Welcome to our special feature on the 9th of Zi’l-Hijjah, the day of Arafa on which Hajj pilgrims gather from dawn till sunset on the plain of Arafaat outside Mecca, to spent the time in prayer and supplications for obtaining the proper cognizance of God Almighty, in the footsteps of the prophets of the past, especially the father of the human race, Adam, the great patriarch Abraham, and the greatest-ever messenger, Prophet Mohammad (Blessings of God upon him and his progeny).

We offer you our heartfelt condolences on the anniversary of a tragic day that coincides every year with commencement of the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca and on the threshold of Eid al-Adha. The 7th of Zi’l-Hijjah is indeed a doleful day as is evident by our commemoration of the martyrdom of an infallible member of the Prophet of Islam’s blessed household, who directed the minds of Muslims towards the great injustice done to the Ahl al-Bayt by depriving them of their right of political leadership.

Today, the 1st of the month of Zil-Hijjah is the auspicious anniversary of the blessed marriage of the noblest-ever pair.

The last day of the month of Zil-Qa’adah is the martyrdom anniversary of the 9th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (Blessings of God upon him and his progeny). He was the Prophet’s namesake and was known by his famous epithets of Taqi or the Most Pious One, and Jawad or the Most Generous – in both material and spiritual manners.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has stressed the need for Iranian officials to pursue negotiations with international sides from a position of dignity, noting that leniency in foreign policy does not conflict with fundamentals and principles.

Transfer of power from a leader to another is often tense in different countries. In Iran, however, just one day after the passing away of Imam Khomeini (God's mercy upon him), his successor became the leader. On June 4, 1989, the Assembly of Experts appointed Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei to the leadership of the Islamic Revolution in a legal and constitutional way without any tension.

Iran’s contemporary history has gone through several critical junctures. Yet the uprising on 5th of June 1963 was undoubtedly one of the most important of them. Many researchers of Iran’s modern history believe that this uprising was the onset of the great Islamic Revolution.

Imam Khomeini (God's mercy upon him) was the man who revived the esteem and prestige of not only the Iranian nation but the entire Islamic Ummah. He was the person who founded the Islamic Republic system of government in the bipolar world of the US-led capitalism and the Soviet-led socialism.

On the eve of the 34th anniversary of Imam Khomeini's passing away, the late Founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, IRIB English Radio has prepared a special program in this regard.

Today, the 11th of the sacred month of Zil-Qa’da is the birth anniversary of a very blessed person whose shrine in the northeastern city of Mashhad makes it the holiest spot in Iran. He is none other than Imam Reza (PBUH), the 8th infallible heir of the Almighty’s Last and Greatest Messenger, Prophet Mohammad (Blessings of God upon him and his progeny).