Iranian authorities have erected statues in Kurdish cities honouring 'Muslim Peshmerga' who have fought with the Basij paramilitary forces under the command of the Revolutionary Guards.
In the week commemorating the Basij forces, Iran has begun building 10 statues in 10 Kurdish cities. On Saturday, Iranian authorities unveiled one of the statues in the city of Mariwan, northwestern Iran.
Mohamad Taqi Osanlou, an Iranian commander, said the aim is to provide a place for people to gather and share the memories of the 'Muslim Peshmerga' from one generation to another.
The paramilitary force was formed soon after the Islamic Revolution in 1979 and tasked with putting an end to the Kurdish rebellion that was calling for greater national and cultural rights.
Supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who is regarded as one of the founders of the 'Muslim Peshmerga,' expressed his gratitude for the forces that he claimed numbers a lot in Kurdish areas.
"There has been no shortage of brave and loyal brothers in Kurdish areas, and in every part of Kurdish areas there have been loyal and believing brothers who did so much for the revolution," Khamenei said last year as he received a delegation from the Muslim Peshmerga.
"Their role model was the youth who gathered around the Muslim Peshmerga, took up arms and went to the war zone endangering their lives, and that of their families."
