Jump to content

Ali Sayyad Shirazi

Add links
From wikishia
Ali Sayyad Shirazi
Full NameAli Sayyad Shirazi
Religious AffiliationTwelver Shi'a
Birth13 June 1944
Place of BirthMashhad
Place of ResidenceTehran, Iran
Martyrdom10 April 1999
Cause of Martyrdomassassinated
Burial PlaceTehran, Plot 29 of Behesht-e Zahra
Notable rolesCommander of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army during the Iran-Iraq war ● Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces ● Commander of the Ground Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army ● Member of the Supreme Defense Council ● Deputy for Inspection of the General Staff of the Armed Forces.
ActivitiesEffective role in Operation Mersad, operations against communist separatist groups and counter-revolutionaries in Kermanshah province


ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzi (1944–1999) was a military commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran who commanded Operation Mersad (Forough Javidan) in 1988. In 1981, he was appointed by Imam Khomeini as the Commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army Ground Forces.

Subsequently, he was appointed by Imam Khomeini as the Representative of the Leadership in the Supreme Defense Council.

Introduction

Ali Sayyad Shirazi, a military commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran, was born on 13 Jun 1944 in the village of Kabud Gonbad, in the Dargaz county of Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran.[1] According to his own account, he spent his primary education mostly in Gorgan and received his diploma in Tehran.[2]

Some of Sayyad Shirazi's characteristics have been described as: piety (taqwa) and sincerity (ikhlas),[3] observance of the rights of public funds (Bayt al-mal), being hardworking,[4] and decision-making power in critical situations.[5] Qasem Soleimani likened Sayyad Shirazi to Malik al-Ashtar in military affairs.[6]

It is said that Sayyad Shirazi had a relationship with Ayatollah Sayyid Rida Baha'uddini, a jurist and ethics teacher, for about 17 years,[7] and Baha'uddini invited others to take Sayyad Shirazi as a role model.[8]

Sayyad Shirazi was assassinated on the morning of 10 April 1999 by armed agents of the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK) disguised as street sweepers, in front of his residential home in Tehran.[9] This operation was carried out a few days after he received the rank of Major General. After his assassination, Sayyad received the rank of Lieutenant General (Sepahbod) and became the second Lieutenant General martyr of the Islamic Republic of Iran.[10] In their statements, the MEK cited his role in neutralizing the operation known as "Forough Javidan" (Operation Mersad) as the most important reason for assassinating Sayyad Shirazi.[11]

Sayyad Shirazi minutes before Operation Mersad
Ayatollah Sayyid Reza Baha'uddini and Martyr Sayyad Shirazi

Responsibilities and Activities

Ali Sayyad Shirazi entered the Officer's College in 1964-65 and graduated three years later in 1967-8 with the rank of Second Lieutenant.[12] According to a report by the Islamic Revolution Document Center, in 1979, Sayyad Shirazi was appointed as the commander of operations in the west of Iran and carried out various operations against communist separatist groups and anti-Revolution forces in Kurdistan province, especially in the cities of Paveh, Marivan, and Sanandaj.[13]

In 1981, he was appointed by Imam Khomeini as the Commander of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army Ground Forces. In this position, he commanded the Iranian Army forces in operations Thamen al-A'imma, Tariq al-Quds, Fath al-Mubin, and Bayt al-Muqaddas.[14]

Some of his actions after the victory of the Islamic Revolution include:

  1. Commanding Operation Mersad (Forough Javidan) on 25 July 1988, in which about 2000 members of the MEK were killed, about 1500 were wounded, 1000 fled, and 150 were captured.[15]
  2. Preparing operational plans that led to breaking the siege of the cities of Sanandaj and the garrisons of Marivan, Baneh, and Saqqez.[16]

From 1986 until the end of his life, Sayyad Shirazi held the following responsibilities:

  • Appointment as a member of the Supreme Defense Council by Imam Khomeini.[17]
  • Deputy for Inspection of the General Staff of the Armed Forces.[18]
  • Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces.[19]

On 17 December 2008, coinciding with 18 Dhu al-Hijja 1429 AH—the day of Eid al-Ghadir—he was promoted to the rank of major general.[20]

Works About Sayyad Shirazi

Sayyad Shirazi's character and life have been the subject of both visual media (films) and written works; a feature film and a documentary have been made about him:

  • Feature Film: Sayyad, directed by Javad Afshar and produced by Mohammad Reza Shafiei. This film depicts a segment of Sayyad Shirazi's life and military activities, using artificial intelligence to combine Sayyad Shirazi's real voice with the voice of Ali Sarabi (the actor playing Sayyad).[21]
  • Documentary: Sayyad, narrates the life of Sayyad Shirazi using archival footage and interviews with Amir Arasteh and other friends of Sayyad Shirazi.[22]

