Dialogue [Triumph of faith over satanic powers]

Imam: Although our Revolution had but a meager amount of material power, its spirituality will suffice to push it toward progress. Therefore, that great satanic power, whose source of support was the superpowers with all their diabolical resources, was defeated by our nation with fists and blood, which triumphed over all these satanic powers and superpowers that were supporting the Shah and were openly expressing their loyalty to him. And the secret of this victory, apart from the vital part played by the power of faith, was that this same power of faith has created the true key, which consisted of the nation's unity of expression throughout the whole affair. Because this Revolution was Islamic and humane, it spread at lightning speed to all corners of Iran, from that remote hamlet to the capital and reached all the strata of the people. Through this very unity of expression, the nation was able to resist this satanic power, which surrendered its strongholds one after another.
Certainly, our difficulties are plenty. They have plundered our country and destroyed our entire cultural heritage. They pushed our culture backward in the name of the" great civilization", destroyed our agriculture in the name of" progress", and suppressed freedom of the print media and publicity centers in the name of" freedom". They bequeathed to us a country in shambles, a country in utter ruins, which has to be rebuilt from scratch. However, with the grace of God and because the affair is a divine one, I feel that God has willed that the deprived triumph. All categories of nation are together in order to counter the difficulties. God willing, our difficulties will be eliminated through our nation's endeavors. I implore the Gracious and Exalted God to empower our brother nation, Palestine, to overcome its problems. We are all brothers.
Since fifteen years ago, that is, at the beginning of this movement, I used to refer to the Palestinian issue and the crimes perpetrated by Israel in that territory in my writings and statements. Now, too, once we have passed through this tumultuous situation, we will stand by you as we had done in the past. Even now, we are with you. I hope we will be able to confront the problems together like brothers. I pray to God the Almighty for the dignity of Islam and the Muslims and the return of Holy Quds to our brothers.
[Yasir `Arafat: I, whether by a stroke of luck or misfortune, was born there. That is my homeland. It was the dictate of destiny for me to be born there. This does not mean that I alone am responsible for (freeing) Quds. All of you bear responsibility in liberating it. After this great victory in Iran, your responsibility toward Quds is greater than mine who was born in Jerusalem. I have nothing but my blood to offer for the cause of the liberation of Quds. But you, with such a great victory, now have vast facilities at your disposal and must do something so that all Muslims can pray at Quds. We will never allow the Palestinian flag to remain un-hoisted. We will have it erected as it was in Iran.(Menachem) Begin has recently said something important concerning your victory. He said," An age of darkness has descended upon Israel."]
Imam: God willing.
[`Arafat: Now an earthquake has struck. This quake is now very close to us. God says in the Qur'an that" ... and you did not shoot (the arrow) but Allah did." In response to (Moshe) Dayan and Begin, I said," You may choose and rely upon one supporter. You may lean on America. I, too, can find a supporter and I have found this supporter. I am now leaning back on the Iranian nation led by the grand Ayatullah al-Mousawi al-Khomeini.]
Imam: The Shah too had relied upon the US, Britain, China, Israel and all such powers. But these supportive forces are all feeble. Only one support is strong and firm, and that is God. God is the only support. I advise you (`Arafat), my own nation and your nation to look to God for support and not to these powers, not to rely on material things but on spirituality. God's power is above all powers. That is why we saw that an oppressed nation, which had nothing, triumphed over all powers and will, God willing, prevail. And we are not afraid of anything if we are with God, even if we are killed, or kill, in His path, we shall prosper.
