In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
All praise is due to God, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master, Muhammad, and upon his Pure Progeny, particularly the remnant of God on earth.
I would like to congratulate all the respected people here in this meeting, including the heads of Iran’s executive branches, our officials, and the ambassadors and representatives of Islamic countries on the auspicious occasion of Eid al-Fitr. I would also like to congratulate the entire Iranian nation who are truly deserving of congratulations because of their behavior and their meritorious deeds during the month of Ramadan. I would also like to extend my congratulations to all of the Muslims in the world and the entire Islamic nation. I hope that the Almighty God will bless everyone during this Eid.
The month of Ramadan provides the environment for hearts to become closer to each other. All of the various dimensions of the month of Ramadan help to bring the hearts of people closer to each other, both within the country and within the entire Islamic nation. First of all, the tenderness that is created in people by their fasting, prayers, supplications, and recitation of the Quran is itself a source for bringing the hearts closer together. And piety brings hearts together just as the president pointed out in his statements. He stated this very well when he said that the secret to fasting is piety. In my opinion, the officials of Islamic countries should use this opportunity to increase unity and closeness among the members of the Islamic nation.
Our problem today is division. Even though the Quran prohibits division, “Do not be like those who became divided [into sects] and differed” [Quran 3:105], and it commands us to be united, “Hold fast, all together, to Allah’s cord, and do not be divided [into sects]” [Quran 3:103], the members of the Islamic nation, the Islamic Ummah, are divided. Yes, there are different opinions, there are different sects, and there are different tastes. That’s fine. But these different tastes do not mean that we should be deprived of the great blessing of the Islamic nation being united.
If the Islamic nation, which consists of about two billion, close to two billion people who are scattered in the most important, sensitive geographical areas of the world, if they were united today, Islamic countries would receive more blessings, far more blessings. If this unity is established to any extent, the solution to the problems of the Islamic world will become apparent. The first steps will become apparent, and it will be possible for us to solve the problems of the Islamic world.
The Islamic world is facing many problems now. It is faced with differences, conflicts, bloodshed, dependence on others, poverty, and a lack of knowledge. These are problems in the Islamic nation. If we become closer to one another, not only will solving these problems become possible, it will also be easy to do.
The issue of Palestine is currently one of the most fundamental issues of the Islamic world. Even if it’s not at the top of the issues, it is at least one of the top problems of the Islamic world. Praise God, today we are witnessing the gradual decline of the usurping [Zionist] regime. Everyone in the world is seeing this. The usurping regime is gradually declining, and the rate of its decline is increasing every day. This decline started some years ago, but the rate of its decline has increased. This is a very big opportunity.
The Palestinian issue is not just an Islamic issue. It is a humanitarian issue. If anyone in the world, regardless of whether they are Muslim or not, knows the reality of the events in Palestine, they will confront the usurping [Zionist] regime.
Some of the crimes of the usurping regime, the Israeli regime, and some of the catastrophes they had created became apparent to the world this year. You saw how the people’s gatherings and walks on Quds Day were no longer limited to the Islamic world. Many people outside the Islamic world, even in Europe and in America itself, also took part in the walks in defense of the Palestinian people. This is how it is. It is a humanitarian issue. What is it that makes a European person whose government is attached to and dependent on the Zionist regime chant in the streets in favor of the Palestinians and against the Zionist regime? This is a very important matter.
Why has it become like this? It is because of the Palestinian people’s resistance. The internal resistance of the Palestinians is the main reason for their progress. The more this resistance increases, the weaker the Zionist regime will become, and the more its disastrous situation can be seen. The desperate situation that the Zionist regime is in today – the Zionist regime’s current situation is truly deplorable – is due to the steadfastness of the Palestinian youth. They are accepting the hardships and the dangers. In Quds, we see a large gathering of people taking part in spiritual retreats. The young people in different cities of the West Bank stand in front of the armed, vicious Zionist soldiers. They make sacrifices and they move forward. They have moved forward up until now and it will continue to be the same.
I believe that today the Zionist regime’s power of deterrence has come to an end. This is what Ben-Gurion, one of the main founders and the former Prime Minister of the Zionist regime, had warned of decades ago, perhaps 60 years ago. He said that the regime would start to have problems whenever its power of deterrence ended. Today, their power of deterrence has finished or is near its end. They know and realize this themselves too that their collapse and dissolution is near. This is due to the blessing of the Resistance Front. It is due to the blessing of the Palestinian youth who have been able to continuously weaken, reduce, and destroy their enemy’s power of deterrence.
So, what should the Islamic world’s strategy be regarding Palestine? Today, the Islamic world’s strategy regarding Palestine should be to help the forces inside that country. The Resistance Front’s endeavors are of course valuable, wherever they are. Just like us, we too are standing up for the Palestinian issue. The Resistance Front’s endeavors are valuable. These efforts should be focused on strengthening those who are fighting and risking their lives inside Palestine.
The last point is the following. We need to truly pay attention to this point. What is the reason for the escalation of the internal struggles in Palestine? It is because of their inclination toward Islam. We had seen what their situation was like before. Back when Islamic tendencies weren’t popular among Palestinian groups – now some were communists and others were not communists, but they weren’t Islamic – these developments did not exist. From the time that Islamic tendencies were born in the Palestinian resistance fighters and from the time this tendency increased on a daily basis continuing up until today, progress has been made in this manner in the way the Palestinians fight.
So the reason for their success is Islam. Islam. And the enemy has realized this. That’s why you see them working against Islam around the world. They are all engaged in fighting Islam, doing all kinds of things. Of course, their fight against Islam will not get anywhere, “Do they seek to outmaneuver [Allah]? But it is the faithless who are the ones who are outmaneuvered!” [Quran 52:42]. They are making efforts, but the Almighty God will nullify their efforts. This is our duty today. The Islamic Republic recognized this duty from the very beginning. Imam Khomeini (ra) pioneered this path. He considered the issue of Palestine to be the primary issue or one of the primary issues of the Islamic world. This movement started in the Islamic Republic from the time it was formed, and praise God, it is continuing. We hope that our dear nation, our people, and our youth will see the day when Muslims from around the world can freely perform their prayers in Quds.
May God’s greetings, mercy, and blessings be upon you.
