On the fourth anniversary of his assassination in Damascus, al-Akhbar meets Iranians who worked with the man who spent 25 years building Hizbullah into a formidable resistance force.
Eyes take on the colors of the setting sun on a wintry day. Their redness holds back tears that well up at the memory of the fallen friend whose assassination has yet to be avenged. There is heartfelt affection in Iran for the man whose over 25 years of joint struggle earned him the confidence of the "Imam Leader" and the respect of Iran's generals and military.
A strong desire to share stories about the legendary commander is tempered by fear of inadvertently revealing secrets and putting lives in danger. Yet the Iranian officials who got to know Imad Mughniyeh believe he is owed his due in this world, just as they hope he is rewarded in the next.
Iran's relationship with "Hajj Imad" was no brief affair. The Islamic Republic had denied that until the day he was martyred where it paid tribute to the fallen leader at his funeral. The Iranian delegation was led by Ali Akbar Velayati, representative of the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and by then Foreign Minister Manushehr Mottaki on behalf of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. A symbolic tombstone was also erected at Behesht-e-Zahra, graveyard of Iran's own martyrs in Tehran.
Mughniyeh's connection to Iran began with the outbreak of the revolution in 1979. He was a frequent visitor to the Islamic Republic and became a fluent Farsi speaker, acquiring a distinct Tehrani accent, according to those Iranians who met him.
One Iranian official who knew Mughniyeh from the early 1980s onwards was struck by his religious faith and personal modesty..... click the link for continue:
http://abna.co/data.asp?lang=3&id=297245
Eyes take on the colors of the setting sun on a wintry day. Their redness holds back tears that well up at the memory of the fallen friend whose assassination has yet to be avenged. There is heartfelt affection in Iran for the man whose over 25 years of joint struggle earned him the confidence of the "Imam Leader" and the respect of Iran's generals and military.
A strong desire to share stories about the legendary commander is tempered by fear of inadvertently revealing secrets and putting lives in danger. Yet the Iranian officials who got to know Imad Mughniyeh believe he is owed his due in this world, just as they hope he is rewarded in the next.
Iran's relationship with "Hajj Imad" was no brief affair. The Islamic Republic had denied that until the day he was martyred where it paid tribute to the fallen leader at his funeral. The Iranian delegation was led by Ali Akbar Velayati, representative of the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and by then Foreign Minister Manushehr Mottaki on behalf of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. A symbolic tombstone was also erected at Behesht-e-Zahra, graveyard of Iran's own martyrs in Tehran.
Mughniyeh's connection to Iran began with the outbreak of the revolution in 1979. He was a frequent visitor to the Islamic Republic and became a fluent Farsi speaker, acquiring a distinct Tehrani accent, according to those Iranians who met him.
One Iranian official who knew Mughniyeh from the early 1980s onwards was struck by his religious faith and personal modesty..... click the link for continue:
http://abna.co/data.asp?lang=3&id=297245
