On the Defeat of ISIS
The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution of Iran, His Excellency Ayatollah Khamenei
After greetings and regards,
Someone once asked a person, “Does so-and-so pray?”
The response was, “I haven’t seen him pray, but I’ve seen him break his fast.”
Dear Leader,
We have not seen you suppress ISIS outside Iran’s borders, but we have seen you suppress your opponents and critics within Iran’s borders. We have seen you threaten, discredit, accuse them of being conspirators, infiltrators, and foreign agents. We have seen you imprison them, hold them in solitary confinement, and detain them for years without trial or the right to defense—one of the most basic human rights—all in violation of the explicit provisions of the Constitution and Islamic law.
Common sense tells us to believe what we see and not what we don’t, no matter how loud the propaganda is.
We hear many things on television; television says many things. But must we believe everything it says?
For years now, we no longer believe the words of the state media. Even the country’s second-in-command, the President, refers to the media as the “personal outlet” (a play on the Persian term for national media). Doesn’t he?
He is the President of the country, not an anti-revolutionary. He must know something to make such a statement.
Let me translate the President’s words into simple terms:
The “personal outlet” means a media outlet that speaks at the will of the Leader and the Revolutionary Guards.
Let me ask you directly: Does the state media speak at the will of the people, or your will?
We are living in strange times.
America claims that ISIS was created by Iran and destroyed by America.
Iran claims that ISIS was created by America and destroyed by the Revolutionary Guards.
Logic dictates that we should not believe any claim without investigation. It is our right to research and verify.
There was a time when we accepted your words without question. That was before the mass executions of thousands of political prisoners. Before the bombing of Imam Reza’s shrine. Before the chain murders. Before the events of Ashura in 2009 were misrepresented to the people. Before innocent people were killed during street protests. Before acid was thrown on the faces of defenseless women in the streets.
But now, we investigate with diligence and arrive at strange conclusions. God is truly great!
Dear Ayatollah Khamenei, you may be deeply angered that I am questioning your victories in Syria.
But what is wrong with me questioning your claims, and you answering my questions? You could provide explanations that convince both me and the public.
In my opinion, it would have been more appropriate, regarding the defeat of ISIS, to prove first—before holding celebrations and launching widespread propaganda—that in Syria, you fought exclusively against ISIS. Because some believe that in Syria, you fought primarily to protect Bashar al-Assad and his regime. And it so happens that some of those you fought against were themselves battling ISIS on other fronts and had no ideological alignment with ISIS whatsoever.
Dear Leader,
I sincerely thank you in advance for carefully reading this letter and for responding with even greater care, and for not sending me back to solitary confinement for writing it. I have only recently been released after being imprisoned for my previous letters.
May God reward you with goodness.
Mohammad Mahdavifar
Deminer and Diver of the Sacred Defense
2nd Azar 1396 [November 23, 2017]