations fail? What are the consequences of the failure of political negotiations? President Assad: This is quite possible, because there are states that are obstructing the meeting in principle, and they are going only to avoid embarrassment. They are opposed to any dialogue whether inside or outside Syria. Even the Russians, in several statements, have dampened expectations from this conference. But we should also be accurate in defining this dialogue, particularly in relation to what is happening on the ground. Most of the factions engaged in talking about what is happening in Syria have no influence on the ground; they don’t even have direct relationships with the terrorists. In some instances these terrorists are directly linked with the states that are backing them, in other cases, they are mere gangs paid to carry out terrorist activities. So, the failure of the conference will not significantly change the reality inside Syria, because these states will not stop supporting the terrorists - conference or no conference, and the gangs will not stop their subversive activities. So it has no impact on them. Al-Manar: Mr. President, the events in Syria are spilling over to neighboring countries. We see what’s happening in Iraq, the explosions in Al-Rihaniye in Turkey and also in Lebanon. In Ersal, Tripoli, Hezbollah taking part in the fighting in Al-Qseir. How does Syria approach the situation in Lebanon, and do you think the Lebanese policy of dissociation is still applied or accepted? President Assad: Let me pose some questions based on the reality in Syria and in Lebanon about the policy of dissociation in order not to be accused of making a value judgment on whether this policy is right or wrong. Let’s start with some simple questions: Has Lebanon been able to prevent Lebanese interference in Syria? Has it been able to prevent the smuggling of terrorists or weapons into Syria or providing a safe haven for them in Lebanon? It hasn’t; in fact, everyone knows that Lebanon has contributed negatively to the Syrian crisis. Most recently, has Lebanon been able to protect itself against the consequences of the Syrian crisis, most markedly in Tripoli and the missiles that have been falling over different areas of Beirut or its surroundings? It hasn’t. So what kind of dissociation are we talking about? For Lebanon to dissociate itself from the crisis is one thing, and for the government to dissociate itself is another. When the government dissociates itself from a certain issue that affects the interests of the Lebanese people, it is in fact dissociating itself from the Lebanese citizens. I’m not criticizing the Lebanese government - I’m talking about general principles. I don’t want it to be said that I’m criticizing this government. If the Syrian government were to dissociate itself from issues that are of concern to the Syrian people, it would also fail. So in response to your question with regards to Lebanon’s policy of dissociation, we don’t believe this is realistically possible. When my neighbor’s house is on fire, I cannot say that it’s none of my business because sooner or later the fire will spread to my house. Al-Manar: Mr. President, what would you say to the supporters of the axis of resistance? We are celebrating the anniversary of the victory of the resistance and the liberation of south Lebanon, in an atmosphere of promises of victory, which Mr. Hasan Nasrallah has talked about. You are saying with great confidence that you will emerge triumphant from this crisis. What would you say to all this audience? Are we about to reach the end of this dark tunnel? President Assad: I believe that the greatest victory achieved by the Arab resistance movements in the past years and decades is primarily an intellectual victory. This resistance wouldn’t have been able to succeed militarily if they hadn’t been able to succeed and stand fast against a campaign aimed at distorting concepts and principles in this region. Before the civil war in Lebanon, some people used to say that Lebanon’s strength lies in its weakness; this is similar to saying that a man’s intelligence lies in his stupidity, or that honor is maintained through corruption. This is an illogical contradiction. The victories of the resistance at different junctures proved that this concept is not true, and it showed that Lebanon’s weakness lies in its weakness and Lebanon’s strength lies in its strength. Lebanon’s strength is in its resistance and these resistance fighters you referred to. Today, more than ever before, we are in need of these ideas, of this mindset, of this steadfastness and of these actions carried out by the resistance fighters. The events in the Arab world during the past years have distorted concepts to the extent that some Arabs have forgotten that the real enemy is still Israel and have instead created internal, sectarian, regional or national enemies. Today we pin our hopes on these resistance fighters to remind the Arab people, through their achievements, that our enemy is still the same. As for my confidence in victory, if we weren’t so confident we wouldn’t have been able to stand fast or to continue this battle after two years of a global attack. This is not a tripartite attack like the one in 1956; it is in fact a global war waged against Syria and the resistance. We have absolute confidence in our victory, and I assure them that Syria will always remain, even more so than before, supportive of the resistance and resistance fighters everywhere in the Arab world. Al-Manar: In conclusion, it has been my great honor to conduct this interview with Your Excellency, President Bashar al-Assad of the Syrian Arab Republic. Thank you very much. President Assad: You are welcome. I would like to congratulate Al-Manar channel, the channel of resistance, on the anniversary of the liberation and to congratulate the Lebanese people and every resistance fighter in Lebanon. Al-Manar: Thank you.

The following is the full text of the speech delivered on September 17, 2013 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting with commanders and officials of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. The meeting was held on the occasion of the 20th Congress of Officials and Commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful First, I would like to welcome you and second, I congratulate you on this auspicious Eid. You turned our day into an Eid with your presence and warm breath and with the good programs that you performed. I hope that, by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, your hearts will always be happy. I hope that your hearts will always remember God and achieve loftier positions. I would like to say a few things about our great Imam and knowledgeable member of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household, Imam Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha (thousands of greetings and praise be upon him). In fact, we cannot understand the spiritual position of these holy personalities, let alone describe them in words. However, before our eyes and before the eyes of history, the lives of these great personalities are a practical, eternal and undeniable lesson. If, in certain cases, we take a look at the lives of the Imams (a.s.) and if we put great emphasis on their policies, the measures they took and their biographies, this does not mean that these are the most important parts of their lives. This is not the case. Their spiritual world, their effort to get close to God and the wisdom and love which radiated from their peerless hearts are other important parts of their lives. However, what is before our eyes is the lives of these great personalities and we should learn from them. Imam Ridha (a.s.) lived for almost 55 years. That is to say, he was born in the year 148 - the year when Imam Sadiq (a.s.) was martyred - and he was martyred in the year 203 of the Hijri calendar. The entire life of this great personality with all its greatness, depth and dimensions took place in this fairly short era. Nineteen, twenty years out of these 55 years constituted the era of the Imamate of this great personality. But if you take a look at this short era, you will see that it exerted a considerable influence on the world of Islam, it gave great depth to the true meaning of Islam and it helped people follow the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household and get familiar with their teachings. This is an extraordinary phenomenon and it is like a deep sea. When that Imam achieved Imamate, his close friends and his followers said, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"What can Ali ibn Musa do in such an environment which is filled with Harun\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s oppression?\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" There is a narration which says, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Blood trickles from Harun\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s sword.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" These friends and followers used to say, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"In such conditions, what can this young Imam do to continue the jihad of Shia Imams and to carry out the great responsibility which falls on his shoulders?\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" This is the beginning of the Imamate of Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha (a.s.). When you take a look, you will see that after the passage of 19, 20 years - when Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha was martyred and his Imamate ended - the ideas and thoughts of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household and the issue of commitment to the Imams were established, in the world of Islam, so firmly that the oppressive and dictatorial Abbasid regime could not confront it. Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha had done this. You have heard that De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel-e Khozayee went to Merv in Khorasan and composed and recited a number of well-known poems in praise of Imam Ridha for which he was rewarded. He stayed in Merv and other cities of Khorasan for a few days and then he went towards Baghdad, Kufa and other cities that he wanted to visit. In the middle of the way, some bandits attacked and looted the caravan on which De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel was travelling. The travelers sat and watched the looting of their property. The chief of the bandits was sitting on a rock and proudly watching the prisoners and captives of this caravan and the things which they had stolen and collected. De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel heard that the chief was whispering a poem. He listened and he realized that it was his own poem. It was one of the couplets of the qasida that he had recited one month or one month and a half ago in Merv: \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"I see that their property has been looted and divided among outsiders and wicked people.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [Speaking in Arabic] In the middle of the way to Rey and Iraq, the chief of the bandits was reciting this poem from memory. De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel became happy. He stood up and said, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Who has composed the poem that you are reciting?\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" The chief said, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"It belongs to De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel-e Khozayee.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel said, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Well, I am De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel-e Khozayee.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" When the chief saw that this person was De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel-e Khozayee, he stood up, held De\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'bel in his arms, kissed him and said, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Because of the presence of this person in the caravan, give them back all their property.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" They gave them back all their property, respected them and helped them move towards their destination. Well, this is a small event in history, but it has a great significance. The poem which was composed in praise of Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha was recited and memorized, in Rey and Iraq, by a bandit after the passage of almost one month or one month and a half since the poem was composed. What does this mean? It means that the ground for promoting the position of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household and the auspicious name of Imam Ridha was so prepared that, in a short time, this poem - at that time, poetry was one of the most effective means of communication - spread rapidly by word of mouth until it was picked up by a bandit in the middle of a desert. This indicates the great movement which was launched during the Imamate of Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha in order to promote the school of thought of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household. During this time, the love of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household was shared by all individuals and the hearts of all people felt the presence and existence of the Imams in the Islamic community. The movement of the honorable children of the Imams towards Iran has a positive and meaningful dimension as well as a tragic dimension because of their martyrdom in the middle of the way to Iran. The reason for their movement towards Iran was the request of the people and their acceptance of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household. As you know, when we speak about the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household, we mean the school of thought which was established by the Imams and the Islamic concepts which they introduced. It means a deeply cultural and spiritual achievement and a great ideological feat. This is the movement of Imam Ridha (a.s.). According to the events that you know and have heard about, Ma\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'mun finally feels that he has to martyr Ali ibn Musa ar-Ridha (a.s.) - he had forced that great Imam to leave Medina in order to get close to him and he did not plan to kill Imam Ridha at first - contrary to what he had planned. The divine will and plan to bury a member of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household in this place, which was faraway from Medina, was exercised by the enemies of the Holy Prophet\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s (s.w.a.) household. This is divine wisdom and engineering. In order to reach lofty goals, one should carry out his responsibilities in such a way. Long-term outlooks should be adopted with such intention, motives and hopes. