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[04 March 2015] Iraqi army to surround Tikrit before launching a major assault - English

Within a week of launching the murderous assault on the Gaza strip on december 27th, the Zionist invaders had murdered more than 450 Palestinians and throusands had been wounded. They used in the first week, aerial assaults using American supplied F16 planes and apache helicopters to bomb government buildings, hospitals, schools, the Gaza university, as well as grocery stores….click on the video below for full brief. By Zafar Bangash Director of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought (ICIT)

[10 Oct 2012] Hezbollah accuses Arab media outlets of launching - English

Supreme Leader\\\\\\\'s Speech on 25th Demise Anniversary of Imam Khomeini (r.a.) Print 06/06/2014 Hotuba ya Kiongozi Muadhamu katika Maadhimisho ya Mwaka wa 25 wa Kufariki Dunia Imam KhomeiniThe following is the full text of the speech delivered on June 4, 2014 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, on the occasion of the demise anniversary of Imam Khomeini (r.a.). The speech was delivered at Imam Khomeini\\\\\\\'s shrine. In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings upon our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, and upon his immaculate household, especially the one remaining with Allah on earth. \\\\\\\"Our Lord, forgive us and those of our brethren who had precedence of us in faith, and do not allow any spite to remain in our hearts towards those who believe. Our Lord, surely You are Kind, Merciful\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 59: 10]. \\\\\\\"Our Lord, surely You have given to Pharaoh and his chiefs finery and riches in this world\\\\\\\'s life. To this end, our Lord, that they lead people astray from Your way. Our Lord, destroy their riches and harden their hearts so that they believe not until they see the painful punishment\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 10: 88]. Allah the Omniscient said in His book: \\\\\\\"Have you not considered how Allah sets forth a parable of a good word being like a good tree, whose root is firm and whose branches are in heaven, yielding its fruit in every season by the permission of its Lord?\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 14: 24-25] On this unforgettable and important day, I would like to divide my statements to you dear brothers and sisters into three parts. In the first part, I will speak about an important reality which exists about the Islamic Republic. Today, paying attention to this reality is very important. In the second part, I will provide a brief explanation of our magnanimous Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) permanent and eternal school of thought. Although we have said and heard many things about Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) school of thought, it is necessary to provide a brief explanation at this point in time. I will provide a short portrayal of all the things that our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) created as a unique phenomenon in the contemporary world. The third part is about two important challenges which lie ahead of the people of Iran and the Islamic Republic. It is important for us to pay attention to these two challenges in order to move forward in the right way and on the right path. As for the first part, the reality that I referred to is that 25 years have passed from the demise of our great Imam (r.a.), but people\\\\\\\'s enthusiasm and excitement to hear and know about him has not diminished. And this is not particular to our country. Rather, this reality exists in the world of Islam and even beyond that. Not only in our country - where the third generation of the Revolution is growing and blossoming - but also in the entire world of Islam, the youth of the age of communications and Internet are after gaining more information about the issues of the Revolution, about the Islamic Republic and about the architect of this great structure. And these youth can easily familiarize themselves with the issues which occur far away from their own environment. The phenomenon of religious democracy and the theory of Wilayat-e Faqih are issues which are significant and attractive for the intellectual environments of the world of Islam. From the first days, our enemies began making a comprehensive effort and the more we moved forward, the more comprehensive this effort became. They used hundreds and thousands of television, radio stations and Internet sites to abuse the Islamic Republic, its great founder and its supporters. Of course, this issue has been helpful to us because it has aroused the curiosity of listeners and viewers throughout the world. These listeners and viewers want to know the reason behind all these enmities, hostilities and mudslinging. They want to know the nature of the truth which has been the target of these enmities. So, our enemies mentioned our names and they spoke about our Imam (r.a.) and our system with the purpose of showing their enmity, but \\\\\\\"...surely they will scheme, and I too will scheme\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 86: 15-16]. This is what Allah the Exalted says. They started this widespread movement with such an intention, but it eventually created an opportunity for us because the sense of curiosity of the listeners to these stations was aroused throughout the world. Islamic Awakening - in which anti-arrogant feelings were dominant more than any other phenomenon - in Islamic countries and our region is the sign of this curiosity and search for the truth and it continues to exist. It is possible that western and American intelligence services report to their seniors that they have managed to suppress Islamic Awakening in our region. If they have such a notion, then this will be another strategic mistake and another wrong interpretation on the part of our enemies. Islamic Awakening might be suppressed for a while in part of the world of Islam, but it will undoubtedly not be uprooted. On the contrary, it will develop. This understanding, this perception and this awareness in all countries and among Muslim youth in the region is not something that can be destroyed easily. Of course, they will make certain efforts in order to destroy it and these efforts may seem to be successful in some areas in the short run, but in the end, they will prove to be fruitless. The curiosity that exists in today\\\\\\\'s young generation all over the world - particularly in the world of Islam - about the phenomenon of religious democracy is rooted in the fact that the Islamic Republic is a phenomenon from whose birth 35 years have passed. And during all these 35 years, it has faced the violent and hostile reactions of the dominant powers in the world. They showed military reactions, they showed propaganda reactions, they showed economic reactions - which began from the beginning of the Revolution and which have been reinforced on a daily basis - and they showed political reactions. It is 35 years now that this powerful western camp has been doing whatever it could against the Islamic Republic. It has made military efforts, it has helped the aggressors who attacked our country, it has supported the enemies of the Islamic Republic in any area, it has used widespread propaganda and it has made perfect and unprecedented efforts in the area of sanctions and economic siege. But in the face of all these invasions and all these violent and unscrupulous hostilities, the Islamic Republic was not destroyed, it did not adopt a conservative outlook, it was not blackmailed by the west and it made progress on a daily basis. This is what forms the essence of this curiosity. Despite the fact that the primary military, political and economic powers of the world joined hands against a country and a government and despite the fact that they made efforts for 35 years, not only was this government not destroyed, but it also became stronger on a daily basis. This government was not blackmailed by them and it did not pay any attention to them at all. The Islamic Republic showed its power and capability to survive in different arenas. Today, when they look at the Islamic Republic, they see that the second and third generations of the Revolution in the country are comprised of several million students, several thousand knowledgeable clergy, several thousand researchers, several thousand university and seminary professors, thousands of scientific and intellectual personalities - some of whom are well-known on an international level - and thousands of activists and producers and thousands of political, cultural and economic personalities. This is the reality about our today\\\\\\\'s society. In the arena of science and technology, the Islamic Republic launches satellites into space despite all sanctions. It sends living creatures into space and it brings them back. It produces nuclear energy. It is ranked among the first ten countries in the world in many new sciences. The centers in charge of releasing statistics have announced that the rate of scientific progress in the Islamic Republic is 13 times faster than the global average. It gives scientific and technological services to different countries. Despite unprecedented sanctions, it manages a 75-million-strong country. It has the final word on regional policies. It shows resistance against the usurping Zionist regime, which is supported by global bullies, and it does this on its own. It does not compromise with oppressors and it defends the oppressed. Any well-informed individual becomes curious to know what this organism and phenomenon is and how it benefits from all these innate capabilities and this potential to survive despite all the enmities. This is the nature of this curiosity. This was about the issues related to scientific, technological and other such areas. As for political and social issues, the higher aspect of this religious democracy is that we have had 32 elections during the 35 years from the beginning of our Revolution. Thirty two public elections have been held in this country. Is this a minor achievement? This is an exceptional phenomenon. Elections in the Islamic Republic are held with a high turnout - higher than the global average and in some cases, it is much higher. Our elections witness a turnout of 70, 72 percent. Our elections are like this. These elections are the manifestation of democracy. Another exceptional example is the two phenomena which we people have gotten used to, but which are extraordinarily exciting and important for global inspectors and witnesses. These two phenomena are the 22nd of Bahman rallies and Quds Day Rallies in the month of Ramadan. During the past 35 years, the people have held the Revolution celebration each year with a great, exciting and glorious rally on the cold days of late Bahman. We have gotten used to this and we do not truly see the significance and greatness of this issue, but global witnesses see these things and they are very astonishing to them. These are the factors behind the element which arouses people\\\\\\\'s curiosity and which presents a new path to the minds of enthusiastic, inquisitive and research-oriented individuals. This is the important reality of our time which can be described as the general curiosity of youth, intellectuals, well-informed personalities and analysts throughout the world of Islam about the phenomenon which has emerged and grown on a daily basis in Islamic Iran. This is the first issue. This reality has been built by the hands of our great architect. We have said many things about Imam (r.a.). Perhaps some people think that we have spoken about Imam in an exaggerated way. But this is not the case. What we have said about our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) is neither exaggeration nor magnification of the truth. Rather, it is the truth. Our magnanimous and dear Imam (r.a.) was more complex and meaningful than what we managed to say and reflect about him. What is available to the people of Iran and what is in front of the eyes of people throughout the world has been built by those powerful hands. We should know about the architect\\\\\\\'s plan in order to take the path in the right way. If developers and builders do not have access to a plan in order to build an ordinary building and if it is not clear what the main plan is, then they may make a mistake no matter how skilled they are. We should know the main plan so that we can use our expertise in building on the basis of this plan. Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) plan was not one that could be designed by a human being. It was definitely God\\\\\\\'s work. Our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) himself knew and acknowledged this. He himself used to say, \\\\\\\"What has occurred is a handicraft of divine power\\\\\\\". He had understood this correctly and his insightful and vigilant eyes had seen this correctly. We should be careful. We should know the plan so that we can continue the path. If we do not know the plan, we will deviate from the right path. And when we deviate, we will drift away from the main and the straight path on a daily basis. When we drift away from the straight path, we will drift away from goals and we will fail to reach them. In order to reach the goals, we should take care not to lose the path and in order to avoid losing the path, we should have the main plan in front of our eyes. We should know and identify this plan. Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) plan and main task was to create a civil-political system on the basis of Islamic reason. The prerequisite for carrying out this task was to uproot the monarchic regime which was corrupt, dependent and dictatorial. The monarchic regime had these three characteristics: it was corrupt - different moral, financial and other such corruptions. It was dependent on powers. One day, it was dependent on England and another day, it was dependent on America. It was prepared to abandon its own interests and the interests of the people for the sake of the interests of foreigners. And it was dictatorial and oppressive. For the monarchic regime, the people\\\\\\\'s votes and requests counted for nothing. Each of these characteristics forms a long chapter. Each of them forms a long book. The prerequisite for the great task that Imam (r.a.) wanted to carry out was to uproot this corrupt, dependent and dictatorial regime. He focused his efforts on doing this and consequently, the regime was uprooted. In our country, the issue was not replacing a monarchic regime with another monarchic or semi-monarchic regime. The issue was uprooting the characteristics that the monarchic regime had and this was done by our magnanimous Imam (r.a.). Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) statements, guidelines and behavior were oriented towards this goal. There are two fundamental points in building this civil-political system and these two points are interconnected. In one sense, these two points are two sides of the coin of truth. One is entrusting the affairs of the country to the people through democracy and elections and another is launching this movement - which originated from Islam - and any movement which originates from democracy and entrusting tasks to people, within the framework of Islamic sharia. These are two parts. In other words, these are two sides of the same truth. Some people should not think that our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) derived elections from the western culture and then mixed it with Islamic thoughts and Islamic sharia. This was not the case. If elections, democracy and reliance on the votes of people had not been part of religion and Islamic sharia, then Imam (r.a.) would have told us. If this had been the case, he would have announced it in an outspoken and decisive way. Democracy is part of religion. Therefore, Islamic sharia is the framework. When passing and implementing laws, when assigning individuals different tasks and discharging them from their service and during all tasks that follow this political-civil system, Islamic sharia should be observed. All tasks in this system revolve around democracy. All the people elect the members of the Majlis and the president, they elect ministers indirectly, they elect the members of the Assembly of Experts and they elect the Leader indirectly. All tasks are in the hands of the people. This was the main base of our magnanimous Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) movement. The great structure that this great personality built was founded on these two bases. Commitment to Islamic sharia is the soul and truth of the Islamic government. Everyone should pay attention to this issue. If Islamic sharia is completely observed in society, this will ensure both civil and individual freedom - the freedom of individuals - and collective freedom which is called independence. Independence means freedom of a people. It means that a people are not dependent on anyone and any place. \\\\\\\"A free people\\\\\\\" means a people who are not under the influence and domination of their opponents, their enemies and foreigners in any way. If Islamic sharia is observed, it will ensure both justice and spirituality in society. These are the four main elements: freedom, independence, justice and spirituality. If Islamic sharia dominates society, these main phenomena in the order of Islamic society will show themselves. Therefore, our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) stressed the necessity of Islamic sharia which is the soul of the Islamic Republic. He also stressed the necessity of religious democracy which is a means and a tool and which is derived from sharia. According to Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) school of thought, any power and force which has come into being through deception and oppression is unacceptable. In the Islamic government, oppression and subjugation are meaningless. Power and authority are meaningful, but only the one that originates from people\\\\\\\'s free will and choice. The kind of power which originates from bullying, subjugation and weapons is meaningless from the viewpoint of Islam, Islamic sharia and Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) school of thought. The kind of power which emerges on the basis of people\\\\\\\'s choice is respectable. No one should confront this power. No one should try to suppress and subjugate this power. If they do so, this is called fitna. This is the new prescription that