‘Hostile’ efforts suppressing voter turnout should be confronted: Leader
Leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei on Wednesday warned against “hostile” efforts aimed at dissuading voters from the ballot box ahead of two looming elections.
Iranians will head to the polls on March 1 to elect new lawmakers as well as members of the Assembly of Experts, a top clerical body that is tasked to choose Iran’s leader and oversee his performance.
“Some seek to depress turnout in the elections, which are a testament to the realization of religious democracy, in order to undermine them,” Ayatollah Khamenei told a gathering in Tehran.
The Leader called for the realities to be reflected by what he called “fighters of enlightenment,” urging them to “stand up against this hostile move”.
“[Voting in] elections is a duty, and whoever opposes the elections is opposed to the Islamic Republic and Islam,” he said.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei said the border of the Muslim world is in Gaza today; the Palestinians there are standing against arrogance and the United States.
“The border of the Muslim world today is in Gaza, the pulse of the Muslim world beats in Gaza today, and the Palestinians there are standing against the world of disbelief, tyranny, arrogance and the United States,” the Leader stated.
The Israeli regime has been waging a devastating war on the Gaza Strip since October, killing at least 22,000 people, most of them children and women. More than 57,000 others have also been wounded.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the Leader said that soft power is more effective than hard power, as the latter has immediate effects, but wanes.
Over the past 44 years, he noted, the Islamic Republic has relied on soft power more than hard power.
“Of course, you know that I believe and follow up on … advanced weapons that match the capabilities of the enemies. In my opinion, however, intellectual, linguistic and other strong weapons should pervade among us along with hard power.”
Ayatollah Khamenei also said world powers such as the United States have atomic bombs and all kinds of advanced arms, but they make investments in the arts, cinema, and advertising as soft power, Press TV reported.
“Hard power means that the US comes and stays in Afghanistan for 20 years and spends billions. In the end, it is forced to flee from Afghanistan due to the people’s hatred [towards it],” he added.
“Hard power means that the US comes and takes over the entire country of Iraq with equipment. It overthrows the Iraqi government and sits in its place. After about 20 years, the most hated government in Iraq is the American government.”
The Leader noted that Palestinians have no weapons to defend themselves, but they have today attracted public attention through their patience, innocence and resilience.