Revisiting three historic letters Imam Khamenei wrote to Western youth

By Press TV Website Staff

Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution, had legions of followers and admirers not only in the East but also in the West.

The respect he commanded was evident in the tremendous response his letters addressed to people in the West – particularly students – received over the years.

He wrote three letters to Western youth, which created waves of discussion while also stirring unease in the corridors of power, from Washington to London, Paris, and Berlin.

Here, we look back at the three letters he wrote to Western youth between 2015 and 2024.

First Letter (January 2015)

The first letter, titled "To the Youth in Europe and North America," was written in January 2015 in response to Daesh terrorism in Paris and the resulting wave of Islamophobia in the West.

Addressing the youth in the West in the letter, Imam Khamenei explained that the future of their respective nations lies in their hands. He did not address politicians because he believed they had consciously separated politics from the path of righteousness and truth.

In the historic letter, Imam Khamenei said that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Western oppressive profiteers cast Islam as a horrifying enemy.

He noted that such feelings of horror and hatred are deeply rooted in the political history of the West and criticized Western governments' insincere and hypocritical treatment of other nations and cultures.

He praised Western researchers and historians who expressed resentment over bloodshed wrought in the name of religion and nationality during world wars, calling that approach admirable. However, he urged them to question why the Western policy of spreading phobias and hatred recently targeted Islam and Muslims with unprecedented intensity.

In the letter, he urged researchers in the West to study and research the incentives behind the widespread tarnishing of Islam’s image and emphasized gaining direct and first-hand knowledge of Islam from its primary and original sources, not the biased media.

Imam Khamenei further stressed that he was not insisting they accept his reading or any other reading of Islam, but urged them not to construct an image based on prejudice.

He added that they should ask themselves how the greatest scientific and intellectual civilization in the world was founded and maintained for centuries based on Islamic teachings and ethical doctrines.

Toward the end of the letter, he encouraged Western youth to gain a correct and unbiased understanding of Islam, as future generations will write history based on the current interaction between Islam and the West.

Second Letter (November 2015)

The second letter, published on November 30, 2015, titled "To the Youth in Western Countries," was also a reaction to Daesh attacks in France and some Muslim countries, which emphasized that terrorism was a common scourge and concern.

Imam Khamenei began by noting that it is unfortunate that such incidents have created a framework for conversation, but such a painful matter should create grounds for finding solutions and mutual consultation to prevent further damage.

He emphasized that anyone with affection and humanity would be deeply shaken by the shocking scenes, regardless of their origin, adding that one and a half billion Muslims share these human feelings.

The martyred Leader noted that West Asian countries are more affected by such atrocities in terms of territory, time, and quantity and that this violence was supported by certain Western powers.

He specifically pointed to the role of the US in creating, nurturing, and arming extremist groups in Afghanistan, whose successors are responsible for modern Takfiri terrorism.

Imam Khamenei criticized the Western attitude of supporting the Zionist regime, explaining all their crimes from the beginning to the latest days, as well as Western invasions and destruction of Islamic countries.

He stressed that the imposition of Western culture upon other peoples and the trivialization of independent cultures is a form of silent violence and extremely harmful.

Imam Khamenei described Daesh as an evil group that has no place in a region with one of the most ethical and humane religious schools. He underlined that many members of that group were born and raised in Europe, which requires a complete analysis.

Therefore, he advised Western youth to explore the layers of their society because rushed and emotional reactions will only deepen the gap between them and the Muslim communities in the West.

He added that the Muslim community in Western societies was experiencing anxiety and that some superficial measures and reactions only worsened the situation and caused greater polarization.

In conclusion, he called on Western youth to lay the foundation for a correct and honorable interaction with the Islamic world, based on mutual understanding and lessons learned from difficult experiences, leading to a bright future.

Third Letter (June 2024)

As protests against the Israeli-American genocidal war on Gaza intensified at various US universities, Imam Khamenei wrote a letter addressed to the protesting students, marking his third letter to Western youth in the past decade.

In the introduction to his latest letter, described as an “expression of empathy and solidarity,” he commended the young people whose “awakened conscience” has moved them to defend children and women in Gaza, emphasizing that they stand “on the right side of history.”

The students protesting against the Israeli genocidal war and American complicity in it, he emphasized, form a branch of the Resistance Front. Their struggle against the ruthless anti-student crackdown by their government, which openly supports the usurping regime, aligns them with this greater front.

According to Imam Khamenei, the Resistance Front shares the same understanding and sentiment as these students and has long pursued the goal of ending the Zionist network's oppression of the Palestinian nation.

He dedicated a section of his letter to the history of the Zionist occupation of Palestine, a land with a long history and a population composed of Muslims, Christians, and Jews.

He further explained that with the help of the British regime, the Zionist network imported thousands of terrorists to Palestine, who then attacked settlements, killed tens of thousands, exiled more to neighboring countries, and declared the Zionist regime after World War II.

This regime, Imam Khamenei added, used an iron-fist policy against the defenseless Palestinian people from the very beginning, intensifying its brutality, terror, and repression daily in complete disregard of moral, human, and religious values.

After initial British aid, the US became the regime's greatest supporter, providing political, economic, and military support, including assistance in nuclear weapons production.

Washington and its allies have, over the decades, turned a blind eye to the Tel Aviv regime's terrorism against Palestinians, as evidenced by the unfolding genocide in Gaza, where nearly 80,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, 2023.

Imam Khamenei then discussed the Resistance Front, stating it was formed in dark circumstances of desperation and that the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran expanded and fortified this front.

This brave and humane resistance movement, he added, has been labeled "terrorism" by the global Zionist elite that owns or influences most American and European media corporations through funding and bribery.

He posed the questions that billions of people worldwide are asking: Can a people be called a terrorist nation for defending themselves on their land against the occupying regime’s crimes, and is helping and strengthening such a nation an act of terrorism

Imam Khamenei stated that the oppressive leaders of global hegemony distort even the most basic human concepts, portraying the ruthless Israeli regime as acting in "self-defense" while labeling the Palestinian Resistance as "terrorists."

However, he hastened to assure that circumstances are changing, a different fate awaits West Asia, and the Resistance Front will continue to grow stronger.

In his closing remarks, he told students from American universities that similar uprisings have occurred among academics in other countries and that the support and solidarity of their professors is a significant and consequential development.

He urged the students to familiarize themselves with the Islamic holy book, the Quran.

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