AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Ayatollah Arafi said, “Today, we say to Donald Trump, Muhammad ibn Salman and all the enemies of Islamic ideals and the ummah that Ashura and the Sacred Defence are alive. Today, this nation, despite all the problems, has formed a solid barrier against them whenever necessary and the arrogant powers will once against taste defeat.”
In his Friday prayer sermon to a large and fervent crowd of believers at Qom’s Qods Prayer Hall, Ayatollah Alireza Arafi offered his condolences to the people on the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam al-Husayn and said, “We must thank all the dear mourners in Iran and more than one hundred countries around the world who have raised the flag of mourning for Imam al-Husayn and commemorated this great movement.”
The member of the Society of Seminary Teachers of Qom referred to the efforts of the three branches of the Iranian government to solve the problems facing the country, “Our people are facing a wave of increased expenses and difficulties in their lives. It’s expected that these issues will be addressed more seriously. The government must work harder to solve problems.”
He added, “It’s true that we face sanctions but we must pay attention to foreign relations, industries and internal capacities to solve our problems. The people must make efforts in this regard as well.”
Referring to the martyrdom of Hujjat al-Islam Mohammad Toulaei, a seminary student in Mashhad who died after being attacked by unknown assailants last week, Ayatollah Arafi said, “In recent days, we have witnessed the killing of a pure scholar. Some people think that with such measures they can separate the clergy from the people. The clergy will always remain with the people and will never separate from the people and the aspirations of the nation and these issues cannot harm the Islamic Seminary and our youth.”
Commemorating the Sacred Defence [Iran-Iraq War], the member of the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution explained that the Sacred Defence is a great guide for our day and for the future and noted, “The Sacred Defence was a very unequal war but Iran was victorious in this war and taught a lasting lesson to the enemies.”
He added, “During the eight years of war, we encountered a variety of conspiracies such as assassination, influence on the pillars of power and coup d’états, the Ba’athist enemies were equipped with all the modern weapons of the world and even used chemical weapons. Except for nuclear weapons, they used all modern weapons available against Islamic Iran.”
Ayatollah Arafi said that all the countries and powers of the world supported former Iraqi dictator Saddam Husayn in this unequal war and the Gulf states supported Saddam by giving him several billion dollars but our hands were empty.
The dean of al-Mustafa International University said, “We were committed to the principles of humanity in the war but our enemies didn’t observe any principles of humanity. With empty hands and with the presence of well-equipped powers and the support of powers of the day, the [enemies] couldn’t achieve their sinister goals. The glory of the faith and the soul of Ashura of the nation resolved all the conspiracies and pushed the powers aside and witnessed a new model of resistance.”
His Eminence noted that today, the model that the Iranian nation has created has been spread all over the world and added, “This model emphasizes that even with empty hands, we must persevere on the path of God and not retreat against the enemies. This model has been demonstrated in Palestine, Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, Syria and other nations.”
Ayatollah Arafi referred to the exportation of the Islamic Revolution in the form of the production of thought and said, “The supply of new models for resistance against the enemies of the people and God were the important issues that we witnessed in the war and the waves of the Sacred Defence were propagated in the world. In accepting [United Nations Security Council] Resolution 598, Imam Khomeyni declared, ‘We weren’t defeated in the Sacred Defence and in the war of thought, we exported the Islamic Revolution to the entire world.’”
He stated, “Today, we say to Donald Trump, Muhammad ibn Salman and all the enemies of Islamic ideals and the ummah that Ashura and the Sacred Defence are alive. Today, this nation, despite all the problems, has formed a solid barrier against them whenever necessary and the arrogant powers will once against taste defeat. The voice of Ashura in Iran and the region is alive and will continue.”
Referring to passing of more than 1000 days since Hujjat al-Islam Ibrahim Zakzaky, the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, was detained by the Nigerian government, His Eminence stated, “As always, we ask the Nigerian government to pay attention to a large part of its people according to the laws and restore this educated scholar to the people.”
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22 September 2018 - 12:57
News ID: 910063
Ayatollah Arafi said, “Today, we say to Donald Trump, Muhammad ibn Salman and all the enemies of Islamic ideals and the ummah that Ashura and the Sacred Defence are alive. Today, this nation, despite all the problems, has formed a solid barrier against them whenever necessary and the arrogant powers will once against taste defeat.”