our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) introduced to the world. He added this important chapter to the political literature of the world. As we pointed out, one of the main elements in this new version is rushing to help the oppressed and confronting the oppressor. We should help the oppressed and in the present time, the concrete manifestation of being oppressed is the people of Palestine. As you witnessed, from the first day until the end of his life, our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) stressed the issue of Palestine. He supported the issue of Palestine and stated in his testament that the people of Iran and the officials of the country should not forget about this issue. Helping the oppressed, showing resistance against the oppressor, condemning his transgressions, rejecting his power and grandeur in an outspoken way and shattering this grandeur are among the parts of this system and this new version presented by our magnanimous Imam (r.a.). This is a short summary, portrayal and description of the political order and the foundation that our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) introduced to society after overthrowing the monarchic regime in the country. This matter was completely accepted by the people and it was put into practice. Unlike many political slogans, this matter was not confined to books. Rather, it was realized, put into practice and reflected in reality. And the people of Iran showed their determination, loyalty and self-sacrifice by preserving this matter and strengthening it on a daily basis until today. So, Imam (r.a.) succeeded. He achieved complete success in what he wanted to do. Will this great task continue? Will the empty boxes of this table - naturally, there are some empty boxes in social and historical tables - be filled in? This depends on how determined and aware you and I are and to what extent we observe and move in the direction of that clear line. It is completely possible to do this. Considering the people that we see, considering the experience that they have gained and considering the successful and continuous movement that they have launched in the past 35 years - and in the past 25 years since Imam\\\\\\\'s (r.a.) demise - it is possible to continue this path. The empty boxes will be filled in, great feats will be accomplished and by Allah\\\\\\\'s favor and grace, our people will reach the peaks. Like all the important paths which have been delineated for reaching great goals, this path involves certain challenges and obstacles. We should identify these obstacles so that we can pass through them. If we do not identify obstacles, overcoming them will be either difficult or impossible. I am saying these things to you honorable participants of this great and magnificent meeting and, in fact, to the people of Iran who will hear these statements. But it is our youth, our scholars and our intellectuals who should think about, work on and study each of these chapters and parts. They should work on not only semi-intellectual and theoretical discussions but also on practical and functional discussions which reflect the truth. What we are saying is some chapters for carrying out intellectual tasks. By Allah\\\\\\\'s favor, these chapters will be followed up by our youth who are much better and prepared than we are. I would like to refer to two challenges: one is an external challenge and another is an internal challenge. Our external challenge is the interferences of global arrogance. I would like to speak without any consideration. The external challenge is the interferences of America. They engage in mudslinging. Although some of their thinkers say in their analyses that it is useless or impossible to confront this great movement, they engage in mudslinging. We should know their plan. This is America\\\\\\\'s plan which has been revealed through their discussions, reports, statements and behavior: America divides all countries, orientations and people throughout the world into three groups: the first group is made up of the submissive including submissive countries, submissive political and social orientations and submissive individuals. The first group is comprised of these people. The second group is comprised of countries which are not submissive and which should be tolerated. From the viewpoint of America, a number of countries, personalities and orientations should be tolerated. They believe that they should define common interests with these countries and that they should get along with them somehow. Later on, I will explain this more. The third group is made up of disobedient countries, those which do not give in to America and which refuse to be blackmailed by it. The third group is comprised of these countries. From the viewpoint of the Americans, no country, no political, social, civil and economic orientation and no individual in the world is out of these three groups. Everyone is either submissive and docile or independent - and you should get along with them - or disobedient, bold and courageous. One should behave in a different way towards the third group. America\\\\\\\'s policy towards the first group is complete support. Of course, they do not provide this support for free. They support them, but they also milk them. In fact, they use their capabilities and resources to the advantage of their own interests and for safeguarding their own interests. The Americans ride roughshod over these people and they make them render all kinds of services to them. As I said, they milk them and they do not care at all. Of course, if these people and countries behave in a way that is considered to be indecent according to global conventions, the Americans do not condemn it. On the contrary, they defend and justify it. For example, there are some dictatorial countries which are managed by biased, reactionary and completely dictatorial regimes, but they have friendly relations with the Americans. These countries give in to the Americans and they are prepared to serve and obey them. They are members of the first group. When the Americans want to describe them, they do not refer to them as dictatorial countries. Rather, they say that they are patriarchal countries and thus they cover up their dictatorship. They say, \\\\\\\"They are not dictators. Rather, they are patriarchal countries\\\\\\\". What is the meaning of patriarchal in political systems? What does it mean? Is a patriarchal country a country in which there is no parliament, no elections, no power to speak freely, no freedom of speech and no freedom of expression? Is a patriarchal country a country in which the slightest disobedience to the wishes of the rulers is suppressed in a very serious and severe way? In one part of his life, Saddam Hussein was one of these obedient and submissive individuals. In that stage of his life, they gave him all kinds of support and they rendered some services to him. They gave him chemical weapons and they provided him with the plans of our military movement which had been discovered via satellite. They gave him military plans because he was at their service and because he was against the disobedient Islamic Republic which was a member of the third group. So, these people represent the first group. As I said, the second group is made up of the countries which America gets along with. The policy and plan of America is to get along with these countries. What does getting along mean? It means defining common interests and establishing friendly relations with someone. But when America has the opportunity, it will stab them in the back and tear their hearts open and it will not show any consideration for them. Which countries represent the second group? European countries represent the second group. Today, European countries are in such conditions. America gets along with them, but this does not mean that it defends their interests. This is not the case. It will kick them as much as it can. For example, it spies - Internet espionage - on the number one in its allied country. It also spies on him by tapping his cell phone. The Americans even keep watch on his personal life and they have no scruples whatsoever. When it comes out, they say, \\\\\\\"Sorry, it happened because we had no choice\\\\\\\". They are not even willing to apologize in a sincere way. My understanding of political issues tells me that the Europeans are making a great strategic mistake by serving America. They promote the interests of America, but America does not and will not do so and it will be the same until the end. This was about the second group. The third group is made up of countries which do not give in to America. America\\\\\\\'s policy towards this group is to use each and every tool they find against these disobedient countries. They use any tool they find and they do not have any limits for that. If you see that there is a country which is disobedient to America and that America does not attack or impose sanctions on it, then you should know that there is a problem - that is to say, there is an obstacle in their way. To put it simply, they cannot do it. If they can, they will definitely do it. The only crime that this disobedient country has committed is that it is not willing to give in to America, to be blackmailed by it and to let the interests of America have priority over its own interests. This is the definition of a disobedient country. In order to bring this country to its knees, the Americans do everything that they can. They do whatever is possible for them. If they do not do something, it is because they cannot. Well, what are the things that the Americans do? Today, launching a military attack is not a priority from the viewpoint of the Americans. They have understood that they suffered a loss on the issue of Iraq and Afghanistan where they launched military attacks. They have understood that launching a military attack is as dangerous for the aggressor as it is for the defender and sometimes, it is even more dangerous for the aggressor. They have understood this correctly. Therefore, it can be said that they have changed their mind about launching a military attack. They have other ways ahead of them. One of these ways is entrusting the task of furthering their goals in the target country - which is the target of their attacks - to the elements inside this country. The issue is not only about Islamic Iran and the Islamic Republic. They are doing these things all over the world and we are witnessing some instances of their effort in the present time. Another way is launching a coup d\\\\\\\'état. They empower some people inside the target country so that they can launch a coup d\\\\\\\'état and overthrow those governments and political systems which do not give in to them. One of the ways that they use is this. Another way is drawing part of the people to the streets. An example is the color revolutions which were carried out in each and every part of the region in recent years. Take the case of a government which comes to power in a country. After all, if the government that comes to power holds 60 percent of the votes, it means that 40 percent of the people did not vote for it. The Americans go to that 40 percent, choose certain elements and leaders among them and make them - either by bribing or by threatening them - draw that 40 percent or part of it to the streets. America\\\\\\\'s hands were behind the color revolutions - for example, such and such an orange revolution and other revolutions in different countries - that were carried out in recent years. We do not make any judgment about the events which are taking place in an area in Europe. But when one takes a look, one sees what a role an American senator and official can play - by showing his presence - in the demonstrations of a minority against a country. They showed their presence in such areas. One of the measures that they adopt is that they draw part of the people to the streets and make them break the law, thereby overthrowing the government which they do not approve of and which is not blackmailed. Another measure that they adopt is empowering and forming terrorist groups. They did this in Iraq, Afghanistan and some Arab countries in the region. They did it in our country as well. They form terrorist groups in order to kill well-known personalities. In our country, they struck and martyred scientists and experts on atomic energy. Before that too, they struck political, cultural, scientific and seminary personalities. These terrorists grew with the help of the Americans. Some of them were accepted into America by the Americans for the services that they rendered. Today, munafeqeen are in America\\\\\\\'s arms. They take part in different meetings and commissions of the U.S. Congress. The same munafeqeen who killed people from different social backgrounds - including great personalities, ulama, scientists and political personalities - and who carried out explosions are with the Americans today. So, this is another way they use. Another way is creating discord among decision-makers of countries. One of the measures that they adopt is this: they try to create a rift in the highest levels of the government and system that is not with them. They try to establish a dual government. Of course, they do not succeed in many countries. But unfortunately, they succeed in some areas. This is one of their ways. Another way is that they discourage - with their propaganda - the hearts and minds of people from following their ideological and religious principles. They try such measures. The regime of the United States of America has done all these things to our dear and Islamic Iran and by Allah\\\\\\\'s favor, it has failed in all of them. Launching military coups d\\\\\\\'état, supporting those who instigate fitna, drawing some people to the streets, confronting elections and creating rifts were some of the measures that they either adopted or tried to adopt and thankfully, they failed in all of them. Why did they fail? It was because the people were vigilant and religious. It is here that I want to speak about the second challenge which is the internal challenge. Dear brothers and sisters, the internal challenge for our people is the risk of ignoring, forgetting about and losing the spirit and orientation of our magnanimous Imam (r.a). This is the greatest danger. The internal challenge is making a mistake in knowing our enemies and our friends and confusing the camp of our enemies and friends so much so that we do not know who our enemies and friends are. Another mistake is failing to know our major and minor enemies. This is another danger. You dear brothers and sisters and all the people of Iran should pay attention that sometimes, someone shows enmity towards you. But if you pay careful attention, you will see that his enmity is not the main one. It is a function of another factor and another person. You should find the main enemy. Otherwise, if one confronts the lesser enemy, one\\\\\\\'s energy is sapped and the result will not be good. Today, some people in different parts of the world of Islam - which go by the name of takfiri, Wahhabi and Salafi groups - are adopting bad and inappropriate measures against Iran, Shia Muslims and Shia Islam. But everyone should know that they are not the main enemies. They show enmity and they adopt foolish measures, but the main enemy is the person who provokes them, who gives them money and who motivates them with different means when their motivation is weakened to some extent. The main enemy is the person who sows the seeds of rupture and discord between that foolish and ignorant group and the oppressed people of Iran. These measures are adopted by the hidden hands of intelligence and security services. That is why we have constantly said that we do not consider these foolish groups - who confront the Islamic Republic in the name of Salafism, takfiri and Islam - to be our main enemy. We consider you to be the deceived. We have said to these people: \\\\\\\"If you stretch your hand against me to slay me, it is not for me to stretch my hand against you to slay you: for I fear Allah, the Cherisher of the worlds\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 5: 28]. If you make a mistake and if you prepare yourself to kill your Muslim brothers, we do not consider you to be so important that we try to kill you. Of course, we defend ourselves. Anyone who attacks us will face our firm fist. This is natural, but we believe that these people are not our main enemies. They have been deceived. The main enemy is the person who acts behind the scenes. The main enemy is the visible hand that comes out of the sleeve of intelligence services, that confronts Muslims and that pits them against one another. This is our internal challenge: becoming busy with domestic differences - those which are trivial and unimportant. Such differences make us busy, pit us against one another, create tension and make us forget about the main issues and guidelines. This is one of the manifestations of the main challenge which was referred to. Losing national solidarity is one of our challenges. Suffering from laziness, lack of confidence, idleness, desperation and hopelessness and thinking that we cannot succeed and that we have not succeeded until today are among the internal challenges we should confront. As Imam (r.a.) said, we can. We should show determination. National determination and jihadi management can untie all the knots. As we said, our dear youth, our outstanding personalities and our scholars should sit and study these issues. These are our main points. The auspicious name of our magnanimous Imam (r.a.), the remembrance of that great man and the plan of that great architect can help us in all these chapters. It can give us hope, enthusiasm and morale, as it has done this until today and by Allah\\\\\\\'s favor, it will continue to do this in the future. Dear God, bestow your blessings on our dear people. Dear God, help our dear youth on the path of building an ideal Islamic structure. Dear God, protect us from deviations and digressions. Dear God, make the hands of the people of Iran stronger than the hands of their enemies. Help them achieve victory over their enemies. Make the holy heart of the Imam of the Age (may our souls be sacrificed for his sake) kind to us. Help us benefit from the prayers of that great Imam (a.s.). Associate the pure souls of Imam (r.a.) and our dear martyrs with the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.). Greetings be upon you and Allah\\\\\\\'s mercy and blessings Source: http://english.khamenei.ir//index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1921

