The international memorial event "Candle of Memory", being held for the seventeenth time, took place at Moscow's Cathedral Mosque on June 21, on the eve of the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow.

Representatives from the All-Russian organization "Officers of Russia", the Interstate Union of Hero Cities, law enforcement agencies and search teams, participants of the special military operation and veterans of other combat missions arrived at the main Muslim temple of the capital.

On behalf of Russia's Muslim spiritual leader, Grand Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gaynutdin, the guests were welcomed by Damir Gizatullin, Chairman of the Council of Elders of the Religious Board of Muslims of Russia (RBM), and Rais Bilyalov, Imam-Khatib of Moscow Cathedral Mosque.

Before the main part of the event, Damir Gizatullin presented an exhibition on the mosque grounds to the honorary delegation, dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory, the support of the Motherland by Muslim religious organizations during the Great Patriotic War and today - during the special military operation. The Chairman of the Council of Elders specifically drew the officers' attention to the "Hajj Karim" program, which enabled participants of the special military operation and their family members to perform the major pilgrimage to Islam's holy lands in Saudi Arabia.

"We have gathered on the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow. This event remains in the memory of every resident of the Soviet Union, because there was not a single family that didn't send fathers, children, brothers, and sometimes sisters to the front. The Great Victory was achieved at the cost of incredible hardships. And today, a new generation of Russians lives in a prosperous country and pays tribute to their ancestors," Damir Gizatullin addressed the participants of "Candle of Memory" in the main prayer hall of Moscow Cathedral Mosque. He then invited Imam-Khatib Rais Bilyalov to offer prayers for the heroes.

"We remember those who are alive today - may the Almighty strengthen them and grant them long life. We also pray for those who have returned to the Almighty - and our Creator is One - who returned while defending their Homeland, so that the Almighty may grant them Gardens of Piety, Gardens of Paradise. Now we will read a prayer and, glorifying the Almighty, ask for His support for the living and those who have returned to Him," said Rais Bilyalov before offering the supplication.

Participants of "Candle of Memory" came to Moscow Cathedral Mosque from the Russian Orthodox Church's Yelokhovo Cathedral. At the mosque, Lieutenant General Alexander Mikhailov, Head of the Central Executive Committee of "Officers of Russia", also addressed the gathering:

"Today, as I held a candle, I thought about the transience of human life. A wick is lit - then extinguished. 27 million such wicks were extinguished in the Great Patriotic War. But even one was enough to ignite the flame of Victory and reduce Hitler's fascism to ashes. But apparently, some embers remain that are being fanned into a Nazi threat again. Today our boys are fighting, and I think every candle we held in our hands will warm their souls at least a little and prolong their days so they return to their families, return with victory."

Sergey Lipovoy, Chairman of the Presidium of "Officers of Russia" and Hero of Russia, spoke about the strength of unity of Soviet and Russian peoples in the prayer hall of the country's main Muslim temple:

"In the last century, we won the bloodiest war not because we were brave guys, but because our entire international family united. All our religions became a single monolith. And today we are here with our friends, our like-minded people. In one trench, in one crew, in one tank there were Christians, Muslims, and Buddhists. All those who cherished our country, our Homeland. Today we are united again and strong in spirit. This spirit rises here in the Cathedral Mosque, rises in Orthodox and Buddhist temples. This has been, is, and will be the guarantee of our victory."

Other speakers at the memorial event included Gennady Bashtanyuk, Chairman of the Council of Domestic Producers in Defense and Security, Hero of Socialist Labor, and Alexey Tkachev, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Union of Hero Cities.

After visiting Moscow Cathedral Mosque, the "Candle of Memory" delegation proceeded to the Memorial Synagogue at Poklonnaya Hill.

Press Service of the Religious Board of Muslims of the Russian Federation