A Poet and an Ayatollah have Passed, but Iran, the land of Rumi and Hafez, must Endure

A Poet and an Ayatollah have Passed, but Iran, the land of Rumi and Hafez, must Endure

When they called your name at midnight, In your thoughts, morning blossomed from a blood-stained horizon. The small cells of Evin knew you well, And the corridor, in its blood-soaked memory, Had for years echoed the footsteps of martyrs. Morning passed through you, and dawn opened inside you.                                   -Nemat MirzaZadeh for Said Soltanpour*   Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was assassinated by the Israeli military on the morning o…