Also, several books have been written about Sayyad Shirazi, a few of which are mentioned below:

  • Dar kamīn-i gul-i surkh (Ambush of the Red Rose): A narrative biography of Martyr Lieutenant General Ali Sayyad Shirazi written by Mohsen Momeni Sharif, published by Sooreh Mehr Publications.[23]
  • Ākharīn gulūleh-yi Ṣayyād (Sayyad's Last Bullet): Davoud Amirian, the author of this book, has recounted several memoirs of Sayyad Shirazi.[24]
  • Nāgufteh-hā-yi Jang (The Unsaid of the War): Written by Ahmad Dehghan in 350 pages, published by Sooreh Mehr. This book contains the memoirs of Ali Sayyad Shirazi during the Iran-Iraq War.[25]

Notes

  1. ↑ "Amir Sepahbod Shahīd ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Khabarguzārī-yi Defāʿ-i Muqaddas.
  2. ↑ "Zindagīnāmeh-yi khūd-nivīsht-i Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Markaz-i Asnād-i Inqilāb-i Islāmī.
  3. ↑ Ḥusayniyā, Ṣayyād-i dilhā, 1388 SH, p. 60.
  4. ↑ Ḥusayniyā, Ṣayyād-i dilhā, 1388 SH, p. 66.
  5. ↑ Ḥusayniyā, Ṣayyād-i dilhā, 1388 SH, p. 82.
  6. ↑ "Tawṣīf-i Ḥāj Qāsim az Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Khabarguzārī-yi Ānā.
  7. ↑ "ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī az nigāh-i dīgarān", Pāygāh-i Iṭṭilāʿ-rasānī-yi Ḥawzah.
  8. ↑ "Rāz-i dunyā wa ākhirat: dars-i zindagī az Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Khabarguzārī-yi Rasmī-yi Ḥawzah.
  9. ↑ "Riwāyatī az zindagī-yi Shahīd Sepahbod ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Khabarguzārī-yi Tasnīm.
  10. ↑ "Amir Sepahbod Shahīd ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Khabarguzārī-yi Defāʿ-i Muqaddas.
  11. ↑ "Chirā munāfiqīn bih dunbāl-i teror-i Ṣayyād būdand?", Khabarguzārī-yi Defāʿ-i Muqaddas.
  12. ↑ "Guzarī bar zindagī wa khāṭirāt-i Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Markaz-i Asnād-i Inqilāb-i Islāmī.
  13. ↑ "Guzarī bar zindagī wa khāṭirāt-i Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Markaz-i Asnād-i Inqilāb-i Islāmī.
  14. ↑ Shaʿbānī-niyā, "Murūrī bar zindagī-yi Shahīd Sepahbod Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Bāshgāh-i Khabarnigārān-i Javān.
  15. ↑ "Guzarī bar zindagī wa khāṭirāt-i Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Markaz-i Asnād-i Inqilāb-i Islāmī.
  16. ↑ Shaʿbānī-niyā, "Murūrī bar zindagī-yi Shahīd Sepahbod Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Bāshgāh-i Khabarnigārān-i Javān.
  17. ↑ "Guzārish-i rukn-i duvvm-i artesh darbāreh-yi Shahīd Sepahbod ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī dar sāl-i 1357", Markaz-i Barrasī-yi Asnād-i Tārīkhī.
  18. ↑ "Guzārish-i rukn-i duvvm-i artesh darbāreh-yi Shahīd Sepahbod ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī dar sāl-i 1357", Markaz-i Barrasī-yi Asnād-i Tārīkhī.
  19. ↑ "Guzārish-i rukn-i duvvm-i artesh darbāreh-yi Shahīd Sepahbod ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī dar sāl-i 1357", Markaz-i Barrasī-yi Asnād-i Tārīkhī.
  20. ↑ "Nigāhī bih zindagī-yi mu'mināneh wa mujāhidāneh-yi Amīr Sepahbod Shahīd ʿAlī Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Markaz-i Barrasī-yi Asnād-i Tārīkhī.
  21. ↑ "Riwāyatī sīnamāyī az zindagī-yi Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī; chirā gulūleh-hā az kināram mīgudharad", Khabarguzārī-yi Mehr.
  22. ↑ "Riwāyat-i zindagī-yi Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī dar mustanad-i 'Ṣayyād'", Bāshgāh-i Khabarnigārān-i Javān.
  23. ↑ "5 kitāb-i khāndanī darbāreh-yi Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Khabarguzārī-yi Tasnīm.
  24. ↑ "5 kitāb-i khāndanī darbāreh-yi Shahīd Ṣayyād Shīrāzī", Khabarguzārī-yi Tasnīm.
  25. ↑ "Nāgufteh-hā-yi Jang", Sooreh Mehr.

References

Retrieved from "https://en.wikishia.net/w/index.php?title=Ali_Sayyad_Shirazi&oldid=200851"