President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Iranians should live up to the examples set by the late Founder of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. In a Friday ceremony marking the 21st anniversary of Imam Khomeini's passing, Ahmadinejad said Imam Khomeini was "without a doubt the greatest and most influential figure in modern history" and "a true gift for the entire human race at a time when materialism reigned over the world." "Today we should remember [Imam Khomeini] and his path and remind ourselves of his divine characteristics and ... many virtues," said Ahmadinejad in an address to millions who attended the ceremony in Tehran. He said Imam Khomeini's fight against the Western-backed hegemonic monarch of Iran and his cause to establish the justice-based Islamic Republic will be cherished and appreciated for generations to come. "The Imam sought the salvation of all mankind and thus had a wholly global outlook. Development and progress in Iran and also salvation of mankind were both sides of the coin and were closely intertwined in his eyes," Ahmadinejad said. President Ahmadinejad urged the Iranian nation to follow the Imam's path in order to secure a bright future for their country. He said Imam Khomeini was known for his active resistance to tyrannical regimes, particularly Israel, which he saw as "the biggest tool for domineering world people." "He knew from the very beginning that the Israeli regime will one day collapse and take all arrogant powers down with it," he said. Addressing Tel Aviv's allies in the West, Ahmadinejad said the criminal regime of Israel should be scrapped in the exact same manner that it was created more than sixty years ago.