One of the great challenges that the country was faced at the beginning of the Revolution was the eight-year imposed war. Eight years is not a joke. They imposed an eight-year war on this country. Due to the lack of preparedness which is natural at the beginning of a revolution, any revolution would have been defeated if it had been faced with such a challenge. But our dear country and the holy Islamic Republic was not defeated. It gained victory. The war was managed by the people. The Army, the Islamic Revolution's Guards Corps and other forces of the Islamic Republic were dependent on the people. They were relying on the faith, dedication and sincerity of the people. The people were prepared to make sacrifices with exemplary and unforgettable sincerity at and behind the frontline. Unfortunately, those who were young at that time do not go over the events of those days. It is very good to remember those outstanding and beautiful events.
When I was in the city of Kermanshah [at that time], I was told that Jafarabad(A village in Kermanshah province) had been bombed and members of a family were stuck under rubble. The local officials went there and rescued them. Later on, the father of the family, who was an old man, goes to the officials to express his gratitude. He goes there and says that he is grateful to the officials for helping him. The officials tell him to give them a list of what he has lost in the bombing so that they can recompense him. The old man tells them, "Fellow citizen, it is a pity you are saying that. Do you think I came here for material gain?" [The Leader says this in the local dialect] Notice that he was from Kermanshah. This is the way a heavenly person would respond. There are many such examples in your city and province. Such examples can be found in operational areas in the western, southwestern and northwestern parts of the country. These are the things that cannot be found among other nations. Such outstanding examples cannot be found elsewhere in such large numbers. It was the people who managed the war. They were involved in the affairs of the country.