Supreme Leader\\\\\\\'s Speech to Air Force Commanders and Personnel 07/02/2013 The following is the full text of the speech delivered on February 7, 2013 by Ayatollah Khamenei the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in a meeting with commanders and personnel of the Air Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army. The meeting was held on the occasion of the historic pledge of allegiance of Air Force officers to Imam Khomeini (r.a.) on the 19th of Bahman of 1357. ‌ In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful I am very happy to meet you - once more at our annual meeting - brothers and dear youth from the glorious Air Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army. I welcome all of you. As for the song which was performed, the lyrics were good, the melody was good, the content was good and it was performed well. By Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, our hearts will always be imbued with the scent of mercy and divine guidance which is the most important source of support. If we take a look at the history of the Air Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army over the past years, we will discover a number of important facts. There was one day when we could not and were not allowed to fix the plane parts that we had bought. Today, you build training planes, fighters and flight simulators. You carry out a lot of important radar-related work and you produce complex components. This great movement towards blossoming of talents, love, innovation, self-confidence and self-sufficiency - which has been established in the Air Force, in the entire Islamic Republic of Iran Army, in the Armed Forces and throughout the country - is such a movement that cannot be denied even by the opponents and the enemies of the Islamic Republic. Dominant powers tried to take control of all nations and countries throughout the world by using force, money and weapons and by launching military attacks. They tried to make nations believe that they cannot find the path towards greatness, identity and independence without relying on superpowers and on those who have money and power - Zionist and non-Zionist companies have lined up behind them. You shattered their hopes. Compare the Iranian nation, today, with nations who have been under the domination of American power. See where you are and where they are. With their movement, independence, self-confidence and reliance on God, the Iranian people proved that one can and should stand up against the domination of foreigners and those who seek domination. The Iranian nation has proved this. Thirty years ago, what was the position of the Iranian nation in science, civilization, progress, technology and political influence? What position does it enjoy today? It achieved such a position by putting up a resistance, relying on God and bringing all its capacities into the arena. This is an experience for both the Iranian nation and future generations. It is also an experience for other nations. The Air Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army is one of the examples of this resistance and this movement which has been based on self-confidence. We should continue this. We Iranian people should continue this path. This path is full of blessings. For more than thirty years, the enemies of the Iranian nation have done everything in their power to harm the Iranian nation. There is not a thing which they have not used against the Iranian nation. They provoked conflicts, waged wars, supported the enemy of the Islamic Republic with all their power and they waged hard and soft wars. They fought the people of Iran as hard as they could, but our people stood up against them and they resisted. Not only could they not bring our people to their knees and destroy them, but they also failed to prevent them from making progress. Our nation has made progress. They made use of everything they could. They hatched plots, launched coup d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'états, provoked military conflicts, shot down passenger airliners, imposed heavy sanctions and increased them on a daily basis. They did these things in the hope that our people would lose their hope, disappear from the scene and lose their trust in Islam and the Islamic Republic. But they failed. This is the record of the Islamic Republic. These days, referred to as ten-day Fajr celebrations, are good opportunities for our intellectuals, our youth and all the people of Iran to spend some time evaluating their actions during the past thirty-something years and see their achievements, see their successful efforts, see the divine assistance and see the weakness of the enemies\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' plots. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"And they (the unbelievers) planned, and Allah planned, and Allah is the best of planners\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 3: 54]. This is the general guideline for us, to see how we should choose our future path. You the people in the Air Force should move forward according to this outlook and orientation. Different sectors of the country, all the people and the officials of the country should move forward according to this outlook. Of course, the enemy inflicts harm, but it cannot do anything except for causing slight annoyance. I mentioned a few days ago that Allah the Exalted said, \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"They shall by no means harm you but with a slight evil\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\" [The Holy Quran, 3: 111]. Their job is to harm you. But, they cannot create obstacles for you and block your path. Over the past 30 years, the Americans have been ranting and raving against the Iranian nation. They said and did whatever they could. They broadcast negative propaganda and they established an evil media empire against the Iranian nation. But the result is this: today, by Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, the Iranian nation has become happier, more determined and more active than ever and it is witnessing more blossoming in different areas. They have been trying to separate the people from the Islamic Republic and the Revolution. Each year on the 22nd of Bahman, the Iranian people frustrate the enemy with their presence in the national and revolutionary rallies. They are trying to separate the people from one another. The previous inexperienced American secretary of state said openly that they are imposing sanctions in order to pit the people of Iran against the Islamic Republic. The people of Iran have always responded to such statements through their rallies and their actions. You will see that on the 22nd of Bahman, the Iranian people will, once more, frustrate their efforts with a crushing move [Audience shout \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Allahu Akbar\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"]. The good thing is that the people are wise and vigilant. They know the purpose of the enemy\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s plot, they predict the enemy\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s moves, they understand why the enemy has adopted a certain policy and they move in the opposite direction. They rely on their own achievements and they will show their presence in this great arena of national dignity. They will show themselves and they will prove their presence. This is the good thing. In the face of the negative propaganda by the enemy - particularly, the Americans and the Zionists - the people do not take the wrong path because of their communal wisdom and they do not make the mistake which the enemy is waiting for. This is the good thing about large-scale issues of our country. Now the Americans have raised the issue of negotiations again. They repeat that America is prepared to directly negotiate with Iran. This is not new. The Americans have repeatedly raised the issue of negotiations at every juncture. Now their newly appointed politicians repeat that we should negotiate. And they say that the ball is in Iran\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s court. The ball is in your court. It is you who should explain the meaning of negotiations that are accompanied by pressure and threats. Negotiations are for the sake of proving one\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s goodwill. You commit tens of acts which show lack of goodwill and then you speak about negotiations. Do you expect the Iranian nation to believe that you have goodwill? Of course, we understand why the Americans repeatedly raise the issue of negotiations and why they speak about it in different ways. We know what the reason is. As the Americans themselves say, their Middle East policies have failed. They need to play their trump card. Their trump card is dragging the Islamic Republic of Iran, which is based on the people, to the negotiating table. They need this. They want to say to the world that they have goodwill. No, we do not see any goodwill. Four years ago - during the early days of the current American administration - when they were saying the same words, I announced that we will not prejudge and we will wait to see what action they will take and then we will judge. Now after four years, how should the Iranian nation judge their actions? They supported the fitna in Iran, they helped those who started the fitna, they sent their troops to Afghanistan under the claim that they were fighting terrorism, they trampled on so many people and they destroyed them. They are also supporting and cooperating with the same terrorists in Syria and they used the same terrorists wherever they could in Iran. Their agents, their allies and Zionist spies openly killed the scientists of the Islamic Republic. They did not even condemn these terrorist activities. [On the contrary] They supported them. This is their record. They imposed sanctions - which they wanted to be crippling - on the Iranian nation. They openly said, crippling. Who do you want to cripple? Did you want to cripple the Iranian nation? Do you have goodwill? Negotiations are meaningful when the two sides negotiate with good intentions and without planning to deceive one another. Negotiations should be on equal terms. Negotiations for the sake of negotiations, tactical negotiations and offer of negotiations as a superpower gesture, are deceptive moves. They are not honest moves. I am not a diplomat. I am a revolutionary. I speak openly and honestly. A diplomat says something, but he actually means something else. We speak openly and honestly. We speak clearly and decisively. Negotiations are meaningful when the two sides show their good intentions. [Negotiations are not meaningful] when one side does not show his good intentions. You yourselves refer to this as pressures and negotiations. These two things are not compatible. You want to point the gun at the people of Iran and say, negotiate or we will shoot. You say these things to intimidate the Iranian nation. You should know that the Iranian nation is not intimidated by these things [Audience shout \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"Allahu Akbar\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"]. A number of people become happy about the American offer of negotiations and they say, come and negotiate with us. This is expressed by a number of people who are either simple-minded or who have some ulterior motives. One cannot make definitive judgments about people. But what a simple-minded person does is no different, in essence, from what a person who has ulterior motives does. Negotiations with America will not solve any problems. When did they keep their promises? Over the past 60 years, since the coup d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'état of the 28th of Mordad of 1332 until today, the officials of our country have been harmed whenever they trusted the Americans. One day Mosaddeq trusted the Americans, relied on them and considered them as his friends. Then the coup d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'état of the 28th of Mordad occurred and the Americans found the opportunity to launch a coup d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'état. The agent responsible for launching the coup d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'état came to Tehran with a briefcase full of money and he divided it among thugs and vandals so that they launch the coup d\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'état. The agent was American. They admitted what the purpose of their plot was. After that, they helped the oppressive Pahlavi regime achieve domination over our country. They established SAVAK and chained and tortured political activists. These are the things they did at that time. During a certain period after the Revolution, the officials of the country trusted them. But the politicians of the American government labeled Iran as \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\"axis of evil\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\". It is you who are the embodiment of evil. It is you who are doing evil deeds in the world. You wage wars, loot nations and support the Zionist regime. On the issue of Islamic Awakening, you suppress the nations who have risen in revolt as much as you can and you weaken them and pit them against one another. You are evil. Evil is part of your character. They accused the Iranian nation of doing evil acts. This is a big insult. Whenever people trusted them, they made such moves. They should show their good intentions. Negotiations and offer of negotiations are not compatible with pressures. Negotiations and pressures are two different paths. It is not possible for the Iranian nation to accept negotiations under pressures and threats, with those who make threats. What should we negotiate for? Today, the Iranian nation is vigilant. The true face of America has been revealed not only in Iran, but also in the region. Nations distrust America and there are many reasons for this distrust. The Iranian nation has also accurately read the Americans\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' moves. It understands what their purpose is. Our nation is vigilant. Today, if certain people want to help America re-establish its domination and act against our national interests, against the progress of the country and against the path of independence, they will be held responsible by the people and even if I act against this public demand, the people will complain. It is obvious. All the officials are responsible for safeguarding national interests and preserving national independence. They should preserve the dignity of the Iranian nation. We have negotiated, signed contracts and established relations with countries which have not plotted against Iran. The Iranian nation is peace-loving. The Iranian nation is patient. The unity of the Iranian nation is in line with promoting the interests of humanity. Today, what the Iranian nation does is for the sake of its interests and the interests of the Islamic Ummah and humanity. And undoubtedly, divine assistance is behind the Iranian nation. By Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, the people of Iran will be able to help not only themselves but also the Islamic Ummah to reach the peak of glory with their wisdom, with their firm determination and with the resistance that they have shown on this bright path, the path that they will continue following in the future as well. The way to reach this glory is to preserve this wisdom. The way to do this is to preserve our unity. The way to do this is for the officials to safeguard the interests of the country. This improper conduct which is witnessed in certain areas from certain government officials - they should end this. By Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor, I will address this issue in the future and I will speak to the people. Our nation is unified, determined and active. Even if there are differences of opinion between the people over different issues, all the officials and all the people join hands against the enemy, global arrogance and those who have prepared themselves to destroy the roots of the people and the Islamic Republic. There is no disagreement among the people over this issue. By Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s favor and grace, on the 22nd of Bahman the people will show, once more, that they are present on the scene, that they are prepared, that they are united, that they are moving in the same direction. And undoubtedly, divine blessings will be bestowed on them. Greetings be upon you and Allah\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s mercy and blessings. Source: http://english.khamenei.ir//index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1741&Itemid=4

