As Iran prepared to mark Revolution Day on February 11, 2011, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei delivered the February 4 Friday sermon, which was devoted to the popular uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt. In addition, he gave a 15-minute speech in Arabic addressed to the peoples of the Arab countries; the speech was broadcast by Iranian state television on a split screen – on one side, Khamenei speaking, and on the other a live broadcast from Cairo's Al-Tahrir square, where demonstrators were shouting slogans against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
In the speech, Khamenei called the unrest in Egypt and Tunisia "a sign of the awakening of Islam, inspired by the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran." He said that the reason for the uprising was not the economic situation but the sense of humiliation suffered by the Egyptian people. He attacked Mubarak for "collaborating with the Zionists" and hinted that the protests could spread from Egypt to other countries, calling the events in Egypt an "earthquake" with far-reaching ramifications for the Middle East.
He added that if the Egyptian people continued, it would defeat the American policy in the region.
Below is the transcript of Khamenei's speech (to view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memri.org/legacy/clip/2792); following that is a summary of his sermon.
Khamenei Calls Upon Egyptian Army to Join Masses in Ousting Mubarak
These Events "Can Wipe From [the] Faces [of the Arab and Islamic Peoples] the Dust of Decades of Oppression and Humiliation Inflicted Upon These Noble Peoples By the West and America"
"In the Islamic world today, a great and crucial event is developing, an event that could tip the balance of arrogance in this region in the favor of Islam and the peoples. This event can restore honor and glory to the Arab and Islamic peoples, and can wipe from their faces the dust of decades of oppression and humiliation inflicted upon these noble peoples by the West and America.
"This miraculous event was started by the Tunisian people, and has reached its peak through the efforts of the great and wise Egyptian people. The Tunisian people have managed to expel the treacherous pro-American ruler, who publicly declared his enmity to Islam.
"But it would be a mistake to assume that this is the required outcome. A collaborating regime is not toppled when its visible leaders leave the country. If these leaders are replaced by others from behind the scenes, then nothing has changed. This is a trap set for the people.
"During the great Islamic Revolution in Iran, they tried time and again to make our people fall into such a trap. But the awareness of the people and of its great divine leader allowed them to thwart the enemies' scheme and to continue along the path to the end."
"The Greatest Crime Perpetrated By the Egyptian Regime Was to Bring This People Down From Its Lofty Standing to the Level of a Perishing Tool at the Hand of America"
"The greatest crime perpetrated by the Egyptian regime was to bring this people down from its lofty standing to the level of a perishing tool at the hand of America, in its political game in this region. The explosion that we are witnessing today among the Egyptian people is the appropriate response to that great treason, perpetrated by that collaborating dictator against his people.
"The great chasm between the Egyptian state and people has been revealed, a chasm formed following the Treaty of Shame of Camp David. The Egyptian people sacrificed their lives to help the Palestinians in 1967 and 1973, only to see, with their very eyes, their leaders hastening down the path of collaboration with and obedience to the U.S., to the point of turning Egypt into a loyal ally of the plundering Zionist enemy."
"America's Control Over the Rulers of Egypt Has... Transform[ed] the Egyptian Regime... Into the No. 1 Defender of the Aggressive Zionist... [While] Syria... Has Maintained Its Independent Positions"
"America's control over the rulers of Egypt has rendered futile all the past efforts of this people in support of Palestine, transforming the Egyptian regime into a sworn enemy of Palestine, and into the number one defender of the aggressive Zionist. On the other hand, Syria, Egypt's partner in the wars of 1967 and 1973, has maintained its independent positions, despite the tremendous American pressure. History will never forget Hosni Mubarak took a powerful stance alongside Israel and America, during Israel's war on Gaza."
"The Awakening of the Muslim Egyptian People is an Islamic Liberation Movement"
"The awakening of the Muslim Egyptian people is an Islamic liberation movement. On behalf of the Iranian people and the revolutionary Iranian government, I salute the Egyptian and Tunisian peoples, asking Allah to grant them a complete victory. Your awakening makes me feel proud.
