The military was crumbling, with its leadership completely paralyzed, unsure of whether to support Bakhtiar or act on their own, and rank-and-file soldiers either demoralized or deserting.
It is a government based on the sharia. Opposing this government means opposing the sharia of Islam … Revolt against God’s government is a revolt against God. Revolt against God is blasphemy. Angered, Bakhtiar made a speech of his own. Reaffirming himself as the legitimate leader, he declared that:Iran has one government. More than this is intolerable, either for me or for you or for any other Iranian. As a Muslim, I had not heard that jihad refers to one Muslim against other Muslims….
I will not give permission to Ayatollah Khomeini to form an interim government. In life there comes a time when one must stand firm and say no…. I have never seen a book about an Islamic republic; neither has anyone else for that matter…. Some of the people surrounding the Ayatollah are like violent vultures….
