Supreme Leader of Iran speaks out against Sunni vs. Shi'a violence, blames US and UK for "divide and rule" policy.
>> Divide and rule policy revived in region - Supreme Leader
Tehran, Oct 13, IRNA
Iran-Prayers-SLeader
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said here Friday that the old policy of divide and rule among followers of faiths and ethnic groups is revived in our region today.
Delivering his second Friday prayers sermon to thousands of fasting worshipers at Tehran University's central campus, the Friday Prayer Leader of Tehran added, "The British are experts in pursuing that policy and they have taught the Americans how to sow the seeds of discord among Shi'as and Sunnis, under such conditions that unity is the greatest need of the region's peoples."
Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated, "One of the scenarios that these people (the losers in Lebanon war) are pursuing is the tragedies they are creating in Palestine. What takes place in Palestine currently is partly aimed at covering up Israel's lost prestige in Lebanon case." He added, "A major part of the imposed daily pressure, the massacre of civilians, attacks against different parts of both Gaza Strip and the West Bank, are aimed at making up for that defamation." The Supreme Leader said, "They are trying to topple Hamas government.
The Palestinians and all Muslim nations should heed the fact that they should not turn the 'people against occupiers' reality into 'people against people' catastrophe."
He pointed out, "The enemies' efforts are aimed at flickering the flames of confrontations between the Palestinians against the Palestinians, and the Iraqis against the Iraqis.
The Leader emphasized, "Unity is the greatest need of the Palestinians today."
Referring to the situation in Iraq, he said, "Those are the continuation of the events in Iraq. The crisis in Iraq preceded the one in Lebanon, and its intensity has aggravated today, because Iraq, Lebanon, and the other occurred events in the regions, are all rings of a broken American chain."
The Supreme Leader added, "They had a (bigger) plot for the region that began with (invasion against) Iraq, but it did not work. They pursued the same plot in Lebanon, but the situation got even worse for them there. Now, too, the Americans and their allies are doing their best to push forth those same polices at least to some extent." Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized, "In Iraq they pursue the policy of creating confrontations between the Iraqis against the Iraqis.
"The bare truth there is the presence of occupiers that keep interfering in affairs of the government, the parliament, the resident, the prime minister, the financial policy making, and in security affairs."
The Friday Prayer Leader of Tehran added, "Worse and more perilous than all, is the abundance of proof about their involvement in promoting terrorist moves in the name of the Shi'as and the Sunnis.
They try to make the Shi'as suspicious about the conduct of the Sunnis, and vice versa, to an extent that they would each dream of shedding the blood of the other one. That is the policy pursued by the Americans in Iraq today."
The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution reiterated, "Our Iraqi brethren are in dire need of unity, as a result of comprehending the reality that the enemy is after changing the 'people against occupiers' reality into the 'people against people' catastrophe." Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated, "Shi'as and Sunnis have been living side by side of one another in peace in Iraq for centuries and throughout the past centuries there has never existed disputes between them the way we observe today.
"During the reign of the Ottoman Empire and Saddam's tyrannical rule the Shi'as were always oppressed, and under the pressure of the governments, but the Shi'a and Sunni people had no conflicts with one another. What we see today is plots aimed at intriguing the people to kill one another."
The Supreme Leader of Revolution added, "Inside the Islamic world, too, in one country their allies highlight the Shi'a Crescent issue, in order to terrify the Sunni society, and on the other hand they plot schemes aimed at distancing the Islamic Republic of Iran from its neighbors, such as the islands' issue, so that Iran, too would feel that its interests are at stake."
Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized, "That is the plot they are pursuing. But if we wish to witness the continuation of victories we have seen during the past couple of years, we need to maintain our consciousness and out alertness."
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