Televised Speech on World Quds Day on the Last Friday of Ramadan 1443

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 family, especially the Awaited One on earth. Greetings and abundant peace to the great nation of Iran, which today has truly created a epic, and peace and greetings to Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), the founder of this blessed foundation, for all future generations. Today, the presence of the people — as far as I have learned and seen some — was truly epic, magnificent; the people entered the arena with full motivation. This great popular movement is a significant and blessed act; your presence in the political and popular arena for the defense of Quds is a true defense of Quds; this is real defense. Those who today defend Quds, the Al-Aqsa Mosque — the first Qibla of Muslims — with their bodies and souls, are encouraged, empowered, and steadfast by your movement. God willing, with divine grace, the Palestinian movement and the great Palestinian struggle will approach its final results, which will be blessed results. Today, I want to discuss issues regarding Quds and Palestine with my Palestinian brothers and dear ones, and I will speak in Arabic. We have spoken many times about this with our own people and have presented our views; today my address is to the Palestinian brothers and all the Islamic world, especially the Arab world.

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 the master of creation and the noblest of beings, our master Muhammad the Chosen, the Seal of the Prophets, and upon his pure family and his chosen companions, and those who follow them with goodness until the Day of Judgment.

Peace be upon all the sons of our nation, men and women, across the world... Peace be upon the youth of the Islamic world... Peace be upon the brave and zealous Palestinian youth and all the people of Palestine. Once again, the Day of Quds has arrived... The noble Quds calls upon all Muslims in the world. In reality, as long as the usurping and criminal Zionist regime controls Quds, we must consider every day of the year as the Day of Quds. The noble Quds is the heart of Palestine, and all the occupied land from the sea to the river is an extension of Quds. The Palestinian people show every day more than before their steadfastness with unparalleled bravery, standing against oppression, and they will continue to stand firm. The youth — through their self-sacrificing operations — have become a defensive shield for Palestine, heralding a different future. This year, we are experiencing the Day of Quds while everything indicates a new equation for Palestine in its present and future. The “unbreakable will” in the Palestinian arena and throughout the West Asia region has replaced what was called the 'invincible army' of the Zionists. That criminal army has now been forced to change its offensive posture to a defensive one. Today, in the political arena, we see the most important supporter of the usurping regime, namely America, suffering from successive defeats... a defeat in the war in Afghanistan... a defeat in exerting maximum pressure on Islamic Iran... a defeat against Asian powers... a defeat in controlling the global economy... a defeat in its internal management and the emergence of deep fractures in this administration. The usurping regime is floundering in the political and military arena within a complex web of problems. The previous executioner and criminal who was at the head of that regime has been thrown into the trash after the epic of the Sword of Quds, and those who have replaced him are also waiting for another epic’s sharp sword. The Zionist regime has gone mad in the face of the movement in Jenin. While this usurping regime, twenty years ago, killed two hundred Palestinians in the Jenin camp in response to the killing of a number of Zionists in Nahariya, believing that the issue of Jenin had been resolved forever. Polls indicate that seventy percent of Palestinians in the territories of 48 and 67, and in the refugee camps abroad, are urging Palestinian leaders to take military action against the usurping regime. This is an important phenomenon, as it signifies the complete readiness of Palestinians to confront the usurping regime, and it gives the green light to the fighting factions to act whenever they deem it necessary. The jihadist movements of the Palestinian people in the northern and southern parts of the territories of 48, along with massive marches in Jordan and East Jerusalem, the heroic defense of Palestinian youth of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and military maneuvers in Gaza... all indicate that all of Palestine has turned into a theater of resistance. The Palestinian people have now united in their resolve to continue jihad. These events, and what has been witnessed in the Palestinian arena in recent years, have nullified all projects of reconciliation with the Zionist enemy. No project regarding Palestine can be implemented in the absence of its owners, namely the Palestinians, or in contradiction to their views. This means the nullification of all previous agreements such as Oslo, the two-state solution, the Deal of the Century, or the recent humiliating normalization. The Zionist regime, although its forces are exhausted, continues its crimes, brandishing weapons against the oppressed, killing women, children, and unarmed elders and youth, imprisoning and torturing them, demolishing homes, and destroying farms and properties. The charlatans claiming to be human rights advocates in Europe and America, who raise a clamor over the issue of Ukraine, have sealed their lips regarding all these crimes in Palestine, not defending the oppressed, but rather showering the predatory wolf with aid. This is a great lesson. In the issues of the Islamic world, especially the Palestinian issue, one cannot rely on these racist and antagonistic powers, nor should one. The power of resistance inspired by the teachings of the Holy Quran and the principles of Islam is the only force capable of solving the issues of the Islamic world, foremost among them the Palestinian issue. The crystallization of the resistance movement in the West Asia region in recent decades has been the most blessed phenomenon in the region. The resistance movement was the one that purified the occupied parts of Lebanon from the filth of the Zionist presence, liberated Iraq from the clutches of America, saved Iraq from the evil of ISIS, and provided support to the Syrian defenders against America’s schemes. The resistance fights global terrorism, assists the resilient Yemeni people in the war imposed upon them, confronts the usurping Zionist existence in Palestine, and, with God’s grace, will bring it down, and through its efforts and jihad, will make the issue of Quds and Palestine increasingly prominent in global public opinion. You, the people of Palestine, you, the self-sacrificing youth in the West Bank and in the territories of 48, you, the fighters in the Jenin camp, and you, the residents of the Palestinian camps in exile... you form the most important, sensitive, and leading part of the body of resistance. Know that: “Indeed, God defends those who believe” and “And if you are patient, it is better for the patient” and “And if you are patient and God-conscious, that is among the matters of determination” and “Peace be upon you for your patience; how excellent is the final abode.” The Islamic Republic of Iran is a supporter and ally of the resistance front, a supporter and ally of the Palestinian resistance; we have said this repeatedly and acted upon it, and we are determined in this. We condemn the treacherous trend of normalization. We condemn the phenomenon of “normalization capability” and what some Arab governments have said to America about the necessity of hastening the resolution of the Palestinian issue. If their intention is to remove all obstacles in the way of establishing the usurping regime, then they have firstly committed treason and brought shame upon the Arab world, and secondly, they have acted with naivety beyond measure, because the blind — as it is said — cannot lead another blind. In conclusion, I send my greetings to the souls of the Palestinian martyrs, I stand in reverence before their steadfast families, I salute the steadfast Palestinian prisoners with strong will in the prisons of the occupation, I shake hands with the Palestinian resistance factions that bear the greater part of this great responsibility, and I call upon the Islamic world, especially the youth, to be present in the arenas of dignity and honor. And our last call is that all praise is due to God, the Lord of the worlds. Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.

Sayyid Ali Khamenei