The Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei led the Friday prayers in Tehran on the second day of the holy month of Ramazan on September 14, 2007.
In an address to a large congregation of the devoted and revolutionary residents of Tehran, the Leader stated that the aware and vigilant Iranian people have thwarted the American project to undermine the Islamic Revolution, thanks to their faith and devotion and perseverance. He added that by continuing to tread their present glorious path, the Iranian people will reach such a point that no power would even think of threatening this nation.
In the first sermon of the Friday prayers, which were held on the campus of Tehran University, Ayatollah Khamenei called on the faithful and devoted worshippers to observe pity. Describing the holy month of Ramazan as the month of precious opportunities, he added that if the opportunities of this blessed month are utilized properly, they will give rise to a great and precious asset for a person's whole lifetime.
The Leader referred to fasting, reciting the Holy Qur'an and pondering on the divine verses, invocation to and communion with Almighty Allah and avoiding sins as among the valuable opportunities of the holy month of Ramazan. He stated that through real repentance in this great month, Muslims should cleanse impurities from their hearts in order to be able to make the most of the blessings of the holy month of Ramazan.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei described the Iranian society as a society characterized by great spirituality. He emphasized that the spiritual bonds between the Iranian nation and Almighty Allah have yielded great and wonderful results, and he called on the Iranian people to try to further increase this spiritual asset during the holy month of Ramazan.
In the second sermon of the Friday prayers, the Leader of the Islamic Republic expounded on the reasons for the defeat and failure of the arrogant powers in their confrontation with the Islamic Republic. He also referred to the eight-year war waged by Saddam Hussein and his supporters against Iran.
"The real objective pursued by this heavy and extensive project was to destroy the Islamic Revolution, since Western officials and analysts had realized that the Islamic Revolution would become the source of inspiration for the Islamic world, and thus they tried to prevent its progress," the Leader told the worshippers.
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed out that Western and Eastern powers, Nato, Europe and the reactionary regimes in the region tried to exert various pressures on the Islamic Republic of Iran through the Iraqi imposed war.
"Any one of those pressures was enough to subdue a country and nation. However, the Iranian nation resisted the combination of all those pressures and became stronger and more determined and more vigilant with the passage of time and managed to defeat the united camp of the enemies," Ayatollah Khamenei observed.
He noted that the defeat that was suffered by Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi Ba'thist regime in the war against the Iranian nation dealt a heavy blow to the foundations of the Iraqi regime and set the stage for the later downfall of the Iraqi dictator.
Further in his statements, the Leader of the Islamic Republic touched on the remarks made by American and Western officials during the recent months about imposing sanctions against the Iranian nation.
"The Iranian nation was under different sanctions and subjected to a severe blockade during the [Iraqi imposed] war, but it has reached such a point that, today, it ranks first in the region in terms of military capabilities; also, in other areas such as the field of nuclear energy it has made glorious progress and, by doing so, it has shown that any sanction will have the opposite effect, considering the perseverance and self-reliance and initiative and dynamism of the Iranian nation," the Leader pointed out.
Ayatollah Khamenei added that the futility of the arrogant powers' project to suppress and defeat the Islamic Revolution in the face of the Iranian nation's resistance and perseverance based on spirituality has provided a new topic in psychological and social studies. He called on the experts in political and social sciences to ponder on and analyze the causes of this exemplary reality.
The Leader also elaborated on various aspects of the U.S. failure in its plan following the September 11 incident to create a new Middle East and ultimately blockade and overcome the Islamic Republic of Iran. He noted that American officials have been trying to create a new Middle East pivoting on the interests of the Zionist regime and with Israel as its capital, but that they have failed with regard to all aspects of this plan.
Ayatollah Khamenei stated that forming a popular government resting on public vote by Hamas in Palestine was among the defeats suffered by the United States in creating a new Middle East.
"In spite of all the U.S. plots and despite the regrettable assistance extended by certain Palestinians to the United States with the intention of bringing the popular Palestinian government to its knees, the Hamas government is still in office, and this reality constitutes the hard slap of the Palestinian nation on the face of the United States and Israel," Ayatollah Khamenei noted.
The Leader cited the defeat of the Zionist regime's bragging and boastful army in its confrontation with the Lebanese Hezbollah as another aspect of the failure of the American project to create a new Middle East.
"American officials could not even imagine that the Israeli army would be defeated by the Hezbollah forces. But the utter and disgraceful defeat suffered by the Zionist regime as a result of the 33-day resistance of Hezbollah gave rise to another severe failure for Washington," the Leader observed.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei referred to Iraq as another arena in which the U.S. policies have reached a deadlock. He stated that the United States had aimed to bring a puppet government to power in Iraq, since the realization of this goal would have been beneficial to the American project to create a new Middle East and blockade the Islamic Republic of Iran.
"However, after some four years of occupation, today all analysts believe that the United States has reached a deadlock in Iraq and is looking for some way to leave that country in a face-saving manner," the Leader pointed out.
Ayatollah Khamenei further stated that weakening the Islamic Republic of Iran had constituted another aspect of the U.S. plan to create a new Middle East.
"The enemies of Iran have suffered utter failure in achieving this objective as well, since thanks to the determination and perseverance of the Iranian nation and by the favor of Allah, the Islamic Republic is today stronger compared with the previous years in all political and economic and scientific and social areas, and the Iranian nation is present on all scenes with greater vigilance and dynamism and enthusiasm," Ayatollah Khamenei told the audience.
The Leader of the Islamic Republic also hinted at the results of the opinion polls conducted in the Islamic countries. He noted that the United States has become more hated in the Islamic world and is being impeached by nations.
"Undoubtedly, the incumbent president and other officials of the United States will some day be tried in a just international tribunal for causing the tragedies in Iraq," the Leader remarked.
As regards the U.S. allegations against Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei stated, "American officials are accusing Iran in order to escape the defeat that they have suffered in Iraq. But even in a report that was recently read in the U.S. Congress, Iraq's turning into a market for American weapons was cited as the only outcome of the U.S. occupying that country, and this reality indicates the utter failure and weakness of the U.S. administration."
The Leader stated that treading the path of Allah has dignified the Iranian nation and humiliated its enemies. He added that by continuing to tread their present glorious path with awareness and vigilance, the Iranian people should try to conquer the high summits and reach such a point that no power would even dare to threaten this nation.
Ayatollah Khamenei also underlined the significance of celebrating the International Day of Quds. He stated that the Iranian nation and other Muslim nations will voice their support for the Palestinian nation on this great day.