Leader, Senior Officials Pay Tribute to Imam Khomeini

Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and a number of high-ranking officials visited the mausoleum of Imam Khomeini on Wednesday to pay tribute to the late founder of the Islamic Republic ahead of the anniversary of the 1979 revolution.

President Hassan Rouhani, his Cabinet members, and Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani were among the officials who renewed their allegiance to the late Imam, IRNA reported.

Iran marks the revolution’s anniversary from February 1 to 11 known as the Ten-Day Dawn, starting on the day when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned to Tehran from Paris after 15 years of exile.

The revolution toppled the US-backed Shah, ending 2,500 years of monarchical rule in the country and establishing a new political system based on Islamic values and democracy. The Leader and other officials also paid homage to the martyrs laid to rest in Behesht-e Zahra Cemetery in southern Tehran, including the martyrs of the 7th of Tir bombing.

On that day, which coincided with June 28, 1981, a powerful bomb exploded at the headquarters of the Islamic Republic Party in Tehran while the members were in a meeting, killing 72 officials, including Chief Justice Ayatollah Mohammad Beheshti, four Cabinet ministers, 27 members of parliament, and several government officials.

  Popular Demands

Rouhani delivered a speech at the mausoleum and called on the country’s officials to listen carefully to popular demands, his official website reported.

Aside from the right to vote, people have the right to protest and criticize the performance of the government, he said adding, “No one can prevent the great Iranian nation from expressing their opinion, criticism, and even protest.”

Rouhani was referring to the recent demonstrations across the country, which began over economic grievances, particularly a surge in prices of basic food supplies, but soon took on a political dimension.

“The previous regime, which thought they would rule indefinitely and its monarchial rule would never end, lost everything because it did not listen to the voice of criticism and people’s advice,” he noted.

It also turned a blind eye to people’s protests, the president said.  He described the Islamic and democratic model of governance as Imam Khomeini’s main legacy, saying the “arrogant powers” seeking to determine Iran’s future should be aware that it will always stand by its values and principles.

The term “arrogant powers” is used in Iran to refer to the United States and its western allies. Tehran and Washington cut diplomatic ties shortly after the 1979 revolution.