Ayatollah Khamenei met a group of judiciary personnel and staff in Tehran Tuesday on the anniversary of a terrorist bombing which killed 74 leading officials, including then chief justice Ayatollah Mohammad Beheshti in 1981.
The Leader said the same divine attention which helped the Iranian nation overcome the trial, prevails today.
“The reason behind the stunning triumph and victory of the Iranian nation and the Islamic Republic in the face of the great and bitter events of 1981 was their resistance, effort and fearlessness from the enemies,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
“This divine tradition can be repeated in all times and we should know that God in [the current Persian year of] 1401 is the same God” in 1981, he added.
A powerful bomb went off at the headquarters of the Islamic Republican Party (IRP) in Tehran on June 28, 1981, while a meeting of party leaders was in progress. Beside Ayatollah Beheshti, four cabinet ministers, 27 members of parliament and several other government officials lost their lives in the bombing carried out by MKO terrorists.
“In the face of all these events, at the helm stood Imam [Khomeini], towering like Mount Damavand. The officials also graciously stood, as did the revolutionary people and youth," Ayatollah Khamenei said.
“And they were able to change the situation of the country 180 degrees, so that successive failures turned into successive victories. The [MKO] hypocrites were cleared from the streets, the army and the [Islamic Revolution Guards] Corps became stronger and the country returned to normal.”
The Leader touched on other junctures in the life of the Islamic Revolution when the country faced shortcomings and weaknesses in some areas.
“Both in 1981 and after that in the last four decades, the enemy has been overwhelmed with joy and hope at times, thinking that the revolution and the system were on the verge of collapse, but the hope has turned into despair.
“Their problem is that they do not understand the secret of this despair. The enemy cannot understand that in this world, apart from political calculations, there are other calculations, namely as the divine traditions,” he said.
Ayatollah Khamenei referred to examples of divine traditions and laws in the Qur'an regarding the result of helping God’s religion or the result of ingratitude toward God’s blessings.
“The Holy Qur'an is full of themes related to the divine traditions, and their summation is that if societies stand against the enemies and perform their duties by relying on God, the result is victory and progress, but if they indulge in division, comfort and weakness, the result will be failure."
In 1981, the Leader said, "the Iranian nation was able to disappoint the enemy by being in the orbit of one of the divine traditions, namely jihad and resistance. Today, the same rule and law is in force… and we must try to make ourselves a sign of the divine traditions in order to achieve progress and victory".
Ayatollah Khamenei described the judiciary an important and influential pillar in the country, calling on judiciary officials to make fighting corruption a top priority.