TEHRAN -- Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei on Sunday lauded sacrifices made by General Qassem Soleimani, saying the late anti-terror icon’s great work was to protect, empower, equip and revive the resistance front against the occupying regime of Israel and the U.S.
Ayatollah Khamenei met General Soleimani’s family and members of the Headquarters for Commemoration of the Martyrdom of General Soleimani on his third martyrdom anniversary here.
The Leader said breathing a new lease of life into the resistance front was a very outstanding work done by Martyr Soleimani.
“By strengthening the physical, spiritual, and mental aspects of the resistance, the general preserved, equipped, and revived this eternal, growing phenomenon against the Zionist regime, U.S. influence, and other arrogant countries,” he said.
The Leader touched on Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah’s testimony about Gen. Soleimani’s struggles, saying it can help understand the importance of the legendary commander’s role in reviving the resistance.
He also touched the progress which the Palestinians have made in facing the Zionists and the achievements of the resistance in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
“General Soleimani used the experience that he had attained during the Sacred Defense as well as the advice of his comrades to strengthen the resistance by relying on the internal capacities of these same countries,” the Leader said, referring to the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s war on Iran in the 1980s.
The Leader also praised as one of the important feats of General Soleimani in eliminating the Daesh terrorist group and removing many of its roots, saying, “Martyr Soleimani performed well in that test as well.”
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to some personality traits of General Soleimani, such as valor, faith, responsibility, risk-taking, intelligence and rationality, saying “the sincerity of the Martyr was the best of his qualities, and that is why the Lord made him so highly respected, admired, and honored in this world”.
“At the same time, the reward that he will receive in the hereafter is unfathomable to human minds,” Ayatollah Khamenei added.
The Leader said “one should not speak and act in a way that the characteristics of the commander would sound to be transcendental and unattainable.”
He expressed his gratitude and appreciation to the commander of the IRGC Quds Force, Brigadier General Ismail Qa’ani. “Praise God, the void from the absence of the General [Soleimani] has been filled in many instances.”
The Leader said the resistance movement considers itself as the strategic depth and influence of the Islamic Republic and the wings of Islam, adding it will continue moving in this direction.
Ayatollah Khamenei touched on the huge turnout of the masses for Gen. Soleimani’s funeral, saying it was down to his sincerity.