Rouhani: Islam, Country, People Main Pillars in Iran, We Must Heed Lessons of Islamic Revolution

Local Editor

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that everything in Iran should revolve around the three main principles of Islam, country and the people.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Rouhani said that Iran must listen to protesters behind a recent wave of unrest, hinting that it risked another revolution if their demands are ignored.

In a speech marking the 39th anniversary of the uprising, Rouhani also warned foreign powers that Iran's people would "forever safeguard the Islamic republic".

"As long as people love the culture of Islam and love their Iran and safeguard their national unity, no superpower can change the path of this nation," he said, taking a jab at the United States.

But he said that popular support was at risk if his fellow elites did not listen to protests that have swept the country in recent weeks, and heed the lessons of the 1979 revolution that toppled Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

"All officials of the country should have a listening ear for people's demands and wishes," Rouhani said.

"The previous regime thought monarchical rule would last forever, but it lost everything for this very reason -- that it did not hear the criticism of the people," he added.

The Iranian president and his cabinet members attended the late Imam Khomeini's mausoleum on Wednesday to pay homage to the founder of the Islamic Revolution and the martyrs.

Rouhani and his entourage also visited the tombs of the martyrs of the Eight-year Holy Defense [Iraqi-imposed war from 1980 to 1988] and the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

The day of Imam Khomeini's return to Iran from exile [Feb 1, 1979] marks the beginning of the Ten-Day Dawn in ceremonies which culminate with the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution on February 11, 1979.

Iranians toppled the US-backed Pahlavi regime 39 years ago, ending 2,500 years of monarchy in the country.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team