Iran's Army Files Complaint Against Hassan Abbasi Over His Remarks About the Military

Ahmadreza Pourdastan, the commander of the Iranian Army's Ground Forces, reacted to remarks made by Hassan Abbasi, head of the Doctrine Research Center, about the army, urging him to apologize for his statements as soon as possible. Pourdastan described Abbasi's remarks as 'ill-considered.' On Thursday, August 7, during a speech at the Imam Khomeini Rehabilitation Center for Veterans in Mashhad, he stated: 'His statements are ill-considered remarks made without understanding and awareness of the responsibilities of organizations and forces.' The commander of the Ground Forces announced that a lawsuit is being prepared by the Army's legal management against Hassan Abbasi and that he will soon be summoned by the court to respond to his statements. Recently, a video clip of Abbasi, who heads an organization called the 'Doctrine Research Center,' was published on the internet and social media, in which he defended the actions of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Basij, describing the army as a 'silent' force. In part of this one-minute clip, he addressed the United States, saying: 'You want something like the army that is silent in the barracks, and if the water of this country (Iran) is taken away, their voices will not be heard, and they will not take any position.' The commander of the Iranian Army's Ground Forces, in another part of his remarks in response to Abbasi's statements, emphasized the army's role in ensuring security at border points, stating: 'The Ground Forces have deployed human resources in an organized arrangement in various layers at the borders for border protection.' Assadollah Heydari, head of the Iranian Army's Retirees Association, also described Abbasi's remarks as 'regrettable and incorrect' in an open letter on Wednesday and urged him to apologize to the people of Iran and the army for these statements. In part of his letter, he wrote: 'Certainly, the great and noble people of Iran... contrary to your published statements, do not see their beloved army as asleep!... but they owe their peaceful and restful sleep to the vigilance of the dedicated soldiers...' Mohsen Rezaei, Secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council, also reacted to these statements, writing on his Twitter account according to the news agency Mizan: 'Insulting the army and the IRGC is the wish of Israel and the United States.' Abbasi, who is referred to as a member of the IRGC, has not yet responded to these criticisms. The Iranian army has maintained a neutral stance in many incidents and events over the decades since the 1979 revolution, while commanders of the IRGC have consistently commented on internal issues and have often subjected critics and opponents to severe criticism or detained them using the military intelligence arm of this military force.