On August 30, 1981, President Rajaei, Prime Minister Bahonar and several other Iranian officials had convened at the Tehran office of the Iranian prime minister in a meeting of Iran’s Supreme Defense Council when a bomb explosion ripped through the building.
Survivors said an aide, identified as Massoud Kashmiri, had brought a briefcase into the conference room, placed it near the two high-ranking Iranian political figures and then left.
The explosion occurred when one of the victims opened the briefcase. The blast martyred Rajaei, Bahonar and three other members of the Islamic Republican Party.
Subsequent investigations later revealed that Kashmiri was an operative of the terrorist Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO), who had infiltrated the then-prime minister’s office disguised as a state security official.
Every year on August 23, Iran marks the Government Week to commemorate the memory of the late President Rajaei and Prime Minister Bahonar.
In 1986, the MKO members fled Iran to Iraq, where they received support from former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and set up Camp Ashraf, now known as Camp New Iraq, near the Iranian border. They were subsequently relocated to another camp, and are awaiting potential transfer to third countries.
The United States and the European Union (EU) have removed the MKO from their lists of terrorist organizations. The anti-Iran terrorists enjoy freedom of activity in the US and Europe, and even hold meetings with American and EU officials.
Imam Khomeini’s historic message following the martyrdom of Rajai and Bahonar comes as following:
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
The logic of our nation is the logic of believers, the logic of Qur'an:" We are from God, and to Him shall we return". No power can challenge this logic. No one can ever confront a nation who believes in God and who sees return to Him as the ultimate desire. The blind-hearted can never confront one who embraces martyrdom as one does one's dear ones. The blind-hearted people make one mistake; they do not understand Islam, faith and our Muslim nation. They think by assassinating our personalities they can confront this nation. They were blind to notice that whenever we have offered a martyr, our nation's solidarity has been further strengthened.
A nation which has risen up against all bullying powers in the world for the sake of Islam, for the sake of God and for implementation of the Qur'anic rules, cannot be pushed back by assassination. They think the mentality of believers and our rising nation is the same as that of the Westerners and the westoxicated individuals, who think of nothing except worldly gains.
...
While martyrdom of these two honorable men is difficult for me to tolerate, I know that they have joined the Exalted Friend and are in peace. They no longer suffer such difficulties in which we are still embroiled. They have achieved their ultimate goal. From this aspect I congratulate their families and the great Iranian nation who have offered such martyrs. Although their loss is difficult for us to endure, our country and our nation have stood with full force to offer such martyrs. They have no way for retreating and never think of laxity. The blind-hearted ones who have thought that the Islamic Republic would collapse with the absence of a few personalities, they know nothing about Islam, are unaware of faith and indulged in material allurements.
Sahifeh-ye Imam, vol. 15, pp. 115-19
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Government week commemorates the memory of dear martyrs and loyalists of Imam and Islamic Revolution