Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – March 13, 1991

It rained last night and it continues to rain today. I arrived at Mehrabad airport at seven in the morning. We immediately flew with a group of ministers, deputies, bodyguards, journalists and members of parliament to visit the reconstruction process of the ruined cities to the West [= Kermanshah].

At the Bakhtran airport, there was an official welcome. We immediately drove to the city of Sarpol Zahab. We did not use the helicopter because of the rain; Naturally, the plans were messed up. We passed the cities of Islamabad and Karand. On the way, [Mr. Nekoui] the governor and [Mr. Zarandi], the Friday imam of Bakhtran, who were in the car with me, gave reports and explanations.

In the city of Sarpol Zahab, about 25,000 people have returned and reconstruction continues, but the city is half-ruined. It used to have a population of 22,000 people and it is expected that the population will reach 50,000 people. The people gave a warm welcome. We toured the city. I negotiated with city officials in the municipality. I gave a short speech to the people in front of the municipality building. People want to speed up the reconstruction. Regarding credit and building materials, there was no shortage; Although people want more.

From there we moved to Qasr Shirin. On the way, we passed half-destroyed villages and refugee camps. Alvand river, which has a lot of water and goes to Iraq, caught my attention. On the side of the road, army divisions have been stationed since the war. In the city of Qasr-Shirin, there are no buildings left from the past and the whole city, except for one mosque, has been razed to the ground. People's reconstruction work has not yet started and the construction of infrastructure by the government is ongoing. The warehouse is prepared for building materials. A group of people had come. I went to them. They had simple criticisms; From the low cost of damages paid to the people to the traffic problem due to the strictness of the army.

We visited the citrus nursery, which was established by the Ministry of Agriculture to promote agriculture in the region. The development of the city should be on the other side of the river. From there we went to Abu Dhar Barracks. After the prayer, we were guests of the army for lunch. At the end of the war, this barracks was infiltrated by Iraqis and hypocrites and suffered a lot of damage. A part of the barracks is under the control of the army. In a report, Timsar Javadian informed about the return of Badr army forces to their country to help the people of Iraq.

From there, we moved to the west Gilan region. it is raining People in the villages on the route expressed their feelings warmly. We arrived in Gilan West around half past five. Imam Juma and the governor explained about the reconstruction and raised the demands. I met people in the stadium and talked to them. They had a warm welcome. They had been waiting in the rain since morning.

Due to the removal of the helicopter, the program was changed. We toured the city. Reconstruction is underway. They build good houses and widened the streets. We moved to Ilam. In the valleys around the city, there are sheds built during the displacement of people to escape the Iraqi bombing. Some people still live there.

We arrived in Ilam city at half past seven. We were not supposed to go to Ilam. We were supposed to spend the night in Dehlaran. People were not informed. We had a meeting with the managers of Bakhtran and Ilam provinces. Reports, needs and actions were raised. It seems that there is no objection to the progress of reconstruction.

More credit and more attention to the villagers and help to the injured were demanded. Compared to the previous trip, the problems have decreased a lot and things are going well.