Akbar Hashemi's Memoirs - October 15, 2002

Report of a busy day trip to: Naftshahr, Soumar, listening to the people's concerns, meeting with military commanders and visiting Iraqi border guards, trip to Qasr-e Shirin, visiting the Khosravi border terminal, Gavoshan Dam, return to Kermanshah and...

Full Diary Text:

At half-past seven in the morning, we flew towards Naftshahr. There, the oil officials reported that it has nine oil wells, and currently, seven thousand barrels are extracted daily from five wells. Four wells are shut down due to becoming saline. They say that Iraq has recently carried out several new drillings and is extracting more oil. The oil field is shared and straddles the border. In Iran, it is called "Naftshahr" and in Iraq, "Naft Khaneh," right next to the border. I went to the New Customs Post and, from its tower, viewed the situation in Iraqi Naft Khaneh, its warehouses, facilities, and Iraqi border posts with a camera.

[Mr. Ali Mohammadi], one of the employees who was there before the war, said that on September 4, 1980 (Shahrivar 13, 1359), Iraq seized the [Khan-e Lili] outpost between Naftshahr and Qasr-e Shirin, and the Iranian people and officials could not enter Naftshahr. Then, on September 22 (Shahrivar 31), it captured Naftshahr, and the residential area was completely destroyed. No one is there now, and only the oil facilities remain. I gave them a gift.

From there, we went to Soumar. A beautiful town rebuilt on the bank of a river that flows into Iraq, but most residents have not returned. Only landowners have come for farming and return. The people gathered there complained about the lack of adequate health, education, administrative, and security services. They said that if these services were available, people would return. They did not accept the section chief's defense, who claimed that these services were fundamentally available and, secondly, would be completed if people returned.

I sat for a while beside a large stream under eucalyptus trees and listened to the people's demands, including a group of people who have prepared 1500 hectares of land and complained that the Ministry of Energy is demanding 350 million Tomans for the right to withdraw water from the river that escapes into Iraqi territory. It was decided that the Governor-General and the Deputy Minister of Energy for Water, Mr. [Reza] Ardakanian, should solve the problem.

The commanders of the Army's Western Headquarters and the Commander of the 81st Division provided good reports on the defense plans stretching from South Kurdistan to Ilam, and on the status of Iraqi forces and the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MKO) across the border. They requested that the government allocate funds for the reconstruction of the important Abu Dhar garrison, which was destroyed in the war and whose reconstruction is still incomplete. Mr. [Seyyed Mohammad] Khatami, [the President], had also promised but it has not been fulfilled.

We arrived in Qasr-e Shirin at noon. After the reception by the city officials, we toured the city. It has become a newly built and beautiful city. A large crowd of people had gathered in the streets. There were no plans for a public ceremony. I was forced to get out of the car and talk to the people and apologize. I promised a renewed visit. A similar incident happened on the previous trip.

We went to the Qasr-e Shirin Martyrs' Fish Farming Project site. [Mr. Mohammad Reza Jamshidi], the project manager, gave a report. It is a huge project; four thousand hectares are being developed for warm-water fish and trout farming on 12 thousand hectares of land along the Alvand River, which extends from the city to the Iraqi border, by drawing 12 cubic meters of water per second, which is almost all the available water in that area, and is planned to be transferred to the private sector.

During my trip to Qasr-e Shirin in 1996 (1375), I had approved it and paid 20 million Tomans to start its study. It was initially stalled in the new government and was reactivated in the last two years. It is very important both for the economic prosperity of the city and for creating obstacles against enemy advancement in case of war. The Head of the Judiciary requested that a solution be considered for utilizing the used and enriched water in the pools.

From there, we went to the Khosravi Border Terminal. It is very magnificent. Its reconstruction began after the war by my order and was completed this year. Mr. Bakhtiari, the Terminal Head, and the Customs Head explained. Daily, a thousand pilgrims to the holy shrines (Atabat-e Aliyat) leave Iran, and a group of people from both sides and citizens of other countries pass through for transit, Hajj, and Umrah by land, and export goods. I performed the Noon Prayer there and visited the customs and terminal sections. Near the border, I inquired about the health of the Iraqi border guards.

We flew towards the Gavoshan Dam site north of Kamyaran. We arrived four hours late. They were waiting for us, unaware of the reason for the delay. Mr. [Reza] Ardakanian, [Deputy Minister of Energy], had also come from Tehran. After the reception, which took place on the half-completed body of the dam where the helicopters landed, we went to the workshop mosque hall for lunch. The Director General of Water for Kermanshah Province, Mr. Ardakanian, and the executor of the Gavoshan Dam and Tunnel project provided explanations. I gave a short speech on the importance of controlling and preserving water, especially border waters that flow out of the country, for which this project is intended to control a portion. Then we visited the tunnel, 16 kilometers of which has been excavated. We inspected the body of the dam; it will control about 300 million cubic meters of water that flows to Iraq via the Sirwan River and transfer it to Kermanshah, finally flowing through the Qarasu River behind the Karkheh Dam. I gave an interview to the IRIB of Kurdistan and Kermanshah Provinces.

Mr. Ardakanian said that the water quota allocated to Rafsanjan from the waters of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari has recently been renewed, and sufficient allocation has also been given for the region's own consumption so that the people are satisfied. If the residents of Rafsanjan do not secure the necessary financing for the project, the permit might face problems. The project cost is about 700 billion Tomans, which should be paid by the people of Rafsanjan themselves.

Mr. Engineer Khosravi reported on the studies regarding the transfer of Sirwan water to the western region of the country in Pol-e Zahab, which could revitalize the city of Dehloran and lead to a great revolution in agriculture. Mr. Ardakanian provided the result of the measures taken to secure Zabol's water quota from Afghanistan and said that based on the former agreement, they are obliged to provide water, but given the conditions in Afghanistan, it is necessary to address it carefully with a comprehensive plan, and Iran's aid should be conditioned on the fulfillment of commitments.

We reached Kermanshah at sunset. We landed at the garrison next to the residence of Mr. Zarandi, the Friday Prayer Leader. Then we went to the Friday Prayer Leader's office. After the evening and night prayers, in a gathering of theological students and clerics, Mr. Zarandi gave a report and said that there are 1200 Shiite and Sunni clerics in the province. I delivered a detailed speech explaining the historical position of the clergy in the past, present, and future.

We flew from Kermanshah airport at half-past eight. I was home at ten at night. I read the day's reports from the computer and went to sleep. The issue of the referendum in Iraq for the continuation of Saddam [Hussein]'s presidency and the reactions to the terrorist operation on the Indonesian island of Bali are under discussion and attention. [George] Bush, [the US President], is very upset and said he has become sick from the fact that the American police have not been able to find the mysterious sniper who is killing American people, even after two weeks.