Ayatollah Khamenei was addressing members and commanders of Iran’s volunteer Basij force in Tehran on Wednesday on the occasion of the Basij Week. The week marks the anniversary of the Basij force’s creation nearly a year after the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution under the direction of the late founder of the Islamic Republic, Imam Khomeini.
The Leader noted that the enemies had hatched a “profound, extensive, and very dangerous” plot against the country, and were seeking to enact the conspiracy through acts of destruction, homicide, and mischief.
“The issue of gasoline was the opportunity they had in mind, and [therefore] brought their legion into the scene,” Ayatollah Khamenei said. “However, the Iranian nation destroyed the enemy’s act in a glorious display [of national presence].”
Using a recent hike in the price of gasoline as a pretext, foreign-backed riotous elements began staging acts of violence across the country, setting fire to, looting, and vandalizing public facilities, including banks, gas stations, and department stores.
Shortly after the price hike was announced, through, Ayatollah Khamenei warned that the protests against the decision could be used by agitators, who were being provoked and equipped by the country’s enemies. The note of caution prompted sweeping pro-government rallies across the country.
Most recently, Tehran’s iconic Enqelab (Revolution) Square hosted a huge gathering in support of the country’s Islamic establishment and condemnation of the riots.
Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), Iran’s elite defense force, has rounded up over 100 of the protest ringleaders. Last Friday, Judiciary Spokesman Gholam-Hossein Esmaili said a number of those detained were tied to the anti-Iran and US-backed terrorist Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO), royalists as well as separatists, who were nabbed in the country’s border provinces.
Ayatollah Khamenei said the show of national will in the face of the adversarial drive was to be valued higher than the measures taken by Basij, the IRGC, and the Law Enforcement Force to contain the violence.
The Leader described the great national movement, which began in the northwestern cities of Zanjan and Tabriz, and even reached some rural areas before culminating in Tehran, as “a slap” dealt to the global arrogance and Zionism, forcing them to retreat.
The nation’s main enemies comprehend the meaning and message conveyed by the national drive, the Leader stated. “This past week truly witnessed the height of the Iranian nation’s glory and magnificence. We are grateful towards God and are thankful towards the dear people, too,” Ayatollah Khamenei noted.
The Leader said the hegemonic system and the US have expended all in their power since the Islamic Revolution to confront Iran’s Islamic establishment.
The establishment, however, has grown in power and strength every day and come to flaunt these qualities before the enemy’s eyes, Ayatollah Khamenei added.
The Leader warned that expansive and magnificent institutions such as Basij in Iran and its kindred organizations in some other countries were more likely to be targeted by the global hegemony's adversarial plots.
“Victory is guaranteed for the Iranian people, Basij, and the country’s revolutionary movement,” the Leader stated, citing the divine pledge of assistance to those following the divine path.
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