unity of the Islamic Ummah as the most importantmessage of the Holy Prophet's (s.w.a.) mission.

The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution said that thecurrent movement of Islamic Awakening in the world of Islam, especially inNorth Africa, is part of the fulfillment of divine promises, furtherreiterating: "Today, the main policy of global arrogance towardsconfronting Islamic Awakening is to create discord among Muslim peoples inIslamic countries and make them kill one another. Therefore, the greatresponsibility of religious, political and academic elites is to explain theplots of the enemy to the Islamic Ummah and make a serious effort to implementthe slogan of Islamic unity."

His Eminence stated that the world of Islam - due to thestart of the movement of Islamic Awakening - is ready for following theguidelines of the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.) in practice and stressed: "Afterdecades of pressures and domination of westerners over the world of Islam, nowMuslim peoples feel that Islam prepares the ground for them to achieve dignity,glory and independence and that, thanks to Islam, all the dreams of the IslamicUmmah can come true."

Ayatollah Khamenei described Muslims' capability to stand upagainst the exploitation and arrogance of western governments and to forcewesterners to retreat as the blessings of Islamic Awakening, further adding:"Islamic Awakening - which started 34 years ago in Iran and is developingin the world of Islam now - is one of the manifestations of the fulfillment ofdivine promises and moving towards victory."

He reiterated: "Since the start of the movement ofIslamic Awakening, global arrogance has tried to create obstacles in its way.But if Muslim peoples rely on Allah the Exalted and show a firm determinationfor moving forward, the enemies' obstacles definitely will not prevent theworld of Islam from moving forward and they will achieve more victories step bystep."

The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution describedcreating discord among Muslim peoples and keeping them busy with conflicts asthe main effort by the enemies to confront Islamic Awakening and explained:"Since the victory of the Islamic Revolution, they pursued the policy ofcreating discord, but the Islamic Republic decisively stood up against thisplot and raised the flag of Islamic unity."

His Eminence reiterated: "Imam Khomeini (r.a.)consistently stressed throughout his life that we believe in Islamicbrotherhood. And we have continued this path after his demise untiltoday."

Ayatollah Khamenei stressed: "A feeling of unity amongMuslims and among different groups, denominations and parties insides eachIslamic country is the only way to confront the plot to create discord."

He said that as a consequence of discord among Muslims theissue of Palestine and standing up against the greed of America and the westwill be sidelined, further adding: "The new movement that westerners havestarted in Africa in order to dominate African nations is a consequence ofdiscord among Muslims and conflicts that the Muslims busy themselveswith."

The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution mentionedexamples of discord among Muslims and the consequences that it will have forthem such as the disasters occurring in Pakistan, war and massacres in Syria,silencing the voice of the people in Bahrain and the conflict between thepeople in Egypt and stressed: "Each kind of discord among Muslim nationsor inside each Islamic country means that they are definitely playing into theenemies' hands."

His Eminence called on religious, political, academic andseminary elites to take the issue of unity seriously and added: "Besidesdelineating the dangerous plot of the enemy to create discord, the elites ofthe Islamic Ummah themselves should avoid creating any kind of discord orarousing shallow and vulgar feelings because fueling the fire of discord willburn the fate of nations."

Ayatollah Khamenei described Islamic unity as a sacredslogan, further stressing: "If the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.) were among us, hewould invite all the Muslims to promote unity and avoid discord."

Elsewhere in his statements, the Supreme Leader of theIslamic Revolution described the month of Rabi al-Awwal as the spring of lifebecause of the birthday anniversaries of the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.) and ImamSadiq (a.s.), further reiterating: "Commemorating these great birthdayanniversaries is not only limited to celebrating. Rather the world of Islamshould strengthen its spiritual and emotional relationship with the HolyProphet (s.w.a.) on a daily basis.