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has such a position. The issue is not that a new government was formed after the Revolution and that it has certain supporters and opponents and certain soldiers, guardians and armed forces. The issue is not this. It is beyond such things. The issue of the Islamic Revolution - which is protected by you members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps - is beyond such things. First of all, I would like to say a few things about the experience of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps over these many years. Then, I will raise the point which I had wanted to discuss with you dear brothers. The performance of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps over the past 30-plus years has been brilliant. I am not saying this as a ceremonial gesture, like the words of praise which are uttered in many places. This is a fact. The performance of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps represents the experience of our nation. That is to say, the depth of the personality and identity of the Iranian nation can be seen in this performance because the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps enters the arena with faith and belief. What kind of arena? The arena of jihad and resistance. It has built the strongest and the most intelligent military commanders. During the war, those who became designers- and as foreigners say \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"strategists\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"- while they were young and below thirty years old and had not received any military education. It was the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps who built them. It was this organization which created such a spiritual environment. It was the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps which founded such an organization on the basis of faith and belief. It has built a number of outstanding personalities whom our nation and our history will never forget. This is the art of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. These are the things which this organization has done in the area of war. Besides these, we can see that it has built and introduced the wisest, the strongest and the best managers in non-military areas. The list of people that the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has introduced to the ruling organizations of the Islamic Republic is very long and glorious. This is the performance of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. One of the important parts of the performance of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps is that it lives a revolutionary life and it preserves its revolutionary nature. That is to say, different events have not been able to make this strong and powerful organization deviate from the main and the right path. It has not changed its path just because life and the world have changed. These are the excuses that a number of people make. These people make excuses for compromising their principles and they justify their mistakes. Their excuse is that the world has changed, that everything has changed. Well, certain things do not change. Since the beginning of history until today, the virtue of justice and the tendency of human beings to seek justice have not changed. The fact that oppression is bad and national independence and national dignity are great virtues has not changed. These things and many other principles cannot be changed. The fact that the world has changed cannot give us an excuse to change our behavior, our ideals and our goals. When our ideals change, our path changes too. When our ultimate goal changes, then it is absurd to follow the previous path. In such circumstances, we should move towards achieving a new goal and we should follow a new path. One of the most important strong points of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps is its resistance and steadfastness on this enlightened path. These are the points which I wanted to raise about the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. Of course, one can say many things about this organization. We have said many things about it. Other people too have said many things. Of course, there are many points which have not been raised about this organization, but right now, I am not going to speak about this issue more than this. What is important is that the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps is the guardian of the Islamic Revolution. I do not want to say that this guardianship means the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps should protect the Islamic Revolution in all arenas including scientific, intellectual, cultural and economic arenas. This is not what I mean. What I want to say is that as a living organism, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps should know what it wants to protect and what this Revolution is. It is not necessary for the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps to engage in protection of the Islamic Revolution in political arenas, but it should gain a proper understanding of political arenas. Some people mix certain issues together. This should be clarified. It is not possible to describe a certain organization as the arm and the guardian of the Revolution, but make it ignore and close its eyes to different political orientations - while some of these orientations behave in a deviant way and become dependent on such and such a group and some of them do not. This is meaningless. Such an organization should know what it wants to protect. If we relegate the challenges that the Revolution is faced with to political and partisan challenges and to confrontation between certain people, this is negligence and carelessness. These are not the challenges that the Revolution is faced with. The main challenge of the Revolution is that it has introduced a new system for humanity. We are not saying that since the beginning, the Revolution addressed the entire humanity. This is not the case. At first, it was the Islamic Revolution of Iran and it only addressed issues which were related to Iran and fundamental changes in this country. However, the language and message of this Revolution could not naturally be confined to the borders of Iran. Through this Revolution, a message which was based on a universal and human truth was conveyed to the entire humanity. Anybody in the world who hears this message feels that they are attached to it. What is this message? If we want to describe the social and human function of this message in a phrase we should say that it is: confrontation with global arrogance. This is the message of the Revolution. Global arrogance is a system which divides the world into the oppressed and the oppressor. The logic of the Revolution, which is based on the logic of Islam, is \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Deal not unjustly, nor shall you be dealt with unjustly.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 2: 279] You should not oppress others and you should not let others oppress you. Who in the world is not happy about and interested in this message? This message is: neither oppress other people nor let them oppress you. This is the exact opposite of the current order in the world which was imposed after the emergence of the new industrial civilization and the prevalence of industrial tools and the culture of domination. Any organization in the world which is dependent on global arrogance is against this message. Those who like to achieve domination over other countries - that is to say, oppressive governments and economic networks which suck at the resources of other nations - are against this message because they are oppressors. The dependent governments which rule over poor or rich nations, which follow global arrogance, which have no power but which follow and obey these arrogant powers are also against this message. Such and such a government which completely implements the policies of arrogant powers such as America or England is naturally against the message of \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"[D]eal not unjustly, nor shall you be dealt with unjustly.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" The international, multinational or domestic organizations which loot people\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s wealth are against this message. Those politicians who promote the three elements of war, poverty and decadence throughout the world are against this message. During the last two, three centuries, many of the wars which were waged were influenced by global arrogance. Global powers either waged a war against a certain country or made two other countries fight one another. They have done this for the sake of their own interests. Poverty too is the result of their policies. They are to blame for the situation that they have created in many poor countries where the people live in poverty and cannot benefit from their natural resources. With their political domination, these arrogant powers have prevented many countries from drawing on their own intellectual resources. You should read the book \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Glances at World History\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" written by Jawaharlal Nehru. In the chapter which is about the interference of the English in India, he says that the kind of industry and science which existed in India was not inferior to the one in Europe, England and the west. Rather it was superior to European science. Well, Nehru was both trustworthy and well-informed. When the English entered India, one of their plans was to prevent the domestic industry of India from developing. Well, India ended up watching tens of millions of people in that era and hundreds of millions of people in future eras suffer from hunger in the real sense of the word. The same is true of Africa. The same is true of many Latin American countries. So, not only does global arrogance wage wars but it also brings about poverty. The great treasure which has been accumulated on the peaks of wealth and which belongs to the richest individuals in the world reminds us of this hadith: \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"I have not seen any kind of wealth which was accumulated without someone\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s right being violated.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [Derasat fi Nahjul Balaghah, page 40] When they loot the oil, agricultural products and tea resources of a country, when they take control of financial sectors of a country in a way that the people have no access to it and when they do not let the people in such a country have control over production, industry and other areas related to national progress, this country and nation becomes poor. So, they are responsible for war, poverty and decadence. They are responsible for the prevalence of decadence and fueling the fire of sexual desire - which is a natural process and which can be ignited in all individuals. Each of these issues requires a long and detailed discussion. Well, global arrogance promotes war, poverty and decadence and it does this by dividing the world into the oppressed and the oppressor. Islam - that is to say, the Islamic Revolution which is based on Islamic concepts - says, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Deal not unjustly, nor shall you be dealt with unjustly.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" It rejects all these negative elements. This is the main challenge. This is the root of their enmity. This is why they fight the Islamic Revolution. Other issues are all excuses. We should adopt such an outlook on sanctions, domestic wars, coups d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'état and other events which have taken place during the recent years such as the nuclear issue. Contrary to what everyone thought, our Revolution achieved victory. Then it formed a government which managed to prevail. This was while everyone in the world thought that the Islamic Republic would be destroyed in six months or in one or two years. Then they gave a generous figure and said that the Islamic Republic would be destroyed in three, four years. Contrary to what they thought, it became stronger on a daily basis and its \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"root is firm and its branches are in heaven, yielding its fruit in every season by the permission of its Lord\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 14: 24-25]. It has turned into a regional power and a country which is influential in major international issues. They are against this. They raise the issue of nuclear weapons. Well, we do not believe in nuclear weapons, not because of such and such people and not because of America and other countries. Rather, we are against nuclear weapons because of our belief. No one should have nuclear weapons. When we say that other countries should not have nuclear weapons, it means that we ourselves should not and will not have them. But, their problem is something else. If certain countries emerge which put an end to their exclusive right, they will have no problems with that. Of course, they do not want to give up their self-proclaimed right, but if this happens, they will not create uproar about it. But when it comes to Islamic Iran and the Islamic Republic, they create uproar. Why do they do this? It is because having such a capability and power is a source of support for the Islamic Republic which is based on \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"[D]eal not unjustly, nor shall you be dealt with unjustly.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" This is the main challenge. We should know and see this. With such an outlook, we should analyze and interpret the behavior of America, the west and such and such a country and orientation which is dependent on and attached to these powers. This is the Islamic Revolution. In the eyes of these enemies, no one is more hated than our magnanimous Imam who was an outstanding personality and who was like a shining sun. They looked at him with respect, but they also showed enmity towards him from the bottom of their hearts because he resisted and because he was perceptive and wise due to two unique characteristics that he enjoyed: complete wisdom and complete decisiveness. He put up resistance in a determined way and he was like a barrier in the way of their progress and in the way of the harm which they wanted to inflict. This was why they were his enemies. Of course, as I said, they looked at him with respect. They knew about his greatness, but the greater he was, the angrier they became. Today, the same situation exists. They show the same hatred towards anybody who is committed to these main values and principles - that is to say, values which determine the political identity of the Revolution such as \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"[D]eal not unjustly, nor shall you be dealt with unjustly\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\". They hate anybody who realizes that the problems the enemies created for the Islamic Republic are based on this outlook and who takes this path by adopting such an outlook and showing such resistance. Of course, the world of diplomacy is the world of smiling. They smile and ask to negotiate with us. They themselves offer to negotiate with us. A few days ago, one of the western politicians was asked, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"You want to negotiate with Iran. This is while Iran is your enemy.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" He said, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Well, negotiations should be conducted with the enemy, not other people.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" That is to say, they admit that they are the enemies of Iran and they say this openly. The reason for their enmity is not the behavior of certain people. Rather, the reason is the true nature and identity of the Islamic Revolution. Everything that they say should be analyzed, interpreted and identified from this perspective. We are not against proper and reasonable moves, whether in the world of diplomacy or in the world of domestic policies. I believe in the idea which was referred to as \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"heroic flexibility\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\". Flexibility is necessary in many areas. It is very good and there is nothing wrong with it. But the wrestler who is wrestling against his opponent and who shows flexibility for technical reasons should not forget who his opponent is and what he is doing. This is the main condition. Our politicians too should know what they are doing, who they are faced with, who their opponent is and which area the opposing side wants to attack. They should pay attention to this point. Well, you are the guardians of the Islamic Revolution. The meaning of the guardian of the Islamic Revolution is not that you should be present in all arenas and you should have a responsibility in all areas. As it was reflected in the statements of the dear and honorable commander who delivered a speech today, you have a certain and clear responsibility. As he pointed out, it is an appropriate move to take a look on the scope of activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. I agree with what he said. But, first, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps should always know what it wants to do and what it wants to protect. Second, it should preserve its stability and steadfastness which is the main characteristic of the glorious identity of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. It should not forget this. Everybody, at all levels, should pay attention to this point. I have repeatedly pointed out that what the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps does is based on spirituality. Spirituality does not contradict scientific progress, systematic organization, new methods and different scientific and practical innovations. We should not think that when we pay attention to spirituality, we should ignore the material aspects of life. This is not the case. During the early Islamic era, the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.), the Commander of the Faithful (a.s.) and Muslims employed the best and the cleverest tactics in the arenas of war. In our own times too, revolutionary elements - whether the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army or other revolutionary elements - employed the cleverest tactics and methods during the Sacred Defense Era. Spirituality does not contradict the idea that we should pay attention to the material aspects of our work and the effective organization of things. This spirituality should be preserved because it is the essence of our work. The last point I want to raise is that, in my opinion, the future of the Islamic Revolution is a bright future. This is not a vain hope. I am saying this because we have taken everything into consideration. There are two reasons for this. The first reason is experience. Well, during the early years of the Revolution, we were in a terrible condition because of our lack of manpower, lack of material resources, lack of weapons, lack of executive experience and different other shortcomings. But, where are we now? Today, we benefit from a wealth of manpower, material resources, scientific and political progress and international dignity. Where were we 30-plus years ago and where are we now? All of our moves during the past 35 years were made while we were under pressure from the opposing side. That is to say, the wind was blowing in the opposite direction, but we managed to move forward. On the path that we were taking, there were fierce and adverse winds, but we managed to move forward. Is this experience not good? Is it not enough? Hostile orientations cannot confuse or stop a nation who is united, determined and religious and who knows what is wants to do. On the issue of the regional events which recently