"He always sought to revive the resistance": The Leader of the Revolution honored General Soleimani on the eve of the anniversary of his martyrdom.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has praised as “unique” the sacrifices of Iran’s top anti-terror commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated alongside his companions in a 2020 US drone strike near Iraq’s International Airport in Baghdad.
“Martyr Soleimani's constant strategy was to revive the Resistance Front. He always tried to revitalize the resistance,” the Leader said on Wednesday.
Ayatollah Khamenei was speaking at a meeting with a group of families of martyrs, veterans, and resistance activists ahead of General Soleimani's fifth martyrdom anniversary on January 3.
The Leader described the top Iranian commander’s role in the fight against terrorism as “matchless” and said his sacrifices and services “must remain in our political teachings.”
He said defending the holy sites was a “tenet” for Martyr Soleimani, who invariably referenced Iran as a “sacred shrine.”
“If these lives had not been lost, if this struggle had not been fought, and if Hajj Qassem Soleimani had not marched through the mountains and deserts of this region so bravely…, there would be no sign of these holy sites today,” the Leader said.
Ayatollah Khamenei said a very important characteristic of General Soleimani was his assessment of the country's issues with a global perspective and avoiding a closed and limited outlook.
“He believed that every important regional and global incident had an impact on the issues in our country, and with this perspective and assessment, he detected the danger from outside the borders and took action to prevent and remedy it.”
Underlining that the developments in the past few years and defending the holy shrines in Iraq, Syria and across the region prove that the Islamic Revolution is “alive,” Ayatollah Khamenei promised that “the truth front” will definitely emerge victorious.
“The defenders of shrines showed that despite the hefty investments and expenses of ill-wishers, the flag of resistance is still flying high and the enemy has not been able to and will not be able to pull down the flag of resistance in Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, and Iran,” he said.
“Lebanon is a symbol of resistance, it will be victorious, [and] Yemen is a symbol of resistance, it will be victorious.”
Touching on Syria, the Leader emphasized that the American bases in the Arab country would be trampled upon under the feet of Syrian youth.
“Syria belongs to the Syrian people, and those who invade Syrian territory will undoubtedly one day be forced to retreat in the face of the power of the valiant Syrian youth,” he noted.
The United States assassinated General Soleimani, former commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units, in a drone strike near Baghdad International Airport on January 3, 2020.
Both commanders were admired by Muslim nations for eliminating the US-sponsored Daesh terrorist group in the region, particularly in Iraq and Syria.
The US assassination drew a wave of condemnation from officials and movements throughout the world and triggered huge public protests across the region, with Iraqi lawmakers approving a bill two days after the attack demanding the withdrawal of all foreign military forces led by the United States from the country.
On January 8, 2020, the IRGC targeted the US-run Ain al-Asad base in Iraq’s western province of Anbar with a wave of missile attacks in retaliation for the assassination of General Soleimani. According to the Pentagon, more than 100 American forces suffered “traumatic brain injuries” during the counterstrike on the base.
The IRGC, however, says Washington uses the term to mask the number of Americans killed during the retaliation. Iran has described the missile attack on Ain al-Assad as a “first slap.”
Press TV’s website
