Hassan Firouzabadi

Sardar Hassan Firuzabadi
Born	February 3, 1951 Mashhad, Iran
Allegiance	Iran
Service/branch	Basij
Years of service	1989–2016
Rank	Major General
Commands held	Chief-of-Staff of Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran
Battles/wars	Iranian intervention in Syria Iranian intervention in Iraq
Awards	Order of Nasr (1st class)[1] Order of Independence[2]

Seyed Hassan Firuzabadi (Persian: سيد حسن فيروزآبادی‎‎, born 3 February 1951 in Mashhad) is an Iranian retired major general and the former Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces.^[3] He was removed from his position as chief of staff on June 28, 2016 and replaced by his deputy Mohammad Bagheri. General Firouzabadi was tapped to serve as a senior adviser to his successor.^[4]

Early life

Firuzabadi was born on 3 February 1951 in Mashhad, Iran and started his education in that city. He then graduated from Mashhad University of Medical Sciences with a degree in veterinary medicine. After the Iranian Revolution, he joined Sepah Pasdaran and participated in the Iran-Iraq War.

Military career

Firouzabadi has been active in the Military of Iran since 1981, when he was joined the Sepah Pasdaran. He was a general in the Iran-Iraq War. After the war, he became Deputy Director of Khatam al-Anbia, having been appointed by President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. He then became Deputy Chief of Staff of the Military in 1989 and was appointed Chief of Staff by Ali Khamenei on 2 November 2002.

Firouzabadi is close to the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, and supported Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's candidacy for president of Iran. In May 2012, he gave a speech at a conference in Tehran in which he stated that "the Iranian nation is standing for its cause that is the full annihilation of Israel." The Fars News Agency also noted that Firouzabadi "reminded the gatherers [sic] that the Iranian Supreme Leader considers defending Palestine as a full religion duty and believes that any kind of governance and rule by anyone other than the Palestinians is an instance of usurpation.”^[5][6]

Firouzabadi's remarks were later cited by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who argued that such statements are further evidence that “Iran wants to eliminate Israel and it is working to attain nuclear weapons in order to achieve that ambition.”^[7][8]

References

1. Poursafa, Mahdi (January 20, 2014). گزارش فارس از تاریخچه نشان‌های نظامی ایران، از «اقدس» تا «فتح»؛ مدال‌هایی که بر سینه سرداران ایرانی نشسته است [From "Aghdas" to "Fath": Medals resting on the chest of Iranian Serdars]. Fars News (in Persian). Retrieved October 21, 2014.
2. تصویب نامه درخصوص اعطای نشان عالی «استقلال» به آقای سیدحسن فیروزآبادی [The letter about endowing the Excellent Order of Independence to Mr. Hassan Firouzabadi]. Iranian Parliament (in Persian). 12 November 2008. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
3. Theiranproject (28 Jun 2016). "Leader appoints new Iranian Armed Forces chief of staff". Theiranproject. Retrieved 28 Jun 2016.
4. Erdbrink, Thomas, Iran’s Supreme Leader Shakes Up Military Command New York Times, 28 June 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
5. Top Commander Reiterates Iran's Commitment to Full Annihilation of Israel, Fars News Agency (English), News number: 9102112759, May 20, 2012.
6. Iranian Commander Reiterates Need to Annihilate 'Zionist Regime' by Rachel Hirshfeld, Arutz Sheva, May 21, 2012.
7. PM says Iran’s chief of staff vowed Sunday to eliminate Israel, The Times of Israel, May 21, 2012.
8. PM: Iran must halt uranium enrichment, stockpiling by Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post, May 21, 2012.

External links