AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The unveiling ceremony for the documentary Vakil (The Envoy), a film portraying the life and struggles of Hojat al-Islam Sayed Isa Tabatabaei, the representative of Imam Khomeini (r.a.) and the Supreme Leader in Lebanon, was held with Ayatollah Mohammad-Hassan Akhtari, Chairman of the Supreme Council of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, highlighting lesser-known aspects of Tabatabaei’s life and service.
Opening his remarks with praise for the creators of The Envoy, Ayatollah Akhtari said that it is valuable when artists choose to depict the lives of figures who remain largely unknown. Presenting the lives, efforts, and sacrifices of such personalities, he noted, serves as an educational and moral lesson for the younger generation.
He added that he accompanied Tabatabaei during the 1972 Hajj pilgrimage, observing firsthand how worship and spiritual insight permeated his character. This deep attachment to the Quran and mysticism, Akhtari said, became the foundation for his future mission in Lebanon.
Reviewing Tabatabaei’s early years of religious outreach, Ayatollah Akhtari noted that after years of study in Najaf, a group of Iranian seminarians decided to travel to different regions for missionary work. Preaching was uncommon in Najaf at that time, yet they chose this path out of a desire to serve Islam. In Lebanon, especially in the city of Tyre, Tabatabaei worked at a school affiliated with Imam Musa Sadr, and later served as imam and preacher in the village of Kafrunah. During those years, he was known as a diligent and community-oriented figure.
Akhtari stated that Tabatabaei played an unparalleled role in building institutions and organizing the Shiite community in Lebanon. After the victory of the Islamic Revolution, and with the recognition he had from Imam Khomeini (r.a.) and his office, he undertook major missions in Lebanon. While he did not necessarily hold a formal decree of representation, he administered religious dues on behalf of Imam Khomeini and established wide networks with Shiite believers and benefactors in Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, and Bahrain, laying the groundwork for numerous social and cultural institutions.
Ayatollah Akhtari emphasized that his greatest accomplishment was not simply constructing buildings or running institutions but embedding a spirit of resistance and self-confidence among the people of Lebanon. He forged a lasting bond between Lebanese Hezbollah and the broader population, Shiite, Sunni, and Christian alike. These cultural and social services, he said, are what rooted the Lebanese resistance in the hearts of the people.
He went on to highlight Tabatabaei’s ties with Palestinian groups, noting that during Lebanon’s civil wars, he served as the primary liaison between the Islamic Republic and Palestinian factions. During the siege of the Rashidieh camp, he remained there for seventy days to personally convey the Islamic Republic’s message of support. During that period, he endured shortages of food and water, becoming a symbol of Iran’s sincerity in backing the Palestinian resistance.
With Tabatabai’s efforts, Akhtari noted, the Islamic Republic also established ties with Islamic Jihad and Hamas, and many of the first meetings between these groups and Iran were facilitated by Tabatabaei.
Ayatollah Akhtari concluded by stating that Tabatabaei, driven by love for Islam, the Quran, and the AhlulBayt (a.s.), and by his deep devotion to Imam Khomeini (r.a.) and the Supreme Leader, later entrusted all the institutions he had founded to Lebanese Hezbollah, a gesture that reflected his profound sincerity.
He stressed that The Envoy can serve as a living example for today’s generation, showing that a faithful and sincere individual, even alone, can alter the course of history.
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