"My Egyptian and Tunisian brothers and sisters, the awakening of the peoples in undoubtedly connected to their unique geographical, historical, political and cultural circumstances. We cannot expect what happened in the great Islamic Revolution of Iran over 30 years ago to repeat itself in Egypt, Tunisia, or any other country. However, there are common features as well. The experience of any people may be beneficial to other nations.
"We believe that the following experience could be beneficial to the current circumstances: First, the awakening of the peoples is, in fact, a war between two wills – the will of the people and the will of its enemies. Second, the enemy tries to sow despair about achieving your goals. Third, the enemy sends his well-equipped security forces against you in order to spread terror and chaos among the people. Do not fear them. You are stronger than those mercenaries.
"Fourth, the [most] important weapon of the peoples when confronting the forces of tyranny and the collaborating rulers is unity and harmony. The enemy strives to sow dissent among you through various means of deception, including by creating strife brandishing deviant slogans, and offering unreliable faces as an alternative to the treacherous president. Preserve your cohesion around the axis of Islam and of saving the country from the evil of the enemy's collaborators."
"Do Not Trust the Role Played By the West and America... Only Days Ago, They Were Supporting the Corrupt Regime, and Today... They Began to Harp the Tune of Defending the Rights of the Peoples"
"Fifth, do not trust the role played by the West and America, or the political maneuvers they use towards your awakening. Only days ago, they were supporting the corrupt regime, and today, having despaired of maintaining this regime, they began to harp the tune of defending the rights of the peoples. By doing so, they are trying to replace one collaborator with another.
"Sixth, the circumstances require that the religious scholars, and Al-Azhar with its well-known history of struggle, play a much more significant role. When the people embark on its revolution from the mosques and the Friday sermons, and raise the slogan of 'Allah Akbar,' the Islamic scholars are expected to play a more prominent role. This expectation is in place.
"Seventh, the Egyptian army, which bears on its chest decorations from at least two wars with the Zionist enemy, is facing a great historic test today. The enemy wants to spur this army to oppress the masses. If this happens, God forbid, it would constitute an unbridgeable breach in the ranks of this proud army. The Zionist enemy, not the Egyptian people, should tremble in fear of the Egyptian army. There is no doubt that the members of the Egyptian army, which is part of the Egyptian people, will join the masses, Allah willing. Then this sweet experience will repeat itself in Egypt."
"Eighth and last, America, which supported the collaborating rulers for 30 years, against the will of the Egyptian people, is not in a position to mediate or to advise in the case of Egypt. View any American move or advice with a doubt and pessimism, and do not trust it."
Khamenei in Friday Sermon: Voice of Iranian Nation Echoing In Muslim World
In his sermon at Tehran University today, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said that the voice of the Iranian nation is echoing in the countries of the Muslim world, and pointed to the Tunisia revolution and Egypt uprising. He said that said the most important motivation for the uprisings is the yearning for the sacred religion of Islam and independence.
He said, "Today, developments in North Africa, [including] Egypt, Tunisia and some other countries, have a special meaning for the Iranian nation."
Adding, "This is what was always referred to as the Islamic awakening created by the victory of the great revolution of the Iranian nation," he said that the Americans and Israelis have become helpless in the face of the freedom-seeking Egyptians, and that irreparable defeat awaits the U.S. and Israel in Tunisia and Egypt.
Referring to the Egyptian's struggle for "dignity and honor," he noted that the greatest crime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was to make Egypt a tool in the hands of the U.S. He added that the Egyptian army would join the masses and line up against the enemy.
He also noted that the Islamic Revolution in Iran had disrupted the plots by Western countries to establish weak and vulnerable regimes in the Middle East.[1]
[1] Press TV, IRIB (Iran), February 4, 2011
