Hegira (migration) is a history making and important subject in Islam’s history. The migration of holy prophet Mohammad (PBUH) from Mecca to Medina counts as a critical point in the process of growth and expansion of Islam and it’s produced lots of effects and blessings for Islam and Muslims.
Finally, Hegira of Imam from Iraq to France also can be evaluated on similar grounds. Imam spent a total of about 15 years in exile in Turkey and Iraq.
In late 1978, Imam preferred to exit Iraq because Bathis regime there had put restrictions on Imam and tried to cease all his political activities.
So his holiness departed from Iraq to France at the sensitive juncture of history. At first he decided to go to Kuwait but due to unwillingness by the then Kawiti government for receiving him, surprisingly the idea of hegira to Paris occurred to Imam’s mind, which caused him to draw a great attention of the world by his presence at the heart of Europe, and at a centre of most important universal events. His eminence speaks about this matter as follow:
“Our own intention also was to go Kuwait and then to Syria…we had any plan about going to Paris. Perhaps there were matters that our intention had no any role in, and whatever it was – actually everything and right from the beginning – was God’s will…it was just God’s intention that was supposed to take place.
No doubt that Imam’s historical Hegira to Paris speeded up victory of the revolution by months even years.
Neauphel-le Chateau a village in Paris outskirt, as Imam’s residence, changed into one of the most important centers of news making in the world and everyday media correspondents from all around the world would be there waiting for a breaking news or an event to report and they delivered Imam’s words to the world and Iranian nation moment by moment.
God’s miracle had already happened, and while Imam’s words and instructions from Iraq would leak out so slow and with kinds of hampering received by revolutionary numbers in Iran but here everything as well as his holiness voice of freedom seeking and invocation against suppressors would be heard fast and clear and the men of revolution got fed with news and instructions in the most appropriate way, while Shah and his intelligence men could do nothing to stop it.
Neauphel-le Chateau had become the most important centre of news and Imam attended daily meetings and interviews which were quickly broadcast from T.V, Radio and Papers of the time.
Thus in this way the plots and machinations of Shah regime for putting pressure on Imam and restricting him by God’s help and favor turned back right towards itself and in the course of four months Imam stayed there every preparation to pave his holiness’s way back to home country and triumph of the revolution was fulfilled.