Susangerd, occupation, Liberation (4)

Interview with Ghodratollah Bahari

Ali Takallou
Translated by: Zahra Hosseinian

2016-1-4

● Were there anyone who have cooperated with Iraqis?

Yes. People would capture them and bring. I was in the mosque and did not know from the outside. People would know who killed cattle, smoked Esfand, has raised Iraqi flag over the governor's office, or danced, within 48 hours, when Susangerd was in the hands of Iraqis. They captured 29 people and handed over us. Keeping Iraqis was much easier for me than them. As Iraqis had been captured like a lamb and didn’t show any movement lest we kill them. But on the other side, brother, sister, father and cousin of those who had cooperated with Iraqis, all crowded behind the door of mosque. However, enough local forces would patrol around the mosque so that none of them dared to attack the mosque. Since we were in danger, I'd sent two fighters with RPG on the roof of the mosque that if someone attacked the mosque, they didn’t feel pity for them and fired, so we finished with them here. Now we didn’t know what to do with the people who crowded outside the mosque? I went to the roof of mosque and with a bullhorn which had been brought for me, I told them: “be silence!” they didn’t quite and sometimes cry: “This is a familial difference, a tribal difference; they didn’t cooperate with Iraqis ...”

We had no car. I told my friends to go for that ‘Jeep Wagoneer’, we took G-3 from inside. They came up and said that haven’t found it. I said to the Arabs: “What do we do? We have no wireless, now how can we notify the Division? It is darkening.” It was then about 4 or 5 pm. I’m talking about events that have happened around 10 hours. I had worn military uniform, but had no rank. They thought I am Colonel, General and so on. They said: “we swear to your rank, we swear to God… trust us and we will help you.” Finally, I said to one of them: “you say that you can help me, so, find a car and bring it.” All of them were armed. No one was empty-handed there. They at least had a double-barreled shotgun. I mean they all had G-3, M-1, vz. 24 rifle, or Kalashnikovs. Also they had some weapons that we’d never seen. It is not clear where they had come from and was in their hands. One of them went and brought a Benz truck that took flour for bakeries. It was darkening little by little. Well, now we wanted to take Iraqis, what could we do with the Iranians? I said: “Go and find some gunny-sack.” He said: “What do you want to do?” I said: “Go and bring some of them. I can’t leave them here.” I made a line of those who cooperate with us in the mosque and we had trusted them in this time. I put a wooden ladder at open-box bed of truck. We took Iraqis, whom we had tied their hands and covered their eyes, one by one and sat down in the truck. The line I made it and the guys on the roof were armed. I also took two or three armed people and bring captives. When all Iraqi captives were transferred to the truck, we go for Iranians. We covered all their body with flour gunny-sack, so that only their ankles were seen. Why did we do this? Because their family and relatives didn’t see whom we are taking and don’t attack us. We sat them down on the truck. We had tied their hands. They had scared much. Many of them spoke and we said: “Do not talk!” we took 29 ones. We sat down two fighters with RPG on the front bumper and hood.

● Do you mean that there was no troops in town anymore? In whose hand was the town?

The town was in the hand of people and they didn’t need us. Iraqis had gone. We should hand over the Iraqi captives to the Division of Ahvaz. The helicopters had not even report our situation.

● Iraqis had advanced nearly Hamidieh. Iraqi forces were not behind you, when you reached to Susangerd?

No. helicopters shot them on the road and cleared, there was nobody. In Hamidieh-Susangerd road, we did not fight with anybody. Iraqis had abandoned the tanks and gone. The tanks at south of road also were under the Karkhe’s water. North side was dry. About 700-800 meters to Susangerd, we got off the helicopter. Later, when I saw the helicopter pilot, I complained that: “Sir, why didn’t follow us? Why did not bring forces?” he said: “I went and I saw several Iraqis are fleeing, I landed, captured two Iraqis, picked them up and handed over. It was my destiny.”

It hadn’t still darkened when we arrived in Ahvaz. I said the army commander that we have some prisoners, a number of them are Iraqis and 29 one are Susangerd residents. They took two wounded Iraqis to the hospital. We also handed some of them over to the prison of military police Division. Army commander ordered: “Take the others and submit them to the governor-generalship.” I should mention that 2 or 3 armed Susangerd residents also came with us when we were taking prisoners from Susangerd. They were guys who cooperated there with us and had told us that they are members of Susangerd Committee. At that time, the Committee had still not been integrated with Law-enforcement officers. They had told the truth and others knew them; in fact they were Committee guys who had come from Allahu Akbar Mountains.