took place in the world of Islam, wherever Muslims suffered a loss, it was because they did not know what they should do. In these events, there was not a clear guideline and therefore such things happened. Of course, it will not remain like this. The event which happened in regional and Islamic countries - that is to say, Islamic Awakening - is an unprecedented phenomenon and it will play its part in these events. So, our experience is the first reason. Another reason is that we are moving forward with rationality and scientific precision. Our opposing side suffers from increasing weaknesses and internal contradictions because of the wrong way the infrastructures of this civilization are built. They are retreating. Of course, they do not need to admit that they are retreating and it is not necessary to visibly and clearly see this in their statements. This is the truth of the matter. When a people move things forward with precision and by finding the right way, they will definitely achieve the desired results. We have said that we should promote the idea of building the Islamic Republic from the inside. We have said that knowledge should develop and spread. We have said that domestic production should be the essence of our work. We have said that we should adopt a serious outlook on the issue of optimism about the domestic capabilities of the country. We have said that talents should develop and blossom. These things are the essence of our work. When a country moves forward by relying on its domestic capabilities, its manpower, its knowledge, its faith and its unity, it will certainly achieve the desired results. Therefore, we have no doubts that we have a bright future ahead of us. Whether this future arrives sooner or later depends on you and I. If laziness, negligence, selfishness, materialism and attachment to superficial things divert our attention and if we do something to cause our downfall - whether individual downfall or social downfall - then this future will be achieved later than expected. But it will definitely be achieved and this is because of the efforts and sacrifices which were made. Thankfully, in the arena of sacrifices too, you have been very active. You have put in a good performance and made brilliant moves in this arena. By Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, it will be the same in the future. I hope that God will make you benefit from the prayers of the Imam of the Age (may our souls be sacrificed for his sake). I hope that He will make you and us the guardians of Islam and the Islamic Revolution in the real sense of the word. I hope that He will associate the pure souls of our martyrs and the immaculate soul of our magnanimous Imam with His saints and with the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.). Greetings be upon you and Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s mercy and blessings

The following is the full text of the speech delivered on July 23, 2014 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting with students. The meeting was held on the eve of Quds Day. In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, and upon his immaculate household I thank Allah the Exalted because at this point in time our country is witness to a group of young, religious, enthusiastic, motivated, reasonable and thoughtful people. Today, our meeting was a very good meeting. This matter has two parts: one is related to the details of the statements that the friends madew in this meeting. Well, good and valuable statements were made. It is possible that this humble person agrees or disagrees with these statements. The issue of content is one part of the issue. In my opinion, the part that is important and praiseworthy is the enthusiastic and inquiring spirit of students. This showed itself in the statements of the students who delivered a speech. This is important. It is possible that some of the requests that these students made are reasonable and that some are not reasonable, achievable and acceptable. But the essence of this inquiring spirit and this motivation for wanting, thinking, suggesting and criticizing is perfect. Of course, one should observe morality, piety and religious obligations in all affairs. We should avoid unfair statements. We should avoid baseless and unsubstantiated statements. These points are important in their own respect, but what is of primary importance is that our young students should be inquiring, motivated, enthusiastic, present on the scene and attentive to the issues of the country. Well, let us spend a few minutes discussing some of the issues that the friends raised in the meeting. The first issue is what I just said. I became happy with the spirit that exists in our young students - most of whom are representatives of student groups - and I thank God because one can feel that they enjoy enthusiasm, new ideas, motivation and an inquiring spirit. I hope that by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, this spirit remains in you until you will be in charge of affairs because in the future, you will be officials in charge of affairs and you will be the managers of the country. I hope that by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, this spirit and this critical, inquiring, responsible and dutiful outlook remains in you. If this happens, the country will be saved. The friends in the meeting raised a number of issues which, in my opinion, are noteworthy and important. The issue of \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"knowledge for the sake of knowledge without paying attention to its benefits for the country\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" - which was raised by a number of friends - is completely correct and we have repeatedly brought it up as well. Today, scientific work and endeavor in the country and in our universities and research centers is a lively, successful and praiseworthy endeavor. However, everyone should pay attention that knowledge is an introduction to action. Valuable knowledge is the kind of knowledge that helps the country and that is useful for solving its problems. Mere publication of our articles in, say, ISI journals and other such journals - even if they become a reference point - is not an ideal although it is praiseworthy in terms of knowledge. Scientific work should address the needs of the country. This was mentioned by the friends in this meeting as well and I would like to stress it. The officials and high-ranking managers in charge of higher education are present in this meeting. I hope that by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, they pay attention to this point. There was another point in the statements of the friends which was correct. I too would like to place emphasis on it. This point is the relationship between methods of economic management and the culture of society. The idea that we brought up the issue of cultural invasion in the 1370s while the invasion was economic is completely correct. We do not reject this, but our outlook on knowledge as an original and vital issue should receive everyone\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s attention at any level. At that time too, certain complaints were made about the methods of economic management. However, what was important and what is important today is our outlook on cultural orientations. Of course, we agree that the methods of economic management have certain effects on culture, but the opposite is true as well. An issue that was discussed as a peripheral issue - but that is not peripheral to me and that is an important issue - is the issue of youth\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s marriage [students laugh and make noises indicating support]. We knew that you would have such a reaction to this issue. The issue of youth\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s marriage is an important issue. I fear that this indifferent outlook towards the issue of marriage - unfortunately, this indifferent outlook exists more or less today - will have terrible consequences for the future of the country. You brought up the issue of military service, but in my opinion, the issue of military service is not a difficult issue. It is possible to think about and work on this issue. The solution for the problem of military service as an obstacle in the way of marriage is not that we shorten the term. We can adopt other methods for this problem, but it remains an issue. Motivation for marriage should turn into a practical measure. That is to say, marriage should be promoted. Allah the Exalted says, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"If they are in poverty, Allah will give them means out of His grace\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 24: 32]. This is a divine promise. We should trust this promise as we trust other divine promises. Marriage and starting a family has not made and will not make individuals experience hard living conditions. This means that one does not necessarily go through rough times because of marriage- on the contrary- marriage may solve the problems of individuals. The academic environment is a good and appropriate environment for preparing the ground for marriage. In my opinion, youth themselves, their families and officials in charge of universities should think about and make a decision about the issue of youth\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s marriage. We should not allow the age of marriage - which has unfortunately gone up today, particularly among women - to continue going up. There are certain wrong notions and traditions that are highly problematic. These wrong traditions are an obstacle in the way of promoting marriage among youth. Therefore, they should be practically broken. In my opinion, you - who are young, inquiring and enthusiastic and you who suggest breaking many habits and traditions - you should break the wrong traditions that exist on the issue of marriage. This is another issue that I deem necessary to stress. Of course, it was common in the past for a number of well-intentioned matchmakers and religious individuals to act as intermediaries and to introduce eligible women and men to one another. In this way, they helped them get married. Such tasks should be carried out. There should really be a movement in society in this regard. Another point that was witnessed in the statements of the friends in the meeting - this point also existed in the questions that students asked me indirectly - is about the compatibility between the political positions of students or student groups, and the viewpoints of the Leadership. Before this meeting, students had been asked: \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"What would you say if you were present in this meeting?\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" We have received certain answers. They brought us a book that contained 100 - or even more - pages. This book is about the opinions of students. I saw in the book that this question has been posed. And in this meeting, it was posed in a different way. In my opinion, this is not a very good and reasonable question. It is not the case that all the positions that people from different social backgrounds - including students who are among the leading groups among the people - adopt should be a copy of the viewpoints that the Leadership puts forward. This is not the case. As Muslims and as religious and thoughtful individuals, you should take a careful look in order to perceive your responsibilities and to make your own analyses. I will expand on this later on. You should adopt a position and express your viewpoints about individuals, orientations, policies and governments. It is not the case that you should wait and see what position the Leadership adopts about such and such an individual, movement, measure and policy so that you adopt your position on the basis of this position. This will lock affairs up. The Leadership has certain responsibilities. If Allah the Exalted helps him and bestows His blessings on him, he will carry them out. You too have certain responsibilities. You should look at the scene and make your own decisions. However, the standard should be piety. The standard should be piety. Piety means exercising self-restraint in supporting or opposing someone and in criticizing or praising someone. You should observe piety. If it is observed, then both criticizing, and supporting and praising people is good no matter if it is an individual, an administration, a political orientation or a political event that you criticize or support. There is nothing wrong with this criticism and support. Of course, if this humble person expresses his viewpoint about an issue, it is possible that it influences the decision of those who have trust in him and who accept this viewpoint. However, this does not mean that individuals should be absolved of responsibilities and opinions. This is not what I mean. Everyone should take a look and carry out their responsibility. As I said, the standard is that piety should be observed. That is to say, if we make a criticism, if we support someone, if we approve of a movement and a policy or if we reject it, this should really be done out of a sense of responsibility and without engaging our personal interests and temptations. This is another point. One of the friends in the meeting said that students have lost sleep over a certain issue. If concerns make students be so sensitive, this is very good. Of course, we hope that you get enough sleep and go to sleep on time! The expression \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"I have lost sleep over something\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" is a very good expression. If this is really the case, we become very happy. This feeling of worry and anxiety about different issues makes you look at issues with open eyes. As for what I have written down to discuss, it has two, three parts and I will discuss each part by paying attention to our time. First of all, we should consider students to be among those individuals who manifest the vigilant conscience of a people and a country. Of course, this is the truth of the matter. If students launch a movement in a society and if they make a move and a request, this shows the general orientation of that society. This is the case all over the world. Students are, in fact, among those groups of people who show the vigilant conscience and orientation of a nation. Therefore, students should pay attention to issues in a very wise way. They should know their conditions and their environment. They should know threats, opportunities, enemies and enmities. Of course, we do not expect students to forget about their lessons and different affairs in order to engage in political work only. This is not what we expect them to do. Rather, we expect them to look at issues with open eyes, with a clear outlook, with a sense of responsibility and with a high motivation. This is our expectation of students. Some of the issues that we are faced with today are issues related to our surrounding environment and to the region. Regional issues are not separate from the issues of the country. Today, one important and fundamental issue is the issue of Palestine and Gaza. Well, the issue of Gaza and the disasters that have befallen the people of Gaza today and that have a long history should receive our attention from two perspectives: one perspective is that this shows the truth of the Zionist regime. This is the Zionist regime. In my opinion, this is not the important part of the issue. The Zionist regime is a regime that has set itself the goal of showing blatant violence since the beginning of its illegitimate birth. They do not even deny this violence. They have set themselves the goal of clenching an iron fist. They say this everywhere and they are proud of it. This is their policy. Since the year 1948 - when this fake regime came into being officially - until today, they have been pursuing this policy. It is 66 years now that they have been pursuing this policy. Of course, it had committed many crimes in Palestine even before it was officially recognized and even before colonialists imposed it on the world and on the region. But during these 66 years, they did whatever they could as a government and as a political system. They committed any violent act that one can think a government can do to a people. And they have no scruples whatsoever. This is the truth of the Zionist regime. There is no cure for this except the annihilation of this regime. Annihilating the Zionist regime does not at all mean massacring the Jewish people in the region. The logical statement that our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) made - that Israel should be annihilated - is based on a human principle. We presented to the world the practical solution for this and no one could criticize it in a reasonable way. We said that a poll and a referendum should be conducted so that the people who live in, come from and belong to this region determine who should rule over it. We said that the people should resolve this issue. This is the meaning of annihilating the Zionist regime. This is the solution. This is a solution that is understandable and favored by today\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s standards of logic in the world. This is a practical solution. We even put forward a proposal to the United Nations and a number of international organizations in charge of such affairs. And this proposal was discussed by them. There is no cure for the problem that this savage and wolfish regime - whose policy is to behave towards people with iron fists, cruelty and savagery and that does not care about and deny killing people and children, attacking different regions and causing destruction - has created except its destruction and annihilation. If, by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, that day comes and if it is annihilated, then so much the better. But what is the cure as long as this fake regime survives? The cure is decisive and militant resistance against this regime. The Palestinians should display power in the face of the Zionist regime. No one should think that if it had not been for the missiles of Gaza, the Zionist regime would have stopped their incursions. This is not the case. Notice what they are doing in the West Bank. This is while there is no missile, weapon and gun in the West Bank. The only weapon that the people have there is stones. Notice what the Zionist regime is doing there. It is doing whatever it can. It destroys people\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s homes, it destroys their gardens, it destroys their lives and it humiliates and belittles them. If it is necessary, it closes water on them and it blacks out electricity. The Zionists could not tolerate someone like Yasser Arafat who compromised with them. They besieged, humiliated, poisoned and destroyed him. It is not the case that if we do not display power in the face of the Zionists, they will tolerate and show mercy to people and observe their rights. This is not the case at all. The only cure that exists before the Zionist regime is annihilated is that the Palestinians manage to act in a powerful way. If they act in a powerful way, it is possible that the other side - which is this wolfish and violent regime - will retreat, as they are looking for a truce with all their power. This means that they have become desperate. They kill people and children and they show cruelty in an excessive way. But they are desperate as well. They are in dire straits and this is why they are after a truce. Therefore, we believe that the West Bank should become armed like Gaza. It is necessary to show power. Those people who are interested in the fate of Palestine should do whatever they can. This is what should be done: the people in the West Bank should become armed as well. The only thing that can alleviate the Palestinians\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' pains is to show power. Otherwise, if we act in a tame, subservient and obedient way, nothing that is to the advantage of the Palestinians will be done and the violence that this violent, malevolent and wolfish creature is showing will not decrease. Today, the responsibility of people all over the world is political support. There is no doubt about this. As you can see, there are popular movements in Islamic and even non-Islamic countries. By Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, the world will witness the loud and great voice of the people of Iran on Quds Day. God willing, on Quds Day, the people of Iran will show how motivated they are about Palestine. Of course, some people wanted to show the opposite of this with the slogan \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"neither Gaza nor Lebanon\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\". They are wrong. The people of Iran believe in defending the oppressed: \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Be an enemy of the oppressor and helper of the oppressed\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [Nahjul Balaghah, Letter 47]. This is what the people of Iran want and by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, it will be shown. This is one perspective about the issue of Gaza. This is important and great emphasis should be placed on it. Today, western imperialist powers - that is to say, a few large, rich and powerful western powers which are headed by America and malevolent England behind it - have stood firm in order to defend this usurping, oppressive and cold-hearted regime. This is a very important issue. They are supporting it openly. What are they supporting? They are supporting a creator of disasters and no ordinary and fair-minded person can accept any indifference towards these crimes. A small area and a piece of land named Gaza is being attacked by airplanes, missiles, armies and tanks. They have used all kinds of munitions on these people. This is really an astonishing event. So many children are being killed, so many houses are being destroyed and people\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s lives are being accompanied by so much bitterness, cruelty and torture. This is while these so-called gentlemen are supporting it. With what reason do they support this regime? They support it with the stupid reason that the President of America gives. He says, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Israel has the right to ensure its own security\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\". Well, do the Palestinians not have the right to ensure their security? Is it acceptable for a government to threaten the lives of a people who have been cruelly besieged by it and who show no reaction? Does anyone accept this? How will history judge this reason? The officials of these arrogant countries do not understand what they are doing - with these kinds of support - to their dignity and the dignity of their countries and regimes in history. They stand up with complete shamelessness and say that they support Israel. They do not at all point to the events that are happening in the region and to the disasters that this destructive and dangerous element is creating. This shows that today, the logic of liberal democracy - the logic and the intellectual system on the basis of which western countries are ruled and controlled - does not benefit from the slightest moral value. There is not any moral value and humane feeling in it. In fact, they are disgracing themselves. They are disgracing themselves in the face of the critical look of nations throughout the world, whether those who live in the present time or those who will live in the future. We should preserve this as an important experience for ourselves and we should know America. This is liberal democracy. This will and should influence our actions, our judgment and our behavior. This is the camp - that is to say, the government of the United States of America and its followers - that has stood up against the Islamic Republic today and that has challenged the Islamic Republic in different events. This is the truth about them. The truth about them is this: not only do they not show any sensitivity about the massacre of human beings and defenseless people but they also defend and support oppressors and perpetrators of appalling and great crimes - such as what is happening in Gaza today. This should be a standard for us. The people of Iran, our intellectual apparatus, our students and our broad-minded personalities should not forget this. This is America. This is western power and its intellectual basis - which is liberal democracy. Today, it is this intellectual basis that is confronting the Islamic system. Today, the politicians who are most indifferent to human rights are those who are in charge of managing these countries. They do not at all believe in human beings, human rights and human principles. Their behavior in Gaza and other such events is proving this. They do not at all believe in human rights, human dignity and respect, people\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s votes and anything else. The only thing that they believe in is money and bullying. There is no other reason for their behavior. In my opinion, whatever comes out of their mouths about the issue of freedom, human rights and other such things is a travesty of freedom and human rights. Well, we are not saying this as a piece of advice to America, the President of America and American politicians. It is clear [that they do not listen]. We are saying this for ourselves so that when we want to carry out an analysis, make a judgment and adopt a measure, we understand who we are dealing with and who the people we are faced with are. We are saying this so that we know what exists at the bottom of their thoughts. We should determine our responsibilities. What is important is that we should have a correct analysis of the west\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s behavior in the present time. Their confrontation with the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Islamic Revolution and the Islamic movement and Awakening is part of their major polices. The major policy of global arrogance is enslaving nations and dominating their fate without paying the least attention to their interests and requests. This is the major policy of arrogance and we should pay attention to it. Anti-American, anti-western and anti-arrogance slogans in our country reflect this truth. Some people should not immediately jump to the conclusion that a biased or completely unreasonable task is being carried out as soon as they hear an anti-western or anti-American slogan. They should not think like this because this is not the case. This anti-western and anti-American outlook in the Islamic Revolution is based on a correct experience, outlook and calculation. On that day, I said to the executive officials and decision-makers of the country that the main goal of the enemy is to create disruption in our calculation system. When one\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s calculation system is disrupted, it produces wrong outputs out of correct inputs. That is to say, experiences will no longer be useful to it. When our calculation system does not function properly and correctly and when calculation is not carried out in the right way, experiences will no longer be beneficial. Notice how westerners and the leaders of the current western civilization have treated our country during the past 80, 90, 100 years. We have a long experience of receiving blows from the west. There are some people in the country - some western-oriented, westernized and westoxicated individuals - who witness these experiences in front of their eyes, but who do not learn a lesson from them. Well, they saw that westerners brought Reza Khan to power and helped him dominate the country. As a result of this, a bizarre Reza Khani dictatorship was established in the country by the English. They helped a thuggish and unreasonable person who was completely indifferent to the principles of the country. Afterwards during the 1320s, the same powers came and occupied Iran. In fact, they divided it among themselves in one sense. The same powers looted our oil and imposed cruel contracts on this country. The same powers launched the coup d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'état of the 28th of Mordad and overthrew and destroyed a national government which originated from the votes of the people despite all its flaws. The same powers made our national oil movement deviate from its path and consequently, they once more dominated our natural and material sources. The same powers established Mohammad Reza\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s dictatorship in the country for a long time and they supported it with all their power. During the 30-plus-year rule of Mohammad Reza over the country, our material and spiritual sources of wealth were looted. They created a disastrous situation for our people. They kept them in poverty and ignorance, they promoted public corruption in all bases of the country and they truly destroyed the culture of the country, the people\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s religion and everything. This was done with the support of the same western governments. They created as many obstacles as they could during their confrontation with the Iranian peoples\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' Revolution and great movement. They supported and defended Saddam Hussein although they did not approve of him. Because Saddam was against the Islamic Republic, they helped him as much as they could. Westerners, England, America and France provided him with chemical bombs and different kinds of military weapons. Well, these are our experiences. Westoxicated intellectuals do not benefit from these experiences and they do not analyze them correctly because their calculation system has been disrupted. One of the most important services of the Islamic Revolution was reviving true logic and reason in the country. The fact that you young students analyze regional issues, look at different events with complete precision, identify the enemy, analyze regional events and stand firm shows the reasonable life of a country. It was the Revolution that offered this to us, but today, some people still want to go back to prior conditions. The same westernized orientations - the ones that love the west, that humiliate our people and our achievements and that humiliate national culture and identity to the advantage of western powers - want the same powers to come again and to define and introduce standards for the affairs, culture and orientation of the country. Those who are working against the Islamic Republic under the flag of the bloody enemies of the people of Iran are people who are after dominating the same ignorance - calculational ignorance - and the same satanic temptation that once existed opposed to the rationality of this country. I advise the dear students to strengthen their studies - both on the issue of religious and political areas - as well their scientific work. You should try to strengthen your power of analysis. Of course, when I take a look at students\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' statements today, I witness good and outstanding points. This really requires our gratitude. It really requires that we thank God, but you should work on this as much as you can. Today, we did not have the time to discuss different issues of the country. By Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, we will discuss these issues in the other meetings that we will hold with students or other groups of people. Students should provide people with analyses on different issues of the country including social, economic and political issues. The people should be able to benefit from students\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' analyses. Students\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' power of analysis should be like this. This depends on studying. Therefore, students should study. It should not be the case that students\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' outlook is a purely emotional one. Your intellectual products should not only be based on tabloid issues. You should deeply study, think about and discuss issues. Many of the statements that the friends in this meeting discussed are statements that should be resolved in student meetings and in free discussions. I have written this down. The free debates that we brought up and that requires free discussions in academic environments can resolve and clarify many of the issues that the friends discussed in this meeting. Students should be able to find the pros and cons of every issue in their student discussions. Another point that I want to discuss is that competitive discourse in academic environments is a good thing provided that it is accompanied by tolerating the opposing views. One should not become surprised, angry and intimidated at the existence of opponents. None of these three feelings is acceptable in the face of opponents. If we become surprised at the existence of opponents, this means that we are overconfident about ourselves. This is the reason why we are surprised when someone is opposed to us, but there is no room for surprise. Well, every individual, every thought, every movement and every orientation has certain opponents. And it is not the case that we think those opponents are necessarily wrong. This is not the case. There are certain weak points and these weak points make some people oppose us. Therefore, the existence of opponents should not make us surprised, as it should not provoke our anger. We should not become angry at their opposition. Opposition is understandable and acceptable. We should not be intimidated either. Being afraid of the existence of opponents shows that we are not confident about the power and strength of our position. This should not be the case. We have a reason. We should strengthen and build up the bases of our reason and then we should enter the arena of competitive discourse and engage in discussion. The spirit of students should be like this. Therefore, academic environments should continue working with the same spirit that they thankfully enjoy today. They should tolerate one another, they should speak to one another, they should discuss different issues with one another and they should strengthen the bases. In practical areas, the basis of their work should be piety and in intellectual areas, the basis of their work should be observing Islamic limits, knowing the enemy and knowing the methods that he uses for showing his enmity. I hope that Allah the Exalted bestows success on all of you and preserves you youth for furthering the goals of the Revolution. I hope that He increases your achievements on a daily basis. I hope that by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, you youth create a good future for your Revolution and for your country. Greetings be upon you and Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s mercy and blessings.

