Operation Beit ol-Moqaddas

Operation Beit ol-Moqaddas
	Part of Iran–Iraq War
Date	24 April – 24 May 1982; (1 month)
Location	Khuzestan, South-West Iran
Result	Iranian victory
Territorial; changes	Iranians liberated Khorramshahr and the town of Hoveyzeh as well as villages, around 4,500 km2 overall, and pushed Iraqi forces to near the border
Belligerents
Iraq	Iran
Commanders and leaders
Col. † (Commander of Iraqi forces in Khorramshahr); Maj. Gen. (commander of III Corps)	Mohsen Rezai ; Col. Ali Sayad Shirazi ; Gholam Ali Rashid ; Col. Massoud Monfared Niyaki ; ; Col. ; ; Col.
Strength
70,000-80,000 fighters:; 90 infantry battalions; 43 armored battalions; 23 mechanized battalions; 22 commando battalions; 12 border guard battalions; 30 artillery battalions; 1,435 tanks, 1,330 APCs, 530 artillery pieces	65,000 fighters:; 112 infantry battalions; 23 armored battalions; 9 mechanized battalions; 29 artillery battalions; 5 combat engineer battalions; 1 pontoon bridge battalion; 4 army aviation units (96 helicopters); 700 tanks
Casualties and losses
16,000 killed and wounded; 19,070 captured; 418 tanks and APCs, 200 vehicles, 40 aircraft, 3 helicopters, and 30 artillery pieces destroyed; 150 tanks and APCs, 300 vehicles, 1 hellicopter, 18 artillery pieces, 95,000 mines, and dozens of ammunition depots captured	30,000 killed and wounded; 4 helicopters destroyed

Operation Beit-ol-Moqaddas (Persian: عملیات بیت‌المقدس) or Operation Toward Beit-ol-Moqaddas (عملیات الی بیت‌المقدس)^[4] was an Iranian operation conducted during the Iran–Iraq War. The operation was a success, as it achieved its standing aim of liberating Khorramshahr and pushed Iraqi troops back to the border. This operation, coupled with Operation Tariq-ol-Qods, and Operation Fath-ol-Mobin, succeeded in evicting Iraqi troops from southern Iran and gave Iran the momentum.

Prelude[]

On 22 September 1980, because of his desire that Iraq should have complete dominance over the Shatt al-Arab (or the Arvand Rūd) waterway, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein declared war against Iran and launched a land invasion of southern Iran, although operations did occur elsewhere on the Iran–Iraq border. After achieving successes due to the post-Revolution military and political chaos in Iran, Saddam Hussein ordered that the Iraqi troops "dig-in" on the front line. He hoped that this would show the world that he cared about the fate of the Iranian people, and that he was only concerned with achieving his aim of securing the entire Shatt al-Arab waterway, which had been under dispute since the 1975 Algiers Agreement. However, since the Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1979, Iraq had felt that it was necessary to assume what it wanted through force, since previous attempts in getting the revolutionary Iranian government to negotiate a new settlement had proved fruitless.

Once the Iraqi forces had settled, the Iranians were planning a series of operations designed to evict the Iraqis from southern Iran, of which Operation Tariq al-Qods was one.

Battle[]

The Iranians attacked, with some 70,000 soldiers in the Ahvaz–Susangerd area. The Iraqi forces in the area withdrew, and strengthened the defenses of Khorramshahr.

The Iraqis launched a counter-offensive on 20 May. However, despite its scale, the Iranians were able to repulse the attack.

On 24 May, the Iranians liberated Khorramshahr; the vitally strategically and symbolically important Iranian city whose capture by Iraq had been the low-point of Iranian fortunes in the early days of the war

The Iraqis were ordered to retreat, although many had done so when Khorramshar had fallen, back into Iraq. The Iranians captured 15,000-19,000 Iraqi troops and a substantial amount of Iraqi military hardware in Khorramshahr.

The commander of the Iraqi forces in the city, Colonel , attempted to flee, but was trapped in a minefield which previously had been set up on his orders, and killed when he stepped on a mine.^[5]

Units[]

Iran[]

Iranian units involved in the operation were as follows:^[2]^[1]^[6] Each IRGC battalion was consisted of 300 Basij volunteers at most, while each Army battalion was around 2.5 times bigger. However, the number of battalions in each IRGC brigade was bigger than those of the Army.^[7]

Karbala Central Headquarters
Commanded by Mohsen Rezaei (IRGC commander) and Col. Ali Sayyad Shirazi (Army commander)