Major Montasar was the first person in Susangerd who saw me. After the fighting, when we entered the town, we went to the police of Susangerd. Iraqi had turned the police of Susangerd into prison. They had imprisoned Iranians there. After their escape, Iranians had also escaped from prison. Reaching there, there was no one inside. That is, there were no Iranian military and no Iraqi troops in prison. All of them had broken doors and fled in chaos. I was wandering in town when saw a jeep came. I saw an Iranian Major with his two armed men got out.  He was Major Montasar. Then he was Major and now he is Colonel. He introduced himself and said; “Mr. Bahari! What are you doing here? You were in Tehran.” I said: “well, I came here.”

Now, who was this Major Montasar? He was the commander of 255-Tank Battalion, who had gone to the Allahu Akbar Mountains. When he informed that people in Susangerd were firing from rooftops and there was lots of noise and chaos, he said himself; “definitely something has happened. We must go and see.” He came and saw nobody shot them. Then in the town he met us. It was possible to fire them if we didn’t recognize them. Then he said: “I am going to go and do something for Susangerd.” One of the things that he should do was going to the town and bringing forces. We heard nothing of Major Montasr until 4 or 5 in afternoon. We came to Ahvaz Division. I said to Colonel Ghasemi: “We handed over the prisoners to the military police and sent the injured to the hospital. Only these 29 ones are still in our hand.” He said: “Take them to the governor-generalship.” I handed over them to the Committee guys and said: “take them to the governor-generalship and let me know.” They went to governor-generalship. Next morning they called ma and after that I went to Susangerd.

Retired armored Colonel GHolamreza Ghasemino, Commander of Ahvaz armored Division, about the liberation of Susangerd has said: “brigade-3 attacked Iraqi forces stationed in Susangerd three times. First, under the command of martyr Major Ghayourasli; second, under the command of Sergeant Bahari who had come voluntarily from general Staff. Bahari captured all Iraqis who had come to Susangerd and handed them over to Mr. Khalkhali.” His only mistake is that we handed over civilians to Mr. Khalkhali and Iraqi military to Division. He is confused these with the natives of the region.

● After your coming back, did army forces go to Susangerd and were stationed?

Yes. Afterwards Mr. Fartash became the military governor of there. After that, a number of Division forces went there and a Committee was formed again. It's before my injury. I had comings and goings, but not participated in operations. I wanted to operate in an area where is close to Susangerd and towards the ‘Seyyed shrine’, called Gulbahar. So, sometimes I went to Susangerd just for visiting, nothing else. Because usually everyone who receives military command is trying to be independent and nobody interfere with their works and I wasn’t exceptional.

● considering your familiarity with the area and the status of forces tell us what causes that Iraqis could come again and occupy Susangerd?

As I said before, our forces were not complete. Mashhad forces hadn’t come, forces of...

  ● hadn’t they come even after this time of Susangerd Liberation?

After that, forces still hadn’t come. Look, we were not involved in one front. We were involved in Darkhoein, Shadegan, Abadan road, and Bahmanshir Bridge in Abadan. Colonel Kehatri went there, broke the siege of Abadan, and took the title of Abadan Amir. We were involved from Abadan to the West. In answering your question, I must tell our faults too. Actually we know them. The number of Division troops had been captured in Nojeh coup plot which had happened very short time before the war. Now, who had been arrested? Naturally, they had taken commanders. The commanders were all in prison. Of course, Mr. Khalkhali set free them in a liberation ceremony and said: “You are eligible of Imam’s pardon; go and visit your family and then introduce yourself.” I didn’t know if they went and came back or not. But it wasn’t good to keep them in prison. Because if, God forbid, Iraqis took the Ahvaz prison, all of them could become intelligence forces for Iraq. Because of the very reason Imam Khomeini had pardoned them. They were released from prison. They had a week off to go to visit their families and then return to region and present yourselves. But I don’t know if they came back or not?

● It is kind of you to give your time with us.

  The End

Susangerd, occupation, Liberation (1)

Susangerd, occupation, Liberation (2)

Susangerd, occupation, Liberation (3)