News - Middle East: Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has lauded sacrifices made by late General Qassem Soleimani, saying the anti-terror icon’s great work was to protect, empower, equip and revive the resistance front against Israel and the US.

Sayyed Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting on Sunday with General Soleimani’s family and members of the Headquarters for Commemoration of the Martyrdom of General Soleimani for his third martyrdom anniversary.

The Leader said breathing a new spirit 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, US influence [in the region], and other arrogant countries,” he said.

Pointing to the progress made by Palestinians in facing the Zionists and the achievements of the resistance in Iraq, Syria and Yemen, Sayyed Ayatollah Khamenei said, “General Soleimani used the experience that he had attained during the period of the Holy 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 also praised as one of the important feats of General Soleimani the elimination of the Takfiri 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 superior to all these qualities and this is why God designated him such a place of reverence and acclamation in this world.”

Sayyed Khamenei also emphasized that “one should not speak and act in a way that the characteristics of the commander sound to be transcendental and unattainable.”

He then lauded Brigadier General Esmail Qa’ani, the commander of the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), and said, “The General’s void has been filled in many cases.”

“The resistance groups consider themselves as the strategic depth of the Islamic Republic and the wings of Islam, and the movement will continue in the same direction,” Ayatollah Khamenei noted.

The United States assassinated General Soleimani, former commander of the IRGC Quds Force, 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.”