Tehran, April 11: Commander of Iran’s Army Major General Ataollah Salehi says Tehran will display the country’s new defensive achievements in a military parade next week.
“New achievements in military and defense fields will be displayed in a march on April 18,” Salehi said on Sunday.
April 18 (Farvardin 29) marks the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army Day.
“Today Iran’s Army and [the country’s] other armed forces cannot be compared with the beginning of the [eight-year of] Sacred Defense in terms of capability, self-realization and reliance on domestic productions,” Fars News Agency quoted Salehi as saying,
The Iranian commander added that the Islamic Republic has achieved all the sciences of domestically producing weapons, and has been able to neutralize threats and deter the enemy.
Referring to the interference of Saudi Arabia’s military in Bahrain, Salehi said, “The soldiers who attacked these countries, particularly Bahrain, are mercenaries of global arrogance.”
Bahrainis have been demanding an end to the rule of the Al Khalifa dynasty since February 14.
Dozens of people have been killed and thousands of others injured since the start of the uprising.
In March, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait deployed their troops in Bahrain to reinforce a massive armed crackdown on the popular uprising.
The Human Rights Watch has expressed concern over what it calls growing abuse by the Bahraini regime against its citizens.
Amnesty International has condemned the Bahraini and Saudi regimes for what it calls heavy-handed tactics to crackdown on protesters.
——–Agencies