Seyyed of Quarters 15

Memories of Iranian released POW, Seyyed Jamal Setarehdan

2016-10-3

Seyyed of Quarters 15

Memories of Iranian Released POW, Seyyed Jamal Setarehdan

Edited and Compiled by: Sassan Nateq

Tehran, Sooreh Mehr Publications Company

‎2016 (Persian Version)‎

Translated by: Zahra Hosseinian

Preface
Seyyed is an employee of Roads and Urban Development of Ardabil province. He has taken diploma. He has born on 9^th September 1967 and is the fifth child in the family. He has five brothers and three sisters. His name has been registered as a 25 percent disabled war veteran of imposed war, and after admission of resolution and invasion of hypocrites and Iraqis’ offensive, being encircled six days along with several of his fellow warriors on 27^th July 1988 between Qasr-e Shirin and Gilan-e Gharb, struggling to survive and stand against the enemy, and finally being captured by the Iraqis. After suffering twenty-six months imprisonment in camps Jalawla and 15 of Tikrit, Seyyed Jamal returned to Iran in September 1990.

Diaries of released POWs have their own charm and special features. One of these features is direct confrontation with the Iraqis. If we look at them from behind earthworks in fighters’ memories, this gap fades away in memories of released POWs and we face with the Iraqis. The depth of enmity and grudge of Baath Party to Iranians is clearer in the diaries of released POWs.  

As a reader, my interest in seeing and hearing neglected and not narrated aspects of Iraqis’ behaviors in dealing with the Iranian captives made me to interview with Seyyed after publishing  memoirs of martyr Mahmoud Aminpour in non-sung songs book.

I knew him from previous interviews and a list of released POWs and fighters which I had prepared for myself. Our eleven-hour interview, in times of ninety to one hundred and twenty minutes, was done more in the Seyyed’s workplace or in Hoze Honari. As far as it was possible for the narrator, I tried to write the story with details and with time and place documentary evidence, but the passage of time had stolen memories and much information from the mind of Setarehda’an. The thief of time sprinkles a haze of forgetfulness on the minds of owners of untold treasures and makes it harder for author to gain the required content. Sometimes I explored, studied and inquired narrator’s other fellow warriors to find the name or position and details of some information, so that the reader can see different angles of presence in the front and the life of narrator in captivity period. In daily or weekly interviews I tried to raise all the questions which I needed, but after reading transcribed interviews, realized that there are still many blanks in the text. For this reason, I made phone call and personal contact with Seyyed and some of friends from his captivity period to complete questions and presenting some details, and the result of these findings and dialogues were incorporated within memories with narrator’s awareness and permission.

After talking with his friends and fellow warriors, the interesting thing I realized was that they still called Mr. Setarehda’an as "Seyyed" and still loved him. I appreciated Ali Ashraf Nazarabadi, Farazallh Vahabzadeh, Ebadullah Bahoush, Seyyed Mojtaba Jasemi and Adel Varqayy for the information gave to me. Varqayy also have interesting memories from the days of his captivity in quarters 15, Salahuddin province of Tikrit. "During the Peace and Friendship Games of Kuwait[1]," He said, "the Iran-Iraq match ended in a goalless draw. The next day, the guards beat us and said how did your team dare to play with our team? They said their team is strong and should beat your team. They suggested us to compete with them. It was supposed to hold a basketball competition. I asked them that what you will give us if we beat you? Hoping to win, they said whatever you want. I said if we won; give us a box of soft drinks. We agreed if they win, we give them our Fils. We played. They not only in the war, but also in the playing field being failed by us and being forced to keep their promise. We divided up drinks equally among the prisoners in the camp."

About the inhumane nature of Saddam, Varqayy said: "the book Some Memoirs of Saddam was shared between some of quarters and prisoners read it in turn. It was written that Saddam put a metal bar over fire in his boyhood and everywhere he saw a dog, inserted that hot bar into the abdomen of dogs and enjoyed it."

Nazarabadi and Jasemi live in Sarpol-e Zahab and Varqayy and Bahoush live in Eslamshahr, Tehran. Vahabzadeh lives in Ardabil.

If peoples like Setarehda’an were interviewed a few years earlier, now more details and more complete and accurate narratives of them and their captivity days were in front of readers’ eyes. However, neither the posterity nor a fair conscience can ignore out-of-power tortures and torments which can be read between the pages of this compact book. For being in love, one must pay and peoples like Seyyed Jamal from this land paid a heavy price for being in love. Narrative of future history from Iranian peoples like Seyyed Jamal, who stood against the invader, is the narration of pride along with honor.

Seyyed is the father of two children, a girl and a boy. Now they know their father well.
 

July 2013/ Sassan Nateq

To be continued…