Ayatollah Khamenei the Leader of the Islamic Revolution started his trip to Qom province today. After his arrival in Qom, Ayatollah Khamenei was warmly welcomed by the people of Qom province.
In an address to a huge crowd of the local residents, Ayatollah Khamenei referred to Qom as the city of science, jihad and insight and said: "Throughout history, Qom has always been a great center for promoting the teachings of the Prophet's household (a.s.). In the contemporary era, Qom has been the source of the most superior Islamic and divine teachings and has provided the eastern and western parts of the Muslim world with the benefits of the efforts and insight of its great religious scholars."
Ayatollah Khamenei further stated: "If the people of Qom had not been vigilant, the dangerous plots of the enemies against this important city would not have been foiled."
Ayatollah Khamenei said that the fact that the Islamic Revolution was started in the most religious city of the country - namely Qom - under the leadership of Imam Khomeini (r.a.) are two factors which are indicative of the religious nature of the Islamic Revolution.
He added: "The enemies of the Revolution have realized the influence of the religious nature of the Islamic Revolution and are doing everything in their power to deal a blow to this source of prosperity."
Ayatollah Khamenei said that dealing a blow to the faith and loyalty of the people are the two most important goals of the global bullying powers.
He further added: "In the absence of religion, the officials of the Revolution might have given in to the enemies after receiving certain privileges. But Islam does not allow submission to oppression and brings about justice, freedom, morality and progress. It is due to this reason that the officials of the Islamic Republic have not given in to global arrogance so far. And they will continue to oppose the enemies of Islam and the Revolution by relying on their faith."
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution referred to the different plots of the camp of global arrogance to weaken and deny religious realities and added: "The issue of Salman Rushdie, anti-religion western movies, insulting cartoons and the burning of the Holy Quran are among the futile efforts of the enemies of Islam."
Ayatollah Khamenei further added that the followers of the enemies of Islam inside the country are making efforts to weaken the religious beliefs of the people, particularly the young generation.
Ayatollah Khamenei said that strengthening our forces, increasing our vigilance and trusting divine promises are the great lessons of Imam Khomeini (r.a.) for the Iranian nation. He added: "Imam Khomeini (r.a.) taught us that we will receive divine assistance if we resist in a faithful manner and act with insight."
Ayatollah Khamenei said that undermining the loyalty of the people to the Islamic Republic is another goal behind the enemies' plots and stated: "Besides the element of religion, the strong presence and support of the people provides support for the resistance of the officials of the Islamic Republic. It is due to this reason that the enemies have targeted the loyalty of the people."
Ayatollah Khamenei said that spreading rumors to frustrate the people, making the people pessimistic towards officials - particularly the heads of the three government branches - magnifying the weaknesses of the country and ignoring the achievements which have been made and the measures which have been taken are among the methods employed by the enemies of the Islamic Republic in order to undermine the trust and loyalty of the people.
He further stressed that these efforts will not produce any results for the enemies of the nation and the Islamic Republic, just as all the plots and investments of the enemies -which were aimed at undermining the faith and loyalty of the people - have failed during the past 32 years.
Ayatollah Khamenei said that the insightful and swift reaction of the people against the fitna which happened on the day of Ashura last year was indicative of the constant failure of those who hatch plots.
Ayatollah Khamenei said that the resistance and consciousness of the people in the face of the fitna which happened in the year 1388 made the country immune to political and social microbes. He further stressed: "The post-election fitna has increased the insight of the Iranian nation, and this is the opposite of what the enemies expected."
Ayatollah Khamenei touched on the strategies employed by the camp of arrogance and said that they are promoting "Islam minus the clergy".
He added: "They have realized the great influence of the clergy on the movements and vigilance of the nation. And it is due to this reason that they seek to promote 'Islam minus the clergy'. Everyone should vigilantly oppose this trend which has been started by the enemies."
Ayatollah Khamenei said that promoting the idea of separation of religion and politics and "Islam minus politics" are among the strategies of the arrogant powers and said: "The plan employed by the enemies to oppose Islam can provide us with a plan too. Therefore, we should emphasize everything which they target."
His Eminence referred to the new sanctions against the Islamic Republic and said: "The Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation have been faced with sanctions since the beginning of the Revolution and know how to deal with the sanctions. Therefore, the recent sanctions which were intended to increase pressure on the Iranian people and create a gap between the people and the Islamic Republic could not have a considerable influence on the living conditions of the people. This is a fact which was mentioned by the people and the officials and has been proved in practice as well."
At the end of his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei stressed the importance of unity and increasing solidarity between the people, the elites and the three branches of the government, particularly the executive branch.