Shabbir Rizvi
On the blessed and auspicious Day of Arafah, the leader of the Revolution – Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei – issued a statement that recognized the beginning of a “New Islamic Civilization” and its potential to build a transformative future.
“Each of us can play a role in realizing the New Islamic Civilization and bringing it closer, in accordance with our resolve, capacity and sense of responsibility.”
– Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei
Indeed, there is much to consider regarding the context of this statement. A statement is typically delivered yearly on the Day of Arafah by the Revolution’s leader. This statement, being Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s first Arafah statement since the martyrdom of his father, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, comes at a time of heightened tensions within the region that have the capacity to permanently change the composition of the region – and the world with it.
As this statement is issued, on the eve of Eid al-Adha, the US threatens to reignite the war on Iran, despite its strategic loss in the previous round. The Zionist entity escalates its bombings of Lebanon and Gaza as it faces defeat and humiliation at the hands of Hezbollah. Concurrently, the Zionist entity moves forward with legalizing executions of Palestinians in Occupation prisons, as international law, written by colonialists, is expectedly unable to intervene.
The relentless criminal actions by the United States and Israel – especially over the past nearly three years – have triggered a profound shift in global consciousness and a deeper understanding of the powers that shape the world order.
The phrase “New Islamic Civilization” by the leader of the Revolution is an acknowledgment that our Ummah – at least a considerable conscious segment of it – is experiencing a fundamental transformation: a rebirth, a renewal. This renewal did not come easy. It was forged in blood, in martyrdom, in the fires, flames, missiles and bullets of resistance. Throughout the region that is dear to Islamic identity, thousands of martyrs have ascended in the defense of their homelands, of their faith, of their sovereignty. The footage broadcast to the world – of genocide, slaughter, destruction – and the Ummah’s resistance to it – has drawn a clear line between the forces of the oppressor and those of resistance.
This “New Islamic Civilization” can be heralded not just by the Muslims living within the region, but throughout the entire world.
For decades, there has been a major stagnation in “Islamic civilization.” The Ummah was subject to division and dissection by imperialist forces – from the European colonizers who defined the boundaries across Muslim lands to the American imperialists and their Zionist appendage that continue to commit massacre after massacre against the Ummah. Furthermore, the hegemony of the United States (now in freefall) either convinced millions of Muslims that integration into Western “Civilization” (imperialism) is the best path forward, or, by way of death and destruction, forced mass immigration into the Western metropoles, where they would be pushed into assimilation and serve the rule of capital.
But this shift – led by the heroic efforts of the Palestinian Resistance on October 7th, 2023 – has fundamentally altered the psyche of hundreds of millions of Muslims, who can no longer view the world as they once did. The supposed arbiter of “freedom” – The United States – has exposed itself as the ultimate violator of human life. American support and direct involvement in the ongoing genocide in Gaza shatters any myth of the United States – and by extension its Europens allies – being interested in peace
“‘Down with America’ and ‘Down with Israel’ shall become the common chants of the Islamic Ummah and the world’s oppressed, especially among the youth.”
And, in their foolhardy mission to destroy the Islamic Republic of Iran, the United States revealed that their many military installations within the region are not for the “defense” of their comprador regime host states, but rather as a forward base for US imperialism to further its own objectives.
Within this imperialist aggression, traitorous states and entities showed their true colors. Gulf Regimes such as the UAE and Bahrain doubled down on their hawkish attitudes towards Iran for the crime of self-defense. Knowing full well their country’s soil was used to target fellow Muslims, instead of calling for the expulsion of imperialist forces, they insisted on tying their fate to a declining hegemony.
The recently imposed war on Iran has thus demonstrated to the world, and to many Muslims still unsure of where to take a stand, that there is an unquestionable aggressor and an unquestionable resistance to aggression – a resistance rooted in the defense of sovereignty and revolutionary Islamic principles.
With the cards of imperialism revealed, Ayatollah Khamenei declares the perpetrators of genocide and occupation – the United States and Israel – to be living within the region on borrowed time.
“The United States will no longer have a safe haven for its mischief and for establishing military bases in West Asia…The shaken Zionist regime and the cancerous tumor of Israel are approaching the final stages of their wretched existence.”
A destroyed US air force jet stands on the runway of Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia
Acknowledging the role of the regional resistance and the declining popularity of the US-centric framework for the region, Ayatollah Khamenei states,
“The [global] Muslim Ummah (Nation) and the nations of the region possess many shared capacities and common interests that will shape the new order and the future architecture of the region and the world.”
Again, Ayatollah Khamenei acknowledges the potential of a united global Muslim Ummah, as imperialism is in a stage of existential crisis, the Ummah has a historical role to play. The New Islamic Civilization is a shared project for every Muslim – a call to unite and act after decades of division and confusion.
At the same time, US President Donald Trump threatens the regional countries that there is no path forward without joining the so-called “Abraham Accords” and subordinating themselves to US-Israeli domination. Thus, Ayatollah Khamenei forces the question: live with your dignity, sovereignty, and principles – which is the Islamic call to action- or, face subordination and humiliation by tying your fate to that of a dying imperialism, whose days are numbered.
“The forces of God prevail over every power.”
Humanity is at a historic crossroads. On one side, there is the dying beast of imperialism – struggling to consolidate its gains as it faces the inevitability of a world order that is yet to be determined. On the other hand, there are the liberatory forces of humanity, struggling against occupation, exploitation, and destruction – a reality that the previous hegemonic order of the US enforced in order to prolong the survival of its ruling class.
The New Islamic Civilization – birthed from sacrifice, martyrdom, blood – has the chance to be a leading force in building a future without imperialist domination, without settler occupation, without oppression of the many by the hands of the few. But this future is not guaranteed – thus, the responsibility falls on the Ummah to unite – truly unite – and struggle together.
“Each of us can play a role in realizing the New Islamic Civilization and bringing it closer.”
There is a real opportunity for us to forge a just future and build a world we can be proud of. An opportunity like this does not come easy – and it has been opened to us by the sacrifice of thousands of martyrs. A chance to make things right cannot be squandered.
The New Islamic Civilization waits for us.
Shabbir Rizvi is the Political Director of Vox Ummah. He is also a contributor to Sovereign Media and has been featured on PressTV, Al Mayadeen, and Orinoco Tribune.
