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In the Name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful

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الحمدلله ربّ العالمين و الصّلاة و السّلام علي سيّدنا محمّد و آله الطّاهرين

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First of all, you are very welcome the dear families of our innocent martyrs in Mina and the Masjid al-Haram of last year.

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Each year, before the Hajj season, I had a public meeting like this

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with the officials in charge of the Hajj, some directors [of Hajj delegations] and some esteemed Hajj pilgrims.

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Those meetings were happy and sweet meetings.

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A group of our people, the devout faithful, old and young, from all corners of the country

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set off for the Hajj and one would feel proud, [and] feel happy

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that these [pilgrims] join the gathering of Muslims from other countries and fulfill the obligation of the Hajj.

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This year, however, our meeting, unfortunately, is not a happy meeting,

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[but] is a meeting [to commemorate] the sorrow and tragedy and remember the painful incident, which took place in Mina last year.

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The issue of our loved ones losing their lives and being martyred in Mina is a very important issue.

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[The fact] that I said this [incident] must not be forgotten is not merely because we have lost loved ones, [but] the incident is important [in itself];

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this incident has various aspects; this incident is enlightening in political terms, in social terms, [and] in moral and religious terms.

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Well, for us, the Iranian people, and certainly for the survivors of these martyrs in other countries, [this] incident is a mournful incident;

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this [sorrow] is natural and inevitable. Our hearts are full of sorrow, [and] full of grief.

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The passage of time has not reduced the importance of this incident and the sorrow of this incident in our hearts and our minds.

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We are sad about this incident, [because] our loved ones in Mina and also at the Masjid al-Haram passed away while doing acts of worship,

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passed away with thirsty lips, [and] spent the last hours of their life under the scorching and searing sun;

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all these [facts] are painful; these are those things which wrench our hearts,

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[and] we cannot forget these [painful developments]. However, [various] dimensions of this issue are go far beyond these.

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One viewpoint [about this incident] is the viewpoint of you, the families and survivors [of Hajj martyrs].

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I tell you that the loss of your loved ones, both those who have lost their fathers or mothers,

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and those who have lost their children in this incident, and those who have lost their spouses,

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and those who have lost their brothers and sisters is certainly a grave incident and very difficult incident for you.

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When I compare [this tragedy with other issues], I understand the grandness and heaviness of your sorrow,

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[and] understand how heavily it is weighing on your hearts. They have sent [their] Hajji [Hajj pilgrim] to Mecca

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with hope, with happiness, [and] while content about having succeeded to do this,

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[and] they are waiting [for their Hajji] to get back, [and when he returns] his return is accompanied with delight, and is accompanied with happiness,

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[but] then they are informed that his [dead] body will return. This is a very difficult thing [to experience], [and] is very hard [to accept].

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It is [not only] very difficult for you, but this incident is [also very] difficult for the entire nation; that is, all those who really understand and [have a good] grasp [of] this incident.

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However, the thing, which can alleviate [the pain in] your hearts

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is that although these dear ones are lost and their absence is very difficult for you,

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they are [now], God willing, submerged in the divine bounty.

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It was a good death; the quality of death and one’s passing away determines one’s fate.

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All of us will leave [this world], [and] it has nothing to do with being old and young, [or being] man and woman, everybody passes away;

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however, some people pass away in a way that if one looks at it with an eye that is observant of truth,

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would be glad and happy with that way of passing away; like martyrs, and all martyrs are like this.

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Your loved ones passed away while doing worship and mentioning God, passed away in Ihram garment,

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[and] passed away with their hearts oriented toward the Almighty God and while doing their [religious] duty.

