Hawzah News Agency –Speaking on Saturday in a meeting with the families of martyrs and veterans of the bombardment of the "Chavar" football match in Ilam province, which was carried out by Ba'athist regime in 1986, Ayatollah Dr Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi mentioned Ilam as one of the provinces that played a major role in in defending the country, the system and the Islamic Revolution.
Dr Raisi said, "The people of this province have played their part in the revolution and the Iranian nation has always witnessed their resistance against the enemy".
The President said that some provinces of the country may not have been at the forefront of the battle against the enemy during the Sacred Defence, but they were under attack, adding, "We used to see that people did not leave the city despite the heavy bombardment of the enemy".
While thanking and appreciating the Supreme Leader of the Revolution for reviving the memory of the martyrs of the bombardment of the "Chavar" football match in Ilam, Dr Raisi emphasised, "Holding that match in 1986 was a sign of resistance of the people of Ilam, because with this action, they proved that they never leave the stage".
The President said, "This incident should be "explained" to the young and athletes so that it will be remembered in the history of Iran and the free people of the world".
Ayatollah Raisi stressed the need to pay attention to the order of the Supreme Leader of the Revolution in the field of "jihad of enlightenment" and noted, "It is the duty of everyone, especially tribune holders and artists, to enlighten in the direction of jihad of enlightenment. We must not allow the lesson of resistance, the memory of the veterans and the martyrs to be forgotten".
Emphasising that the sacrifices of the martyrs have not been sufficiently explained, Dr Raisi added, "If the bravery of the martyrs had taken place in other parts of the world, hundreds of films and books would have been made and written for it. Therefore, based on the Supreme Leader's emphasis, we must try not to let this issue be neglected".
Dr Raisi stated that the football martyrs of "Chavar" should be a model for all athletes and their important movement should be maintained in all ages and for all generations, adding, "It is necessary to explain the personality traits of each of these martyrs because they had a sublime and high spirit".
The President continued, "The martyrs of "Chavar" wanted to calm down the people with their resistance in the midst of Saddam's attacks".
Ayatollah Raisi described it necessary to recognise the martyrs of Ilam athletes at the national and international levels and stressed, "The crimes of Saddam and his supporters against the defenceless athletes and young people of Ilam, as well as the oppression of the martyrs of the football match, must be shown beyond Iran".