Hawzah News Agency (Tehran, Iran) -Here are some excerpts from Ayatollah Khamenei's remarks regarding the 11th Shia Imam, Hassan al-Askari (AS):
These days belong to Imam Hassan al-Askari (A.S.), who can be the role model for all believers, especially for young people. Everybody including his supporters, Shia Muslims, his opponents, those who do not believe in him and everybody else has acknowledged his virtues, his knowledge, his piety, his purity, his infallibility, his courage against his enemies, and his patience and steadfastness in the face of hardships.
When this great man was martyred, he was only 28 years old. In the glorious history of Shia Islam, there is no shortage of such people. With all those virtues and spiritual characteristics, the father of our dear Imam of the Age was only 28 years old when he was poisoned by his enemies. He is a role model: the youth feel that they have a perfect role model in front of their eyes. Imam Muhammad al-Jawad (AS) was martyred when he was 25 and Imam Hassan al-Askari (AS) was martyred when he was 28 years old.
We are not the only ones who believe in their virtues and greatness, rather their virtues have been acknowledged even by their enemies and those did not believe in their imamate.
Ayatollah Khamenei, February 29, 2012