TEHRAN - The newly appointed commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, said on Monday that Iran will powerfully continue Lieutenant General Soleimani’s path.

The path on which Soleimani took “powerful steps” will be continued, Brigadier General Esmail Ghaani said in a ceremony arranged by the military.

Ghaani went on to say that resistance is the only way to defeat enemies.

“We have to strongly stand against enemies. All threats can be turned into opportunities if we fulfill our duties,” he pointed out.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed Ghaani as the new commander of the IRGC Quds Force on January 3, following the assassination of Soleimani in a United States’ airstrike in Baghdad.

In a retaliatory move, Iran fired dozens of ballistic missiles at a major U.S. military base in Iraq on January 8.

Top Iranian political and military figures had vowed “harsh revenge” for the martyrdom of General Soleimani.

Ayatollah Khamenei said on January 8 that such military actions are not enough and the U.S. forces must leave the region.

“The issue of revenge is another issue. They were slapped last night which is another issue. Such military actions will not be enough. The United States’ corruptive presence in the region must come to an end. They have brought war, sedition, destruction, and also the destruction of infrastructures to the region,” he stated.

In his newest remarks on Friday, Ayatollah Khamenei said the knocking down of the U.S. airbase in Iraq should be considered a “Day of Allah (God)”.

He explained that Days of Allah are when societies, humans, and ethnicities rid themselves of the oppressors.

He also described the assassination of Soleimani as a cowardly act that brought disgrace upon the U.S.

“We should see Haj Qassem Soleimani as a school of thought and as a school of lessons in order for the significance of this matter to be clarified,” he noted.

The Leader described the IRGC Quds Force as a humane body with great and clear humanitarian motivations.

“They are present whenever they are needed and protect the dignity of the oppressed people and sacrifice themselves for the sanctities.”

“These forces put their lives on the line and go to the aid of regional nations … and this is what keeps war and terror away from our own homeland,” the Leader remarked.

NA/PA