Khamenei Advisor: Syria 'Golden Link in the Chain of Resistance'

 

Khamenei Advisor: Syria 'Golden Link in the Chain of Resistance'

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Arash Karami           

http://iranpulse.al-monitor.com/index.php/2013/04/1713/khamenei-advisor-syria-golden-link-in-the-chain-of-resistance/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=khamenei-advisor-syria-golden-link-in-the-chain-of-resistan

ce

 

 

At an "Islamic Awakening" conference in Mashhad Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's top

foreign-policy adviser said that "today, the arrogant powers have targeted

Syria, which in reality is the golden link in the chain of resistance." Iran

believes itself to be in an "Axis of Resistance" with Syria and Hezbollah

against Israeli and American hegemony in the region. They also refer to the

"Arab Spring" uprisings as "Islamic Awakenings."

 

Ali Akbar Velayati, who is also the secretary-general of the World Assembly

of the Islamic Awakening, added that the "[arrogant powers] had the goal

from the beginning, under the name of "Arab Spring" to overthrow the

[Syrian] government, but with the support of Israel and Saudi Arabia, in

actuality something else took place."

 

Velayati continued that when "the arrogant powers came face to face with the

Syrian army and the people's army under the title of the resistance, they

could not do anything and [instead] with explosions and blind murder created

a state of unrest." Iran has been one of the Syrian government's top

supporters in a civil war which has left more than 70,000 people dead.

 

In response to the developing Iran-Egypt relations, Velayati said that "we

are friends with the Muslim Brotherhood and we help them, and between all of

the Islamic groups, from the vantage point of beliefs, the Muslim

Brotherhood is the closest to us." To some of the more harsh Egyptian Sunni

sectarian language against Iranians, who are predominantly Shia, Velayati

said "the Wahhabis are against the Muslim Brotherhood as much as they are

against the Islamic Republic of Iran and Shi'i."

 

In regard to the Sunni-Shia relations, Velayati said that "the Islamic

Republic of Iran also helps Sunni fighters." Many analysts believe that the

Middle East is currently becoming involved in a larger sectarian war which

has pitted Iran, Iraq, Syria and Hezbollah on one side and Syrian Sunni

rebels, Arab Persian Gulf countries and Turkey on the other.

 

Velayati stressed that "today, one of the reasons the West is hostile to the

Islamic Republic of Iran is because we support the Palestinians, who are

majority Sunni." He added that "the Americans have sent us messages to

accept the Palestinian peace plan, and our problems with you will be

solved."

 

Velayati also mentioned the support Iran gave to Bosnian Muslims in the

early 1990s as further proof that Iran does not operate along sectarian

lines. He said that "the majority of Bosnian Muslims are Sunni, but the

Islamic Republic provided them with a lot of defense equipment."

 

Velayati also addressed Iran's role within the "Islamic World" in an

interview with Fars News at the "Islamic Awakening" conference. He said that

the "Islamic world has the capacity to be one pole within a multi-polar

world; without a doubt, no other country than Iran can advance, guide and

plan the solidarity of the Islamic of the world, and we see that all of the

Muslims of the world have their hopes in Iran."

 

As far as speculation about his participation in the June presidential

elections, Velayati said that "anyone who thinks that they can help and

doesn't [participate] will be held responsible."

 

==========================================

(F)AIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this

message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to

these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed

within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with

"Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976.

The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The

Copyright Act of 1976. "Fair Use" legally eliminates the need to obtain

permission or pay royalties for the use of previously copyrighted materials

if the purposes of display include "criticism, comment, news reporting,

teaching, scholarship, and research." Section 107 establishes four criteria

for determining whether the use of a work in any particular case qualifies

as a "fair use". A work used does not necessarily have to satisfy all four

criteria to qualify as an instance of "fair use". Rather, "fair use" is

determined by the overall extent to which the cited work does or does not

substantially satisfy the criteria in their totality. If you wish to use

copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you

must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to:

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

 

THIS DOCUMENT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. COPYING AND DISSEMINATION IS

PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNERS.