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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| 12 million Bassijis mobilised - commander |
| 2010-06-19 |
| Tehran, Jun. 18 - More than 12 million Iranians have been organised into the paramilitary Bassij, according to the force's acting commander. With a population estimated at 72,000,000 that means one sixth of the entire population is Bassijis. "70 million people share the ideal of Bassijis and are steadfast in their defence of the Imam's [Khomeini] ideals as well as Islamic and revolutionary values", claimed Brig. Gen. Ali Fazli. His remarks were carried by the Fars news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). "We are planning to organise a 20-million Bassij army and have mobilised 12 million people so far", Fazli added. 20 million would be approximately 28 percent of the population... The Bassij commander described 2009 as a year full of dangers and challenges which were overcome by public vigilance. The presence of two million Bassijis during Khomeini's death anniversary was a "stern warning" to the "leaders of the conspiracy", he claimed. That's an awful lot of goose-stepping brownshirts, but it's not 28 percent of the population... Fazli also expressed concern over the role played by young activists during the year-long anti-government protests, which he attributed to the "enemy's soft war". He warned that the "enemy has targeted the mind and thinking of the younger generation, for which reason we need to launch a serious effort and activity in order to safeguard the blood of the martyrs and the ideals of the revolution". Sound a little worried, do they? Eventually older generations die off and younger generations take over, don't they? Many observers discount official claims of the size of the Bassij as far too exaggerated. |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #8 trouble fighting just 300 real soldiers.... Ouch! Hey, aren't Bassijis those African dogs that don't bark? |
| Posted by: SteveS 2010-06-19 22:32 |
| #7 I seem to remember Persians having a spot of trouble fighting just 300 real soldiers.... |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-06-19 15:22 |
| #6 Yay, every dollar they spend on their internal thugs is a dollar not spent supporting goons that annoy their neighbors. |
| Posted by: rammer 2010-06-19 14:03 |
| #5 that means one sixth of the entire population is Bassijis Not necessarily. Previous intel sez there are significant numbers of non-native Iranians (Palis, Chechens, various denizens of the Balkans and the 'Stans, etc.). But the numbers likely are inflated, even with high unemployment and and some mission realignment. A massive armed militia only weakly under the control of the central government It does give the IRGC and, by extension, Ahmadinejad some plausible cover as well. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2010-06-19 12:27 |
| #4 Good luck with supplies and food and bullets for a 12 man army. Let alone fuel... |
| Posted by: 3dc 2010-06-19 11:27 |
| #3 How many Battalions in a Horde ? |
| Posted by: Lampedusa Thraling7047 2010-06-19 06:34 |
| #2 Clearly GEN. FAZLI is mistaking NORTH KOREA's 180,000 Commandoes on the DMZ wid the South, for his 12.0MILYUHN BASIJIS! |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2010-06-19 01:17 |
| #1 A massive armed militia only weakly under the control of the central government. What could possibly go wrong? |
| Posted by: phil_b 2010-06-19 00:40 |