Nader Mahdavi ( fa, نادر مهدوی) or Hossein Basria ( fa, حسین بسریا) was an
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 ...
naval commander
who fought against
United States naval forces and cruisers on 24 July 1987.
Short biography
Hossein Basria was born on 4 June 1963 in Nokar village,
Dashti County
Dashti County ( fa, شهرستان دشتی) is located in Bushehr province, Iran. The capital of the county is Khormoj. At the 2006 census, the county's population was 71,285, in 15,465 households. Retrieved 6 November 2022 The following censu ...
,
Bushehr Province. When he was in high school, economical issues and his political activities made him leave school and he started working in his father's store. After 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 dyna ...
, he joined the
Basij group. When
Iran-Iraq war started, he wanted to go to battlefields but he was underage and was prevented from entering the war. On 20 April 1981, he was employed in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). He married Sakineh Jokar in 1982.
First battle with United States
At the end of the
Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Ba'athist Iraq, 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 S ...
, the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
was an unsafe place for
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 ...
ians, because Iraqi forces could easily bomb Iranian ships and
oil platforms. Also,
American naval forces protected Kuwaiti ships in the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
and the
Strait of Hormuz. Commanders of 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 ...
informed
Ruhollah Khomeini, leader of Iran, about American
cruisers in the Persian Gulf. Khomeini said, "If it was me, i would attack them". For this reason, Nader Mahdavi prepared his forces for operations against American cruisers.
Nader Mahdavi's mission was preventing ''Bridgeton''s movement.
On 24 July 1987, three U.S. warships escorted the
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
i oil tanker ''al-Rekkah'' into the Persian Gulf. By mutual agreement, ''Al-Rekkah'' had been renamed
''Bridgeton'' and sailed under U.S. flag.
USS ''Crommelin'',
USS ''Fox'', and
USS ''Kidd''. Thirteen miles west of Iran's
Farsi Island
Farsi Island ( fa, جزیره فارسی, translit=jazīreye fârsī) is a tiny, barren Iranian island ( Bushehr province) in the Persian Gulf. There is an IRGC Navy base on this island. The island has an area of about and is restricted from the ...
in the Persian Gulf, the tanker hit an
underwater mine, denting its hull but leaving it seaworthy. For the rest of the journey, the warships sailed in the tanker's wake.
Death
On 8 October 1987, Mahdavi and his soldiers went to Persian Gulf for patrolling
and they took one
Stinger missile
The FIM-92 Stinger is an American man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) that operates as an infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM). It can be adapted to fire from a wide variety of ground vehicles, and from helicopters as the Air-t ...
. Near Farsi, an American helicopter attacked them in the night and the Stinger automatic system activated and shot it down. After a 20-minute battle, Mahdavi was arrested by American forces. Six days after his death, his body was sent to Iran from
Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...
.
Iranian state media outlets said his hands and feet were tied very tightly and his chest was pierced with long iron nails, suggesting he was tortured aboard the
USS Chandler; no independent sources have confirmed this.
In popular culture
Films
* ''Encounter With Devil'' ( fa, رو در رو با شیطان) is documentary film that narrates the war between Iran and United States in Persian Gulf. There are some episodes in the film that show Nader Mahdavi's interview of that time.
Books
* ''Nader, My Brother Hossein'' ( fa, نادر، برادرم حسین) are Nader Mahdavi's brother's memories about him as recorded by Seyyid Ghasim Yahosseini. The book, published by Fatehan Publication Company, is first book about Mahdavi.
* A second was ''Behind the Wave Stronghold'' ( fa, پشت سنگر موج). The narrators Hassan Sharifi and Seyyid Ghasim Yahosseini recorded their memories about Nader. In 2009, the book was published by Fatehan Publication Company in 3,000 copies.
* ''Once Again, Nader'' ( fa, بار دیگر، نادر) is a biography of Nader Mahdavi by Seyyid Ghasim Yahosseini. The book was published by Fatehan Publication Company in 2015.
Postage stamp
* On 8 April 2015, Nader Mahdavi's postage stamp was released in Bushehr Province.
See also
*
Bridgton incident
*
Mohammad Ebrahim Hemmat
References
External links
Encounter With Devil 1Encounter With Devil 2
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahdavi, Nader
Iranian military personnel killed in the Iran–Iraq War
1963 births
1987 deaths