Statements in the Presence of Families of Martyrs

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

This meeting is spiritually a very significant gathering. Truly, it is a source of pride for a nation that fathers and mothers send their beloved children in this manner in the way of God, and these dear ones attain martyrdom, and this great and heavy sorrow becomes sweet for them due to divine satisfaction; especially for fathers and mothers who sometimes had two sons, both of whom became martyrs; or three of their children attained martyrdom; or four of their children became martyrs; these are not small matters, nor are they limited to a specific part of our country or our nation. You, the present gathering, who possess this magnificent characteristic, are the fathers and mothers of such youths who come from various regions of the country, from different ethnicities, and from various cities; from Fars, from Arabs, from Turks, from Kurds, from Turkmen, from Baluch. Which nation has such a remarkable composition within itself? During this trip to Kurdistan, I visited a family whose six children had been martyred in the way of God. I had previously seen this family. In this trip, I saw that the father and mother of this family had passed away. The memory of these great individuals, the memory of these brave men and women, that is, the fathers and mothers of the martyrs, remains alive just like the memory of the martyrs themselves. They will never fade from the memory of a nation and a history. We read in history about events related to the early days of Islam that we could not comprehend deeply; they seemed like stories; but today, among our own nation, we see individuals who, in terms of self-sacrifice, surpass those women and men whose memories have remained in the history of Islam for fourteen hundred years. Their patience is greater than that of those individuals. They saw the warm breath of the Messenger of God, they saw the Prophet with their own eyes, they fought alongside him; these individuals, with a distance of fourteen hundred years, "and we believe in what we have not seen, truthfully and justly" - as stated in the supplication of Samat - stood firm with such strong faith; is this a small matter? This is how the Iranian nation triumphed, my dear ones!

These firm beliefs, these steel wills, this great selflessness and sacrifice of the fathers and mothers and families of the martyrs have strengthened the foundations of this solid edifice so much that no storm has been able, and by God's permission, will not be able to shake this lofty foundation; to uproot it. The foundation of this solid edifice of the Islamic Republic is your patience, your faith, your steadfastness. This is why our youth today, thirty years after the revolution, are being raised in such a revolutionary manner that you see the example of believing and revolutionary youths. And all of this is by the blessing of Islam, by the blessing of the Quran.

You sent your children to the front for the sake of God, you endured the hardship of their loss for the sake of God. If the Islamic system deviates even slightly from Islam and from the path of Islam and from the goals of Islam, certainly this great support will no longer remain for it. The reason that our great Imam emphasized Islam in all his statements and all his words is due to this truth. It is Islam that has kept us steadfast, it is Islam that has empowered us, it is Islam that has given us hope for victory and has placed us in these difficult arenas; it was Islam that, during the attack on "Bait al-Maqdis", compelled those young, deprived forces, those armed forces lacking resources, to stand firm against the Ba'ath enemy in such a way that they were able to disgrace him, defeat him, and reclaim Khorramshahr, driving him out of the Islamic land. This system was established with Islam and will remain alive with Islam.

All officials of the system must pay attention to this point and take pride in Islam and the laws of Islam and the Islamic values. It is true that the enemies of Islam - that is, the enemies of the Iranian nation - do not like this. It is obvious that when you face an enemy, if you have a strong will, if you have effective weapons, the enemy does not like this; he wants to take your will away from you and weaken you; he wants to take the weapon from your hands. The enemies of Iran and Iranians know that the source of the steadfastness and power of this nation and its strong will is its Islamic faith; they want to take this away from them. They organize global propaganda in this direction. We must be vigilant; our officials must be vigilant; the candidates for elections must be vigilant. Let not the candidates for the presidential election utter anything in their propaganda to please the enemies. The satisfaction of God must be considered, the satisfaction of the saints must be considered. What should be the criterion for judgment is what is the source of the steadfastness of the nation, the source of the strength of the nation, the source of the resilience of the people, and that is the firm adherence to Islam.

We thank God that, by the blessing of Islam, the blood of our martyrs has not been trampled upon or wasted. The blood of our martyrs has not been wasted or rendered void. This dignity that you see today in the Islamic Republic system and the Iranian nation is due to the blessing of these bloods. The fact that in all Islamic countries, the general public admires the Iranian nation, looks at the Islamic Republic system with awe, is due to the blessing of these bloods. This security that exists today in our country, this great movement towards the construction of this country, these great works that have been accomplished, this scientific and technological progress, this increase in the number of scholars, students, researchers, and investigators, all of these are due to the blood of the martyrs. This public awakening that our country and nation have today is due to the blood of the martyrs. The blood of your martyrs is like alchemy, like an elixir that has transformed this nation, this country, has helped it grow, and its pride belongs to your martyrs and to you.

The Iranian nation will forever be indebted to the martyrs and the families of the martyrs. This is something that all our nation must know. Whatever dignity we achieve, whatever progress we make, is owed to the blood of your dear martyrs, these beloved ones of yours. They were the ones who gave us, their country, their nation, and Islam dignity. Everyone must appreciate this; officials must appreciate this, you families must appreciate this as well; and you know it.

I have rarely seen a martyr's family that does not take pride in their child's martyrdom, that does not feel a sense of honor; indeed, we may never have seen a martyr's family that does not take pride in their martyrs. They take pride in their martyrs, and rightly so; it is a matter of pride and deserves to be honored. Not just you, all of us, all of the Iranian nation, all officials must take pride in these brave men, in these courageous youths.

And the memory of the epic of the Sacred Defense must always remain alive and eternal in our country. Some have tried, and even made efforts, to gradually diminish the memory of the era of the Sacred Defense and those great acts of bravery and that greatness. If they are doing this unknowingly, they have a great negligence; if, God forbid, they are doing it knowingly, it is treachery.

The memory of the Sacred Defense, the memory of the martyrs, must always remain alive among our nation and our society. Many words have yet to be spoken. Many of the memories of your youths, your children, have yet to be recorded. And as much as has been expressed, it reflects an immeasurable greatness that cannot be measured by ordinary human minds; it cannot be measured by materialistic thought and intellect. The things that have been written about the conquest of Bait al-Maqdis, the conquest of Fath al-Mubin, and the other operations, how much greatness is there in them. These were accomplished by your youths.

We ask the Almighty God for the elevation of the ranks of our dear martyrs. We ask God to unite us with these martyrs. And may He include all of you, especially you fathers and mothers, in their intercession, and we hope that, God willing, this great honor of the Iranian nation will always be a source of pride and a means of progress for the Iranian nation. And may God fill your hearts with His grace, His mercy, and divine patience and tranquility.

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