Who created you Who gave you your hair and your eyes their color Who said how tall you would be and what color your skin would be And Who created your mother your father and your friends Who

Who created you Who gave you your hair and your eyes their color Who said how tall you would be and what color your skin would be And Who created your mother your father and your friends Who

US, Israel behind cyber-attack on Iran? Experts say a computer worm that has targeted Iran's industrial sites may be part of a cyber-attack by the US or Israel against the Islamic Republic. The Stuxnet, a computer worm that is viewed as potentially the most dangerous piece of computer malware discovered, has targeted industrial computers in Iran. The complex worm recognizes a specific facility's control network and then destroys it. Experts say the worm, which has a very sophisticated design, may have been created by a state-sponsored organization in the US or Israel to target specific control software being used in the Iranian industrial sector, including the Bushehr plant -- Iran's first nuclear power plant. "All the details so far to me scream that this was created by a nation-state," Bloomberg quoted Frank Rieger, technology chief for a maker of encrypted mobile phones, as saying. Iran's nuclear facilities may have been the targets, said both Rieger and Richard Falkenrath of the Chertoff Group, a Washington-based security advisory firm. "It is theoretically possible that the US government did this," Falkenrath said during an interview with Bloomberg Television on Saturday. "But in my judgment, that's a very remote possibility. It's more likely that Israel did it." Meanwhile, a top US cyber-security official claims that the US does not know who is behind the cyber-attack and is still analyzing the worm. "We've conducted analysis on the software itself," Sean McGurk, director of the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center, told reporters on Friday. "It's very difficult to say 'This is what it was targeted to do,'" he said, adding the center was not looking for those behind the attack but it rather sought to prevent the spread. The US and Israel accuse Iran of developing a nuclear weapons program. Iran rejects the allegation, saying its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes. The International Atomic Energy Agency, in its several reports, has confirmed that it continues to verify the country's non-diversion from its peaceful path. Article Source: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/143868.html

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur\'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur\'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

عيسى بن مريم، نبي من أولي العزم عند المسلمين يؤمن المسلمون بعيسى كنبي مرسل ويعتقدون أن مولده معجزة. وعدم الايمان به أو بأحد من الانبياء يعد كفرا مخرجا من ملة الإسلام؛ بل إن النبى محمد أثنى على عيسى ثناء منقطع النظير كما أن نبي الإسلام محمد بن عبد الله أمر من قبل الله بالإقتداء بهدى هؤلاء الانبياء أجمعين في الصبر والجلد. كما يؤمن المسلمون بعوده عيسى بن مريم إلى الأرض ليقيم فيها العدل والحق وذلك قبل قيام الساعه ونهايه الحياه الدنيا. ويطلق المسلمون أيضا لقب المسيح على عيسى بن مريم. ويصف القرآن عيسى بأنه كلمة الله التي ألقاها إلى مريم بنت عمران. يذكر القرآن أن عيسى بشر ككل البشر وأن الله خلقه كما خلق آدم بدون أب، وأن أمه مريم صِدّيقة اختارها الله لمعجزته بولادة عيسى من غير ذكر. وقد اختاره المولى ليكون نبي قومه وأيده بالمعجزات من إحياء الموتى بإذن الله وغيرها كدلالة على صدقه. أوحي إليه الإنجيل، وأيده الله بمعجزات عديدة: كان أولها أنه ولد لأم من غير أب، وأنه تكلم في المهد، وأنه شفى المرضى بإذن الله، وأنه خلق من الطين طيرا بإذن الله. لم يصلب ولم يقتل بل رفعه الله إليه. ولهذا يحترمُ المسلمون عيسى ويقولون عيسى عليه السلام، ويعتبرون أنفسهم أقرب الناس إليه وأولى بموالاته. Jesus, Son of Mary, a Great Prophet in Islam Muslims believe in Jesus as a Prophet and believe that his birth is a miracle. Indeed the Prophet Mohammed commended a unprecedented praise upon Jesus as a Prophet of Islam. Muslims believe Jesus, son of Mary, will return to earth to bring about justice and truth, before the hour and the end of life in this world. The Qur'an describes Jesus as the Word of God which was delivered to Mary, daughter of Imran. The Qur'an states that Jesus preached to all of mankind and that God created him as he did Adam, without a father, and that his mother Mary was chosen by God for the miracle birth of Jesus. Jesus was chosen by the Lord to be a Prophet of his people, and supported many miracles such as the of the revival of the dead, with the permission of God, amongst others. Revealed to him was the Gospel, and he was supported by numerous miracles from God: The first was that he was born of a mother without a father, and he spoke in the cradle, and that he healed the sick, and created birds from clay, all with the permission of God. Jesus, Son of Mary, as not crucified nor killed, but was raised to God. That is why Muslims respect Jesus [ peace be upon him] and see themselves as the people closest to him and the first believers in his authority as a Prophet.

Address by H.E. Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad President of the Islamic Republic of Iran before the 66th Session of the United Nations General Assembly. New York 22 September 2011 In the Name of God, the Compassionate The Merciful All praise be to Allah, the lord of the Universe, and peace and blessing be upon our Master and prophet, Mohammad, and his pure household, his noble companions and on all divine messengers. ‘Oh, God, hasten the arrival of Imam al-Mahdi and grant him good health and victory, and make us his followers and all those who attest to his rightfulness.’ Mr. President, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am grateful to the Almighty Allah who granted me, once more, the opportunity to appear before this world assembly. I have the pleasure to express my sincere thanks to H.E. Joseph Deiss, president of the sixty-fifth session for his tremendous efforts during his tenure. I also would like to congratulate H.E Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser on his election as the president of sixty-sixth session of the United Nations and wish him all success. Let me seize the moment to pay tribute to all those who lost their lives in the past year, particularly to the victims of tragic famine in Somalia and the devastating flood in Pakistan. I urge everyone to increase their assistance and aid to the affected populations in these countries. Over the past years, I spoke about different global issues, and the need to introduce fundamental changes in the current international order. - Today, considering the international developments, I will try to analyze the present situation from a different angle. - As you all know the dominance and superiority of human beings over other creatures, lie in the very nature and the truth of humankind. which is a divine gift and a manifestation of the divine spirit embodying: - Faith in God, who is the ever-lasting creator and planner of the entire universe. - Showing compassion to others, generosity, justice-seeking, and having integrity both in words and in deeds. - The quest for dignity to reach the pinnacles of perfection, the aspiration to elevate one’s material and spiritual status, and the longing to realize liberty; - Defying oppression, corruption, and discrimination in contrast to supporting the oppressed. - Seeking happiness, and lasting prosperity and security for all. - These are some of the manifestations of common divine and human attributes which can clearly be seen in the historical aspirations of human beings as reflected in the heritage of our search for art and literary works both in prose and poetry, and in the socio-cultural and political movements of human beings in the course of history. - All divine prophets and social reformers invited human beings to tread on this righteous path. - God has given dignity to humankind to elevate his status to assume his successor role on Earth. Dear Colleagues and friends: - It is vividly clear that despite all historical achievements, including creation of the United-Nations, that was a product of untiring struggles and efforts of free-minded and justice-seeking individuals as well as the international cooperation, human societies are yet far from fulfilling their noble desires and aspirations. - Most nations of the world are unhappy with the current international circumstances. - And despite the general longing and aspiration to promote peace, progress, and fraternity, wars, mass-murder, widespread poverty, and socioeconomic and political crises continue to infringe upon the rights and sovereignty of nations, leaving behind irreparable damage worldwide; - Approximately, three billion people of the world live on less than 2.5 dollars a day, and over a billion people even live without having even one sufficient meal on a daily basis; - Forty-percent of the poorest world populations only share five percent of the global income, while twenty percent of the richest people share seventy-five percent of the total global income. - More than twenty thousand innocent and destitute children die every day in the world because of poverty. - Eighty percent of financial resources in the United States are controlled by ten percent of its population, while only twenty percent of these resources belong to the ninety percent of the population. - What are the causes and reasons behind these inequalities? How can bone remedy such injustice? - Those who dominate and run centers of global economic power put the blame on people’s aspiration for religion and the pursuit of the path of divine prophets or the weakness of nations and the ill-performance of a number of groups or individuals. They claim that only their views, approaches or prescriptions can save the humanity and the world economy. Dear Colleagues and friends - Don’t you think that the root cause of the problems must be sought in the prevailing international order, or the way the world is governed? I would like to draw your kind attention to the following questions: - Who abducted forcefully tens of millions of people from their homes in Africa and other regions of the world during the dark period of slavery, making them a victim of their materialistic greed? - Who imposed colonialism for over four centuries upon this world? Who occupied lands and massively plundered resources of other nations, destroyed talents, and alienated languages, cultures and identities of nations? - Who triggered the first and second world wars, that left seventy millions killed and hundreds of millions injured or homeless. Who created the wars in Korean peninsula and in Vietnam? - Who imposed, through deceits and hypocrisy, the Zionists and over sixty years of war, homelessness, terror and mass murder on the Palestinian people and on countries of the region? - Who imposed and supported for decades military dictatorship and totalitarian regimes on Asian, African, and Latin American nations. - Who used atomic bomb against defenseless people, and stockpiled thousands of warheads in their arsenals? - Whose economies rely on waging wars and selling arms? - Who provoked and encouraged Saddam Hussein to invade and impose an eight-year war on Iran, and who assisted and equipped him to deploy chemical weapons against our cities and our people. - Who used the mysterious September 11 incident as a pretext to attack Afghanistan and Iraq - killing, injuring, and displacing millions in two countries- with the ultimate goal of bringing into its domination the Middle-East and its oil resources? - Who abolished the Breton Woods system and printed trillions of dollars without the backing of gold reserves or equivalent currency? A move that triggered inflation worldwide and was intended to prey on the economic gains of other nations. - What country’s military spending exceeds annually a thousand billion dollars, more than the military budgets of all countries of the world combined? - Which governments are the most indebted ones in the world? - Who dominates the policy-making establishments of the world economy? - Who are responsible for the world economic recession, and are imposing its consequences on America, Europe and the world in general? - Which governments are ever ready to drop thousands of bombs on other countries, but ponder and hesitate to send a bit of food aid to famine-stricken people in Somalia or in other places? - Who are the ones dominating the Security Council which is ostensibly responsible to safeguard the international security? - There exist tens of other similar questions and of course, the answers are clear. - The majority of nations and governments of the world have had no role in the creation of the current global crises, and as a matter of fact were themselves the victims of such policies. - It is as lucid as daylight that the same slave masters and colonial powers that once instigated the two world wars have caused widespread miseries and disorder with far-reaching effects across the globe since then. Dear Colleagues and Friends, - Do these arrogant powers really have the competence and ability to run or govern the world, or is it acceptable that they call themselves as the sole defender of freedom, democracy, and human rights, while they militarily attack and occupy other countries? - Can the flower of democracy blossom from NATO’s missiles, bombs or, guns? Ladies and Gentlemen; - If some European countries still use the Holocaust, after six decades, as the excuse to pay fine or ransom to the Zionists, should it not be an obligation upon the slave masters or colonial powers to pay reparations to the affected nations? - If the damage and losses of the period of slavery and colonialism were indeed compensated, what would happen to the manipulators and behind-the-scene political powers in the United States and in Europe? Will there remain any gaps between the North and the South? - If only half of military expenditures of the United States and its allies in NATO is cut to help solve the economic problems in their own countries will they be witnessing any symptom of the economic crisis? - What would happen, if the same amount is allocated to poor nations? - What is the justification for the presence of hundreds of US military and intelligence bases in different parts of the world, including 268 bases in Germany, 124 in Japan, 87 in South Korea, 83 in Italy, 45 in the United-Kingdom, and 21 in Portugal? Does this mean anything other than military occupation? - Don’t the bombs deployed in the said bases undermine the security of other nations? Ladies and Gentlemen - The main question is the quest for the root cause of such attitudes? - The prime reason should be sought in the beliefs and tendencies of the establishment. - Assemblies of people in contradiction with the inner human instincts and disposition, who also have no faith in God and in the path of the divine prophets, replace their lust for power and materialistic ends with heavenly values. - To them, only power and wealth prevail, and every attempt must bring into focus these sinister goals. - Oppressed nations have no hope to restore or protect their legitimate rights against these powers. - These powers seek their progress, prosperity and dignity through the poverty, humiliation and annihilation of others. - They consider themselves superior to others enjoying special privileges or concessions. They have no respect for others and easily violate the rights of all nations and governments. - They proclaim themselves as the indisputable custodians of all governments and nations through intimidation, recourse to threat and force, and the abuse of international mechanisms. They simply break all the internationally-recognized and regulations. - They insist on imposing their lifestyle and beliefs on others. - They officially support racism. - They weaken countries through military intervention, and destroy their infrastructures, in order to plunder their resources by making them all the more dependent. - They sow the seeds of hate and hostility among nations and people of different pursuits, in order to prevent them from fulfilling their goals of development and progress. - All cultures, identities, lives, values and wealth of nations, women, youth, families, families as well as the wealth of nations are sacrificed by their hegemonic tendencies and the inclination to enslave and captivate others. - Hypocrisy and deceit are allowed to secure their interests and imperialistic goals. Drug- trafficking and killing of innocent human beings are also allowed in pursuit of such diabolic goals. Despite NATO’s presence in the occupied Afghanistan, there has been a dramatic increase in the production of illicit drugs there. - They tolerate no question or criticism, and instead of presenting