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has questioned the motive behind the prolonged seven-year Washington presence in Afghanistan. "By keeping its forces in Afghanistan, the US has inflicted a heavy financial burden on its economy," the Iranian president said in a televised interview on Tuesday. Washington and its allies seek a long-time strategy with regards to their policies in Afghanistan and Pakistan, he continued. Seven years of occupation have not made Afghanistan any safer, as this year alone over 5,000 people have been killed and US military casualties have increased to the highest levels since the 2001 invasion. Since the US invasion of the country, Afghanistan has also seen a phenomenal increase in the cultivation of opium, which is used to make heroin. The country now feeds the world with nearly 90 percent of its heroin. "Their ulterior motive is to weaken India and China," suggested the president, adding that extra-regional presence can only help create a launching ground for further problems. President Ahmadinejad said the 60-hour assault on Mumbai which killed nearly 172 people and injured almost 300 others was also orchestrated by elements outside the region. "The main motive behind the terrorist attacks, which were orchestrated from outside the region, was to strain relations between Indian and Pakistan," he said. India last week blamed Pakistani-based "elements" over the attacks across its financial capital, saying the terror bore the fingerprint of Lashkar-e-Taiba -- a group blamed for previous attacks in India. "Even if the militants are linked to Lashker-e-Taiba, who do you think we are fighting?" commented Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari in reference to his government's operations against al-Qaeda and Taliban-linked militants near the Afghan border.

