Ali Asghar Vesali Tehrani Fard ( fa, علی اصغر وصالی طهرانی فرد ), commonly known as Asghar Vesali, was an Iranian

military leader Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a m ...

. Before the

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

, he was a member of the

People's Mujahedin of Iran The People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), also known as Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK) or Mojahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) ( fa, سازمان مجاهدين خلق ايران, sâzmân-e mojâhedīn-e khalq-e īrân), is an Iranian pol ...

(MEK). After joining the

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC; fa, سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی, Sepāh-e Pāsdārān-e Enghelāb-e Eslāmi, lit=Army of Guardians of the Islamic Revolution also Sepāh or Pasdaran for short) is a branch o ...

, he was appointed as a leader of the

Red Handkerchief is a 1964 Japanese film directed by Toshio Masuda. Inspired by Yujiro Ishihara's hit song of the same title. Plot Mikami was deceived by his friend and colleague detective Ishizuka, but he didn't know the fact and was forced to quit the job, ...

during the Iran-Iraq War. Vesali was killed in

Gilan-e Gharb Gilan-e Gharb (Kurdish: Gyellan گیەڵان) ( fa, گيلانغرب; also Romanized as Gīlān-e Gharb; also known as Gharb) is the capital city of Gilan-e Gharb County, Kermanshah Province, Iran. Demographics The city is populated by Kurds ...

at the age of 30.

Biography

Vesali left Iran to receive military training. He was arrested and imprisoned by the

Pahlavi dynasty The Pahlavi dynasty ( fa, دودمان پهلوی) was the last Iranian royal dynasty, ruling for almost 54 years between 1925 and 1979. The dynasty was founded by Reza Shah Pahlavi, a non-aristocratic Mazanderani soldier in modern times, who ...

because of his support for MEK. He was released in late 1976 and did not continue his activities with MEK. In the beginning of the Islamic Revolution, Vesali was responsible for the Barrack-3 forces' mission to find and arrest members of the

Forqan Group Forqan Group ( fa, گروه فرقان, named after Sura Al-Furqan) was an Iranian opposition militant group with clandestine cell system adhering to a Shia anti-clerical Islamist ideology. Forqan assassinated some senior officials, including Ge ...

. After the

, Vesali became a member of the

and was one of the founders of the Foreign Intelligence department. He was then moved to the west of Iran after several attacks had occurred there. He formed groups of soldiers and called them "Red Handkerchief".

Mostafa Chamran Mostafa Chamran Save'ei ( fa, مصطفی چمران ساوه‌ای) (2 October 1932 – 21 June 1981) was an Iranian physicist, politician, commander and guerrilla fighter who served as the first defense minister of post-revolutionary Iran ...

said: “I met some fighters in Lebanon, but I never saw a man as brave as Vesali”. Vesali married Maryam Kazemzadeh, a correspondent and photographer. She met Vesali when she traveled to

Marivan Mariwan ( fa, مريوان; ) also known as Qale Marīvān - "Fort Marivan"; formerly, Dezhe Shahpur (Persian: دِژ شاهپور), also Romanized as Dezhe Shāhpūr and Dezhe Shapoor) is a town in – and the capital of – Marivan Cou ...

as a reporter, where Chamran introduced them to each other while they were preparing a report on the liberation of

Paveh Paveh ( fa, Pâveh, ku, Pawe , پاوە, also Romanized as Pāveh, Pawah, and Pāweh) is a city and capital of Paveh County, Kermanshah Province, Iran. It is located in a region called Hawraman. The first language spoken by the population in t ...

. On 19 November 1980 ( Ashura day), he received a head injury fighting against anti-revolutionary groups in the west of Iran, near

, and died, after he had surgery. Vesali was buried in the

Behesht-e Zahra cemetery Behesht-e Zahra ( fa, بهشت زهرا, lit. ''The Paradise of Zahra'', from Fatima az-Zahra) is the largest cemetery in Iran. Located in the southern part of metropolitan Tehran, it is connected to the city by Tehran Metro Line 1. History In ...

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

In the media

Vesali was featured in the 2014 film ''Che'', with

Babak Hamidian Babak Hamidian ( fa, بابک حمیدیان; born 1981) is an Iranian actor. He has received various accolades, including a Crystal Simorgh, a Hafez Awards, Hafez Award, an Iran Cinema Celebration Award and two Iran's Film Critics and Writers As ...

playing as Vesali. The film focuses primarily on the fight against anti-revolutionary groups in

References

{{reflist People of the Iranian Revolution Iranian military personnel killed in the Iran–Iraq War Burials at Behesht-e Zahra Iranian revolutionaries Iranian Irregular Warfare Headquarters guerrillas Military personnel killed by friendly fire Early People's Mujahedin of Iran members 1950 births 1980 deaths

Biography

In the media

See also

References