Tehran, Jan 6, IRNA � Since assuming office as the Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei has frequently visited the families of Iranian martyrs. While the majority of the meetings were with the families of Muslim martyrs, many of such visits were to the homes of Christian martyrs.


As two major religious minorities in Iran, Armenians and Assyrians were among Revolutionary demonstrators who toppled the shah and also fought courageously against the army of the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein during eight years of Sacred Defense (1980-88 Iraqi-imposed war) in defense of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mehr News Agency wrote.

About a year ago, a book titled as 'Christ in the Night of Glory' was published in Iran to narrate the meetings of Ayatollah Khamenei with families of Christian martyrs. The book covers visits by Ayatollah Khamenei since 1984 when he was the president until early 2011. The interesting point about the meetings is their surprising nature and the reaction of the hosts when they realize that the Leader will visit them in few minutes.

Each story begins with a short introduction of the martyr and then comes to the visit itself and the conversations between the Leader of the Islamic Revolution and the martyrs' families. This narrative actually makes the book more interesting and makes it a must-read.

Now, almost a year after its publication, at Christmas and New Year, and after a recent visit by Leader of the Islamic Revolution to the home of an Assyrian martyr, the English translation of the book has been published.

'We cannot describe the incredible atmosphere of these intimate, affectionate, kind and emotional meetings in a few words; one must read them all. We may, however, say that the readers often find, when reading them, their eyes filled with tears which are not tears of pity but of human love, admiration, empathy and appreciation,' said the English translator of the book Fazlollah Nikayin.

'The other outstanding feature of these meetings is that most often the grief-stricken atmosphere in the house gradually changes and the bereaved family, especially the mothers of the martyrs, are really consoled and feel a greater pride for their sons who fought and died for a patriotic, rightful cause.'

According to the publisher, the English translation of the original Persian will be sent to Armenia, Lebanon, Europe and the USA for Armenians and Assyrians who have lived in Iran since ancient times.

By IRNA