The Obama Deception - Releasing on 15th March 2009 made by Alex Jones www.infowars.com

Syria has warned Israel against launching a new war in the region specifically against Iran, Lebanon and Gaza, saying that any new war would reach Israeli Cities. Recorded February 03, 2010 at 2100GMT

Four Ghadir submarines join Iran fleet Amid efforts to boost security in the Persian Gulf, the Iranian Navy has been equipped with four domestic-made Ghadir class mini submarines. Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Vahidi hailed the delivery as a sign of progress in Iranian military ingenuity. Brig. Gen. Vahidi said that the stealth submarine is capable of launching torpedoes as well as precision targeting. "The mass production of this strategic vessel has been carried out with the aim of increasing the defense capabilities of the Naval Forces ... and today four advanced Ghadir submarines joined the Iranian naval fleet." The Ghadir submarine was first unveiled in 2007. The 120-ton vessel has excellent shallow depth performance, and can carry out long-term coastal missions. The Iranian fleet currently has 11 Ghadir submarines. Aside from three Russian-built Kilo class diesel submarines, the Iranian Navy also operates another homemade 500-ton submarine in its patrol missions in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz. "With the mass production of this submarine alongside various guided-missile launchers the country's defensive production chain is complete, and these capabilities will be used to served peace, stability and security in the Persian Gulf region and the Sea of Oman," he added.

