Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari said on Monday that the highest military order of Iran was awarded to Commander of IRGC’s Quds Force Major General Qassem Soleimani because of his efforts in supporting the Resistance Front, fighting American-Zionist terrorism, and ensuring the security of Iran. RNA - General Jafari cabled a congratulatory message to Major General Qassem Soleimani on the occasion of receiving Zulfaqar Order.
Jafari extended congratulations to the IRGC Quds Force's Commander for receiving Iran’s highest military order, called Zulfaqar Order, from the Islamic Revolution Leader.
IRGC’s first-in-command went on to say that this award is the result of Soleimani and IRGC’s “great, strategic, and decisive” efforts in supporting the Resistance Front, fighting American-Zionist terrorism, and ensuring the security of Iran.
This order is an honor for the family of the IRGC and will be a source of inspiration for future missions of the force, he added.
General Soleimani is the first Iranian military official to receive the Order of Zulfaqar after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
After the Order of Zulfaqar, the Order of Conquest is the highest military order, which General Soleimani had already received three times.
Last week, Foreign Policy, in its 10th annual special edition of Global Thinkers, named Iran’s renowned commander as the world’s best strategist in the field of defense and security.
It placed General Soleimani on top of the list of the most influential people in the defense and security sector, followed by German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen.
The magazine wrote, “Qassem Soleimani has led Iran’s military efforts for two decades now, but his role has never been larger than it is today. Soleimani’s fingerprints are everywhere that Iran is active.”
According to Fars News Agancy, he has also become the public face of Iran’s response to the US President Donald Trump’s threats. “We are near you, where you can’t even imagine,” General Soleimani warned in July 2018. “We are ready.”
Earlier in mid-September, Armenian member of the Iranian Parliament Karen Khanlari lauded General Soleimani for his efforts in fighting against the terrorist groups and saving the lives of the Armenian and Assyrian people in Syria.
"I should thank General Qassem Soleimeni and other military forces who are present in Syria at the demand of the country's government to establish security. They could keep away the Syrian Armenians and Assyrians in many conditions from massacre and serious harms," Khanlari said.
He added that the Armenians mostly live in Aleppo region in Syria which was occupied by the ISIL and al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) and they were under high pressures and many of them were killed by the terrorists, noting that in several cases, the Iranian military advisors in Syria have saved them from the danger of death posed by the terrorists.
847/940