Soleimani Statue Erected In Iran Torched Hours Later

A memorial statue of Qasem Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Qods Force, was set on fire in the central city of Shahrekord on Wednesday.

A video which surfaced on social media Wednesday night showed the statue burning.

The monument had been erected in one of the main squares of the city in the morning, concurrent with the nationwide ceremonies to mark the second anniversary of his death.

Soleimani, who was Iran’s top military and intelligence operator in the Middle East, was killed by a targeted US drone strike on January 3, 2020, directly ordered by former US president Donald Trump.

The representative of Supreme leader Ali Kamenei in the city described the people behind the political vandalism as “idiots”.

In September 2021, police arrested a man for torching another statue of Soleimani in the southwestern city of Yasuj, not very far from Shahrekord.

A few months before that, three young men in the city of Baneh were sentenced to a total of 16 years and seven months in prison for setting fire to a banner of Soleimani.

Many Soleimani busts and figurines have been unveiled by hardliners and supporters of the IRGC since his killing in January 2020.