Iran unveils home-built combat drone, Iran unveils its first domestically-manufactured long-range Unmanned Aerial Vehicle UAV in a ceremony marking Defense Industry Day in the country. The unveiling of the home-made drone, named Karrar took place in the presence of Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and a number of defense officials. The Karrar UAV is capable of carrying a military payload of rockets to carry out bombing missions against ground targets. It is also capable of flying long distances at a very high speed. Iran's defense industries have demonstrated spectacular progress in the recent year, launching numerous domestically-built armaments, including aerial and sea-borne military vehicles such as submarines, combat frigates, and various types of missiles. Iran inaugurated the production line of two domistically-built UAVs with bombing and reconnaissance capabilities. The two hi-tech drones named 'Ra'd' (Thunder) and 'Nazir' (Harbinger) are capable of performing long-range reconnaissance, patrolling, assault and bombing missions with high precision. Ra'd, a UAV especially designed for assault and bombing missions, has the capability to destroy specific targets with high precision. Tehran established an arms development program during the 1980-88 war that Iraq waged against Iran to counter the weapons embargo imposed on it by the US and its Western allies. Since 1992, Iran has manufactured its own tanks, armored personnel carriers, missiles and fighter planes. Iran successfully tested a home-made radar-evading UAV with bombing capabilities in June 2009. In 2008, the Islamic Republic's Defense Industries launched production lines of two home-built fighter jets, namely Saeqeh (Thunderbolt) and Azarakhsh (Lightening).

Lebanon condemns Quran burning plan Lebanese President Michel Sleiman has condemned a US church\'s plan to burn copies of the Muslim holy book to mark the ninth anniversary of 9/11 attacks. Speaking on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, Sleiman said on Wednesday that the controversial decision contradicts Christian teachings and humanitarian values such as love and respect, a Press TV correspondent reported. \"The president condemns the announcement of a religious group in the United States of its intention to openly burn copies of the Quran,\" read a statement released by the president\'s office. Burning the Quran \"is a clear contradiction of the teachings of the three Abrahamic religions and of dialogue among the three faiths,\" Christianity, Islam and Judaism, AFP quoted the Christian president as saying. Pastor Terry Jones, who is part of the Dove World Outreach Center, a small evangelical Christian church in Gainesville, Florida, with an anti-Islam philosophy, has threatened to burn some 200 copies of the Quran on Saturday evening, the ninth anniversary of the September 11 attacks. The threat has drawn international condemnation with Muslims launching protest rallies around the globe. US officials have also denounced the plan but no legal measure has been taken yet to block the blasphemous move. The US State Department also called the move \"un-American,\" while the US Attorney General Eric Holder called the idea \"idiotic and dangerous.\" EU Foreign Affairs Chief Catherine Ashton condemned the planned act, while Arab League chief Amr Mussa dubbed Jones a \"fanatic\". The Vatican council has blasted the Florida church\'s scheme as an \"outrageous and grave gesture against a book considered sacred by a religious community.\" Many Muslim countries, including Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Indonesia have already held massive demonstrations against the US church\'s intent. Article Source: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/141762.html

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the Iranian nation\\\\\\\'s voice is echoed in the countries of the Muslim world, pointing to the Tunisia revolution and Egypt uprising. “Today, developments in North Africa, [including] Egypt, Tunisia and some other countries have a special meaning for the Iranian nation,” the Leader stated. “This is what was always referred to as the Islamic awakening created by the victory of the great revolution of the Iranian nation,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in his comments during the Friday prayer sermons in Tehran. Ayatollah Khamenei noted that Tunisia\\\\\\\'s former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was dependent on the US and even the CIA. The Leader also pointed to the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak as a “lackey of the Zionist Regime.” Ayatollah Khamenei said that Americans and Israelis have become helpless in the face of freedom-seeking Egyptians and noted that irreparable defeat awaits the US and Israel in Tunisia and Egypt. The Leader made a reference to Egyptians\\\\\\\' fight for “dignity and honor” and noted that Mubarak\\\\\\\'s biggest crime was to make Egypt a tool in the hands of the US. Ayatollah Khamenei said that the Egyptian army would join the masses and will line up against the enemy. Ayatollah Khamenei also said the Islamic Revolution in Iran disrupted the plots by Western countries trying to establish weak and vulnerable regimes in the Middle East. The Leader said Iran\\\\\\\'s enemies have been launching a psychological war against it for the past 32 years, pointing to the 2009 post-election events in Iran as the enemies\\\\\\\' latest scenario to damage the Islamic Revolution. Ayatollah Khamenei said their plots however will have no effect on the Iranian nation.

The book discussed in this edition of Epilogue is \"Interventions\", written by the renowned Jewish-American scholar, Noam Chomsky. In this collection of 50 remarkable essays, Chomsky examines US imperialism and the American foreign policy especially on Iraq and how it used September 11 attacks as a pretext for launching the war in this Middle Eastern country, the presidency of George Bush, the actions of Israel as well as US challenges and antagonism toward Iran.

Very relevant since UK is going to shut down PressTV on SKY! The Broadcasting Board of Governors is a bipartisan board comprised of nine members. Eight are appointed by the U.S. President and confirmed by the Senate; the ninth is the Secretary of State who serves ex officio Hilary Clinton We can't allow ourselves to be out-communicated by our enemies said Walter Isaacson, chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors. "You've got Russia Today, Iran's Press TV Venezuela's TeleSUR, and of course, China is launching an international broadcasting 24-hour news channel with correspondents around the world [and has] reportedly set aside $6 10 billion dollars -- we have to go to Capitol Hill with that number to expand their overseas media operations

[2] Israel And assassination of Iranian nuclear scientists - 20 July 2012 - English Iran condemns the US and Israel for the strings of deadly attacks mounted against its nuclear experts. Iranian nuclear scientist Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan was assassinated in January 2012 after an unknown motorcyclist attached a magnet bomb to his car in Tehran. On November 29, 2010, Professor Majid Shahriari and Dr. Fereydoun Abbasi were targeted by terrorist attacks; Shahriari was killed immediately and Dr. Abbasi, the current head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, sustained injuries. In November 2011, some of the US presidential hopefuls called for conducting covert operations ranging from assassinating Iranian nuclear scientists to launching a military strike on Iran as well as sabotaging Tehran's nuclear energy program.

Following his arrival at the Ankara Arena Sports Hall for the ruling Justice and Development Party\'s Congress, Turkey\'s Prime Minister Tayyip Erodogan wasted no time in launching into talk of terrorism and the media.

