The following is the full text of the speech delivered on June 27, 2015 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting with the families of the martyrs of the 7th of Tir and martyrs from Tehran province. The meeting was held in Imam Khomeini Hussainiyah on the 10th day of the month of Ramadan.
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master and Prophet, Ab-al-Qassem al-Mustafa Muhammad and upon his immaculate, pure and chosen household, especially the one remaining with Allah on earth.
Welcome dear brothers and sisters. You imbued this Hussainiyah and our working environment with the scent of martyrs.
The main Islamic concepts
One of the blessings of the Islamic Revolution is reproducing the main Islamic concepts in the present era. We had many of these great concepts in our books and minds, but the Islamic Revolution embodied and realized them. One of these concepts, which is very important, is the concept of martyrdom. This has been clarified in the holy ayah that was recited in this meeting: "Think not of those who are slain in Allah's way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord. They rejoice in the bounty provided by Allah. And with regard to those left behind, who have not yet joined them in their bliss, the martyrs glory in the fact that on them is no fear, nor have they cause to grieve" [The Holy Quran, 3: 169-170]. This is a great Islamic concept which makes martyrdom play a motivating and enlivening role in the social system of Muslims. Martyrs say to those who have not joined them yet - people like you and I - that there is neither fear nor worry on this path and that whatever exists is happiness, ecstasy, spirit and hope. This is a lesson and it was repeated throughout the history of the Islamic Republic.
Martyrs
Our martyrs entered the arena of martyrdom with motivation and enthusiasm. They made sincere efforts and their efforts were accompanied by divine rewards and thus they were martyred. Their martyrdom is undoubtedly a great blessing and reward. God bestowed martyrdom on these pure, sincere and morally healthy servants. They entered this arena with enthusiasm and they met God while they had His approval.
They made sincere efforts and their efforts were accompanied by divine rewards and thus they were martyred. Their martyrdom is undoubtedly a great blessing and reward.
In the hereafter, neither worry nor fear entered their hearts. They are reflecting this in society and they are conveying this message to those who have not joined them yet. We have seen this in the course of many years: wherever martyrdom happened, it was accompanied by a sense of pride and dignity in the family of the martyred individual, the people's sense of spiritual excitement, ecstasy and high morale, and many other social effects one of the most important of which was the event of the 7th of Tir.
Shahid Beheshti
The 7th of Tir was not a minor event. They presumed that they had terminated the influential managers of the Islamic Republic - 72 people - at once. A personality like Shahid Beheshti was among them. He was one of the few geniuses of his time. He was a personality who has few peers in all generations. If they take away - at once - from the people such a personality and a large number of competent ministers, the members of the Majlis and political and revolutionary activists, what is the natural and ordinary effect of this event? Naturally, it should have led to the defeat of the people and the Revolution, but it proved to be the exact opposite of this. What happened was the exact opposite of the enemy's expectations: the people became united, the Revolution took its real and correct direction and the plot of the enemies of the people were revealed and they were disgraced.
There were some people who played the role of accomplices in this grave crime. For many years, they portrayed a different picture of themselves to the people and the youth with their propaganda. They introduced themselves as advocates of freedom and values, but they revealed their true colors. It became clear that they were a bunch of terrorists who were devoid of any intellectual, ideological and revolutionary basis. It was they who sought refuge with someone like Saddam Hussein shortly after this event. They worked against both the people of Iraq and the people of Iran. They participated in the arena of war and fought against their own people. Is there a better way for revealing the true colors of such people? They were accomplices in that crime and some people acted behind the scenes. Their true colors were revealed as well. They were some people who supported and approved of this crime. They too were disgraced whether inside or outside the country. Everyone understood what had happened in the country and who were confronting the people of Iran. And some people took the path of silence, one that was accompanied by approval: "May God curse those who heard about oppression against you and who condoned it" [Iqbal al-A'mal, Vol.1, P.333]. Such people's true colors were revealed as well.
Saving the revolution
By making good and appropriate use of this event, our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) re-identified the original orientation of the Revolution and showed the path to the people of Iran. He identified the path of the Revolution which was taking the wrong direction because they wanted to attach it to the east and the west. He saved the Revolution. This was the blessing of the 7th of Tir event.
