TEHRAN-Cuba defends Palestine and its cause and ultimately resistance will be victorious for sure, said the ambassador of Cuba in Lisbon María Domíguez at the unveiling ceremony of the Portuguese translation of the memoirs of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei “Cell No. 14” on Friday.

“After being colonized by Spain, Cuba was able to conquer it, but it was captured again by the US. Our people decided to determine their system of governance just as the Iranian people did during the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Resistance has been ingrained among our people and we understand this issue very well,” Domíguez added.

She was speaking at the ceremony that was attended by a group of dignitaries, media figures, and Portuguese and Iranian researchers, as well as several ambassadors and businessmen of foreign countries residing in Lisbon, Mehr reported.

Also speaking at the event, Iran’s ambassador to Portugal Majid Tafreshi said: “This book is themed around the subject of resistance. Many nations, such as Cuba, Algeria, and South Africa, whose ambassadors are present here, have achieved their goals through resistance. Similarly, the memoirs of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution show that the Iranian Revolution attained victory alongside resistance.”

Shakib Rashid, the ambassador of Algeria in Lisbon, was another speaker at the ceremony. “Algeria was occupied from 1830 to 1962 and had more than 1.5 million martyrs. We understand the Palestinian situation very well. Our young generation in Algeria has been raised within a cultural environment of resistance and we believe that Palestine will be victorious,” he noted.

Referring to the importance of the concept of resistance for South African people, Mmamokwena Gaoretelelwe, the ambassador of South Africa in Lisbon, said: “What is happening to the Palestinian people today is understandable for us Africans. After Mandela was released from prison, our country gained victory. As mentioned in Ayatollah Khamenei’s book, the Iranian Revolution also won after the nation demonstrated resilience and endured great suffering. We are sure victory is certain for the Palestinian people as well.”

Palestinian ambassador to Lisbon Nabil Abu Zneid also spoke during the ceremony. “In 1979, after the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini decided to reopen the Palestinian embassy in Tehran in the presence of Yasser Arafat. It was a really important issue for the Palestinians and the people of South Africa. I was in Washington at the time where I had joined the protests in support of the South African people.”

Touching upon the situation in Gaza, he called for the resistance of the international community against the coercion of the great powers.

Pointing to resistance as the main concept of Ayatollah Khamenei’s book, Vice President of the Intl. Affairs of the Islamic Revolution Research and Cultural Institute Mohammad Akhgari said: “This book depicts the history of the Iranian people's resistance to achieve victory. Today, after 50 years, we are still witnessing the killing of Palestinians. However, victory comes with patience and resistance of the Palestinians.”

The charge d'affaires of the embassies of Venezuela, Russia, China, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq were also present at the ceremony.

The autobiography book “Cell No. 14” focuses on the first half of the life of Ayatollah Khamenei, from his early childhood to the 1979 Islamic Revolution that brought the monarchical regime to an end in Iran.

Caption: Cuban ambassador to Portugal María Domíguez speaks at the book unveiling ceremony in Lisbon on December 15.

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