Hawzah News Agency (Tehran, Iran) - Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei issued a message on Sunday, January ۲۹, ۲۰۱۷, ahead of a funeral procession which is scheduled to be held in Tehran on Monday for the “brave and faithful” firefighters.

Ayatollah Khamenei said the firefighters ventured into the burning building in order to save the lives and property of their fellow countrymen and sacrificed their lives for this purpose.

They once again revived the memories of the sacrifices of Iranian soldiers during the era of the eight-year Iraqi war on Iran in the 1980s known as the Sacred Defense, Ayatollah Khamenei added.

The Leader emphasized that these firefighters showed that a faithful Iranian possesses a firm and exemplary determination to fulfill his duty and will not hesitate to

offer his life in the path of God.

“These are martyrs of the challenging path of serving and dangerous fulfillment of duties and will never be forgotten, God willing,” Ayatollah Khamenei stated.

The iconic Plasco building came down and resulted in the death of several people, including firefighters, after fire engulfed the top floors of the 17-story building on

January 19. The incident caused deep shock and sorrow among people in Iran and across the world. Many officials from different countries also offered their condolences to the Iranian government and people over the tragic incident.

Twenty people, including 16 fire fighters, lost their lives after the collapse of the Plasco building.

The spokesman for Tehran Emergency Center, Hassan Abbasi, told IRNA on Friday that the incident also injured 235 people and noted that two fire fighters are still

hospitalized.