Statements on the Meeting Addressing the Problems of the Earthquake Victims in Kermanshah Province

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad and his pure and immaculate family.

We express our gratitude to God for granting the esteemed officials the opportunity to rush to the aid of their compatriots, to assist the dear people of this province in this bitter and painful incident. Earthquakes are among the signs of God; this earthquake and the worldly earthquakes that we feel helpless against are nothing compared to the earthquake of the Day of Resurrection - the earthquake of the Hour (Zalzalah al-Sa'ah). On the Day you see it, every nursing mother will abandon that which she has nursed. The earthquake of the Day of Resurrection, the earthquake of the world of resurrection, is an extraordinary, strange, and immense event that the Quran mentions. This earthquake should remind us of that earthquake. This earthquake cannot be compared to that earthquake in terms of significance, greatness, and the weight of the calamity; yet, we feel helpless in the face of this earthquake, let alone that earthquake! If we want to escape the horror of the Day of Resurrection and the state of terror that all humans will experience due to the strange events of that day, one way is to show mercy to the servants of God here; whoever shows mercy to the servants of God, God will show mercy to him. The meaning of showing mercy is not to look down upon them, as if to say that the dignity of these people is higher than these meanings; no, the dignity of the people is very high, the honor of the people of Kermanshah is clear to all who know this province and its people; however, we must fulfill our duties.

Today, I visited the city of Sarpol-e Zahab and several of its villages. The city has suffered heavy damage, but the damage to the villages in some cases is not comparable to the damage to the city; that is, the damage is very severe; we saw a village or villages that seem to have been leveled to the ground. Perhaps in all these villages, one or two buildings are still standing, but even from inside, one cannot know; the rest have been leveled to the ground. Well, this is a very significant incident. Since we are not afflicted ourselves, we do not understand the affliction; all those who will hear my remarks should pay attention to this. You hear that the earthquake victims need certain living or food supplies; well, people strive, and the officials do the same, and they prepare for them; however, the issue of the earthquake victim is not just that. The one who lived in his home, with his family, among them, in peace and comfort - after all, in a certain environment - now all that he had and did not have is gathered in a tent! We went inside the tents, we saw some of the tents; imagine a tent two by three, two and a half by three and a half, or three by four, cold, heat, lack of space; this is not living. These are things that we must understand with precision, and according to that importance, we must realize our duties. Floods are somewhat similar. In past years - in my youth - I had long and extensive presence in earthquake relief groups, as well as in flood relief; floods are one way, earthquakes are another way, but in some respects, they are alike.

In the earthquake incident, we need two things: one is rescue, and the second is aid. Rescue is for the first few hours. Thanks be to God, the presence of the army, the IRGC, the police, and their organized presence in this region enabled them to carry out the rescue mission in a relatively acceptable manner. This earthquake that I saw here, this destruction that has occurred - of course, we did not go to Qasr-e Shirin, we did not go to Islamabad, we did not go to some of their villages that have been heavily destroyed, we did not go to Khosravi, we did not go to Thalath Babajan; many areas have been destroyed - the amount I saw, if rescue had not been carried out quickly at the beginning of this earthquake, the casualties would have been several times higher. Well, one part is rescue, which is a very important part and must be carried out in those first hours. The reason I held several sessions with the government after the Bam earthquake and personally attended the meetings - several hours of meetings - to establish this crisis headquarters is for this reason. The work of the crisis headquarters is at that first moment. First and foremost, there must be organization, because earthquakes do not announce their arrival, floods do not either; natural disasters do not give prior notice; they come suddenly. We must be present here, the crisis headquarters must be present; that is, it must be like our border guards. The border guard that we appoint and place alongside the border to counter the enemy's infiltration must always be present; because the enemy does not say, 'I am coming'; it may attack suddenly; the border guard must always be present. Countering natural disasters requires even more preparedness; nationwide, a hundred percent preparedness is necessary for the crisis headquarters. And this is possible; this is not something impossible; no, it is possible to schedule permanent guard duties and always have individuals ready and organized. This issue of rescue is for the beginning of the work, and here, thanks be to God, the initial work was carried out well to a large extent, and as much as possible, they reached those who had suffered the calamity and were trapped under the rubble.

The second issue is the issue of aid. The issue of aid, although it also requires speed, is not an urgent and finite task. Aid has various components, each of which has its own importance at a certain time and must be carried out in that time frame. First, it is clear that there are immediate food and sustenance needs; because in a place where a natural disaster occurs, the first thing that people need is water and bread that must reach them; this is for the beginning of the work. Then, there are the needs for living facilities, clothing, and household items, and so on. However, more important than all of these is the issue of housing. Now, you see how these construction debris in these destroyed villages can be transported? This is a very significant task, a very difficult task, and it must definitely be carried out. Then, the issue of providing housing and rebuilding the villages and cities is very important; this work must also be done with speed. I saw these tents; in one of these tents, I asked a lady if they had provided plastic for the tent, she said yes, they had provided plastic; then I felt ashamed of this question; well, they have provided plastic, but does plastic perform miracles? In the cold weather, in this season, at night, how should the necessary warmth be provided for the child, for the elderly, for the sick? How should it be provided? With necessary arrangements, first for building housing, and until the housing issue is completely resolved, for providing heating facilities. A lot of work must be done in this area, a lot of effort must be made; a heavy responsibility lies on the shoulders of the officials.

There must be a central authority, just as there is a need for centralization in distributing resources among the earthquake victims. One of the necessary tasks in these areas is the existence of a central authority; all work must be concentrated; management must be done from one place. Everyone should work, everyone should strive, everyone should receive their share, but a unified management is necessary. This was regarding the distribution of resources, which has now gradually been secured and resolved. After this, the issue of providing housing is the issue of reconstruction; this requires a unified management, a fundamental task, requires speed, and the government must provide all necessary support in this regard, and various agencies - whether military or non-military - each must accept responsibility to the extent of their capabilities and carry out this responsibility; this is a very important task. Of course, I know that so far, in various sectors, some officials have made significant efforts and done a lot of work. We sincerely thank you for the work that has been done, especially those who truly rolled up their sleeves and entered the field with seriousness and worked; indeed, their reward is preserved before God Almighty, and we also thank them. However, in the future, that is, in the continuation of this assistance, this concentrated work is, in our opinion, more necessary, more important, and more fundamental.

And especially, speed must be taken into consideration; you must act quickly; the work must be pursued with a jihadist spirit. One of the characteristics of the Islamic Republic must be this jihadist work. Fortunately, in some areas, this is indeed the case; in some areas, one sees that jihadist work is being done. We saw before the revolution how the responsible agencies at that time had no real sense of responsibility towards these issues. At that time, I witnessed closely that, in reality, the issue of the earthquake victims was not a significant matter for them; they did not really consider it important; they only wanted to do something in form and name; the work was done by popular groups. Today, it is not like that; thanks be to God, the officials are in the field, they are working, they are striving; this is one of the characteristics of the Islamic Republic; however, after this, the esteemed gentlemen and officials must carry out the work with better management, continuity, follow-up, and speed, God willing. And this centralization that we mentioned must definitely be established so that the work, God willing, reaches a conclusion. We hope that God Almighty will grant ease, smooth the paths so that you can fulfill your duties and, God willing, relieve these people from this great hardship that has arisen.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.