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These are all assets and means of [obtaining] the divine forgiveness and the divine mercy,

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and for the elevation of [one’s] rank before God. In addition to [all] these, they underwent hardship,

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[because] some of them were alive for perhaps many hours, [and] were under pressure,

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both under the [searing] sun and inside those warm and hot containers, [and] with scorched lips;

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these are those things, which attract the divine mercy. Yes, you are mourning, [and] are bereft,

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[because] you have lost your children, spouses, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters;

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this is difficult, but remember in what state they currently are. We are afflicted here,

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[and we] are wading and making our way forward through all [kinds of] mundane afflictions,

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[and] in a world polluted with all kinds and types of misguiding and corrupting and demeaning elements and factors for humans;

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it [is] us, who are afflicted [with all kinds of problems] here,

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[and] we must shed more tears on ourselves and be sad [about our situation]

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rather than [having regret for] those who have taken refuge under the divine mercy and, God willing, are passing time in the divine bounty and under the divine Providence.

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This is a consolation for you. Yes, your young one went or your father and mother went or your dear spouse went [on Hajj pilgrimage]. This is difficult,

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but they are now [living] in the divine bounty. We will pass away, as well, [and] may God have mercy on us;

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with all these afflictions [and] with all these problems. The Almighty God

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saved them from the world of pollution to [take them to] the best place and into the best state; [and this happened when they were] doing acts of worship.

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Some people die when they are committing sin, some people die while going on with their ordinary, routine life,

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some others die while being unthankful [of God’s bounties]; these forms of dying are those deaths, which are really [cause of] tragedy and mourning for their families.

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However, some people die with the sacred words on their lips, [and] while they are focused on [mentioning] God.

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This [kind of death] is a source of consolation and source of comfort for the family of the deceased and the lost person alike. This is one [different] dimension of this issue.

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Another dimension of [this] issue is the issue of the Islamic Ummah.

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The Islamic Ummah across its wide expanse became mournful over this incident.

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Well, our martyrs, [both] the martyrs of Mina [incident] and the martyrs of [the crane collapse at] the Masjid al-Haram were in toto about 470, or for example, 480 [martyrs],

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but what statistics show is that the sum total of martyrs from different countries stood at about 7,000!

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This is a very high figure.

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Why in other countries, governments, families, [and] nations showed no reaction to this incident?

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What great scourge is this, which has afflicted the Islamic Ummah? This is the big tragedy.

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Governments are bugged with political formality,

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[and] statesmen in various countries are possibly a slave to money and power and political relations and the likes of these,

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[but] why their scholars have remained silent? Why their clerics did not say anything?

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Why their political activists did not talk [about this incident]?

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Why their intellectuals did not write any articles [on this issue], did not protest, [and] did not speak out?

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Of course, in other countries, their martyrs were not as numerous as ours, but one hundred people, [or] two hundred

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people from countries like Egypt, like Mali, like Nigeria, and other countries were martyred [in Mina incident].

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Well, now, heads of state are stalled by political equations and power equations, [and this is why] they don’t [protest to Saudi Arabia], [therefore,] one does not expect much from them

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considering this [current] state in which governments, unfortunately, are, [and] one cannot expect much from them;

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however, why prominent figures in the society [of those countries] do not say anything, [and] why they have remained silent?

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For the Islamic world, this is the scourge, [and] this is the [main] tragedy,

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[I mean,] insensitivity to such a great incident

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at the House of God, which in the neighborhood of the Divine House, people, with complete insolence and shamelessness,

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[would be allowed to] get away with a grave [and] disgraceful incident without offering even an apology to the Islamic world.

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The Saudi rulers did not [even] apologize to the Islamic world in words! How shameless are these [Saudi rulers], [and] how brazen [they are]!

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Isn’t this oversight that they did, the mismanagement that they showed, [and] the incompetence, which they demonstrated [serious enough?]

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Now some people say it was intentional, [but] even if this is not the case, this mere mismanagement and incompetence is a crime

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for a government and political establishment; why you could not manage [the Hajj properly]?

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Why you could not maintain the security of this population, who are guests of the Merciful God, are guests of God

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and from whom you earn so much revenue and make a title for yourselves?