a reason for their violations, they always put themselves in the position of a claimant. - By using their imperialistic media network which is under the influence of colonialism they threaten anyone who questions the Holocaust, and September 11 with sanctions and military action. - Last year, when the need to form a fact-finding team to undertake a thorough investigation concerning the hidden elements involved in September 11 incident was brought up- an idea which is also endorsed by all independent governments and nations as well as by the majority in the United States-, my country and myself came under pressure and threats by the government of the United States. - Instead of assigning a fact-finding team, they killed the main perpetrator and threw his body into the sea. - Would it not have been reasonable to bring to justice and try openly the main perpetrator of the incident in order to identify the elements behind the safe space provided for the invading aircraft to attack the twin world trade towers? - Why should it not have been allowed to bring him into trial to help recognize those who launched terrorist groups and brought wars and other miseries into the region? - Is there any classified information that must be kept secret? - They view Zionism as a sacred notion or ideology and any question concerning its very foundation and history is condemned by them as an unforgivable sin. However they endorse and allow sacrileges and insult against beliefs of other divine religions. Dear Colleagues and Friends. - Real freedom, justice, dignity, well being, and lasting security are the rights of all nations. - These values can neither be achieved by reliance on the current inefficient system of world governance, nor through the intervention of the world arrogant powers and the gun barrels of NATO forces. - These values could only be realized under independence and recognition of others’ right and through harmony and cooperation. - Is there any way to address the problems and challenges besetting the world by using the prevailing international mechanisms or tools to help humanity achieve the long-standing aspiration of peace, security and equality? - All those who tried to introduce reforms whilst preserving the existing norms and tendencies have failed. The valuable efforts made by the Non-Aligned movement and Group 77 and 15 as well as by some prominent individuals have failed to bring fundamental changes. - Governance and management of the world entail fundamental reforms. - What has to be done now? Dear Colleagues and Friends - Efforts must be made with a firm resolve and through collective cooperation to map out a new plan, on the basis of principles and the very foundation of human universal values such as Monotheism, justice, freedom, love and the quest for happiness. - The idea of creation of the United Nations remains a great and historical achievement of mankind. Its importance must be appreciated and its capacities must be used to the extent possible for our noble goals. - We should not allow the organization which is the reflection of the collective will and shared aspiration of the community of nations, to deviate from its main course and play into the hands of the world powers. - Conducive ground must be prepared to ensure collective participation and involvement of nations in an effort to promote lasting peace and security. - Shared and collective management of the world must be achieved in its true sense, and based on the underlying principles enshrined in the international law; and justice must serve as the criterion and the basis for all international decisions or actions. - All of us should acknowledge the fact that there is no other way than the shared and collective management of the world in order to put an end to the present disorders, tyranny, and discriminations worldwide. - This is indeed the sole way to prosperity and welfare of human society which is an established and vivid truth. - While acknowledging the above truth, one should note that it is not enough and that we must have further faith in that and spare no effort toward its realization. Dear Colleagues and Friends - Shared and collective management of the world is the legitimate right of all nations, and we as their representatives, have an obligation to defend their rights. Although some powers continuously try to frustrate all international efforts, aimed at promoting collective cooperation, we must, however, strengthen our belief in achieving the perceived goal of establishing a shared and collective cooperation to run the world. - The United Nations was created to make possible effective participation of all nations in international decision-making processes. - We all know that this goal has not yet been fulfilled because of the absence of justice in the current management structures and mechanisms of the UN. - The composition of the Security Council is unjust and inequitable. Therefore, changes and restructuring of the United Nations are considered as the basic demands of the nations that must be addressed by the General Assembly. - During last year session, I emphasized the importance of this issue and called for the designation of this decade as the decade of shared and collective Global Management. - I would like now to reiterate my proposal and I am sure that through international cooperation diligent and efforts of committed world leaders or governments and through insistence on justice and the support of all other nations, we can expedite the building of a common bright future. - This movement is certainly on the rightful path of creation with the assurance of promising future for humanity. - A future that will be built when humanity initiates to trend the path of the divine prophets and the righteous the under the leadership of Imam al-Mahdi, the Ultimate Savior of mankind and the inheritor to all divine messengers, leaders and to the pure generation of our great Prophet. - Creation of a supreme and ideal society with the arrival of a perfect human being, who is a true and sincere lover of all human beings, is the guaranteed promise of Allah. - He will come with Jesus Christ to lead the freedom and justice lovers to eradicate tyranny and discrimination, and promote knowledge, peace, justice freedom and love across the world. He will present to every single individual all the beauties of the world and all good things which bring happiness for humankind. - Today nations have been awakened and with the increase in public awareness, they no longer succumb to oppressions and discriminations. - The world is now witnessing more than ever, the widespread awakening in Islamic lands, in Asia, Europe, and America. These movements are ever expanding everyday their specter and influence to pursue the realization of justice, freedom and the creation of a better tomorrow. - Our great nation stands ready to join hands with other nations to march on this beautiful path in harmony and in line with the shared aspirations of mankind. - Let us salute love, freedom, justice, knowledge, and the bright future that awaits humankind.

The following is the full text of Ayatollah Khamenei’s inaugural address delivered on August 30, 2012 at the 16th Non-Aligned Summit in Tehran. In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful All praise belongs to Allah, the Lord of the Two Worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon the greatest and trustworthy Messenger and on his pure progeny, his select companions, and all the prophets and divine envoys. I welcome you honorable guests, the leaders and delegations representing the member states of the Non-Aligned Movement, and all the other participants of this great international summit. We have gathered here to continue a movement with God’s guidance and assistance and to give it new life and momentum on the basis of the current conditions and needs in the world. The movement was founded almost six decades ago thanks to the intelligence and courage of a few caring and responsible political leaders who were aware of the conditions and circumstances of their time. Our guests have gathered here from different geographical locations, far and near, and they belong to different nationalities and races with different ideological, cultural and historical characteristics, but just as Ahmad Sukarno, one of the founders of this movement said in the famous Bandung Conference in the year 1955, the basis of establishing the Non-Aligned Movement is not geographical or racial and religious unity, but rather unity of needs. At that time, the member states of the Non-Aligned Movement were in need of a bond that could safeguard them against authoritarian, arrogant and insatiable networks and today with the progress and spread of the instruments of hegemony, this need still exists. I would like to point out another truth. Islam has taught us that in spite of their racial, linguistic and cultural differences, human beings share the same nature, which calls them to purity, justice, benevolence, compassion and cooperation. It is this universal human nature which – if it can safely steer away from misleading motives – guides human beings to monotheism and understanding of God’s transcendent essence. This brilliant truth has such potential that it can form the foundation of societies which are free and proud and at the same time enjoy progress and justice. It can extend the light of spirituality to all material and worldly endeavors of humankind and it can create a paradise on earth for human beings in advance of the other-worldly paradise, which has been promised by divine religions. And it is this common and universal truth that can form the foundations of brotherly cooperation among the nations that do not share any similarities in terms of outward structures, historical background and geographical location. Whenever international cooperation is based on such a foundation, governments will build their relationships with each other not on the basis of fear and threats, or greed and unilateral interests, or mediation of treasonous and venal individuals, but on the basis of wholesome and shared interests and more importantly, the interests of humanity. In this way, governments can relieve their awakened consciences and put the minds of their peoples at ease. This values-based order is the exact opposite of the hegemony-based order, which has been upheld, propagandized and led by hegemonic Western powers in the recent centuries and by the domineering and aggressive government of America today. Dear guests, today after the passage of nearly six decades, the main values of the Non-Aligned Movement remain alive and steady: values such as anti-colonialism, political, economic and cultural independence, non-alignment with any power blocs, and improving solidarity and cooperation among the member states. The realities of today’s world fall short of those values, but the collective will and comprehensive efforts to change the existing realities and achieve these values, though full of challenges, are promising and rewarding. In the recent past, we have been witness to the failure of the policies of the Cold War era and the unilateralism that followed it. Having learnt lessons from this historical experience, the world is in transition towards a new international order and the Non-Aligned Movement can and should play a new role. This new order should be based on the participation of all nations and equal rights for all of them. And as members of this movement, our solidarity is an obvious necessity in the current era for establishing this new order. Fortunately, the outlook of global developments promises a multi-faceted system in which the traditional power blocs are replaced with a group of countries, cultures and civilizations from different economic, social and political origins. The striking events that we have witnessed over the past three decades clearly show that the emergence of new powers has coincided with the decline of the traditional powers. This gradual transition of power provides the non-aligned countries with an opportunity to play a significant and worthy role on the world stage and prepare the ground for a just and truly participatory global management. In spite of varying perspectives and orientations, we member states of this movement have managed to preserve our solidarity and bond over a long period of time within the framework of the shared values and this is not a simple and small achievement. This bond can prepare the ground for transitioning to a just and humane order. Current global conditions provide the Non-Aligned Movement with an opportunity that might never arise again. Our view is that the control room of the world should not be managed by the dictatorial will of a few Western countries. It should be possible to establish and ensure a participatory system for managing international affairs, one that is global and democratic. This is what is needed by all the countries that have been directly or indirectly harmed as a result of the transgression of a few bullying and hegemonic countries. The UN Security Council has an illogical, unjust and completely undemocratic structure and mechanism. This is a flagrant form of dictatorship, which is antiquated and obsolete and whose expiry date has passed. It is through abusing this improper mechanism that America and its accomplices have managed to disguise their bullying as noble concepts and impose it on the world. They protect the interests of the West in the name of “human rights”. They interfere militarily in other countries in the name of “democracy”. They target defenseless people in villages and cities with their bombs and weapons in the name of “combating terrorism”. From their perspective, humanity is divided into first-, second- and third-class citizens. Human life is considered cheap in Asia, Africa and Latin America, and expensive in America and Western Europe. The security of America and Europe is considered important, while the security of the rest of humanity is considered unimportant. Torture and assassination are permissible and completely ignored if they are carried out by America, the Zionists and their puppets. It does not trouble their conscience that they have secret prisons in various places on different continents, in which defenseless prisoners who have no legal representation and have not been tried in a court of law are treated in the most hideous and detestable way. Good and evil are defined in a completely one-sided and selective way. They impose their interests on the nations of the world in the name of “international law”. They impose their domineering and illegal demands in the name of “international community”. Using their exclusive and organized media network, they disguise their lies as the truth, their falsehood as true, and their oppression as efforts to promote justice. In contrast, they brand as lies every true statement that exposes their deceit and label every legitimate demand as roguish. Friends, this flawed and harmful situation cannot continue. Everybody has become tired of this faulty international structure. The 99 percent movement of the American people against the centers of wealth and power in America and the widespread protests of the people in Western Europe against the economic policies of their governments show that the people are losing their patience with this situation. It is necessary to remedy this irrational situation. Firm, logical and comprehensive bonds between member states of the Non-Aligned Movement can play an important role in finding a remedy. Honorable audience, international peace and security are among the critical issues of today’s world and the elimination of catastrophic weapons of mass destruction is an urgent necessity and a universal demand. In today’s world, security is a shared need where there is no room for discrimination. Those who stockpile their anti-human weapons in their arsenals do not have the right to declare themselves as standard-bearers of global security. Undoubtedly, this will not bring about security for themselves either. It is most unfortunate to see that countries possessing the largest nuclear arsenals have no serious and genuine intention of removing these deadly weapons from their military doctrines and they still consider such weapons as an instrument that dispels threats and as an important standard that defines their political and international position. This conception needs to be completely rejected and condemned. Nuclear weapons neither ensure security, nor do they consolidate political power, rather they are a threat to both security and political power. The events that took place in the 1990s showed that the possession of such weapons could not even safeguard a regime like the former Soviet Union. And today we see certain countries which are exposed to