Leader: Takfiri Groups Revived by Arrogance to Counter Islam
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that the Takfiri (extremist) groups have resurfaced to serve the interests of the arrogant powers, and called for a “scientific, inclusive” movement to eradicate the threat of Takfirism.
“The Takfiri movements and their sponsoring states are utterly serving the arrogant powers' objectives, namely (the objectives of) the US and the European colonialist governments as well as the Zionist regime (of Israel). They are practically serving them under an Islamic guise,” Ayatollah Khamenei said, addressing a gathering of Muslim scholars and clerics who have come to Iran to attend an international conference on dangers of Takfirism (extremism) held in Iran's holy city of Qom on Sunday and Monday.
The leader then elaborated on the facts which show the Takfiri currents are serving the interests of arrogant powers, and said, “The Islamic awakening was a move against the US, the arrogance and the US stooges but the Takfiri groups changed such an enormous anti-arrogance movement into a civil war and fratricide among Muslims.”
The issue of Palestine was at the forefront of the Muslim world’s battle in the region, the Supreme Leader said, noting that emergence of Takfirism changed the trend and instead, created violence in the streets of Iraq, Syria, Pakistan and Libya.
The Leader described extremist groups' lack of reaction to Israeli crimes as another testimony to prove the fact that extremists receive support from the arrogant powers.
Ayatollah Khamenei further noted that Takfiri groups resort to gruesome acts "to tarnish the image of Islam," adding that they are destroying the infrastructures of the Islamic countries.
The Leader cited other examples showing Takfiris are in cahoots with the arrogant powers, and said the axis of anti-Israeli resistance movement was left alone during the recent 50-day Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.
The US airdrop of military equipment for the ISIL terrorist group in Iraq was another sign that Washington’s claim of forming an anti-ISIL coalition is nothing but a “sheer lie”, the Leader noted, saying the main purpose of that coalition is to maintain war and clashes among Muslims.
Ayatollah Khamenei called on the Muslim scholars to pursue a “scientific and logical” movement to save the innocent young Muslim people that have been ensnared in the Takfiri current.
The Leader also called on the Muslim scholars to highlight the role of the US, Britain and Israel in reviving Takfirism and try to prevent the main issue of the Islamic world, namely Palestine, from fading into oblivion.
Ayatollah Khamenei, however, stressed that the Western countries as well as Israel are beset with a whole host of problems and have been weakened compared to the past.
A sign of the enemies’ weakness was obvious in the talks on Iran’s nuclear program, the Leader said.
“The US and the European colonialist countries gathered to bring the Islamic Republic of Iran to its knees in the nuclear issue, but they failed and will fail in future.”
On Monday and after a week of intense talks in Vienna, Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) decided to extend talks on Tehran’s peaceful nuclear program for more seven months in the hope of clinching a final, comprehensive agreement.
The talks started on November 18, bringing together foreign ministers from the parties in the hope of breaking a deadlock and secure a final agreement before the November 24 self-imposed deadline.
