TEHRAN -- Iranians flocked to the southeastern province of Kerman on Thursday to pay homage to General Qassem Soleimani as hundreds of thousands participated in ceremonies to mark the fifth anniversary of his martyrdom.
General Soleimani’s hometown and burial site hosted a deluge of the legendary commander’s lovers and followers from all walks of life and various social strata in a cold snowy weather.
“In an era when warfare relies on weapons, the mass of bombs, and the number of piles of dead, he became known as the ‘Commander of Hearts’ because great commanders are not the conquerors of geographically known lands; they are the conquerors of hearts, and that is why their conquests remain forever,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei wrote on X.
“On the anniversary of the martyrdom of the brave commander of Islam, the pride of the resistance, the soldier of the homeland, and the great hero in the fight against terrorism, Hajj Qassem Soleimani, we honor his memory and salute the souls of all the martyrs who defended the Iranian nation and resisted aggression, terrorism, and occupation,” he added. 
General Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the second-in-command of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), and their companions were assassinated in a U.S. drone strike at Baghdad airport on January 3, 2020.
Both commanders were highly revered across West Asia because of their key role in fighting the Daesh terrorists in the region, particularly in Iraq and Syria.
Addressing a ceremony Tehran, chairman of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) Falih al-Fayyadh praised Gen. Soleimani’s key role in defeating Daesh.
“Our victories were due to the support of the Islamic Republic of Iran, especially Martyr Soleimani,” he said.
“We are commemorating the martyrdom of those, who sacrificed their lives for the sake of Iraq’s sovereignty and unity, and notched up an outstanding victory.”

President Masoud Pezeshkian said the Islamic Republic will continue the path paved by Gen. Soleimani with all its power.
“We will stand for the truth and stay on this path with strength, where we will rub the nose of the cowards to the ground,” Pezeshkian told the same ceremony. 
“We pledge that we will continue the path of Martyr Soleimani with strength and stand against oppression as long as we live,” he added.  
Gen. Soleimani, the president said, shamed the oppressors with his blood.
“Such a person should have been martyred and showed that America, Israel and Europe, who falsely claim to support humanity and human rights, are liars.
“They are in fact the enemies of humanity. You can see how barbaric they are and what crimes they are committing,” he added.
Pezeshkian said the whole goal and effort of Gen. Soleimani was unity and cohesion of the Islamic Ummah.
The top commander, the president said, did not know day and night wherever he was needed to defend the oppressed irrespective of their religion whether in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Afghanistan or elsewhere.  
The president touched on the enemies’ efforts to create divisions in Iran with the help of some anti-revolutionary elements and carry out their conspiracies in the country.
“We must try and not let their conspiracies and sinister plans come to fruition and this will be possible with the help of all dear Iranians,” he said.
Pezeshkian said the first step for unity is to obey and support the policies of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and then move to solve the problems of the Iranian people.
In Sana’a, Ansarullah chief Adul-Malik al-Houthi said Gen. Soleimani played a unique role in supporting the Palestinian people and their resistance front. 
“The U.S. targeted Hajj Qassem Soleimani as he was a significant obstacle to the success of many of its conspiracies.
“Martyr Haj Qassem Soleimani and his Iraqi companion, Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis, had distinguished and vital roles in confronting Israeli and American conspiracies,” the Ansarullah chief said.