News - Middle East - Iran: Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says Iran’s legendary anti-terror commander Lt. Gen. Qassem Soleimani represents the “secret of endurance and victory”, adding his danger to the enemies in his martyrdom is greater than in his life.

“Today, Soleimani is a symbol of hope, self-confidence, courage and the secret of endurance and victory in our region, and as some have rightly said, Martyr Soleimani is more dangerous to his enemies than Commander Soleimani,” Ayatollah Khamenei said during a meeting in Tehran on Saturday.

His remarks came as Iran began marking the second anniversary of the US assassination of the top general, with the Leader meeting Gen. Soleimani’s family in Tehran and tens of thousands taking part in ceremonies to pay tribute to the highly charismatic commander. 

“The enemies thought that with the martyrdom of Soleimani, Abu Mahdi and his other companions, the work would be over, but today, thanks to that dear blood wrongly spilled, the United States has fled Afghanistan,” Ayatollah Kamenei said, referring to the general's Iraqi trenchmate Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

In Iraq,  Ayatollah Khamenei said, the Americans “were forced to feign pullout and declare advisory and non-combat role, but our Iraqi brothers must follow this issue with vigilance”.

“In Yemen, the resistance front is advancing; in Syria, the enemy is paralyzed without hope for the future, and in general, the resistance and anti-colonial current in the region is more prosperous, buoyant and hopeful than two years ago.”

Ayatollah Khamenei called Gen. Soleimani an “enduring and everlasting reality”, saying his assassins, like former US president Donald Trump and others like him, will be “among the forgotten of history and will be lost in the dustbin of history - of course, after repaying their crime in this world".

After the terrorist act, Iran pummeled two US military bases in Iraq with a volley of precision missiles, with Ayatollah Khamenei calling it “the first slap”.

Source: Press TV