Fath Headquarters
Commanded by Gholam Ali Rashid and Col. Massoud Monfared Niyaki
- IRGC:
  - 3rd Fath Division
    - 14th Imam Hossein Brigade (1st Fath)
      Commanded by Hossein Kharrazi
      - 7 infantry battalions
    - 8th Najaf Ashraf Brigade (3rd Fath)
      Commanded by Ahmad Kazemi
      - 7 infantry battalions
    - 25th Karbala Brigade (4th Fath)
      Commanded by
      - 7 infantry battalions
  - Two battalions from 30th Armored Brigade
- Army:
  - 92nd Armored Division of Khuzestan
    - 1st Brigade (1st Fath)
    - 2nd Brigade (2nd Fath) (backup)
    - 3rd Brigade (3rd Fath)
  - 37th Armored Brigade of Shiraz (4th Fath)
  - 55th Airborne Brigade of Shiraz (4th Fath)
  - 151st Battalion (4th Fath)
  - 8 artillery battalions
- Combat engineering (Commanded by Col. Jalal Rajabi-Rad): 85 engineering vehicles overall (45 from Jihad of Construction, 22 from IRGC, 18 from Army)
Nasr Headquarters
Commanded by and Col.
- IRGC:
  - 5th Nasr Division
    - (1st Nasr)
      Commanded by
    - 27th Mohammad Rasulullah Brigade (2nd Nasr)
      Commanded by Ahmad Motevasselian
    - (3rd Nasr)
    - (5th Nasr)
  - One battalion from 30th Armored Brigade
- Army:
  - 21st Hamzeh Infantry Division of Azarbaijan
    - 1st Brigade (1st Nasr)
    - 2nd Brigade (2nd Nasr)
    - 3rd Brigade (3rd Nasr)
    - 4th Brigade (4th Nasr) (backup)
  - 23rd Airborne Special Forces Brigade (Nowhed) (5th Nasr)
  - 6 artillery battalions
- Combat engineering: 48 engineering vehicles overall (27 from Jihad of Construction, 18 from IRGC, 3 from Army)
Qods Headquarters
Commanded by and Col.
- IRGC:
  - 1st Qods Division
    - 31st Ashura Brigade (1st Qods)
      Commanded by Mehdi Bakeri
      - 7 infantry battalions
    - (2nd Qods)
      - 8 infantry battalions
    - (3rd Qods)
      Commanded by Ali Hashemi
      - 8 infantry battalions
    - 41st Tharallah Brigade (4th Qods)
      Commanded by Qassem Soleimani
      - 7 infantry battalions
    - (5th Qods)
      - 8 infantry battalions
  - One tank battalion from 30th Armored Brigade
- Army:
  - 16th Armored Division of Qazvin
    - 1st Brigade (1st Qods)
      - 2 tank battalions, 2 mechanized battalions
    - 2nd Brigade (2nd Qods)
      - 2 tank battalions, 2 mechanized battalions
    - 3rd Brigade (3rd Qods)
      - 2 tank battalions, 1 mechanized battalion
  - 58th Zolfaqar Commando Brigade of Shahroud (4th Qods)
    - 4 infantry battalions, 1 tank battalion
  - 254th Tank Battalion (5th Qods)
    - 1 company
  - 6 artillery battalions
- Combat engineering: 59 engineering vehicles overall (23 from Jihad of Construction, 22 from IRGC, 14 from Army)
Fajr Headquarters (backup)
- IRGC:
  - 17th Ali ibn Abi Taleb Brigade
  - 33rd Al-Mahdi Brigade
- Army:
  - 77th Infantry Division of Khorasan
    - 3rd Brigade

Combat engineer units involved were as follows:

Army: 63 engineering vehicles overall
- Combat Engineer Battalion of 21st Division
- Combat Engineer Battalion of 92nd Division
- Combat Engineer Battalion of 16th Division
- 411th Combat Engineer Group of Borujerd
  - 422nd Pontoon Bridge Group of Daghagheleh, Ahvaz
- 411th Pontoon Bridge Battalion
- 414th Combat Engineer Battalion
  - Zafar Company
IRGC: 60 engineering vehicles overall
Jihad of Construction: 100 engineering vehicles overall

Other forces included:

Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force: The IRIAF conducted 2,161 sorties overall. Air support duties were performed using 2 surface-to-surface missile bases together with F-4 Phantom II and F-14 Tomcat fighter jets. 20 sorties were conducted in the first day and 6 sorties in other days as close air support. 3 airbases were dedicated to medical evacuation duties, with 12-20 sorties per day.
Islamic Republic of Iran Army Aviation (Havanirooz): 96 helicopters were involved, including (sources differ on numbers): 24-26 Bell AH-1J International, 22-32 Bell 214, 6-16 Boeing CH-47C Chinook, 16-32 Bell 206 helicopters
Islamic Republic of Iran Navy's Takavar units
Islamic Republic of Iran Air Defense Force

Iraq[]

