Hassan Shateri
Sardar Hassan Shateri | |
---|---|
Native name | حسن شاطری |
Nickname(s) | Hessam Khoshnevis |
Born |
1955 Semnan |
Died |
February 12, 2013 (aged 57–58) Syria |
Allegiance | Iran |
Rank | General[1] |
Unit | Quds Force |
Battles/wars | 1980 Sardasht Conflict, Iran–Iraq War |
Hassan Shateri (Persian: حسن شاطری; 1955 – February 12, 2013), also known as Hesam Khoshnevis,[2] was a senior commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards.[3] He was a veteran of the Iran–Iraq war[3] and head of the Iranian Committee for the Reconstruction of Lebanon after the 2006 Lebanon War, according to Iranian media.[4] He was assassinated in February 2013.[5]
Hojatoleslam Panahian said that "Our Shateri was no less than Mughniya", in his meeting with Shateri some years ago in Lebanon’s embassy.[2]
Life
Shateri was born in Semnan, Iran, in 1955[6] to a religious family. In his teens, he actively participated in demonstrations against the Shah. He studied civil engineering.[6] Following the Islamic revolution in Iran, he joined Basij in 1979.[6] In 1980, when anti-revolution forces had captured Sardasht, he went there to participate in the fighting against them.[7]
He was a battalion commander in 1981; head of logistics and operations of Hamza Sayyed al-Shohada Camp in 1983; head of logistics and operations, and chief of staff, of the Sardasht deployed army in 1984; commander of operations of Sardasht in 1985–87; head of the engineering unit in Hamza Sayyed al-Shohada Camp in 1988; engineering unit deputy commander of the Hamza Sayyed al-Shohada Camp in 1990; and commander of the Isfahan sepah engineering unit.[7]
Assassination
He was assassinated in Syria on February 12, 2013.[5] According to a report by The Sunday Times, he was killed in an alleged IAF airstrike which had as its target a convoy carrying weapons between Syria and Lebanon.[8] Other reports said he was killed inside Syria by rebel militants battling the Syrian government.[4] Iranian news outlets blamed his death on "Zionist agents".[5] IRGC spokesman Ramezan Sharif claimed that Shateri had been murdered by Israeli agents.[9] He had been in Aleppo before being killed.[2]
The attack was perpetrated close to the Lebanese border near the city of Zabadani, according to a Syrian opposition commander.[4] Rami Abdel Rahman, the director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP: "We do not know exactly where he was shot, but we do know that a rebel group ambushed his vehicle while en route from Damascus to Beirut".[1]
He had been an assassination target for some time; men suspected of planning such an attack had been arrested, according to sources inside Hezbollah.[1]
Funeral
He was buried in Tehran.[10] IRGC commander Mohammad Ali Jafari, Qods Force Commander Qasem Soleimani, and other Iranian officials attended his funeral.[9]
References
- 1 2 3 Sherlock, Ruth (14 February 2013). "Iran commander assassinated in Syria". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- 1 2 3 Javedanfar, Meir. "Assassination Will Not Weaken Iran's Support for Assad –". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
- 1 2 Dehghan, Saeed Kamali (14 February 2013). "Elite Iranian general assassinated near Syria-Lebanon border". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
- 1 2 3 Dominic, Evans; Karouny, Mariam (15 February 2013). "Iranian Guards commander killed in Syria". Reuters. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
- 1 2 3 Fassihi, Farnaz. "Iranian General Is Killed in Syria". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
- 1 2 3 Will Fulton (28 February 2013). "The Assassination of Iranian Quds Force General Hassan Shateri in Syria". Iran Tracker. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
- 1 2 Staff writers. "Who was engineer Hassan Shateri?". Raja News. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- ↑ Fisher, Gabe (24 February 2013). "'Israel's strike on Syria last month killed top Iranian general'". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- 1 2 Levy, Elior (14 February 2013). "Rebels: Iranian official killed in airstrike on Syria". ynet. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ↑ "Funeral for Iranian senior Revolutionary Guard leader". BBC. 14 February 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
External links
- Media related to Hassan Shateri at Wikimedia Commons