دیدار مسئولان و فرماندهان نیروی هوایی ارتش Ayatollah Khamenei the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution met Thursday morning with commanders and personnel of the Air Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army. Speaking at the meeting, which was held on the occasion of the historic pledge of allegiance of air force officers to Imam Khomeini (r.a.) on the 19th of Bahman of 1357, His Eminence said that the continuation of American pressures and threats over the past 34 years simultaneous with offers of negotiations shows their lack of good will. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution referred to the vigilance and courage of the Iranian nation in the face of deceptive moves, further reiterating: \\\\\\\"The dear, wise and steadfast people of Iran will enter the arena on the 22nd of Bahman with unity and they will, once more, foil the plot of the enemy to separate the people from the Islamic Republic and the Revolution by initiating a national an d revolutionary move.\\\\\\\" Ayatollah Khamenei referred to different plots of the enemy such as launching coup d\\\\\\\'états, provoking military conflicts, offering their full support to aggressors, waging hard and soft wars, exerting pressures by establishing an evil media empire and imposing strict sanctions. He added: \\\\\\\"They have done everything in their power to make our people hopeless, lose their trust in Islam and the Islamic Republic and disappear from the scene. But, by Allah\\\\\\\'s favor, the people have become happier, more active and more loyal.\\\\\\\" His Eminence discussed the efforts of some American officials to pit the people against the Islamic Republic by imposing more strict sanctions, further stressing: \\\\\\\"Our nation has always responded to these words through the annual rallies on the 22nd of Bahman and this year they will do the same.\\\\\\\" He described wisdom and vigilance as the key to success and stat ed: \\\\\\\"The people accurately read every move of the Americans and the Zionists with vigilance and communal wisdom and they make no mistakes when they take actions and when they adopt positions. This fact is a great national blessing.\\\\\\\" The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution pointed to recent offers by American officials, announcing constantly that they are prepared to negotiate with Iran. He reiterated: \\\\\\\"These comments are not new and they have repeatedly said these things at different junctures. Each time, the Iranian nation judged the Americans\\\\\\\' offers according to their actions.\\\\\\\" Ayatollah Khamenei referred to the Americans who said that the ball is in Iran\\\\\\\'s court, reiterating: \\\\\\\"The ball is in your court because it is you who should answer this question: does it make sense to speak about negotiations while you continue to exert pressures and make threats?\\\\\\\" His Eminence said: \\\\\\\"Negotiations are for th e sake of proving one\\\\\\\'s honest good will. You commit tens of dishonest acts and then you speak about negotiations. Can the Iranian nation believe that you are honest?\\\\\\\" The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution explained the reasons behind the Americans\\\\\\\' offer of negotiations. He stated: \\\\\\\"Of course, we understand their need for negotiations. The Middle East policies of the Americans have failed and they need to play a trump card in order to make up for this defeat.\\\\\\\" He described the effort to drag the Islamic Republic of Iran to the negotiating table as the American trump card, adding: \\\\\\\"They want to say to the world that they have good will, but nobody has seen any good will.\\\\\\\" Ayatollah Khamenei referred to the American offer of negotiations which was made 4 years ago, stressing: \\\\\\\"At that time, we announced that we will not prejudge and we will wait to see what action they will take. But we saw nothing exce pt for the continuation of their plots, their assistance to those who started the fitna and their support for terrorists who killed the scientists of the Iranian nation.\\\\\\\" His Eminence added: \\\\\\\"As you said, you have imposed crippling sanctions on the Iranian people in order to cripple them. Does this show your good will or insincerity?\\\\\\\" He stated: \\\\\\\"Negotiations are meaningful when the two sides negotiate with good intentions and without planning to deceive one another. Negotiations should be on equal terms. Negotiations for the sake of negotiations, tactical negotiations and their offer of negotiations for the sake of showing off as a so-called great power, are deceptive moves.\\\\\\\" The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution reiterated: \\\\\\\"I am not a diplomat. I am a revolutionary. For this reason, I say openly, honestly and clearly that offers of negotiations are meaningful when the two sides show their good intentions.\\\\\\\" Addressing the Americans, Ayatollah Khamenei said: \\\\\\\"You point the gun at the people of Iran and say, negotiate or we will shoot you. You should know that exerting pressures and making offers of negotiations are not compatible and our nation is not intimidated by these things.\\\\\\\"

Israeli officials have publicly declared that the Syrian government used Chemical weapons which was followed by statements made by US secretaries of state and defense who said that the assessment was that Sarin gas was indeed used. Syrian officials said this comes after the gains made by the Syrian army, particularly in and near Al-Qusier on the outskirts of Homs. Russia and Iran have both come out strongly against using this as a pretext for military action. Emphasis on how this shows how much Israel wants to get rid of Assad and how much it regards him as an enemy. Will Obama be dragged into a confrontation by Israel and its allies like the NeoCons in Washington even if he will have to face Russia, China and Iran? Or is it that the US shares the opinion that Assad must go and might assign Israel with the task of launching military action? An emphasis as well on the differences between the Syrian case and the Iraqi case because back then it was Dick Cheney and co who were pushing for war and even fabricated intelligence for this purpose. Now in this case it is Israel pointing to weapons of mass destruction trying to push a hesitant Obama administration into war. In this episode of the Middle East Today, we will discuss the Syrian crisis and ask: What the future holds for Syria?

James Corbett explains why the latest chemical attack in Syria, that may have killed up to 1300 people and which is being blamed on Assads army has all the earmarks of a false flag operation perpetrated by the Syrian rebels The rebels have a history of using chemical weapons and they would have much to gain if the attacks are blamed on the army Assad on the other hand would have much to lose by launching a chemical attack on its own citizens especially since it has been winning the conflict for the past several months