Our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) re-identified the original orientation of the Revolution and showed the path to the people of Iran. He identified the path of the Revolution which was taking the wrong direction because they wanted to attach it to the east and the west. He saved the Revolution.
Although there is no doubt that we paid a high price for this and that we lost outstanding personalities, we should see what the impact of that event was. Throughout the 1,400-year history of Islam, the Muslim community is still indebted to the blood of the martyrs of Karbala. Is there any price that is higher than losing Hussein ibn Ali (a.s.)? Is there any life that is dearer than the lives of Hussein's (a.s.) followers? They paid such a high price, but Islam, the Holy Quran and the original orientation of faith survived in society. The same is true of the 7th of Tir event and other martyrdom events in our country.
One of the impacts of this event was the spiritual enthusiasm and happiness of the people. Another impact was that it showed the penetration of the Revolution's power and strength in society. As a result of this event, the enemies realized who they were dealing with. They saw that this event - that would destroy any other country - led to the increasing power of the people of Iran. They understood that they cannot behave in a violent way towards the Revolution. They realized that it does not work. They felt this.
The real enemies
Another important impact of this event - which has continued until today - was that it revealed the true nature of those arrogant powers that claim to support human rights. The same people who committed this crime and other terrorist crimes in our country are freely moving around in European countries and in America. They meet with the officials and heads of these countries and they participate in the speeches that are held for them on the issue of human rights. Is there any revelation which is clearer than this? The event of the 7th of Tir showed the extent of hypocrisy, two-facedness and untruthfulness in those people who claim to support human rights and to fight against terrorism. Everyone is witnessing this in front of their eyes.
Terrorism
We have 17,000 martyrs who were victims of terrorism: 17,000 martyrs! Is this a small figure? Is it a minor event? Those who carried out these assassinations are freely moving around in western countries. Who were the victims of these assassinations? Shopkeepers, farmers, scholars, university professors, pious believers, children and women were the victims. Seventeen thousand martyrs has been recorded in the history of the Islamic Revolution. Well, this has two dimensions in it: one is revelations about those who claim to be fighting against terrorism. This is a mirror that reflects their false claims and that shows how untruthful, deceitful, vicious and mean they are to support these numerous terrorists. This is while they claim that they are against and opposed to terrorism. This is one side of the issue.
Another side is that although our people have given 17,000 martyrs of terrorism - apart from the martyrs whom they gave in the Sacred Defense Era - they have stood firm at the service of the Revolution and its path and at the service of fighting against the enemies of the Revolution.
Another side is that although our people have given 17,000 martyrs of terrorism - apart from the martyrs whom they gave in the Sacred Defense Era - they have stood firm at the service of the Revolution and its path and at the service of fighting against the enemies of the Revolution. It was with these martyrdoms that the greatness of the Revolution and our people appeared. The ayah "And with regard to those left behind, who have not yet joined them in their bliss, the martyrs glory in the fact that on them is no fear, nor have they cause to grieve" is a message that they are conveying to the people of Iran and Muslims. Before that, these were concepts that we had in our books and our minds, but our dear martyrs - your children, your husbands and your fathers - realized and implemented them and showed them to us and to the future generations.
Today too, martyrs are boosting the morale of the people of Iran. A few days ago, 270 martyrs entered Tehran and you witnessed the epic created and what excitement and enthusiasm was engendered. The opposite of discouragement, despair, inactiveness and immobility is dynamism, preparedness, enthusiasm, love and inclination towards ideals. This was what martyrs did.
We have really shirked our responsibilities towards our martyrs. The event of the 7th of Tir has an astonishing capacity for introducing both the personalities who were targeted by these crimes and the people of Iran as a people who hold themselves together during such events. When such events occur, not only do they not run away from the arena, but they also keep up their spirits. This event is also a description of the enemies. It says what mean creatures and what malicious policies stand behind such events. It introduces their criminal hands. This capacity exists in the event of the 7th of Tir and many other events. Of course, the main one is the event of the 7th of Tir. We have not done enough to introduce these. A great deal of work could have been done and should be done in this regard. Organizations in charge and all of us have shirked our responsibilities in this regard.
