Book Review

Ascension from Olive Branch

Narratives about the life of Ahmad Motevaselian from childhood to captivity

Mahya Hafezi
Translated by M. B. Khoshnevisan

2023-8-29

The book " Ascension from Olive Branch" authored by Javad Kalateh Arabi was published by Nashr-e 27 Be'that and the Publications of Iran's Press Institution in the spring of 1402 (2023) in 500 copies with price of 210000 tomans.  After the introduction, in the first page, the ayah 158 of sura Nessa of the holy Quran has been written, "They certainly did not kill him (Jesus). Rather, Allah raised him up to Himself."

"Ascension from Olive Branch" tells the memories of 31 narrators at different stages of the life of Haj Ahmad Motevaselian in 33 chapters; no one knows his fate yet specifically. Narratives about personal life, including his home, school, neighborhood and activities in his father's confectionery workshop, student days, revolutionary struggles and prison records before the victory of the revolution, presence during the unrests in the west of the country, the liberation of Marivan, the commander of the Marivan IRGC (Islamic Revolution Guards Corps), the operation of Muhammad Rasulollah (PBUH) and the formation of the 27th Brigade of  Muhammad Rasulollah (PBUH), the Operation Fat'h al-Mobin, the operation Beit al-Moqaddas, presence in the Syrian front against the Zionist regime and the story of captivity. 

This period of 29 years (birth: 15^th of Farvardin, 1332 (April 4, 1953) to captivity: 14^th of Tir, 1361(July 5, 1982)) and the almost comprehensive narration of his life was the most important motivation of the author to arrange these narrations; what can be the difference between this work and all the books that have been written about Ahmad Motevaselian.

The book has also an attached narrative about the unrests in the Kurdish regions and the activities of the Interim Government's Goodwill Delegation in those regions. This section has not been included in the collection of main narrations due to the lack of direct connection between the narrator and Ahmad Motevaselian. The crisis created by the anti-revolutionary groups in the west of the country in the days when Motevaselian was one of the effective commanders of the region, and Haj Ahmed's contact and communication with the Goodwill Delegation and Dariush Foroohar, was the excuse for using this narrative. Hashem Sabaghian, a member of the Goodwill Delegation, is the narrator of this segment.

Most of the texts of the interviews of the narrators of the book belongs to the two movie projects "Standing in the Dust" and the TV documentary "The Unfinished Narrative" and an interview from Hossein Behzad's personal archive, which was made available to the author after negotiations with the owners of the works.

Haj Ahmad's parents were originally from Yazdi, but Ahmad was born in Tehran and grew up in this city. During his military days, he was imprisoned for his revolutionary activities, and after the victory of the revolution, he entered the IRGC. At the same time, he was accepted as a student at the University of Science and Technology. He was sent to the region with the beginning of the unrest in Kurdistan and immediately showed his skills in war and command. With the formation of the Muhammad Rasulollah Brigade in Tehran, he was recognized as the first commander of this unit. The corps carried out several guerilla operations to clear the Kurdistan region from Komoleh and Demokrat terrorist grouplets, and then it was called to the southern front to carry out major operations of Fat'h al-Mobin and Beit al-Moqaddas. Ahmad Motevaselian's forces resisted in the most difficult moments of the Operation Beit al-Moqaddas. After that, Israel attacked southern Lebanon and the Lebanese president asked the whole world to come to their aid to confront Israel. Muhammad Rasulollah (PBUH) Brigade was sent from Iran to Syria; although the mission remained incomplete; Because Imam Khomeini's opinion was to focus on Iraq's imposed war against Iran and prevent the resistance front from splitting. After that, Haj Ahmad Motevaselian visited and identified the Lebanese regions as a political diplomat. During these days, he and three others were kidnapped by a militia group.

On 14^th of Tir, 1361 (July 5, 1982), the embassy car carrying Iran's political-military officials was stopped by the Lebanese Phalange party and taken hostage by the forces of the Zionist-backed group.