The 280th Night of Reminiscence of Sacred Defense (Part I)

The reminiscent of an international caricaturist

Maryam Rajabi
Translated by Fazel Shirzad

2017-6-12

Note: As oral history website reported, two hundred and eightieth programs of the night of reminiscence was held at Art Center's hall on Thursday evening on 4th Khordad 1396 (2017-May-22). In this night, some told their memoirs of sacred defense and Iraqi imposed war against Iran, such as Mohsen Zaimzadeh, seyed Masoud Shojaee Tabatabaei and Thymol Derdoosh.

The house of memoirs as a gift for freedom of Khoramshahr

Davud Salehi, who was compere, began the ceremony by reading a text a fallows: "after two or three days of Khordad, the operation advanced inasmuch as the foot soldiers had come into the city (Khoramshahr) in last days, and they were looking for a house through alleys both to hide themselves and watch and control neighbor houses. The commander looked the soldier and said him: " among your comrades, is there someday knows this area well?" There was a teen aged fifteen raised his hand and said; "sir, I know this area well. This is my city and here is my area". Although he was a teen, we have to trust him; he walked a head, and other soldiers followed him. When the teen found himself doing something on own responsibility, and taking an interest from others, he told his memoirs. He told about his parent who were killed by a shot of Iraqi soldiers. He told about his own house which he loved because he had memories of family and parents in that house. He kept repeatedly saying: "I wish these days were over, and I will come back home and refresh my parents' memoirs.

While we were speaking warmly, someone informed us of finding a house where it was the latest station of the deployment of Iraqi troops. It raised the teen's hopes. He knew the station well. He climbed the stairs and watched on camera. Yes, the latest station of Iraqi troops was placed in the reminiscent house of the teen: his eyes filled with tears, he impacted hands nervously. The teen got a look up and down and was trying to take a big decision. He walked towards mortar man and pointed target to him. The brave mortar man took a look at fighters who their faces filled tears, and took a look at the commander who put his head on downside, and took a look at brave teen who stared the house to be destructed. The mortar man waited few minutes. The teen went a height position, and cried: "Allah Akbar[1]"; the mortar man came to force to fire, after a few minutes, the reminiscent house of teen was devastated".

A meeting with Hajji Bakhshi

Mohsen Zaimzadeh was the first memory-teller for the 280^th night of reminiscence of sacred defense. He said: "the thirty day of Khordad is the anniversary of freedom of Khoramshahr.  It was a city which have been captured by Iraqi troops for 578 days. In those days, they devastated Khoramshahr, but the courageous men of Iran recaptured Khoramshahr from Ba’ath party. Today, some of us, know Iraqi troops were as jackstraw wretch and abject ones, inasmuch as our children bring question into mind: "how were we fighting against such as inefficient men for eight years? But, as a matter of fact, it would be impossible to withstand against the enemy, if there wasn’t belief, sacrifice and altruism of Iranian fighters."

We captured an Iraqi soldier. He looked us and said: "I want to tell you what I have done against you, and what was happened to me". He added:" when we arrived in Khoramshahr, we destroyed houses one by one, and went forward. I arrived near a house to destroy it; I heard the sound of a child. I asked the comrade not to destroy the house. I entered in the house; I found a child aged two or three months crying in swaddling clothes, and his parent, were martyred. I said me instantly: "Oh, God! I am a shite, and I don’t have any child; I take this child and grow him. I hardly put the child in the box of ammunition and brought him Basreh. I had to stay in Basreh and give the child to my wife. During the week, I tried to keep the child I brought him out just for food and water. The last night when I was to take vacation and go to Baghdad tomorrow. Commander came and asked:" what are you doing in this week? Why do you came back from Khoramshahr?" I feared greatly, but replied:" the mission is ended, and I am going to take vacation." He slapped me and said: "don’t tell lie!" He asked his question again and I gave reply similarly; he kicked me vigorously. He repeated his question loudly, and I replied as before. He began to beat me, and drove me toward the box of ammunition. He took the foot of the child and hanged him as his head was placed down. As the commander was turning the child in the air, he struck him on a cement blocks placed near us".

In fact, we were fighting an enemy didn’t have mercy even on children aged two or three months.

Hajji Bakhshi mentioned that the most of fighters, before ammunition, were aware of their martyrdom; then he added: "concerning the events we have seen in the war, nothing unless Divine Relief could help us, as imam Khomeini says:" Khoramshahr is recaptured by God: Khoramshahr would have never been recaptured, if the fighters hadn't been pious and didn’t catch Hablullah"[2].

When the password of operation was announced and the operation was ready to begin, I found one the friend rummaging through headbands behind bulwark. "What are you looking for?" I asked him. "I don’t have mother, I'm looking for a headband in the name of " Ya Fatimah Zahra" that my mother will embrace me, when I am martyred." after thirty minutes, I swear to God,  I found him injured by a bullet and trying to say " peace be upon you Fatimah Zahra". We, also, read martyrs’ wills in which they mentioned when, where and how they would be martyred. For instance, Gasem Ibn Hassan (PBHM) believes that the martyrdom is sweeter then honey; our fighter did too. Zabihollah Bakhshi Zadeh (Hajji Bakhshi) was an example of such persons. When an Iraqi tank fired the back of Hajji Bakhshi’s car: there were three fighters in the car. When the car was fired, Hajji Bakhshi, getting shell shock, got off the car and walked towards the Iraqi tanks. His comrades took and stopped him. Three others, who were in the car, died from burn; one of them was Nader Naderi’s son-in-law. This event, before ambulance arrived, was shoot by camera.

In the one of days before operation, second son of Hajji Bakhshi looked me and said that I would be martyred today. I said him that you were young; so you couldn’t be martyred. He took his attar and perfumed the fighter's clothes. I asked him not to perfume, because it could possibly be spread over the area. He said again that I would be made a martyr. After passed some times of the operation, I looked him and said: "why aren’t you martyred?" He replied: "I will surely be martyred before I come back." He was a mortar man, and had a mortar on his shoulder. I was talking with him at a distance about 10 meters. After few minutes, a mortar caught him; then I tried to collect the pieces of his body for one hour to give them his family. The second son of Hajji Bakhshi named Abbas. I asked Hajji Bakhshi: "how's it going with Abbas?" he answered: "I don’t know, he is stick around". Whereas, Abbas had been martyred and we brought his corpse. I looked at Hajji and said:" Hajji! Your brother and son are martyred, what you will do, if Abbas is martyred?" he answered: "He wanted to be martyred himself, it is none of my business. Hopefully, what is righteous will be occurred." I wanted him to get off car to walk in Faw. While we were walking, I directed him towards his son's corpse. He asked me:" what's happened?" I replied:" one of friends is martyred, I want you to see him!" Although, all the corpse were placed in plastic, he said that I smell the odor of Abbas. I said him: "No, he is not martyred". He said: "Yes, I'm sure he is martyred." He uncovered the plastic and said:" oh, my son! I said that you would be martyred sooner than me, but you didn’t believe me!"

Every operation was given the name of one of Imams (PBHM); all of fighters were martyred like innocent Imams. If an operation named " Fatimah Zahra (PBHM), the fighters would be injured on sides and face; than suffered martyrdom. If it was given name of "Qamar Bani Hashim[3]" the fighters would be injured in hand. Whenever I knocked door, mother, after greeting, always asked me quickly:" is my son martyred? Last night, he said me that he would be martyred?"       

To be continued….

[1] God is (the) greatest