waves of deadly insecurity despite possessing atomic bombs. The Islamic Republic of Iran considers the use of nuclear, chemical and similar weapons as a great and unforgivable sin. We proposed the idea of “Middle East free of nuclear weapons” and we are committed to it. This does not mean forgoing our right to peaceful use of nuclear power and production of nuclear fuel. On the basis of international laws, peaceful use of nuclear energy is a right of every country. All should be able to employ this wholesome source of energy for various vital uses for the benefit of their country and people, without having to depend on others for exercising this right. Some Western countries, themselves possessing nuclear weapons and guilty of this illegal action, want to monopolize the production of nuclear fuel. Surreptitious moves are under way to consolidate a permanent monopoly over production and sale of nuclear fuel in centers carrying an international label but in fact within the control of a few Western countries. A bitter irony of our era is that the U.S. government, which possesses the largest and deadliest stockpiles of nuclear arms and other weapons of mass destruction and the only country guilty of its use, is today eager to carry the banner of opposition to nuclear proliferation. The U.S. and its Western allies have armed the usurper Zionist regime with nuclear weapons and created a major threat for this sensitive region. Yet the same deceitful group does not tolerate the peaceful use of nuclear energy by independent countries, and even opposes, with all its strength, the production of nuclear fuel for radiopharmaceuticals and other peaceful and humane purposes. Their pretext is fear of production of nuclear weapons. In the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran, they themselves know that they are lying, but lies are sanctioned by the kind of politics that is completely devoid of the slightest trace of spirituality. One who makes nuclear threats in the 21st century and does not feel ashamed, will he feel ashamed of lying? I stress that the Islamic Republic has never been after nuclear weapons and that it will never give up the right of its people to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. Our motto is: “Nuclear energy for all and nuclear weapons for none.” We will insist on each of these two precepts, and we know that breaking the monopoly of certain Western countries on production of nuclear energy in the framework of the Non-Proliferation Treaty is in the interest of all independent countries, including the members of the Non-Aligned Movement. The Islamic Republic\\\\\\\'s successful experience in resistance against the bullying and comprehensive pressures by America and its accomplices has firmly convinced it that the resistance of a unified and firmly determined nation can overcome all enmities and hostilities and open a glorious path to its lofty goals. The comprehensive advances made by our country in the last two decades are facts for all to see, as repeatedly attested by official international observers. All this has happened under sanctions, economic pressures and propaganda campaigns by networks affiliated with America and Zionism. The sanctions, which were regarded as paralyzing by nonsensical commentators, not only did not and will not paralyze us, but have made our steps steadier, elevated our resolve and strengthened our confidence in the correctness of our analyses and the inborn capacities of our nation. We have with our own eyes repeatedly witnessed divine assistance in these challenges. Honored guests, I deem it necessary to speak about a very important issue, which though related to our region has dimensions extending far beyond it and which has influenced global policies for several decades. This issue is the agonizing issue of Palestine. The summary of this matter is that on the basis of a horrible Western plot and under the direction of England in the 1940s, an independent country with a clear historical identity called “Palestine” has been taken away from its people through the use of weapons, killings and deception and has been given to a group of people the majority of whom are immigrants from European countries. This great usurpation – which at the outset was accompanied with massacres of defenseless people in towns and villages and their expulsion from their homes and homeland to bordering countries – has continued for more than six decades with similar crimes and continues to this very day. This is one of the most important issues of the human community. Political and military leaders of the usurping Zionist regime have not avoided any crimes during this time: from killing the people, destroying their homes and farms and arresting and torturing men and women and even their children, to humiliating and insulting that nation and trying to destroy it in order to digest it in the haraam-eating stomach of the Zionist regime, to attacking their refugee camps in Palestine itself and in the neighboring countries where millions of refugees live. Such names as Sabra and Shatila, Qana and Deir Yasin have been etched in the history of our region with the blood of the oppressed Palestinian people. Even now after 65 years the same kind of crimes marks the treatment of Palestinians remaining in the occupied territories by the ferocious Zionist wolves. They commit new crimes one after the other and create new crises for the region. Hardly a day passes without reports of murder, injury and arrests of the youth who stand up to defend their homeland and their honor and protest against the destruction of their farms and homes. The Zionist regime, which has carried out assassinations and caused conflicts and crimes for decades by waging disastrous wars, killing people, occupying Arab territories and organizing state terror in the region and in the world, labels the Palestinian people as “terrorists”, the people who have stood up to fight for their rights. And the media networks which belong to Zionism and many of the Western and mercenary media repeat this great lie in violation of ethical values and journalistic commitment, and the political leaders who claim to defend human rights have closed their eyes on all these crimes and support that criminal regime shamelessly and boldly and assume the role of their advocates. Our standpoint is that Palestine belongs to the Palestinians and that continuing its occupation is a great and intolerable injustice and a major threat to global peace and security. All solutions suggested and followed up by the Westerners and their affiliates for “resolving the problem of Palestine” have been wrong and unsuccessful, and it will remain so in the future. We have put forth a just and entirely democratic solution. All the Palestinians – both the current citizens of Palestine and those who have been forced to immigrate to other countries but have preserved their Palestinian identity, including Muslims, Christians and Jews – should take part in a carefully supervised and confidence-building referendum and chose the political system of their country, and all the Palestinians who have suffered from years of exile should return to their country and take part in this referendum and then help draft a Constitution and hold elections. Peace will then be established. Now I would like to give a benevolent piece of advice to American politicians who always stood up to defend and support the Zionist regime. So far, this regime has created countless problems for you. It has presented a hateful image of you to the regional peoples, and it has made you look like an accomplice in the crimes of the usurping Zionists. The material and moral costs borne by the American government and people on account of this are staggering, and if this continues, the costs might become even heavier in the future. Think about the Islamic Republic\\\\\\\'s proposal of a referendum and with a courageous decision, rescue yourselves from the current impossible situation. Undoubtedly, the people of the region and all free-thinkers across the world will welcome this measure. Honorable guests, now I would like to return to my initial point. Global conditions are sensitive and the world is passing through a crucial historical juncture. It is anticipated that a new order shall be born. The Non-Aligned Movement, which includes almost two-thirds of the world community, can play a major role in shaping that future. The holding of this major conference in Tehran is itself a significant event to be taken into consideration. By pooling our resources and capacities, we members of this movement can create a new historic and lasting role towards rescuing the world from insecurity, war and hegemony. This goal can be achieved only through our comprehensive cooperation with each other. There are among us quite a few countries that are very wealthy and countries that enjoy international influence. It is completely possible to find solutions for problems through economic and media cooperation and through passing on experiences that help us improve and make progress. We need to strengthen our determination. We need to remain faithful to our goals. We should not fear the bullying powers when they frown at us, nor should we become happy when they smile at us. We should consider the will of God and the laws of creation as our support. We should learn lessons from what happened to the communist camp two decades ago and from the failure of the policies of so-called “Western liberal democracy” at the present time, whose signs can be seen by everybody in the streets of European countries and America and in the insoluble economic problems of these countries. And finally, we should consider the Islamic Awakening in the region and the fall of the dictatorships in North Africa, which were dependent on America and were accomplices to the Zionist regime, as a great opportunity. We can help improve the “political productivity” of the Non-Aligned Movement in global governance. We can prepare a historic document aimed to bring about a change in this governance and to provide for its administrative tools. We can plan for effective economic cooperation and define paradigms for cultural relationships among ourselves. Undoubtedly, establishing an active and motivated secretariat for this organization will be a great and significant help in achieving these goals. Thank you.

O Allah! Send blessing on Muhammad and on the children of Muhammad. In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. (All) praise is for Allah (alone) who wrapped the night (with darkness), made sleep a medium of rest and repose, and the day a time to work and make efforts. (All) praise is for Thee (alone), [for Thou makes me come out of the deep sleep (motionless spell of inactivity) everyday, although if Thou wills it could be a rest for ever], everlasting praise, (that) never ever is cut off, nor anyone of the created beings can know, write or count up. O my Allah, (All) prais is for Thee (alone) for Thou created, (everything) in order and equilibrium, well-measured, properly managed, effectively carried out, and determined the duration, gave life, cause (things) to decay, and recover, made available comforts, (mixed with) troubles and sorrows. Calm and unruffled Thou occupied the A\'rsh (seat of Divine authority), the whole universe under Thy domain and jurisdiction, I call Thee with a request like the one whose means and opportunities are frail and unsure, resources cut off, and the end in very near, expectations from the worldly life proved to be of little worth, (now) in need of Thy mercy cracks up, sigh of grief and regrets for immoderate conduct are heartbreaking, errors are very many, and also offences, but with sincerity has turned repentant to Thee, therefore send blessing on Muhammad, the Last Prophet, on his pure and pious children, and make available for me recommendations of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be on him and on his children, and donot deprive me of his company, verily Thou art the Most Merciful. O my Allah, in the hours of this Wednesday, fulfil my four desires, give me strength to obey Thee, happiness in Thy worship, willingness to earn Thy rewards, self-control to keep off that which brings Thy terrible punishment; verily Thou very kindly and lovingly operates Thy will. O Allah! Send blessings on Muhammad and on the children of Muhammad.

رہبر مسلمین آیت اللہ العظمی سید علی خامنہ ای کا پیغام حج - Rehbar Ayatullah Sayyed Ali Khamenei Ka Payghame Hajj - Urdu Leader\\\\\\\'s annual Hajj message in full Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, delivered a message to this year’s hajj pilgrims. The following is the full text of the message: In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds and peace and greetings be upon the Master of Prophets and Messengers and upon his immaculate and pure household and chosen companions. The arrival of the hajj season should be regarded as the great Eid of the Islamic Ummah. The great opportunity which these precious days provide for Muslims throughout the world is like a miraculous elixir. If the value of such days is appreciated and if we benefit from such days in an appropriate way, many of the maladies of the world of Islam will be cured. Hajj is the bubbling spring of divine blessings. Each and every one of you happy pilgrims has gained the opportunity to cleanse your hearts and souls with these religious practices, which are full of warmth and spirituality, and to collect many blessings for your entire life by using this source of mercy, dignity and power. In this divine arena of self-edification you can express your humility before Allah the Merciful, carry out the responsibilities which have fallen on the shoulders of Muslims, show enthusiasm and dynamism in the affairs of the world and in your religious duties, offer mercy and forgiveness when you interact with Muslim brothers, demonstrate your courage and determination in the face of difficult events, become hopeful about divine assistance in all arenas and, finally, build your human character the way Muslims should. When you are ornamented with these precious resources and when you have benefitted from them, then you can offer yourselves as gifts to your country, your nation and the Islamic Ummah. More than anything else, the Islamic Ummah needs individuals who can utilize thoughts and actions as well as faith, sincerity and purity, who can show resistance in the face of the spiteful enemies as well as exercising self-purification and piety. This is the only way for the liberation of the great Muslim community from the problems which have been created, either by the enemy, or as a result ofthe lack of determination, faith and foresightamong Muslims. Muslims have suffered from these things for a very long time. Without a doubt, the present era is an era of awakening, one in which Muslims can find their true identity. This truth can be easily discovered through the challenges which Muslims are faced with. It is exactly in such conditions that our determination- which is based on faith, reliance on God, foresight and wisdom- can help Muslim nations achieve victory against these challenges and bring about a dignified and honorable fate for Muslims. The opposing camp which cannot tolerate Islamic Awakening and the dignity of Muslims has entered the arena with all its power and it is using all kinds of psychological, military, security, economic and propaganda tools to suppress Muslims, make them inactive and busy them with trivial things. Taking a general look at the conditions of West Asian countries such as Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Palestine and countries surrounding the Persian Gulf, and North African countries such as Libya, Egypt, Tunisia, Sudan and a number of other countries- reveals many truths. The existence of civil wars, religious and denominational prejudices and political instabilities, the prevalence of cruel terrorism, the emergence of extreme groups and orientations- which like savage tribes in history, cut open the chests of human beings and rip their hearts out with their teeth- the emergence of armed mercenaries who kill women and children, cut off the heads of men and rape women and who do such horrible and disgusting crimes in the name of religion are all the products of the satanic and arrogant plots of foreign intelligence services and their regional agents. Such plots are implemented in countries in which the ground is prepared before-hand and as a result, they create a disastrous situation for these nations and peoples. In such conditions, it is clear that one cannot expect Muslim nations to remedy their material and spiritual shortcomings and to achieve security, welfare, scientific progress and international dignity which are the results of achieving awakening