Ayatollah Montazeri was a prominent critic of the 1988 mass executions of political prisoners in Iran. These executions happened ordered by Ayatollah Khomeini’s order and carried out by Iranian officials. According to some estimates, they killed between 2,800 and 5,000 prisoners in at least 32 cities across the country.

The majority of the victims were supporters of the People’s Mujahedin of Iran (MeK). However, other leftist groups were not safe either. The executions were done in secret and without due process, and many consider them to be crimes against humanity. In this audio recording, you can hear Ayatollah Montazeri expressing his strong opposition to the killings and warning the officials involved that they would be held accountable by history and God.

He also called the executions a “great crime” and a “betrayal” tothe Islamic Revolution. Khmeini shortly after this meeting dismissed Montazeri from his position as his designated successor. He continued to speak out against human rights violations in Iran until his death in 2009.

Why Ayatollah Montazeri in Persian Campus?

I chose this audio because of two main reasons: one, it is a historical document about the mass execution that happened in Iran. Two, because Ayatollah Montazeri speaks Persian (also called Farsi) in a simple way but with a little bit of the accent of people in Najaf Abad, Isfahan. I believe it is a good idea you hear Persian language in different dialects and with different sounds. Here he is our subject as an old man speaking Farsi. This can help you to understand Farsi speakers better, whether they are old or young, no matter from which region they are.

Don’t get confused by using both Persian and Farsi as the standard language spoken in Iran. I use it regularly for you to know they are both the same, at least in general terms and references.

Let’s listen and learn Persian language and beyond.

To visit Iranian people and learn about their culture and nature follow THIS LINK.

To learn Persian grammar, here you can find lessons on Persian Grammar.

Are you interested in learning Persian with music, HERE is where you can find many slow Persian songs with their lyrics.

Practice Dubbing the characters in Persian series HERE.

Listen to famous speeches from Iranian political figures, and learn about their mindset and a little bit of history through their talk HERE.

Listen to Persian podcasts in simple Persian HERE