TEHRAN – Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has expressed regret over the obstacles COVID-19 has created for his annual meeting with literati.

In a letter sent to Islamic Ideology Dissemination Organization (IIDO) director Hojjatoleslam Mohammad Qomi, the Leader wrote, “Reducing the pleasant annual meeting to a remote screen gathering, not only fails to calm my eager heart, but also somehow remains as a bitter taste.”

“God’s will is currently that I stay deprived of the delightful meeting,” the leader noted in the letter, which was read by Qomi on Tuesday during a poetry night that replaced the annual meeting.

IIDO Art Bureau, which is the organizer of the meeting, announced on Tuesday that the annual meeting with the Leader would be replaced with a poetry night due to a big rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in the country.

The poetry night named “Visiting the Moon” was held in the courtyard of the Art Bureau in Tehran.

Poets Morteza Amiri Esfandaqeh, Yusefali Mirshakkak, Ali Ensani, Abbas Baratipur, Hadi Saeidi Kiasari, Mohammad-Mehdi Sayyar and Qasem Sarrafan were among the attendees.

The poetry night, which was held with a limited number of poets and literary figures, was broadcast live on IRIB Channel 2.

“We hope the wretched virus misery will come to an end soon, and with God’s help, the meeting with the Leader will be organized as usual in next Ramadan,” the Art Bureau said in its press release.   

The annual meeting of the poets and literati with Ayatollah Khamenei is organized on the eve of the birthday of Imam Hassan (AS) on Ramadan 14. However, the meeting has been canceled over the past two years due the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the meeting, the poets and writers usually recited excerpts of their latest works.

The poetry night “Visiting the Moon” was also held last Ramadan in the courtyard of the Art Bureau.            

Photo: Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei (file photo).

MMS/YAW