Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has hailed the massive turnout in nationwide rallies to mark the 39th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution as a "miracle."
"The 22nd of the month of Bahman [on the Persian calendar] was actually different this year," Ayatollah Khamenei said referring to the February 11 rallies in different cities, where people renewed their allegiance to the Islamic establishment and Imam Khomeini, the late founder of the Islamic Republic.
"After 39 years, this massive popular movement looks like a miracle. It does not exist anywhere in the world that after four decades, people themselves come to the scene, fill the streets, chant slogans, show their presence and defend their revolution," he stated.
Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks on Sunday in a meeting with thousands of people from the northwestern province of East Azarbaijan, in commemoration of the February 18, 1978 uprising in the provincial capital, Tabriz. The unrest took place 40 days after the January 9, 1978 uprising in the holy city of Qom against despotic monarchical rulers of the time.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the Leader noted that people have complaints about some issues, but when it comes to the revolution and the establishment, they come to the scene.
Ayatollah Khamenei said the Iranian nation has achieved "revolutionary insight and political perfection" so that despite their grievances about some issues, they are committed to the essence of the establishment and revolution.
The Leader said the revolution has brought about many benefits for Iran, the most important of which is the transformation of the tyrannical system into a democratic system inspired by the Islamic teachings and the Holy Qur'an.