Cultural and artistic tasks
It seems that this task too should be entrusted to cultural, religious and revolutionary people who enter the arena voluntarily. The youth who voluntarily carry out certain tasks in different corners of the country - they carry out cultural and artistic tasks, they revive many realities, they display their talents and cultivate others' as well - should be the ones who carry out this task too. They should be able to introduce these personalities with the language of art and picture and by benefiting from new means. They should introduce personalities with the caliber of Shahid Beheshti, Shahid Rajai and Shahid Bahonar. Each of these personalities who were martyred in the event of the 7th of Tir deserves portraiture of their identity. This can be done.
I sometimes read the biographies of martyrs. They are really instructive. I learn lessons from them and they raise my spirits. Such books show who these personalities were, what temperament they had, what greatness they enjoyed and what services they rendered. They risked their lives and entered the arena with their self-sacrificing spirit. Did the 7th of Tir martyrs not know that such an event is anticipating them? It was clear to them. In those days, it looked like that anyone who was in the arena was walking on a minefield. There were different incidents which came from different sides, but they entered the arena and moved forward in a courageous way. Martyrs have offered many blessings and they cannot be described properly with these portraits. We cannot really repay them for the services that they rendered.
The families of martyrs
The same is true of the families of martyrs. In today's meeting, there are families who have lost three martyrs or more. It is easy to speak about enduring the loss of one's dear ones, but it is very difficult in practice. There are families who only had two sons, but they offered them on the path of God and in the arena of Sacred Defense. There are ladies who offered both their husband and their children. Enduring their loss is easy in words, but very difficult in practice. We read in the history of early Islamic era that a lady put the corpses of three martyrs on a camel, taking them from the Battle of Uhud to Madina. When we were reading this, we used to become surprised at the possibility of this. It really looked like a myth to us. Now, we are witnessing these mythical realities in front of our eyes. Martyrs moved with a high spirit, one that can encourage fearful individuals and strengthen their determination. And today, our country needs this firm determination.
Everyone should know that today, the country needs to know the enemy. We should know the enemy. We should know our global enemies who try to beautify themselves and put it on display with all sorts of media and propaganda cosmetics. We should know America. Take a look at the following days: tomorrow is the 7th of Tir [28th of June] when the event of the Islamic Republic Party occurred. On the 7th of Tir of the year 1366 [28, June, 1988], Sardasht became the target of chemical-weapons bombardment. It was done by Saddam, but who was behind him? It was the Americans, westerners and those people who gave him chemical bombs. They showed him the green light and remained silent in the face of these grave crimes and this dreadful massacre. On the 11th of Tir [2th of July] - a few days later - Shahid Sadduqi was assassinated and the same criminals perpetrated it. On the 12th of Tir, the Airbus passenger plane was shot down over the Persian Gulf. Notice how many assassinations and massacres were carried out from the 7th to 12th of Tir [28th of June to 3th of July]. Notice how many women, children, scholars and politicians became the target of American agents. Even if these events were not masterminded by the intelligence services of America and the west, they at least encouraged those who did. Therefore, we should know these enemies.
"The Week of American Human Rights"
As some friends say, it would be good if we named the period from the 7th to 12th of Tir [28th of June to 3th of July] "The Week of American Human Rights". In this period, the true nature of American human rights was revealed in our country. And there are many other such periods. Therefore, we need to know the enemy. Today, those who are trying to introduce this monster - which is American policies and the policies adopted by some of America's followers - as respectable are betraying the country and committing a crime. Those who conceal this clear truth and cover up this malicious enmity behind the veils of justification are betraying the people. Our country and people need to know the enemy and the depth of his enmity.
Today, those who are trying to introduce this monster - which is American policies and the policies adopted by some of America's followers - as respectable are betraying the country and committing a crime.
Moreover, they need to prepare themselves for confrontation. This confrontation is not always a hard confrontation, one that is shown in the arena of war. More difficult than this is confrontation in the arena of soft war, culture, politics and social life. Today, the dear people of Iran need the message of martyrs. They need this. Our people need this inspirational and revealing message that is imbued with spiritual exaltation and morale. And the people are indebted to the martyrs and to you families of martyrs. All of us are indebted to you. Those who deny this, those who are not willing to let the names of martyrs be praised - such people feel as if they were wounded when the names of martyrs are mentioned and commemorated - are outsiders to national interests. They are foreigners. Their identity card is Iranian, but in reality they are foreigners. They are not in synchronicity with and sympathetic to the Iranian people.
Greetings be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings