The Nurturing of Iranian Adolescents and Youth in Najaf

In Najaf, from the very first years, based on my prior experience in Iran after the establishment of the Razavi National Primary School and the Center for Religious Discussion and Critique, I felt a deep sense of responsibility and compassion for the youth and adolescents. Concerned about their future, I attempted to guide them onto the right path to the extent of my abilities.

The Uprising in Amol

On the 6th of Bahman 1360 (January 26, 1982), one of the most significant political-security events following the victory of the Islamic Revolution occurred. This was the assault on the city of Amol by a faction of the Communist Union of Iran, known as the Sarbedaran or Jangali. Their target was to seize control of the city, particularly attacking the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Basij bases.

Exile at the Cost to Freedom

I was thirteen when I got married. My husband was nineteen years older than me. After marriage, my wife got a job in the municipality. Less than a year after our marriage, we decided to go to Damavand, where one of my childhood friends lived, and visit her. This decision determined the fate of my life and work, and here's the story: When we arrived in Damavand, my friend said me, ...

Whatever Comes Our Way

Memoir of Zahra Mirjalili, Literacy Movement Educator

The relief supplies from the Basij had arrived again. We placed them in a corner of the mosque to deal with after class. One of the learners suggested mixing the nuts together and dividing them into bags. Another chimed in, “This way, one bag might have too few pistachios, and another might have too many.” We agreed, and someone was tasked with counting the pistachios.

Tasua Day March in Paveh

The Tasua Day march, on December 10 of 1978, which was held in Tehran and all the cities of the country at the invitation of Ayatollah Taleghani, was a turning point in the history of the revolution. The people of Paveh also publicly announced their readiness to participate in this march, which, according to Imam Khomeini, was a public referendum of the people to end the Shah's reign, and responded to the nationwide call.

How Messages Were Sent from Komiteh Prison to Qasr Prison

One day, I encountered a prisoner in one of the cells, a sincere, religious, and committed young activist named Hashemian. Occasionally, he would start talking about his case: “Yes, there were many of us, and some of our group were arrested. Some have already completed their interrogations and have been transferred to Qasr Prison. Our activities have also been exposed and concluded. They’re planning to send me there as well.”

Operation Matla’olfajr

It was the last days of the month of Azar (December) and the garrison had the mood of an operation. A joint operation was supposed to be carried out by the IRGC and the army under the responsibility of Najaf Headquarters and the Army’s Leading Headquarters in the west. The movement to and from the garrison had increased. Finally, the operation began on 20th of Azar 1360 (December 11, 1981), on the Gilan-e Gharb and Sarpol-e Zahab area.

It is lunchtime; We are hungry very much!

The routine of our [Fatemeh Keshavarzian] rallies was that the boys would walk from their high school, located behind our school (school name: Mahboobeh Mottaheddin), to the girls’ school to go together to where they were supposed to rally. The brothers, as they had done in the previous days, approached our school and opened the door. I and a few female students who had been waiting for the revolutionary brothers to arrive, joined them.

Revealing the SAVAK Plans

One of our friends, Mr. Movahedi, had brought me a radio that could pick up all the news and information that the SAVAK agents were exchanging, and I wrote down a few things from there and conveyed them to the Imam through the late martyr Iraqi. One was a plan to encourage people in such a way that a group of people would infiltrate the people to attack the barracks and ...

Memoirs of Political Prisoners

An Excerpt from the Memoirs of Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi

It was night. The air had grown cold and dark. An army truck was parked beside the gendarmerie in Qom, waiting for me and two other gentlemen. Each of us was assigned two armed guards. Given the extreme unrest in Qom, they seemed eager to get us out of the city as quickly as possible.