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What guarantee is there that similar incidents would not take place at similar times?

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This is a big question. The Islamic world must hold them accountable, [and] ask them questions; why they are not asking questions?

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These are tragedies of the Islamic world. [The fact] that the Islamic Republic stands alone in the face of all this ignorance,

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all this misguidance, all this materialism, [and] all this oversight and probably lack of [religious] zeal of others

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and openly and clearly gives voice to its Quranic positions, its Islamic positions, [and] its rightful positions,

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this is the same index of which you, the Iranian nation, must be and are proud.

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And it is you, the Iranian nation, who has given birth to this power, [and] to this valor,

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which can [stand] in the face of a dark [and] ignorant world [and] say what is right and tell the truth.

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The reality is that these people who showed this incompetence, [and] imposed this insecurity on Hajj pilgrims of the Islamic world

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– who come together there once a year – these [people] are, fairly speaking, not qualified to run the Two Holy Mosques,

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[and] are not qualified to serve the Two Holy Mosques; this is the reality of this case.

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This [concept] must be established in the Islamic world, [and] this idea must be promoted. This is also one dimension of this issue.

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Another dimension [of this issue] is to look at a world, which has a claim to [be advocating] human rights.

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Well, assume that somewhere, a person with a charge in a country is killed,

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[I mean,] is executed or sent to prison, [and] you see that clamor starts over human rights [of that guilty person]

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– of course [this happens] with regard to those countries for which there is motivation [among the so-called human rights advocates] for opposition and fighting against them – [and] they raise Cain [in these cases].

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[However,] here, several thousand [people] lose their lives due to incompetence and mismanagement and misconduct of a government

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and these human rights bodies and governments with a claim to human rights maintain a deadly silence and do not say anything;

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they say nothing! This is also an important point. These people, who are infatuated with international organs and organizations

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and pin their hope on them, [must] see this truth, understand this reality,

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[and] see how false and unreal is the identity of these organizations and these organs.

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[International bodies] kept silent in this case, [and] did not say anything. Sometimes even the rights of animals become so important to them, which they clamor [over them],

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[but it is strange that] several thousand people are massacred in such an incident – not an accidental incident, not a plane crash,

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[but] in an incident in which some people were duty-bound to manage this incident correctly,

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[because] they are, as the saying goes, landlords here, are in charge of affairs,

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[and] it was their duty to protect security of these [pilgrims] –

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and these [international rights bodies] do not say anything, [and] remain totally silent!

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One of the obligatory and necessary tasks for officials of the Islamic Ummah and those who have a claim [to be advocating] human rights

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is to establish a fact-finding delegation in this case; they must go [to Saudi Arabia and shed light on] the truth. Although now, one year has passed [since the Mina incident],

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interviews have been carried out, photos have been taken,

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[and] there are papers and documents, which can greatly clarify the truth;  [so,] a fact-finding group

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[must] go [and] reveal the truth of this case. It must become clear whether Al Saud is to blame in this incident or not

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– they say ‘we are not to blame’ – [but] this must be clarified, [and] the reality of this case must be revealed [to see] whether these [Saudi officials] are to blame or are not to blame.

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This evil [and] accursed dynasty and tree shuts [people’s] mouths with money,

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[and] these servants of money and servants of [the mundane] world do not allow anybody talk [against] them,

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[and] raise a protest. A fact-finding delegation is needed, [because] they must go there [and] see up-close, [and] follow up on this issue, no matter how long it would take.

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This is among [those] tasks, our esteemed officials must also take into consideration and follow up and attach importance to.

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This is also one [different] dimension of this issue.

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Another dimension of this issue is that we must know in this incident and in similar incidents

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that those powers, which support Al Saud are also complicit.

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Yes, Americans were not part of the Mina issue, but at the same time, their hands are stained with the blood of our Mina martyrs.

