“In the face of such joint aggression, we cannot constantly remain in a defensive position and must mount an intensive and vigorous campaign in various fields, including media, security and economics in response,” the Leader told a group of Iranian Air Force commanders and personnel in Tehran on Tuesday, calling on scholars and state officials to do their utmost in this regard.
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that Iran continues to make dramatic progress despite various plots hatched by the enemies, predicting a bright future for the Iranian nation.
Every year on February 8, Iranian Air force commanders and personnel meet the Leader to mark the historic declaration of allegiance of Iranian Air Force officers with the late founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini back on February 8, 1979.
The meeting is viewed as a turning point leading to the victory of the Islamic Revolution three days later, sealing the fate of the US-backed Pahlavi regime in Iran.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei observes a group of Iranian Air Force commanders and personnel standing guard in Tehran, Iran, on February 8, 2022. (Photo by Leader.ir)
The Leader highlighted that the United States is currently receiving blows from where it never predicted, noting that the previous and incumbent US presidents have joined hands to further disgrace Washington.
Ayatollah Khamenei also dismissed Western claims of advocating freedom of expression, and lambasted media dictatorship as one of the different forms of Western dictatorship.
He cited Instagram and other US-based social media platforms which censor the name and pictures of Iran’s top anti-terror commander and icon, General Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated in a US drone attack in Iraq two years ago.
A group of Iranian Air Force personnel listen to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, on February 8, 2022. (Photo by Leader.ir)
Under former US President Donald Trump’s order, the US military conducted an air operation on January 3, 2020, targeting General Soleimani near Baghdad International Airport after his arrival. The attack also killed his Iraqi trenchmate Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, Deputy Commander of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), and their companions.
Both commanders were highly popular because of the key role they played in eliminating the US-sponsored Daesh terrorist group in the region, particularly in Iraq and Syria.