[`Arafat: Last year Israel dispatched a massive contingent to South Lebanon to suppress its Palestinian and Muslim population. Not exceeding 2000, the fighters who resisted those huge military units, faced 65,000 Israelis including reserve forces at the rear and at the frontlines. The Israelis believed they would rout our forces within a couple of hours. We were plunged into a great predicament. In utter despair, I said," Oh, God, if these people are killed, there will be no one left in this region to worship you." I suddenly saw that victory arrived. Mr. Brzezinski said," Goodbye Palestinian Liberation Organization. You are on the way out; you are finished!" But we witnessed how God bestowed a great victory on us. And a year after our victory in South Lebanon, which was a small and simple victory we gained the greatest of victories here in Iran. As the Holy Qur'an says," When the truth comes, falsehood shall perish." We have now cast fear upon the heart of the enemy. Begin's statement:" a period of darkness has descended upon Israel," carries a lot of meaning. It signifies their fear. Kissinger, too, has said that the greatest event after the Second World War has been the victory of the Islamic Revolution of Iran. In what way does the victory of Iran's Islamic Revolution pose a threat to the US? Kissinger said yesterday that if the US did not carry out in Iran what it had done in Vietnam, Iran's revolutionary movement would spread until it encroached on Israel. We may deduce from this statement the magnitude of the danger this Revolution poses to American interests in this region. We can understand our true position through the enemy's tongue. When I went to Baghdad, I heard from heads of Arab countries words like" What do you have to do with Iran? What business do you have with the Grand Ayatullah Khomeini?" This was the least they were saying. Others said," Your interests will be better secured with the Shah in power. Support him and your interests will perhaps be better provided for. The last time I was touring (Persian) Gulf countries, a few days before your victory, the Gulf rulers were saying that according to their information, Bakhtiyar would prevail and that Americans would be able to keep Bakhtiyar in power against the Iranian nation.]
Imam: All the calculations of the great powers proved wrong because it was a divine issue.
[`Arafat:" And (the unbelievers) plotted and planned, and God too planned, and the best of planner is God."]
Imam: And their present and future calculations too will prove wrong.
[`Arafat: They say an earthquake has occurred; we say an explosion of light «1» has occurred. We say the time has arrived for our nation and our region to be free and independent. Many problems lie ahead. But I am optimistic about the future. You have a great jihad and more strenuous efforts (to make) ahead of you. To reconstruct the foundation of the society is more exacting than fighting and winning. The Shah has ruined this land.]
Imam: We have pinned our hopes on God and we will never despair of Him. We will overcome our problems, God willing. And we do not count on material things in this regard. We do not believe material matters can bring about victory. Victory is gained through spirituality. As long as our nation relies upon God the Almighty, it will move forward. And if, God forbid, deviation occurs, everything will go in decline.
[`Arafat: I do not think that the enemy's plots have ended as yet. When we look at the string of events, we can be certain that the enemy will not just let go of one of its fortresses (in the region) so easily.]
Imam: The enemy does not want to do so. But God will, hopefully, act against the enemy.
[`Arafat: Although I now have a smile upon my lips, my heart is bleeding because of the massacres committed in Iran.]
Imam: God willing, your heart will be lightened.
[`Arafat: God bears witness that in all my life I have never experienced happiness as the joy I felt when you triumphed.]
Imam: May God protect all Muslims.
[Another Palestinian: In Lebanon, there is a ban on firing into the air as a sign of celebration. It is now over a year that it is so. The commander-in-chief of the Palestinian forces has specifically ordered that no bullet should be wasted for any occasion. But (with the victory of the Islamic Revolution) the whole of Lebanon was" set ablaze"! Abu `Ammar (`Arafat) himself fired five bullets. He himself broke that rule as a display of joy. Undoubtedly, they are going to launch air raids against South Lebanese villages and Shi`ah populated regions. Begin is saddened and grieved because of the upheaval in Iran. May God protect South Lebanon against Israeli air raids; God willing the Grand Ayatullah Khomeini and the Iranian nation will protect the forces of Arab governments.]
Imam: May God protect (them).
[`Arafat: It is true that Israel has friends. But we, too, have brothers and friends.]
Imam: We rely solely upon God, the Blessed and Exalted.
[`Arafat: Last week marked the beginning of a new era.]
Imam: God willing.