Dear listeners, we have said several times that the Iraqi dictator Saddam’s main goal of initiating the 8-year war and invading Iran was to overthrow the Islamic Republic system. He pursued other goals, too.

But, he and his masters in Washington, Moscow, Tel Aviv and Europe didn’t reach any of their goals. For sure the 8-year imposed war or the Holy Defence was one of the (if not THE) most important and most fateful periods of after the victory of the Islamic Revolution. It was also one of the most effective events in the region as its consequences have remained in the region and the world after the lapse of over three decades of its end. That eight- year period left such deep impacts on Iran’s military, cultural, economic, political and social life. The eight-year war cause such a great deterrence power to Iran that today the world powers, especially the United States, are scared of any aggression and evil thought against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Stay tuned for the last episode of this series.

The 8-year war, apart from its hardships, destruction and bitter events, left behind unique epics and unforgettable honours for the Iranian nation and the Islamic world. Imam Khomeini (God’s mercy upon him), a few months before departure from the mortal world, issued a message part of which reads, “Every day in the war, we had a blessing which we have benefited from in all scenes. We exported our revolution to the world. We proved our innocence and oppression of the invaders in the war. We removed mask from the face of deception of the world-devourers. We recognized our friends and foes in the war. We came to the conclusion in the war that we have to stand on our own feet. We crushed the awe of the two Eastern and Western superpowers. We consolidated the roots of our fruitful revolution in the war. We, in the war, caused the sense of brotherhood and compatriotism to flourish in each of our people. We, in the war, showed to the people of the world, especially the regional people, that one can fight all powers and superpowers for long years. Our war resulted in the victory of Afghanistan. Our war will result in the victory of Palestine.”

Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, said on the support of the West and the East for Saddam during the 8-year war, “Throughout the Cold War era, there had been no issue in which the two world superpowers had such a unison so that both of them gave military equipment to one side. Since World War II till the era of the Holy Defence, you cannot find such special conditions. This was an exception that Saddam enjoyed both the unsparing economic, political and even military support of the West to some extent, and besides, there were the vast military supports of the East. The whole army of Saddam was equipped with the weapons made by the Soviet Union and its East European satellite states which were inside the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet superpower at that time. This was a strange thing. In this war, we were oppressed in the real sense of the word. Once one of the officials was explaining that when we wanted to pass across the Soviet soil, to import the barbed wire that we had bought from a country, but we were not allowed. It was one of the rare points of the contemporary era, that a revolutionary country which had stood against the US, would face such restrictions by the Soviet.”

Dear listeners, the Eastern and Western blocs had come to the conclusion that any revolution with a religious nature would cause serious challenges t their being. Thus, they spared no effort to prevent it from thriving. Moreover, the fake Zionist regime of Israel and the backward Arab regimes in the region became very scared of the victory of the Islamic Revolution which would put their illegitimate interests at stake. They were afraid of the revolution’s turning into a role model for the regional nations most of whom have not experienced the taste of popular rule and true democracy. Thus, both the West and the East threw their weight behind Saddam in its all-out aggression against Iran, and that only 19 months after the victory of the Islamic Revolution.

The 8-year war was imposed on Iran while the Islamic Republic system was still an infant and had not become stable. Furthermore, there were separatist groups here and there in the country. The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps and Islamic Revolution Committee forces along with popular volunteer forces had the mission of maintaining security in the country and the Army had just started tasting the sweet days of independence while many of its remaining equipment were unusable as the foreign (mainly American) military advisors had left the country. However, one year into the war, Saddam’s war machine was stopped through the unmatched unity of Army, IRGC and Basij forces and formation of resistance units. By end of the 7th year of war, Iran turned from defensive into offensive side in the war in spite of all-out supports of the West and the East for Saddam. Saddam’s supporters, especially the US, seeing his successive failures in the war, intensified their support and Washington directly entered the war in favour of Saddam in the waning months of the war. In such circumstances, Imam Khomeini, as the Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces, came to the conclusion that accepting the UN Security Council Resolution 598 was to the benefit of the Islamic Republic.

The 8-year war was the only war in the history of Iran in which the entire soil of the country was liberated from occupation. Then, as the Imam had predicted, Saddam invaded Kuwait two years after the end of the 8-year war and seriously threatened the Arab regimes in the region. Therefore, these regimes expressed regret over their supports for Saddam during his war of aggression against Iran.

The 8-year war caused the regional and trans-regional powers to recognize the Islamic Republic and understand that Iran had turned into a big regional power. So, they admitted Iran’s power in the regional and even global equations. Thus, the Islamic Revolution went from strength to strength through the selfless steadfastness of its youths. Yet, the US and its allies (partners-in-crime) didn’t stop their enmities against the Islamic Republic after the end of the war. Nevertheless, as the enemies have aggravated their hostilities, Iran has become more and more powerful and stable and has made bedazzling breakthroughs in various scientific and military spheres. In some of these areas, Iran ranks among the 10 countries in the world. To mention a few of them: Iran is among the 10 countries which enjoy the full cycle of nuclear fuel for peaceful purposes. It also has gained the capability of launching satellite to the orbit. The Islamic Republic stands among the few countries which have access to the know-how of nano-technology and stem cells. Iran owes all this to the 8-year Holy Defence.

RM/SS