The Iran Project -�Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations Gholamali Khoshroo emphasized the role of the youth in combating violent extremism on Thursday.

Full text of Khoshroo's remarks addressing a meeting of UN Security Council�on 'the role of the youth in combating violent extremism' follows:

Statement by H.E. Mr. G.�Khoshroo,

Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the I R Iran before the UN Security Council

on the role of the youth in combating violent extremism

23 April 2015

 

in the Name of God, the Compassionate the Merciful

Mr. President,

 

I would like to begin by thanking you for convening this meeting on this very critical issue facing the world and our youth.

Today, the young people are in a�paradoxical situation�in relation to Islam and the West. This critical situation is rooted in two realities that are seemingly contradictory but inherently complementary.�On�the one hand, we witness the expansion of extremism and terrorism which could be observed as much in�some�western capitals as in villages in�some�Islamic countries. On the other hand,�Islamophobia�is spreading across the West and�implanting�hatred and fear in the fabric of the Western society.

Where are the youth in the midst of this conflicting and contradictory situation? Have they given rise to this situation or are they simply�its�victims.�Who are those who have�created this situation and what interest is it to serve? What is the role of the young people in this equation. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, in a message addressed to the youth in the West, called upon them to free themselves from this imposed and destructive�quandary. He added that,

?"Today, modern communication technology has blurred geographical boundaries, you?[the young] must not allow yourselves to be confined within�fabricated�mental walls."

What are these artificial mental walls? They�have their foundations�in destructive ideologies, which have two attributes:
1.�They are tainted with ignorance, superficiality and�fanatic�outlooks,
 
2.�They are also violence-oriented and based on terror and�takfir, i.e., considering"others"�or�those who are different as apostates.
Those centers that propagate these ideologies, falsely under the name of Islam, and spend billions of dollars�to spread them�through satellite TVs and social�and traditional�media�are fueling the spread of�ignorance�and�violence. They specifically prey on the youth and�link�them�to�their networks of extremism and terrorism.

Today's�world witnesses a�nefarious�show of violence in the Middle East and North Africa. If those behind this show are not confronted, the danger they create can increase exponentially and leads�to�the most threatening global�security�crisis.

It seems that this process has given rise to�islamophobia�in the West. However,�the�financial, political and cultural centers of these hatemongering and�takfiri�ideologies are indeed allied to�the bases of�might�and�money�in the�West. Such power centers�use global media to target Islam and try to depict it as biggest threat,�and�emphasize the inevitability of the bloody conflict between Islam and the West.

Neither these ideologies, nor global terrorists and�nor�fear-mongering media�represent Islam. They, all,�lie at the core of�Islamophobia�and the�acts that target�the Muslims.

In the message of Iran's Supreme Leader,�the youth are called upon to stay aloof from this�unjustified�crisis and�to�distance themselves in a�savvy and clear-sighted way from the ideologies based on ignorance and�violence.�Islam is the religion of compassion and�wisdom, and the way its Prophet lived�demonstrates�the peaceful way of life, imbued with wisdom and empathy, that it recommends to all.

The�earnest�young people who seek truth should break mental barriers raised by�both�Islamophobia�and�Takfiri�ideologies�and set a new path in the interaction between Islam and the West. Thanks to these young people, the relation between Islam and the West�will be based on constructive interaction, mutual respect and fairness. And this is exactly what the Islamic Republic of Iran is looking for in terms of global cooperation to combat extremism and violence.

Mr. President,

Iranians, and especially young Iranians, have been of the most immune when it comes to the propaganda and recruitment of violent extremists; which is a matter of pride to us. I would like to take this opportunity to once again reaffirm Iran's unquestionable commitment to combating violent extremism especially in the context of our fight against the most dangerous of terrorist groups in our region such as Al-Qaeda and�Daesh�and other similar groups that have also been the most successful in preying upon the young all over the world.

Finally, President Hassan�Rouhani�of Iran introduced a comprehensive agenda for a World Against Violent Extremism that was adopted by the General Assembly at its 68th session. This agenda provides a path to combat violent extremism and empower young people around the world and its importance has never been more clear.

Thank you Mr. President.