Thousands turned out in Iran on Thursday for ceremonies to mark five years since the assassination of Qassem Suleimani, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force, who died along with eight others in a US drone attack in Baghdad.
The displays of remembrance come as Iran’s influence in the Middle East wanes, with its self-proclaimed Axis of Resistance – a coalition of anti-Israel militias organised for years by Maj Gen Suleimani – reeling from military confrontations with Israel on several fronts.
Shortly after midnight on January 3, 2020, Maj Gen Suleimani arrived at Baghdad airport from Syria. He was received by Abu Mahdi Al Muhandis, at the time an influential militia leader in Iraq and deputy head of its Popular Mobilisation Forces, which is mainly made up of Iran-backed militias.
As the two men and seven aides drove away from the airport, two missiles were fired from drones. One hit the entourage's vehicle, while the other missed its target. A third missile followed, striking the speeding car carrying the two leaders. Both were killed.
State-run media on Thursday aired footage showing thousands of mourners flocking to Saheb Al Zaman mosque in Kerman, central Iran, where the commander is buried. Some held pictures of Maj Gen Suleimani and his aides, while utility poles on streetsides were decorated with Iranian flags.
In Tehran, demonstrators chanted: "Down with America" and "Down with Israel" as they held up photographs of the general.
Attending the rally at the capital's Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla mosque, President Masoud Pezeshkian vowed to "neutralise the enemy's sinister schemes to create discord among Muslims".
"We will stand on the side of the truth. We will continue on the path of martyr Suleimani with strength and defeat these cowards," Mr Pezeshkian told the crowd.
On Wednesday, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addressed a gathering that included relatives of Maj Gen Suleimani, as well as those of his late aides and people killed last January in a suicide attack on a memorial for the commander in Kerman, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency.
Mr Khamenei also received survivors of attacks carried out by Israel in Lebanon last year, during which booby-trapped pager devices killed several militants from the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah. Thousands were injured in those attacks, with the wounds to survivors on display this week at remembrance ceremonies in Iran.
The Israeli Prime Minister's office in November claimed Israel's forces were responsible for the simultaneous explosion in multiple locations of the electronic communication devices held by Hezbollah members. The dated technology was used by the militants as a means to avoid surveillance.
Iran's supreme leader on Wednesday described Mr Suleimani as “the military commander, the great fighter, and the dear and kind companion”, according to IRNA. He hailed the “courageous soldier” for his work “at the right time and promptly, with bravery, in the arenas of jihad and resistance”.
A major ceremony was also held in the Iraqi capital on Thursday night by Iran-backed militias and their supporters at the site of the 2020 drone strike on a road to Baghdad airport, where statues of Maj Gen Suleimani and Mr Al Muhandis stand. They held Iraqi and PMF flags and red roses, and lit candles at the scene.
The anniversary of the commander's death follows significant setbacks for Iran's allies and armed proxies that operate around the Middle East.
Gaza-based militant group Hamas has suffered severe losses in its war with Israel, including the assassination in Tehran of its leader Ismail Haniyeh and his successor Yahya Sinwar in the Palestinian enclave.
Similarly, Israel has eliminated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and several of the group’s commanders in Lebanon. This series of blows against Tehran was capped last month by the toppling of president Bashar Al Assad's Iran-aligned regime in Syria, which prompted all Iranian IRGC officers and Tehran-allied militias to withdraw from the country.
In Yemen, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who have been launching attacks on merchant vessels in the Red Sea "in solidarity with Gaza" amid the war with Israel, have also been reeling under heavy bombardments from Israel and the US.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Arrogate's winning run
1. Maiden Special Weight, Santa Anita Park, June 5, 2016
2. Allowance Optional Claiming, Santa Anita Park, June 24, 2016
3. Allowance Optional Claiming, Del Mar, August 4, 2016
4. Travers Stakes, Saratoga, August 27, 2016
5. Breeders' Cup Classic, Santa Anita Park, November 5, 2016
6. Pegasus World Cup, Gulfstream Park, January 28, 2017
7. Dubai World Cup, Meydan Racecourse, March 25, 2017
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Brief scores:
Pakistan (1st innings) 181: Babar 71; Olivier 6-37
South Africa (1st innings) 223: Bavuma 53; Amir 4-62
Pakistan (2nd innings) 190: Masood 65, Imam 57; Olivier 5-59
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Stage 5 results
1 Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 3:48:53
2 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team -
3 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott -
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:00:04
5 Ilnur Zakarin (RUS) CCC Team 0:00:07
General Classification:
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 20:35:04
2 Tadej Pogacar (SlO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:01
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team 0:01:33
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:01:48
5 Rafał Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:02:11
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
'The Sky is Everywhere'
Director:Josephine Decker
Stars:Grace Kaufman, Pico Alexander, Jacques Colimon
Rating:2/5
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Previous men's records
- 2:01:39: Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) on 16/9/19 in Berlin
- 2:02:57: Dennis Kimetto (KEN) on 28/09/2014 in Berlin
- 2:03:23: Wilson Kipsang (KEN) on 29/09/2013 in Berlin
- 2:03:38: Patrick Makau (KEN) on 25/09/2011 in Berlin
- 2:03:59: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 28/09/2008 in Berlin
- 2:04:26: Haile Gebreselassie (ETH) on 30/09/2007 in Berlin
- 2:04:55: Paul Tergat (KEN) on 28/09/2003 in Berlin
- 2:05:38: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 14/04/2002 in London
- 2:05:42: Khalid Khannouchi (USA) 24/10/1999 in Chicago
- 2:06:05: Ronaldo da Costa (BRA) 20/09/1998 in Berlin
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