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Thu, Nov 25, 2010 | By Crethi Plethi

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei Hails the Unique and Undeniable Role of Basij

The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported Thursday that Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei praised the unique and undeniable role of Basij (Volunteer Forces). He made his remarks in an address to a large gathering of 110,000 members of Basij called ‘Devotees of Velayat (Leadership)’ who had come to visit the Supreme Leader.

Ayatollah Khamenei said that Basij has presently become a ‘clear, great and shining truth’ of the Islamic society of Iran ‘with no similar version’ and that Iran’s Basiji forces were unique compared to other large forces in other countries as their large numbers could never bring together their hearts, while what has brought together Iran’s Basiji forces, is the solidarity of their hearts.

‘Basij is a gathering of hearts, a mobilization of faiths, souls and emotions,’ said the Supreme Leader, stressing what was useful to go through the dark days ‘is not a strong body but a strong heart.’ ‘You can smash mountains and go through difficult paths with strong hearts and faiths,’ said the Supreme Leader. [IRNA; Thu, nov 25, 2010]

The Basij is a paramilitary volunteer militia founded by the order of the Ayatollah Khomeini in November 1979 after the Islamic Revolution in Iran. The Basij are subordinate to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. They are the most loyal paramilitairy force of Ahmadinejad and the Ayatollah’s.

During the Iran-Iraq War the Basij went wave after wave enthusiastically, and by the thousands, to their own destruction through minefields towards Iraqi frontline.

Since their founding by Ayatollah Khomeiny, they were also used in suppressing democratic movements in Iran and opponents of the Ayatollah regime. The Basij helped Ahmadinejad and the security forces to crush the mass protests against the frauduleus elections in Iran summer 2009, which grew to mass demonstrations for more freedom.

Photo Gallery (Source: www.irna.ir)