TEHRAN – Iranian President Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi has urged his administration to make extra efforts to fully develop the tourism-related economy in Ilam province.

“We must fully develop the tourism economy of Ilam province to eliminate unemployment and create respected employment for the youth of the province,” Raisi said on Friday.

He made the remarks in a meeting with a host of local people inducing elites, academia, scholars, and the families of martyrs, CHTN reported.

Moreover, Ilam has considerable potential in terms of religious tourism that can seriously help eliminate unemployment in the province, he said.

The [transport] infrastructure must be improved in terms of rail and road connections in such a way that the province would be turned into a corridor connecting Iraq to other Iranian cities, he explained.

Raisi said that Ilam province has great potential for progress and development, adding, “We hope this trip will be an important step towards eliminating deprivations and accelerating the development of the province.”

“I hope that during this trip, various and important decisions will be made for the development of the province.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, the president pointed out, “The people of Ilam province heroically stood against the enemies and sacrificed many martyrs to the Islamic Revolution, and we cherish the memory of all of them”.

Each year, a huge crowd of Iranian pilgrims cross Ilam province flocking to Karbala, where the holy shrine of Imam Hussein (AS) is located, to perform Arbaeen rituals.

The Arbaeen pilgrimage, which is one of the largest religious gathering in the world, comes 40 days after Ashura, the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (AS), the third Imam of Shia Muslims and the grandson of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

The lesser-known province is located on the foothills of the Zagros Mountains in the western region of Iran. Unlike The north and northwest part of this province which is mountainous, the west and southwest are flat. It is a suitable place for nomad life since the geographical conditions are favorable for summer and winter relocation.

The common handicrafts of this province include carpet, rug, drugget, felt, and coarse blanket weaving. The majority of the people in Ilam are Kurds, Laks, and Lurs, they speak in Laki, Kurdish, and Luri. Based on the archeological excavations in Ali Kosh ancient area, the civilization of this province dates back to New Stone Age circa 8000 BC.

The land which is called Ilam now was a part of the ancient Elamite civilization that was formed circa 3000 BC and was destroyed by Assyrian King Ashurbanipal in 640 BC.

Elam was an ancient pre-Iranian civilization centered in the far west and south-west of what is now modern-day Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam provinces as well as a small part of southern Iraq.

AFM