Officialdom Obliged to Address Economic Problems

Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said popular demands expressed in recent protests should not go unnoticed despite evidence of intervention by hostile governments to incite anti-government sentiment among the demonstrators.

"That we say the enemy has had a hand in recent developments is not an analysis. It is based on [reliable] intelligence and news. But this should not cause us to ignore our weaknesses and problems," Ayatollah Khamenei was quoted as saying by his official website.

He was addressing a meeting with thousands of people from the holy city of Qom in Tehran on Tuesday.

"Our enemies are focusing on our problems and weaknesses just as flies gather around wounds. So we should heal our wounds and prevent the formation of further wounds because when there is no domestic problem, it would render [anti-Iran] propaganda and hype by outsiders ineffective and the Americans would not be able to do a damn thing," the Leader said.

He was referring to demonstrations that erupted on December 28 in the northeastern city of Mashhad, sparked by the government's poor handling of the country's economic problems.

The protests grew violent as they expanded to dozens of other Iranian cities, with sporadic clashes between the demonstrators and riot police that state media said claimed 21 lives.

Pro-government rallies staged across the country last week marked the end of the protests.

Hundreds of rioters were arrested but most of them were later released on bail.

The Leader called on officials to intensify efforts to address economic woes especially those suffered by the disadvantaged Iranians.

"Some strata of the society, particularly the weak class, are under pressure," he said, adding that "all officials are duty-bound to defend the people's rights and try to solve their problems."

Ayatollah Khamenei said he has been provided with intelligence showing the recent unrest has been part of a subversive trilateral plot, co-schemed by the US and Israel, sponsored by Saudi Arabia and enforced by the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization terrorist group.

"The Americans and Zionists who hatched the plot formed one side of the triangle… Another side was one of the wealthiest Persian Gulf states that provided the funding and the third side were the mercenaries affiliated with [MKO], who were in preparation for months."