Thousands of Iranian people have flocked to the southeastern province of Kerman to pay homage to top anti-terror commander General Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated along with a number of his companions in a 2020 US drone strike in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad.
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 on Wednesday on his fourth martyrdom anniversary.
Kerman’s authorities said 1,300 distinguished experts and lecturers are to narrate the sacrifices of General Soleimani on the sidelines of his martyrdom anniversary, announcing the convention of 13 discussion forums as well as printing 1,000 volumes of books revolving around his character and school of thought.
The provincial officials also predicted a 30-percent increase in the number of pilgrims and visitors to General Soleimani’s burial site compared to last year.
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 US drone strike authorized by then-US President Donald Trump near Baghdad International Airport on January 3, 2020.
Both commanders were highly revered across the Middle East because of their key role in fighting the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in the region, particularly in Iraq and Syria.
In less than a week after the attack, Iraqi lawmakers approved a bill that required the government to expel all US-led foreign forces from the country.
The IRGC also 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.