Iraqi units involved in the operation were as follows:^[8]^[2]^[1]

3rd Armored Division
Commanded by Brig. Gen. Jawad Asaad Shitnah ^[9]
- 6th Armored Brigade
- 12th Armored Brigade
  Commanded by
- 53rd Armored Brigade
- 8th Mechanized Brigade
6th Armored Division
- 16th Armored Brigade
- 30th Armored Brigade
- 25th Mechanized Brigade
7th Armored Division
9th Armored Division
- 35th Armored Brigade
- 43rd Armored Brigade
- 14th Mechanized Brigade
12th Armored Division
- 37th Armored Brigade
- 46th Mechanized Brigade
10th Armored Division
- 17th Armored Brigade
- 24th Mechanized Brigade
5th Mechanized Division
- 26th Armored Brigade
- 55th Armored Brigade
- 15th Mechanized Brigade
- 20th Mechanized Brigade
11th Infantry Division
- 44th Infantry Brigade
- 48th Infantry Brigade
- 49th Infantry Brigade
- 22nd Infantry Brigade
- 45th Infantry Brigade
- 113th Infantry Brigade
7th Infantry Division (I Corps)
- 19th Infantry Brigade
- 39th Infantry Brigade
15th Infantry Division
10th Independent Armored Brigade
31st, 32nd, 33rd, 416th, 417th, 601st, 602nd, 603rd, 119th Special Forces Brigades
Republican Guards:
- 10th Armored Brigade
109th, 419th, 416th, 90th, 417th, 601st, 602nd, 605th, 606th, 409th, 238th, & 501st Independent Infantry Brigades
9th, 10th, 20th, 113th Border Guard Brigades
33rd Special Forces Brigade
Thirty commando companies
Popular Army:
- 10 battalions (qati`), 450 fighters each
Saif Saad Independent Tank Battalion
Hattin, Salah al-Din & Hanin reconnaissance battalions
Thirty artillery battalions
Iraqi Air Force

References[]

^ ^a ^b ^c اله, جعفری, فتح (1 February 2005). "تحلیلی بر عملیات بیت المقدس". فصلنامه تخصصی جنگ ایران و عراق. 3 (12). Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Untitled Page". www7.irna.ir. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
^ Buchan, James (15 October 2013). Days of God: The Revolution in Iran and Its Consequences. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781416597773. Retrieved 19 October 2017 – via Google Books.
^ "آنچه باید درباره عملیات "بیت المقدس" بدانیم +عکس و نقشه". مشرق نیوز (in Persian). 2015-05-25. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
^ "Khorramshahr Liberation Day: 24 May 1982". Retrieved 19 October 2017.
^ "مروری بر عملیات بیت المقدس /3". khabaronline.ir. 6 June 2011. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
^ http://aja.ir
^ "شرح کامل عملیات بیت المقدس". www.aviny.com. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
^ Woods, Kevin M. (19 October 2017). "Saddam's War: An Iraqi Military Perspective of the Iran-Iraq War". Institute for National Strategic Studies, National Defense University. Retrieved 19 October 2017 – via Google Books.

The Iran–Iraq War 1980-1988; Karsh, Efraim; Osprey Publishing; 2002
http://www.aja.ir/portal/Home/ShowPage.aspx?Object=News&CategoryID=31181e33-a5ba-4aa4-96ac-d4af5d174bc2&WebPartID=44f1e8b7-bb76-4037-9172-315858616c2c&ID=0225efab-94ae-4f01-aed5-2e6a3c09c197

[negineiran-1] اله, جعفری, فتح (1 February 2005). "تحلیلی بر عملیات بیت المقدس". فصلنامه تخصصی جنگ ایران و عراق. 3 (12). Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.

[irna-2] "Untitled Page". www7.irna.ir. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.

[3] Buchan, James (15 October 2013). Days of God: The Revolution in Iran and Its Consequences. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781416597773. Retrieved 19 October 2017 – via Google Books.

[4] "آنچه باید درباره عملیات "بیت المقدس" بدانیم +عکس و نقشه". مشرق نیوز (in Persian). 2015-05-25. Retrieved 2019-03-18.

[5] "Khorramshahr Liberation Day: 24 May 1982". Retrieved 19 October 2017.

[6] "مروری بر عملیات بیت المقدس /3". khabaronline.ir. 6 June 2011. Retrieved 19 October 2017.

[7] ttp://aja.ir

[8] "شرح کامل عملیات بیت المقدس". www.aviny.com. Retrieved 19 October 2017.

[9] Woods, Kevin M. (19 October 2017). "Saddam's War: An Iraqi Military Perspective of the Iran-Iraq War". Institute for National Strategic Studies, National Defense University. Retrieved 19 October 2017 – via Google Books.

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