Hasan Irlu ( fa, حسن ایرلو; 1959December20, 2021) was an Iranian diplomat. He served as the Iranian ambassador to Houthi-controlled Yemen from 2020 to 2021. He was a former member of the IRGC's Quds Force, who became the head of its Yemen operations in Iran at the request of

Qassem Soleimani Qasem Soleimani ( fa, قاسم سلیمانی, ; 11 March 19573January 2020) was an Iranian military officer who served in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). From 1998 until his assassination in 2020, he was the commander of the Quds F ...

Early life

Hassan Irlu was born in the city of

Ray Ray may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin Science and mathematics * Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point * Ray (g ...

, in Tehran Province, where he completed his primary studies in Tehran in the Dolab Gate area, then completed his undergraduate studies at the University of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Department of International Relations to obtain a doctorate and start his work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Move to Yemen

On October 17, 2020, Iran posted Irlu as its ambassador in Sanaa. On December 8, 2020, the United States placed Hassan Irlu under terrorism-related sanctions under Executive Order 13224.

COVID-19 infection and death

On December 21, 2021, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that its envoy to the Houthi militia had died after he returned to the country at the end of last week in poor health after contracting COVID-19. The ministry said in a statement issued by the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), that the Iranian ambassador to the National Salvation Government in Yemen, Hasan Irlu, died of infection with the

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the com ...

, despite medical follow-up. Irlu had been evacuated from Sanaa three days earlier on an Iraqi

medical evacuation Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...

plane. Official Iranian obituaries said that Hasan Irlu was one of the leaders of the resistance and was a courageous leader, describing him as a martyr who was martyred while performing his mission. Saeed Khatibzadeh, the spokesman for the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran The Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( fa, وزارت امور خارجه, Vezārat-e Omūr-e Khārejeh) is an Iranian government ministry headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who is a member of cabinet. The current Minister of Foreign Affairs ...

, was quoted as describing Irlu as a "martyr" and a "

chemical warfare Chemical warfare (CW) involves using the toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons. This type of warfare is distinct from nuclear warfare, biological warfare and radiological warfare, which together make up CBRN, the military acronym ...

veteran" of the Iran-Iraq war and contracted the coronavirus at the embassy and died at dawn after returning in unfavorable conditions. The deputy commander of the IRGC, Ali Fadavi, also named him as a "fighter in the resistance front" accused the United States and its allies of delaying Irlu's evacuation from Sanaa. He had been suffering from

respiratory problem Respiratory diseases, or lung diseases, are pathological conditions affecting the organs and tissues that make gas exchange difficult in air-breathing animals. They include conditions of the respiratory tract including the trachea, bronchi, bron ...

s because of his exposure to chemical weapons when he was fighting in the Iran-Iraq war.

Attributing him to Abdolreza Shahlai

IRNA wrote in a report that it later removed from its website that Irlu was the same individual as Abdulreza Shahlai. However, the US State Department confirmed that they were two different people and the reward for the arrest of Abdulreza Shahlai still stands.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Irlu, Hasan 1959 births 2021 deaths 21st-century Iranian military personnel Ambassadors of Iran to Yemen COVID-19 pandemic in Yemen Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran Individuals designated as terrorists by the United States government Iranian individuals subject to U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctions Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel of the Iran–Iraq War People from Ray, Iran Quds Force personnel 21st-century Iranian diplomats