It was the last days of the month of Azar (December) and the garrison had the mood of an operation. A joint operation was supposed to be carried out by the IRGC and the army under the responsibility of Najaf Headquarters and the Army’s Leading Headquarters in the west. The movement to and from the garrison had increased. Finally, the operation began on 20th of Azar 1360 (December 11, 1981), on the Gilan-e Gharb and Sarpol-e Zahab area. The IRGC and Basij forces of Kermanshah province, battalions from Tehran, Rasht, Mashhad, and Hamadan, took part in the operation. Strengthening the forces stationed on the Bazi-Deraz region and preparing the forces, especially in the Kaseh Kaboud plain, to confront possible enemy movements was the command mission of the coordination headquarters. With this description, I announced the readiness of the Ashahyer (nomadic) Basij forces to participate in the operation to brother Haj Baba, but he refused and again emphasized strengthening and maintaining the line. However, I was looking for an excuse to participate in the operation, but the conditions were very different from the past and the problem was not only the headquarters administration, but also the expectations of the command regarding accompanying the person in charge of the Bazi-Deraz area that frustrated me.
I was in charge of the coordination headquarters and we were told to stay with your forces, that it was mandatory to carry out the command's orders. Previously, I was comfortable participating in operations because I had no responsibilities.
The night of the Operation Matal’olfajr arrived, I went to Bazi-Deraz and stayed with the nomadic Basij forces stationed at the peak of 1100 Gachi. Brother Khairullah... who was a Nomadic Basij fighter and part of the operation's intelligence forces and was from Hamedan, had come to the Bazi-Deraz line with two IRGC guys. They said: "We want to go to the war zone! Aren't you coming?" I said: "I talked to brother Haj Baba, he said don't come and take care of this area!" In any case, I refused and they went to participate in the operation and said: "If the Iraqis don't counterattack you by tomorrow noon, you can safely come to the operational area!" The operation began after midnight. The sky over the operational area was lit up with flares and the sound of artillery and mortar fire and explosions never stopped. We spent the night with difficulty and anxiety until morning. After morning prayers, the guys were ready and were monitoring the area. There was no sign of enemy movement in the Bazi Deraz area. At 10 a.m., the area was still quiet. I briefed a few of the elite guys on the possibilities and actions they should take and headed towards the village of Shisheh Rah. The Nomadic Mobilization had a number of guards in Shisheh Rah village and it was close to the operational area. Brother Poolki and a number of Kermanshah forces were there. A group of Kermanshah Hezbollah guys had volunteered to participate in the operation. Based on the information I got from the guys, I set off towards the operational area. I had to go from the Deireh plain to the Gilan-e Gharb road. The Tang-e Koorak road was on the right. Parts of the road were out of sight of the enemy due to the embankment and hills. I left the car, which was the headquarters' only vehicle, in a safe place and walked along the road. The enemy was pounding the road in scattered formations. Ahead, they were transporting the children to the line in an armored personnel carrier. I approached. Brother Haj Baba wanted to go to the line with a number of troops. From his face, I found out that the situation in the area was not good. I waited for them to leave and went to the line with the next group. Finally, we moved to the line with a number of combatant guys. We got off at the last passable point. The bodies of the martyrs were left on the ground in one of the grooves and on the hillside, and it was not possible to collect them under continuous fire, which had weakened the morale of the guys. In previous operations, we would collect the martyrs from the scene of the conflict very quickly. I wish I could carry all these loved ones on my back. The number of the relief workers foreseen in the combat organization was not adequate for the number of martyrs and wounded. In some places, we had to find a foothold among the martyrs to pass. We could not go further than a certain point, and snipers and various machine guns blocked the way. I stayed for an hour or two among forces that I was not familiar with, and due to indecision, I was forced to return back. The operating forces had captured the Shiakooh Height and parts of Tang-e Koorak on the first night, but overall, not all objectives had been achieved on the first day of the occupation. Despite the seizure of part of Tang-e Koorak by the Kermanshah IRGC forces, the enemy had positioned itself on the edges overlooking these forces and had prevented them from making any movement with heavy machine gun fire. The enemy was aware of the military importance of this area and had used all its might to prevent a heavy defeat that would have resulted in a retreat from a vast area in the Sar-e Pol-e-Zahab and Gilan-e Gharb regions. The operation was still continuing in other places; the enemy was impatient to regain the areas we had taken; a few days had passed since the operation. I met Mr. Poolki again in the village of Shisheh Rah. Brother Kamran Molaei and a number of Kermanshah Hezbollah members who had participated in the operation were dissatisfied with the general situation in the area, they came with me to the Aboozar Garrison and intended to return to Kermanshah; the Operation Matla’olfajr was still ongoing. One night, brother Hajj Qassem Mohammad Salehi came to the garrison after prayers. We had a simple dinner and asked about the status of the operation. At first, they said that the Basij had handed over the province and brother Hajj Khalil Kiani had been introduced as the head of the Basij and had come to participate in the operation. I explained the complex situation in the operational area to him and said, "Haji! I wish we could go to the headquarters, to see brother Haj Baba!" He said, "Whatever God wills, let's sleep for now and we'll talk tomorrow!" The next morning, after prayers and breakfast, he said, "I have to leave early so that I can reach the area on time!" I said, "Aren't you taking any weapons or equipment?" He said, "No, everything is fine! I'll get it from the IRGC guys." I said, "Then at least let me coordinate with the command for your presence in the area!" He said, "No, it's not necessary, I'll coordinate with the battalion commander there!" He didn't accept the weapons or equipment either. I insisted on giving him some dry rations and combat chocolate and we set off towards the entrance to the Tang-e Koork. I wasn't feeling well and along the way I begged them again to stop, but it was no use. We drove to a point where the enemy couldn't see us by car and got off. I said, "I'll come with you to the side of the armored personnel carrier!" He shook hands warmly with a smile and stood a few steps away and said, "Brother! If you go back, I'll go more easily!" I came back against my will, but his bright and determined face never left my sight for a moment. A few days later, his brother Haj Nasser Mohammad Salehi, along with one of the IRGC members, came to the garrison and were looking for their brother. I explained to them the details of his presence and the point of entry into the operation area, and together we went to the command office to see brother Haj Baba. He promised to follow up. Haj Nasser also went to the Tang-e Koorak area and followed up on his brother's fate through the forces stationed in the area. Unfortunately, despite obtaining information that Haj Qassem was with one of the battalions, there was no trace of him and he joined the ranks of the immortal martyrs of Operation Matalao’lfajr. May his soul rest in peace.
The operation lasted about 17 days, during which some areas changed hands. In some parts of the region, the bodies of the martyrs of the operation could only be transferred in the darkness of night, and the battalions had dedicated a number of their forces to this task. Another bitterness of this operation was the martyrdom of brother Gholam Ali Pichak, who was among the first one in Operation Matalao’lfajr martyred in the conflict.