and finding one’s true identity. These disastrous conditions can abort the progress of Islamic Awakening, destroy the mental awareness which has been created in the world of Islam, drag Muslims- once more- towards stagnation, isolation and decline and consign to oblivion important and fundamental issues such as the liberation of Palestine and other Muslim nations from the transgressions of the USA and Zionism. The most important cure for this situation can be summarized in two key phrases, both of which are among the clearest lessons of hajj: First: unity and brotherhood of Muslims under the flag of monotheism. Second: knowing the enemy and confronting his plans and methods. Strengthening the spirit of brotherhood and cooperation is a great lesson of hajj. During hajj, even quarrelling and arguing with others is forbidden. During hajj, wearing the same clothes, following the same practices, making the same moves and behaving in a kind way,all mean equality and brotherhood for all those who believe in and rely on monotheism. This means that Islam strongly rejects any idea and belief which views a number of Muslims and believers in Ka’bah and monotheism as people who are outside the circle of Islam. Theseorientationswhich are based on takfirism, which have become playthings in the hands of the treacherous Zionist politicians and their western supporters- commit serious crimes and shed the blood of Muslims and innocent people, and the people who claim to be religious, who call themselves clerics and who fuel the fire of fitna between Shia and Sunni and otherdenominations- should know that the hajj pilgrimage will thwart their claims. I, like many Islamic scholars and sympathetic personalities in the Islamic Ummah, announce that any statement or action which fuels the fire of discord among Muslims, any insult to the sacred beliefs of each one of the Muslim denominations and any act of takfirism against Islamic denominations equals serving the camp of atheism and polytheism and betraying Islam. All of these things are haraam. Knowing the enemy and its methods is the second important factor. First, we should not forget about the existence of a spiteful enemy. Performing the ritual of the stoning of the jamarat during hajj is a symbolic sign of this awareness. Second, we should not make a mistake in knowing the main enemy, who in the present time is global arrogance and the criminal Zionist network. Third, we should properly identify the methods of this hostile enemy which is creating discord among Muslims, promoting moral and political corruption, threatening and tempting outstanding personalities, exerting economic pressures on all nations and arousing doubts about Islamic beliefs. Moreover, we should identify their agents and those who are, knowingly or ignorantly, dependent on them. Arrogant governments, headed by the USA, conceal their true character with the help of comprehensive and advanced propaganda tools. By claiming that they support human rights and democracy, they deceive public opinion in different countries. They speak about the rights of all nations while each day Muslim nations feel- with their bodies and souls- the fire of discord more than the past. For decades, the oppressed Palestinian nation has been receiving strikes as a result of the crimes of the Zionist regime and its supporters. In the countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq, terrorism - which originates from the policies of global arrogance and its agents in the region - has ruined the lives of the people. Syria has come under the attack of arrogant powers and their regional agents because of supporting anti-Zionist orientations and it has experienced a bloody civil war. In Bahrain and Myanmar, Muslims have been ignored and their enemies are supported. Other nations are threatened by the USA and its allies with military attacks, economic sanctions and different acts of sabotage. Taking a general look at all these countries can reveal to all people throughout the world the true face of these leaders of global arrogance. Political, cultural and religious personalities throughout the world of Islam should consider it their responsibility to draw everyone’s attention to these facts. This is the moral and religious responsibility of all of us. North African countries, which are unfortunately suffering from deep domestic conflicts today, should pay attention to this responsibility more than other countries. They should pay more attention to the issue of knowing the enemy and its plots and methods. The continuation of these conflicts among nationalist orientations and Muslims’ negligence about the threat of domestic wars in such countries is a great danger. The loss that may be inflicted on the Islamic Ummah because of such events will not be quickly compensated for. Of course, we have no doubts that the people who have risen against global arrogance and who have become the embodiment of Islamic Awakening in such countries will not, by Allah’s favor, allow time to go back so much so that the era of the corrupt, dependent and dictatorial rulers starts again. However, ignorance about the role of arrogant powers in creating discord and bringing about destructive interference will create a difficult situation for such countries and will cause a very long delay in achieving an era of dignity, security and welfare. We believe, from the bottom of our hearts, in the capability of nations and in the power, faith, determination and foresight which Allah the Omniscient has offered to the masses of the people. For more than three decades, we have seen this in the Islamic Republic with our own eyes and we have experienced it with all our hearts and souls. Our determination is an invitation forall Muslim nations, to this experience of their brothers in this dignified and indefatigable country. I ask Allah the Exalted to bestow peace on Muslims and to foil the plots of the enemies. I ask Him to accept your hajj pilgrimage and bestow physical and spiritual health on you. I ask Him to provide you pilgrims of the House of God with an overflowing supply of spiritual blessings. Greetings be upon you and Allah’s Mercy Sayyid Ali Khamenei

رہبر مسلمین آیت اللہ العظمی سید علی خامنہ ای کا پیغام حج - Rehbar Ayatullah Sayyed Ali Khamenei Ka Payghame Hajj - Urdu Leader\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s annual Hajj message in full Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, delivered a message to this year’s hajj pilgrims. The following is the full text of the message: In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds and peace and greetings be upon the Master of Prophets and Messengers and upon his immaculate and pure household and chosen companions. The arrival of the hajj season should be regarded as the great Eid of the Islamic Ummah. The great opportunity which these precious days provide for Muslims throughout the world is like a miraculous elixir. If the value of such days is appreciated and if we benefit from such days in an appropriate way, many of the maladies of the world of Islam will be cured. Hajj is the bubbling spring of divine blessings. Each and every one of you happy pilgrims has gained the opportunity to cleanse your hearts and souls with these religious practices, which are full of warmth and spirituality, and to collect many blessings for your entire life by using this source of mercy, dignity and power. In this divine arena of self-edification you can express your humility before Allah the Merciful, carry out the responsibilities which have fallen on the shoulders of Muslims, show enthusiasm and dynamism in the affairs of the world and in your religious duties, offer mercy and forgiveness when you interact with Muslim brothers, demonstrate your courage and determination in the face of difficult events, become hopeful about divine assistance in all arenas and, finally, build your human character the way Muslims should. When you are ornamented with these precious resources and when you have benefitted from them, then you can offer yourselves as gifts to your country, your nation and the Islamic Ummah. More than anything else, the Islamic Ummah needs individuals who can utilize thoughts and actions as well as faith, sincerity and purity, who can show resistance in the face of the spiteful enemies as well as exercising self-purification and piety. This is the only way for the liberation of the great Muslim community from the problems which have been created, either by the enemy, or as a result ofthe lack of determination, faith and foresightamong Muslims. Muslims have suffered from these things for a very long time. Without a doubt, the present era is an era of awakening, one in which Muslims can find their true identity. This truth can be easily discovered through the challenges which Muslims are faced with. It is exactly in such conditions that our determination- which is based on faith, reliance on God, foresight and wisdom- can help Muslim nations achieve victory against these challenges and bring about a dignified and honorable fate for Muslims. The opposing camp which cannot tolerate Islamic Awakening and the dignity of Muslims has entered the arena with all its power and it is using all kinds of psychological, military, security, economic and propaganda tools to suppress Muslims, make them inactive and busy them with trivial things. Taking a general look at the conditions of West Asian countries such as Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Palestine and countries surrounding the Persian Gulf, and North African countries such as Libya, Egypt, Tunisia, Sudan and a number of other countries- reveals many truths. The existence of civil wars, religious and denominational prejudices and political instabilities, the prevalence of cruel terrorism, the emergence of extreme groups and orientations- which like savage tribes in history, cut open the chests of human beings and rip their hearts out with their teeth- the emergence of armed mercenaries who kill women and children, cut off the heads of men and rape women and who do such horrible and disgusting crimes in the name of religion are all the products of the satanic and arrogant plots of foreign intelligence services and their regional agents. Such plots are implemented in countries in which the ground is prepared before-hand and as a result, they create a disastrous situation for these nations and peoples. In such conditions, it is clear that one cannot expect Muslim nations to remedy their material and spiritual shortcomings and to achieve security, welfare, scientific progress and international dignity which are the results of achieving awakening and finding one’s true identity. These disastrous conditions can abort the progress of Islamic Awakening, destroy the mental awareness which has been created in the world of Islam, drag Muslims- once more- towards stagnation, isolation and decline and consign to oblivion important and fundamental issues such as the liberation of Palestine and other Muslim nations from the transgressions of the USA and Zionism. The most important cure for this situation can be summarized in two key phrases, both of which are among the clearest lessons of hajj: First: unity and brotherhood of Muslims under the flag of monotheism. Second: knowing the enemy and confronting his plans and methods. Strengthening the spirit of brotherhood and cooperation is a great lesson of hajj. During hajj, even quarrelling and arguing with others is forbidden. During hajj, wearing the same clothes, following the same practices, making the same moves and behaving in a kind way,all mean equality and brotherhood for all those who believe in and rely on monotheism. This means that Islam strongly rejects any idea and belief which views a number of Muslims and believers in Ka’bah and monotheism as people who are outside the circle of Islam. Theseorientationswhich are based on takfirism, which have become playthings in the hands of the treacherous Zionist politicians and their western supporters- commit serious crimes and shed the blood of Muslims and innocent people, and the people who claim to be religious, who call themselves clerics and who fuel the fire of fitna between Shia and Sunni and otherdenominations- should know that the hajj pilgrimage will thwart their claims. I, like many Islamic scholars and sympathetic personalities in the Islamic Ummah, announce that any statement or action which fuels the fire of discord among Muslims, any insult to the sacred beliefs of each one of the Muslim denominations and any act of takfirism against Islamic denominations equals serving the camp of atheism and polytheism and betraying Islam. All of these things are haraam. Knowing the enemy and its methods is the second important factor. First, we should not forget about the existence of a spiteful enemy. Performing the ritual of the stoning of the jamarat during hajj is a symbolic sign of this awareness. Second, we should not make a mistake in knowing the main enemy, who in the present time is global arrogance and the criminal Zionist network. Third, we should properly identify the methods of this hostile enemy which is creating discord among Muslims, promoting moral and political corruption, threatening and tempting outstanding personalities, exerting economic pressures on all nations and arousing doubts about Islamic beliefs. Moreover, we should identify their agents and those who are, knowingly or ignorantly, dependent on them. Arrogant governments, headed by the USA, conceal their true character with the help of comprehensive and advanced propaganda tools. By claiming that they support human rights and democracy, they deceive public opinion in different countries. They speak about the rights of all nations while each day Muslim nations feel- with their bodies and souls- the fire of discord more than the past. For decades, the oppressed Palestinian nation has been receiving strikes as a result of the crimes of the Zionist regime and its supporters. In the countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq, terrorism - which originates from the policies of global arrogance and its agents in the region - has ruined the lives of the people. Syria has come under the attack of arrogant powers and their regional agents because of supporting anti-Zionist orientations and it has experienced a bloody civil war. In Bahrain and Myanmar, Muslims have been ignored and their enemies are supported. Other nations are threatened by the USA and its allies with military attacks, economic sanctions and different acts of sabotage. Taking a general look at all these countries can reveal to all people throughout the world the true face of these leaders of global arrogance. Political, cultural and religious personalities throughout the world of Islam should consider it their responsibility to draw everyone’s attention to these facts. This is the moral and religious responsibility of all of us. North African countries, which are unfortunately suffering from deep domestic conflicts today, should pay attention to this responsibility more than other countries. They should pay more attention to the issue of knowing the enemy and its plots and methods. The continuation of these conflicts among nationalist orientations and Muslims’ negligence about the threat of domestic wars in such countries is a great danger. The loss that may be inflicted on the Islamic Ummah because of such events will not be quickly compensated for. Of course, we have no doubts that the people who have risen against global arrogance and who have become the embodiment of Islamic Awakening in such countries will not, by Allah’s favor, allow time to go back so much so that the era of the corrupt, dependent and dictatorial rulers starts again. However, ignorance about the role of arrogant powers in creating discord and bringing about destructive interference will create a difficult situation for such countries and will cause a very long delay in achieving an era of dignity, security and welfare. We believe, from the bottom of our hearts, in the capability of nations and in the power, faith, determination and foresight which Allah the Omniscient has offered to the masses of the people. For more than three decades, we have seen this in the Islamic Republic with our own eyes and we have experienced it with all our hearts and souls. Our determination is an invitation forall Muslim nations, to this experience of their brothers in this dignified and indefatigable country. I ask Allah the Exalted to bestow peace on Muslims and to foil the plots of the enemies. I ask Him to accept your hajj pilgrimage and bestow physical and spiritual health on you. I ask Him to provide you pilgrims of the House of God with an overflowing supply of spiritual blessings. Greetings be upon you and Allah’s Mercy Sayyid Ali Khamenei