“>بسم الله الرحمن الرحیم
I thank the Science and Research “Ibn Sina” Institute in Sarajevo for inviting me to part-take in the anniversary commemoration of General Qasem Soleimani’s shahada. There is no doubt that he ought to consider shahid Soleimani an elevated symbol of national and religious hero; a myth of battle against injustice and violence; a bright example of liberty in our contemporary world.
If we in the south of our country had shahid Reisali Dalaveri, while in the north Mirza Kuchik Khan, which for our country represent the symbol of battle against arrogance, then shahid Hajji Qasem Soleimani represents the continuation of this path, and not just the regional but the world symbol of battle.
Love which he enjoyed, and we witnessed it on the day of his funeral which was attended by various social strata, the old and the young, university and religious circles, or as it would be said today, civil and religious classes, it all shows that General Soleimani spent his life fighting for ideals, and at the same time paying attention to his individual behaviour.
We can observe his characteristics through three aspects; individual, national and international. When we consider individual features, in my own views, in him were encompassed all those virtues which is described by our national Islamic culture and spirituality, as knighthood, courage, generosity, firm steps. At the pinnacle of his priorities was anti-violence and helping the downtrodden, and nowhere is it stated in the Holy Qur’an that this relates solely to the downtrodden in Iran or solely on the Muslims, whereas shahid Soleimani, indeed, also shared such views and acted on the basis of this religious principle.
The second thing which has to be mentioned is the modesty which she showed towards people. After his shahada we say that he wanted to have on his tombstone engraved the words “Soldier, Qasem Soleimani”. He showed the same modesty in his private life. When we address the commanding aspect, he realistically viewed things; the represented the union of idealism and pragmatism. What is particularly important to mention is that he was prone to advice and he would accept public opinions.
When we speak of national features of shahid Soleimani, firstly it should be said that he can be considered the full example of the Prophet’s words that “Love towards one’s country is the part of iman”. Shahid Soleimani never separated his love for Iran from the love for the Islamic Revolution and he thought that the two are equally fulfilling each other. He was firm in the defence of his country, the rights and the security of the people. From the period of the holy defence – when he was 20 years of age – all the way to his death, he was following this path and the people trusted him.
He acted as a soldier unburdened by politics. The second thing which should be stressed is that he considered unity as the basis of victory, and every divergence or separation as the prerequisite of defeat.
When we address the international sphere, I will say that – in my own opinion – the most vivid of qualities of shahid Soleimani was that he was at the same time one of the thinking diplomats, an intelligent man, who thought strategically, and one authoritative commander in the military field. There are a few soldiers which encompass these two aspects. In the end we saw that the assassination order was issued by a ruthless person who breaks treaties and who loathed within the international community, and that is the president of America.
When we mention the military thought of shahid Soleimani, he held that defensive approach which can be seen in the elevated faith of Islam and within the codex of the Islamic Prophet and Ali, emirs the righteous, and from the aspect of the international law, it is very important that such a defensive approach dominates over the aggressive approach. The axis of his work was to halt every form of domination and aggression on our beloved country and the Islamic Revolution.
It was only Soleimani who turned the scales of dominance in the region and in the Islamic world, and likewise, shahid Soleimani broke the dominance of terrorism over the regional people and the big threat of setting up a terrorist government in the region, in Islamic countries. If we consider these two factors, because DAEISH is the product of the hierarchy of dominance which supported it, then shahid Soleimani is the one who brought forth the defeat of the international dominance of hierarchy in our region.
In the end, I will consider the following. The shahada of General Soleimani and the representation of cowardice because it did not happen on the battlefield and during a battle, but he entered as the high official, on the territories of another country, at midnight, on a travelling airport, alongside other passengers, and nothing was hidden, yet the killed him with a long-reaching weapon, that is, by using a drone and a helicopter.
In the end, shahid Soleimani left this world, and Dear God has for his untiring battle awarded him with shahada. As I said, the ideals for which shahid Soleimani fought and the pathway which he followed are much more important than his physical importance. The Iranian Parliament and the people of this country asked for the departure of the American military forces out of the country, and in the future we will see the benevolence of this blood spilt. If God bid it, shahid Soleimani will be in the company of his sejjid and leader, Aba Abdullah Hussein.
Waalaikumsalam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.