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It is due to the support of America’s power and America’s accompaniment that these malfunctioning [Saudi] rulers can stand in the face of the Islamic world so flagrantly

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and commit this great sin and do not apologize [by expressing] even a single world;

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[this] is due to their support, so they are also complicit, just in the same way that also in the case of Yemen, [and] in various cases in the Islamic world

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– including in the case of Syria, in the case of Iraq, [and] in the case of Bahrain – if any damage and loss is inflicted on Muslims,

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Americans have a hand in [any] felony and crime.

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It is their support which enables these insolent and these shameless [Saudi officials]

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to commit crime and treachery in this way and stab the Islamic Ummah in the back; it is for this reason.

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Another important point is that Western countries’ propaganda machines

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and, in fact, their spy services and the likes of them try to blame this [incident] on the fight

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among Islamic [societies]; the fight between Shias and Sunnis, [and] the fight between Arabs and non-Arabs. This is a sheer lie,

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[and] this has nothing to do with the fight between Shia and Sunni [Muslims]. Those people who were martyred in the Mina incident,

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most [of them] were Sunnis; [even] from our own country, there is a great number of Sunni families [among Mina martyrs];

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[therefore,] this is not an issue between Arab and non-Arab nations; these [Saudi rulers] show no mercy to Arabs and non-Arabs. You see

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that they are committing crimes in Yemen. Well, Yemen is [an] Arab [country], Syria is Arab, Iraq is Arab,

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[and] their agents, these ruthless [and] brutal terrorist groups,

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which are wreaking havoc on the Islamic world with their money [and] their weapons, these are all Arabs; [therefore,] Arab and non-Arab is not an issue here.

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[It is] the wicked propaganda by Western countries, which wants to introduce this as a fight between Shia and Sunni Muslims or a fight between Arab and non-Arab nations.

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This is one of those wicked propaganda ploys, which is totally against the reality.

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The problem is that these [conspirators] are a group inside the Islamic world, which are at work as the enemies of the Islamic Ummah;

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now, some of them [do this] knowingly, [and] others unknowingly.

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The Islamic world must stand up to these [Saudi rulers];

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the Islamic world must disavow these [Saudi rulers] and their masters, which include America and the wicked Britain

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and [other] faithless and immoral Western powers;

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[they] must know what they are doing. The Iranian nation has raised the flag of independence,

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[and] has demonstrated the dignity of Islam. Today, slogans of you people,

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the position of you people, the situation that you have created, [and] those steps that are being taken inside the country

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– these advances, these huge popular movements, [and] this independence in the face of

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the wave of sedition and corruption, which is rife in the Western world – [all of] these are cause of pride for Islam, [and] cause of dignity for Islam.

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This dignity has come about by the Iranian nation and, God willing, will continue.

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I hope that the Almighty God would make the Iranian nation more dignified and exalted day by day;

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increase the strength and power and might of the Islamic Ummah;

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[and] God willing, do away with these maladies of the Islamic world. And the esteemed officials of our own country,

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who shouldered and still shoulder [certain] duties vis-à-vis this huge incident,

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should follow up on those duties; both the esteemed Martyr Foundation and those related to [management of] the Hajj – including [the Leader’s] hajj office and the Hajj [and Pilgrimage] Organization –

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[should follow up on] whatever is their duty with regard to this important issue. Just in the same way that they have attended to many of these tasks so far,

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they must also seriously attend to this [as well]; both the administration officials and the Foreign Ministry and others [as well].

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Every one of them is responsible for [specific] tasks; this issue is an important issue, is a big issue,

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and is not related to one [specific] group, [but] it is related to Islamic nation

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and Iranian nation, and on a larger scale, is related to the [entire] Islamic Ummah; we all have a duty [in this regard].

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[I hope] the Almighty would, God willing, help [us] so that we would all be able to fulfill our duties.

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Peace be unto you and so may the mercy of Allah and His blessings