Top IRGC commander hails resistance for withdrawing enemies’ from Islamic lands

Major General Hossein Salami made the remarks at an event on Wednesday commemorating the 41st anniversary of the liberation of the southwestern city of Khorramshahr during Iraq's war of aggression against Iran in the 1980s, which falls on the 3rd of Khordad in the solar calendar.

"Today is the anniversary of a momentous event in the history of our country after the 1979 Revolution, which returned Khorramshahr to dear Iran, and the third of Khordad was one of the most auspicious days of this nation," Salami said.

Emphasizing that what happened during Iraq's imposed war cannot be forgotten, the IRGC chief said, "If a nation does not defend its identity, independence and culture, it will be erased from history forever and will be captured, humiliated, surrendered and left destitute."

Salami added that such a country would lag behind in history and its identity would be lost.

The IRGC’s first-in-command underlined the high value of martyrdom and struggle against enemies among Muslim countries, saying, "In Yemen and Lebanon, they say that we are standing with the support of young people, and the same spirit exists in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and Pakistan."

"Today, we see the effects of that struggle and martyrdom with the enemy's withdrawal from the Islamic lands and the despair of the Zionists and the failure of the US," he added.

Iranian forces recaptured the strategic port city Khorramshahr during a landmark operation code-named Beit ol-Moqaddas in 1982, putting an end to over 500 days of the Iraqi occupation.

During the weeks-long operation, some 6,000 Iranian soldiers were martyred and nearly 24,000 others injured.

Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein launched the war with the support of major powers and their allies in the region in 1980, a year after the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

The war ended in August 1988, when Iran accepted UN Security Council Resolution 598 which declared Saddam as the initiator of the conflict.