, founded = , current_form = (

Islamic Republic The term Islamic republic has been used in different ways. Some Muslim religious leaders have used it as the name for a theoretical form of Islamic theocratic government enforcing sharia, or laws compatible with sharia. The term has also been u ...

) , disbanded = , branches = , headquarters =

Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters "Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters" ( fa, قرارگاه مرکزی خاتم‌الانبیا (ص)) is the unified combatant command headquarters of the Iranian Armed Forces, under direct command of its General Staff of Armed Forces of the Isla ...

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 ...

, website = , commander-in-chief = Maj. Gen.

Abdolrahim Mousavi Sayyed Abdolrahim Mousavi ( fa, سید عبدالرحیم موسوی) is an Iranian military officer who is Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army since 21 August 2017. He was formerly deputy Chief of General Staff of Armed Forc ...

, commander-in-chief_title = Chief Commander , chief_of_staff = Brig. Gen.

Mohammad-Hossein Dadras Mohammad-Hossein Dadras ( fa, محمدحسین دادرس) is an Iranian regular military (''Artesh'') officer with the rank of brigadier who currently serves as the second-in-command. Career Dadras previously served as the commander of Islamic Re ...

, chief_of_staff_title = Deputy Commander-in-Chief , age = 18 , conscription = 21 months , manpower_data = , manpower_age = , available = , available_f = , fit = , fit_f = , reaching = , reaching_f = , active = 420,000 *350,000 *37,000 *18,000 *15,000 , ranked = , reserve = , deployed = , amount = $2.75 billion (2022) , percent_GDP = , domestic_suppliers = , foreign_suppliers = , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks =

Rank insignia of the Iranian military The Rank insignia of the Iranian military are the ranks used by Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces. The armed forces are split into the Islamic Republic of Iran Army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The ranks used by the Law Enforce ...

The Islamic Republic of Iran Army ( fa, ارتش جمهوری اسلامی ایران), acronymed AJA ( fa, آجا), simply known as the Iranian Army or ''Artesh'' ( fa, ارتش, Arteš), is the "conventional military of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

" and part of

Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed (May, 1941–1964) was an American Thoroughbred gelding race horse who was the American Horse of the Year in 1947 and Champion Older Male Horse in both 1946 and 1947. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in ...

. It is tasked to protect the

territorial integrity Territorial integrity is the principle under international law that gives the right to sovereign states to defend their borders and all territory in them of another state. It is enshrined in Article 2(4) of the UN Charter and has been recognized ...

of the country from external and internal threats and to

project power ''Project Power'' is a 2020 American science fiction action film directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, produced by Eric Newman and Bryan Unkeless, and written by Mattson Tomlin. It stars Jamie Foxx, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Dominique Fis ...

. Artesh has its own

Joint Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, that advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and the ...

which coordinates its four separate service branches:

Ground Forces An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

and the newly established Air Defense Force.

History

Classical antiquity

Early modern

Missions and deployments

The Iranian army has fought against two major invasions in contemporary times. The 1941 invasion by the

Allies of World War II The Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during the Second World War (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy. ...

resulted in a decisive loss for the Iranian forces, the deposition of Iran's Shah and five years of subsequent occupation, while the 1980 Iraqi invasion began the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations Security Council ...

, which lasted almost eight years and ended in ''

status quo ante bellum The term ''status quo ante bellum'' is a Latin phrase meaning "the situation as it existed before the war". The term was originally used in treaties to refer to the withdrawal of enemy troops and the restoration of prewar leadership. When used ...

''. The army has also been actively engaged in quelling tribal and separatist rebellions beginning in the 1940s in order to protect Iran's territorial integrity.

Extraterritorial operations

From 1972 to 1976, Iranian troops were sent to Oman to fight with the

Royal Army of Oman The Royal Army of Oman (Arabic: الجيش العماني, transliterated: ''al-Jaīsh al-'Umānī'') is the ground forces component of the Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces. It was founded in 1907 as the Muscat Garrison. It has a current strength of ...

against the

Dhofar Rebellion The Dhofar Rebellion, also known as the Dhofar War or the Omani Civil War, was waged from 1963 to 1976 in the province of Dhofar against the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman. The war began with the formation of the Dhofar Liberation Front, a group ...

. In 1976, a contingent was sent to Pakistan to assist the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

against the

Insurgency in Balochistan The Insurgency in Balochistan is an insurgency or revolt by Baloch nationalists against the governments of Pakistan and Iran in the Balochistan region, which covers the Balochistan Province in southwestern Pakistan, Sistan and Baluchestan Prov ...

. Iranian personnel were also reportedly present in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. In 2016, members of the

special forces of Iran This is a list of special forces units in Iranian Armed Forces and police. The name can refer to members of regular units who have successfully completed Commando or Ranger training courses and marines trained as Frogman, or the hand-selected and h ...

were deployed to fight in the Syrian Civil War.

International peacekeeping missions

The Iranian Army participated in

UN peacekeeping Peacekeeping by the United Nations is a role held by the Department of Peace Operations as an "instrument developed by the organization as a way to help countries torn by conflict to create the conditions for lasting peace". It is distinguished ...

missions in the 1970s, sending a battalion to replace Peruvian forces in the

Golan Heights The Golan Heights ( ar, هَضْبَةُ الْجَوْلَانِ, Haḍbatu l-Jawlān or ; he, רמת הגולן, ), or simply the Golan, is a region in the Levant spanning about . The region defined as the Golan Heights differs between di ...

as part of the Disengagement Observer Force. After the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the bulk of the forces were part of the Interim Force in Lebanon until late 1978. Replaced by Finnish forces, Iranian peacekeepers were withdrawn in 1979 following the Islamic revolution. In 1993, the Iranian Army reestablished its professional peacekeeping units and declared that they are ready to be dispatched at the UN's directive. Since then, Iran has deployed forces in Ethiopia and Eritrea in 2003 and the African Union Mission in Darfur in 2012. The Iranian Army's maritime branch has launched several missions to fight

piracy off the coast of Somalia Piracy off the coast of Somalia occurs in the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel and Somali Sea, in Somali territorial waters and other surrounding areas and has a long and troubled history with different perspectives from different communities. I ...

, securing the release of many other countries' sailors.

Aid missions

The Iranian Army has deployed forces to help the Red Lion and Sun and

Red Crescent The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, an ...

societies in rescue and relief missions after domestic natural disasters, including clearing roads, reestablishing communications, supplying goods, airlifting equipment, transporting casualties and personnel and setting up

field hospitals A field hospital is a temporary hospital or mobile medical unit that takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent facilities. This term was initially used in military medicine (such as the Mobile A ...

and post-hospital care centres.

Anniversary

Equipment

Commanders

Military academies

Symbols and uniforms

References

External links

Official site of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army
{{Commander in Chiefs of the Iranian Army Military of Iran