RNA - “Today, we are facing economic problems and international pressures…, but Iran is the one who stands against Takfiris (extremists),” Rezaei, a major general of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), said in an address to a large gathering of worshipers here in Tehran on Friday.
Today, the conditions have changed in a way that the influence of the 1979 Islamic Revolution has passed beyond the Iranian borders, he said, adding that the country is playing a pivotal role in the region.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Rezaei offered his deepest condolences over the demise of the former Iranian president Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, and said today, Iran has lost one of “the pillars” of the Islamic Revolution.
He added that since the beginning of the popular uprising led by Imam Khomeini in Iran, the late Ayatollah Rafsanjani had sided with him and continued the path until his death.
On Tuesday, a huge crowd of Iranians attended the funeral of Ayatollah Rafsanjani held at the University of Tehran.
The senior cleric died at the age of 82 on Sunday. Following his death, the cabinet declared three days of national mourning and announced Tuesday as a public holiday.
Five days of mourning are observed in the southern province of Kerman, where Ayatollah Rafsanjani’s hometown of Rafsanjan is located.
Ayatollah Rafsanjani was an influential figure in a campaign led by Imam Khomeini that resulted in the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979. The deceased became president for two terms and was the chairman of the Expediency Council for some 20 years.
847/940