Farewell to 400 Unknown Martyrs

Date: 27 December 2022 - 22:18

News ID: ۱۱۰۶۵۰

TEHRAN -- Tens of thousands of Iranians on Tuesday attended funerals for 400 soldiers martyred in the 1980s war imposed by the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
Caskets with the remains of unidentified martyrs were draped in Iranian flags and carried in mass processions. For many Iranian families, the war’s painful legacy drags on in a continuous waiting for news of loved ones still “missing.”
In January, 250 Iranian martyrs of the 1980-1988 war were buried in similar ceremonies.
In the capital, Tehran, the last farewell on Tuesday honored 200 soldiers whose remains were recently recovered from the former battlefields along the Iraq-Iran border. Funerals were held for another 200 soldiers in other cities and towns across Iran. None of the soldiers have been identified and their remains were to be buried as “unknown martyrs” in mass funerals.
From outside of Tehran University, trucks piled high with the caskets made their way through the streets. Men and women in black thronged the coffins, many weeping for those lost in the war started by launched Hussein and his Ba’ath party in 1980.
Iran and Iraq sporadically exchange remains of soldiers recovered from borderland territory that witnessed major combat in the war.
Iranian national TV said the remains buried Tuesday were of troops martyred in four battlefields, including in two locations inside Iraq. Along with the Iranian flag, many people also carried photographs of legendary Iranian commander General Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated by a U.S. drone strike in January 2020 in Baghdad.
President Ebrahim Raisi and other top officials attended the ceremonies and praised the martyrs, saying they help improve the nation’s sprit.
Speaking at the ceremony, Raisi said efforts by the enemies of the nation — a reference to the U.S. and its allies — have sought to pressure Iran during the

recent riots but have met with failure.

“In recent riots, the arrogance [of the U.S. and its allies] was displayed in all its strength,” said Raisi, but “all pressures against the Islamic Republic were doomed to fail.”

The president hit out at the enemies’ contradictory statements, saying they “send us messages through different channels, voice their readiness to hold negotiations, and say that they have no intention to overthrow” the Islamic Republic.

The president said the recent riots in Iran were a multi-faceted war of different parties, noting that all arrogant movements forcefully participated in the riots and those who were not present spread rumors.

“The recent riots were a war between different parties as foreign-backed royalist elements, hypocrites and arrogant currents played a role in this war.”

The rumor-mongers, Raisi said, wanted to dash the hopes of the Iranian people and mislead the Muslim society, adding Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei’s timely warning foiled the plot.

Raisi said the Iranian nation’s arms remain open to those who were deceived by the enemy during the recent riots, but no mercy will be granted to spiteful insurgents.

The president added that the arrogant groups deceive people with empty slogans and claims about improvement of freedom, but they only bring misery and humiliation to nations.