[06 Sept 2013] The Debate - US military strike against Syria - English

Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah lauded on Monday the deployment of security forces in the southern suburbs of Beirut (Dahiyeh) as a positive step hoping the State would bear its responsibilities and duties towards all Lebanese regions. Sayyed Nasrallah In a televised speech broadcast at Al-Manar TV, Sayyed Nasrallah stressed that Hezbollah had contacted the state since the explosion took place in Dahiyeh, noting that the state said it needs time to carry out its responsibilities and not because we have failed, and the problems that happened were normal and anticipated when we endured responsibility for security . Hezbollah S.G. said Hezbollah took serious responsibility since August 15 when Ruweis attack took place because of a security vacuum in the country and statements were issued rejecting autonomous security. “We also reject autonomous security and this has never been part of our agenda and we did not practice it and when we took security measures that was because we had to prevent the entry of booby-trapped cars.” “Some went on to accuse Hezbollah of practicing autonomous security as part of our ‘statelet’, but today’s deployment refuted their claims because Hezbollah would have rejected this measure if their claims were true. We had asked the official bodies to take over the reins from the outset,” His eminence said. Sayyed Nasrallah called on all Dahiyeh residents and passers-by to show the highest levels of cooperation, respect, acceptance and responsiveness to the security measures and provide all the assistance and support needed to help the security forces perform their mission. As he assured that the State is solely responsible and must definitely extend its authority in all regions, Sayyed Nasrallah hoped these security forces and state authorities will shoulder their full responsibility and assume all the intelligence and preventative missions as well. “Only the state is responsible for security in all regions and we will leave any point to which the state might send forces. Today it happened in Dahiyeh and tomorrow it might happen in Baalbek and we welcome any efforts that contribute to the success of the mission.” Some People feels Delighted with Killing of People in Dahiyeh His eminence addressed some sides that condemned Hezbollah’s measures in Dahiyeh, saying: “I feel that those people are delighted with the killing of people in Dahiyeh, Tripoli and elsewhere, it is regrettable that hostility reached to that level of thinking.” Ruweis attackSayyed Nasrallah thanked the Palestinian factions and especially the families of martyr Mohammad Samrawi over their noble stance on the regrettable incident in Burj al-Barajneh. On the investigations after Ruweis attack took place, Sayyed Nasrallah said: “As promised, we reached decisive results concerning the perpetrators of Ruweis attack. It’s a Takfiri party that is affiliated with the Syrian opposition and which is based the Syrian territories, and the same results were reached by local security apparatuses. All the details were passed on to the relevant authorities, which must take the necessary measures, especially against the perpetrators who are inside Lebanon.” Chemical Weapons Campaign against Hezbollah “Funny” The S.G. denied accusations that the Syrian government handed chemical weapons to Hezbollah and said that this accusation is funny. “The U.S. defense secretary said after reaching an agreement with Russia that chemical weapons should not be transferred to Hezbollah and on the next day some Syrian Coalition officials claimed that the Syrian government has transferred chemical arms to Hezbollah and some officials claimed that we have received a ton of chemical agents,” his eminence said. “It’s funny, it’s not like transporting wheat or flour. Unfortunately, some parties in Lebanon launched a media campaign and said they fear that the chemical weapons might be transferred to Hezbollah,” Sayyed Nasrallah noted, saying he understands the backgrounds of these serious accusations which have serious repercussions on Lebanon, and stressed that “Hezbollah did not ask our brothers in Syria to transfer such weapons and will not do in the future.” “Some friends advised me not to comment on these claims as part of psychological war against enemies, but I rejected that because Hezbollah has religious taboos with the use of such weapons and using this as psychological warfare is not an option,” S. Nasrallah added. Some Invented Mock Battle in Zahle On the scuffle that erupted over claims Hezbollah was installing a telecom network in Zahle, Sayyed Nasrallah denied these claims saying Hezbollah has never sought to install such network in Zahle. “This does not exist today and will not exist in the future. The Bekaa and Baalbek are part of the battle with the enemy and we need to have communications with the Baalbek-Hermel region. Years ago, we extended a cable at the outskirts of the city of Zahle and not inside it, it’s a cable for connecting lines. What happened few days ago was that Hezbollah young men were doing maintenance for the cable.” Unfortunately, the S.G. said, some parties were launching a mock battle to what happened in Zahle and were seeking stunts and illusionary heroism. “The head of one of March 14 parties said that Hezbollah’s wired telecom network breaches the privacy of people. I hope that he asks any security official to explain to him about our network which is incapable of spying on anyone.” Let\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Discuss Hezbollah Intervention in Syria Concerning the national dialogue, Sayyed Nasrallah said Hezbollah supported Speaker Nabih Berri’s initiative, “but we have heard calls for boycotting and setting conditions for dialogue. When the national dialogue table was held the other team disrupted it and required the resignation of Mikati in order to return to it and the government’s resignation they did not return to dialogue.” He pointed out that Hezbollah will participate in the dialogue called for by the Lebanese President, and said: “Let’s discuss the intervention in Syria, and who did so. Isn’t it considered intervention the writing of speeches and statements urging [US President Barack] Obama to launch a military attack on Syria which if it had taken place would have serious repercussions on the world and especially Lebanon? We want to discuss on the table whichever is the most dangerous, appealing to Obama to intervene in Syria or what our young people are doing in Syria?” referring to former PM Fuad Saniora’s op-ed published by the Foreign Policy magazine recently. “Those who are obstructing dialogue in Lebanon are well-known and we are willing to participate in the dialogue regardless of who would take part or not.” Gov\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'t Representation = Parties\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\' Political Weight On the issue of the delayed formation of the Lebanese government, Sayyed Nasrallah said that the interest of the country requires that March 14 stop stalling and form a national unity government based on real political weight of each party and urged them to stop betting on regional developments. “Despite Lebanese consensus on the need to form a government, it has yet to be formed because from the first moment Tammam Salam was designated as PM, Al-Mustaqbal Party and some of its allies said they don\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'t want the participation of Hezbollah in the government,” S. Nasrallah said, noting “they said they accept the participation of Hezbollah on two conditions: no tripartite formula, no to the guaranteeing one-third. However, we set one condition overtly and clearly that each political party should be represented according to the size of its Deputies.” “We reject the three-8s (8-8-8) formula because it’s unrealistic. The PM-designate is part of March 14 coalition and the minister whom he will nominate would be committed to his political decision, that means March 14 will have 10 ministers not 8.” Betting on Military Option in Syria Futile Hezbollah leader said some Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia, are insisting on accusing Hezbollah of occupying Syria and building on this to say that what is happening in Syria is not a conflict of countries, projects and nations, but rather a conflict against an “occupation force” which the Arab States should help to confront. And on such accusation they took retaliatory steps against Hezbollah. “In this context, March 14’s Veto on the participation of Hezbollah is Saudi and punishing the Lebanese in the Gulf is under the title of punishing Hezbollah.” “Is it reasonable to believe that Hezbollah has the ability to occupy Syria!” his eminence wondered, announcing that Hezbollah’s contribution with the Syrian army is modest. “Isn’t Syria occupied by the tens of thousands of fighters you brought from all countries? And today the Syrian Coalition began to raise the voice against them.” [Turkish President Abdullah] Gul was told that the Pakistani scenario will be repeated in Turkey because of its intervention in Syria, he said. Sayyed Nasrallah called upon Saudi Arabia, Gulf States and Turkey to review their positions on what is happening in Syria, saying “betting on the military option in Syria is futile.” “The salvation of Syria and the peoples of the region will be only with the political solution. The continuation of fighting in Syria will not lead to the goals you are looking for.” Criminalizing Hezbollah in Bahrain Political Hezbollah, BahrainConcerning the Bahraini crisis, the Secretary General said Bahrain regime’s insistence on criminalizing communicating with Hezbollah is a political position. “We are not surprised by the position of the Government of Bahrain in describing Hezbollah as terrorists. We supported the peaceful revolution in the Gulf country and then Manama expelled the Lebanese living there!” While insuring that the decision of the Bahraini opposition is internal and independent, Sayyed Nasrallah said Iran does not interfere in the course of the situation in Bahrain, urging Muslim scholars and states to react to confront repression in Bahrain as mosques are being destroyed and clergy men are forced in prisons. Credit: LitleButerfli

The Leader of Iran\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Islamic Revolution says the United States has lost its political and military power and turned into a country grappling with its biggest economic and financial problems. He was addressing a group of school and university students on the occasion of Student Day in Iran. Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said the U-S is suffering from political problems and divisions which led to the recent shutdown of the federal government. The Leader noted that Iran\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s current economic hardships pale in comparison with those of the US administration. Ayatollah Khamenei said US officials made projections some 11 years ago about having 14-thousand billion dollars in extra revenues by 2011 or 2012, and that now, in practice, they are suffering from a huge 17-thousand billion dollar deficit. Iran\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s Leader said that this alone shows America\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s true economic situation and the inaccuracy of their official calculations. Ayatollah Khamenei also made mention of deep divisions among Washington\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'s allies, saying that the U-S has failed to convince even its closest partners like France or Britain to back its decision on launching a strike against Syria.

Reports from Yemen say casualties are caused in yet another U-S assassination drone strike in an eastern province. The airstrike targeted a pickup truck in Hadra-maut province, where three people were killed. No further details are available at the moment, but we\'ll keep you updated as we get them. It is the latest drone attacks that the U-S has been launching in Yemen over the past years. Washington is also carrying out its drone campaign in several other Muslim countries including Pakistan and Afghanistan. The U-S claims that the drone attacks are part of its so-called war on terror, and that they target militants. However, facts on the ground show that civilians often take the brunt.

The biggest elevated expressway in Iran; Sadr elevated expressway is the first elevated bridge with unique pier in Iran. The project took 26 months to complete during which 11 kilometers of bridge was constructed. All the phases of this project have been carried out by Iranian engineers, technicians, and architects. This bridge consists of main bridge over 22 meters wide and 6 km long and the deck construction was carried out with four launching gantries for the first time in Iran.

Another step forward by Iranian scientists in their quest for space; the Pajouhesh explorer is Iran’s latest indigenous space rocket that uses liquid fuel and capable of sending a living creature into space. The animal astronaut aboard the explorer is a male Rhesus monkey named “Fargam”. He is the second member of the simian family with an outer space experience from Iran since January this year. In 2008 Iran managed to complete the cycle of its home grown space industry from A to Z. Iran officially joined the group of countries with indigenous space technology in 2009 by launching its first homemade satellite Omid into space. Scientists in Iran say that the success of Pajouhesh explorer and its bio-capsule will open the way for further advancements in Iran’s space technology. After liftoff sensors simultaneously transmitted information on Fargam’s health condition including his cardiovascular and respiratory systems. The research enabled Iranian scientists to further complete their studies in the area of biology in space, airspace and medical engineering. And there it was; a safe return to earth by this tiny creature which received a hero’s welcome back at the base by the team of young scientists who celebrated their success in building a safer and more advanced bio-capsule.

Iraq\'s military says it is preparing for a major attack to clear the restive Anbar province of al-Qaeda-affiliated groups. Officials say the militants have killed more than 20 soldiers and a dozen civilians there on Sunday. The extremist militants have been in control of parts of the province in the past days, launching a full-fledged war against the central government. The militants are said to enjoy the support of certain regional countries that benefit from instability in the region.

The believers have persistently asked for a children\\\'s show that\\\'s both entertaining and educational. This Ramadhan, we\\\'re launching our latest show hosted by none other than WiggleBeak. In this episode, WiggleBeak learns the Arabic alphabet with words, sounds and pictures. We pray you enjoy this brand new puppet show from Islamic Pulse!

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