:Islamic Republic of Iran Army
{{Short description|Iranian armed forces}}
{{Infobox national military
| name = Islamic Republic of Iran Army
| native_name = ارتش جمهوری اسلامی ایران
ARTEŠE JOMHURIYE ESLÂMIYE IRÂN
| image = Seal of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.svg
| alt =
| caption = Seal of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army
| image2 = {{Photomontage |photo2a=Flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.svg |photo3a=Ceremonial flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army.svg |size=200 |position= |spacing=5 |color=transparent |border=0 |text= |text_background=transparent}}
| alt2 =
| caption2 = Flags of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army
| motto = {{plainlist|
- {{langx|fa|ارتش فدای ملت}} "Army Sacrificed for the Nation" (unofficial){{citation|url=http://hamshahrionline.ir/details/48998|title=Army Sacrificed for the Nation|language=fa|date=16 April 2008|access-date=1 June 2017|work=Hamshahri|id=48998}}
- {{langx|fa|خدا، شاه، ميهن}} "God, Shah, Motherland" (pre-1979){{Citation|last1=Ward|first1=Steven R.|year =2014|title=Immortal, Updated Edition: A Military History of Iran and Its Armed Forces|publisher=Georgetown University Press|isbn=9781626160651|page=209}}
- {{langx|ar|وَإِنَّ جُنْدنَا لَهُمْ الْغَالِبُونَ}} "And Our Soldiers, They Verily Would Be the Victors." {{Cite quran|37|173}} (Heraldry slogan)
}}
| founded = {{plainlist|
- {{Start date and age|-550}} (Achaemenid Empire){{cite encyclopedia|title =ARMY i. Pre-Islamic Iran|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Iranica|date=August 12, 2011|orig-year=December 15, 1986|publisher=Bibliotheca Persica Press|location=New York |url =http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/army-i|volume= II|last1=Shahbazi|first1=A. Sh.|author-link1=Alireza Shapour Shahbazi|editor-last=Yarshater|editor-first=Ehsan|editor-link=Ehsan Yarshater|access-date=March 15, 2016|series=5|pages=489–499}}
- {{Start date and age|1501}} (Guarded Domains of Iran)
- {{Start date and age|1921}} (Imperial State of Iran){{Citation|last1=Cronin|first1=Stephanie|year=2012|title=The Making of Modern Iran: State and Society under Riza Shah, 1921-1941|publisher=Routledge|pages=37–38|isbn=978-1136026942}}{{cite encyclopedia|title =ARMY v. Pahlavi Period|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Iranica|date=August 12, 2011|orig-year=December 15, 1986|publisher=Bibliotheca Persica Press|location=New York City|url =http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/army-v|volume=II |last1=Sheikh-ol-Islami|first1=M. J.|editor-last=Yarshater|editor-first=Ehsan|editor-link=Ehsan Yarshater|access-date=March 15, 2016|series=5|pages=508–514}}
}}
| current_form = {{Start date and age|1979}} (Islamic Republic of Iran)
| disbanded =
| branches = {{plainlist|
- {{army|Iran|name=Ground Forces}} {{small|(NEZAJA)}}
- {{air force|Iran|name=Air Force}} {{small|(NAHAJA)}}
- {{flagicon image|IRI Air Defence Flag.svg}} Air Defense Force {{small|(NEPAJA)}}
- {{flagicon image|Flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy.svg}} Navy {{small|(NEDAJA)}}
}}
| headquarters = Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters, Tehran
| website = {{url|aja.ir}}
| commander-in-chief = Maj. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi
| commander-in-chief_title = Commander-in-Chief
| chief_of_staff = Brig. Gen. Mohammad-Hossein Dadras
| chief_of_staff_title = Deputy Commander-in-Chief
| conscription = 21 months
| manpower_data =
| manpower_age =
| available =
| available_f =
| fit =
| fit_f =
| reaching =
| reaching_f =
| active = 339,000{{cite book| url=https://www.iiss.org/publications/the-military-balance/the-military-balance-2023| title=The Military Balance 2023| author1=International Institute for Strategic Studies| author-link1=International Institute for Strategic Studies| date=15 February 2023| publisher=Routledge| location=London| pages= 324–328| isbn=9781032508955}}
- 299,000 {{small|(Ground Force)}}
- 20,000 {{small|(Air Force)}}
- 10,000 {{small|(Navy)}}
- 10,000 {{small|(Air Defense)}}
| ranked =
| reserve =
| deployed =
| percent_GDP =
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| history = {{plainlist|
}}
| ranks = Rank insignia of the Iranian military
}}
The Islamic Republic of Iran Army{{cite book|title=Army in the Passage of History: Annals, Revolution, the Holy Defense|language=fa|page=48|year=2012|orig-year=1391|isbn=978-964-2523-38-2|publisher=University of Command and Staff}} ({{langx|fa|ارتش جمهوری اسلامی ایران}}), acronymed AJA ({{langx|fa|آجا}}), simply known as the Iranian Army or the Artesh ({{langx|fa|ارتش|Arteš,(Ərteš)}}), is the conventional military of Iran and part of the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces. It is tasked to protect the territorial integrity of the country from external and internal threats and to project power.
The Artesh has its own Joint Staff{{citation|url=http://www.mei.edu/content/artesh-iran%E2%80%99s-marginalized-and-under-armed-conventional-military|title=The Artesh: Iran's Marginalized and Under-Armed Conventional Military|access-date=December 15, 2015|publisher=Middle East Institute|date=November 15, 2011|author=Hossein Aryan}} which coordinates its four separate service branches: the Islamic Republic of Iran Army Ground Forces, the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy and the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Defense Force.{{Citation|last1=Simon|first1=Rita J.|last2=Abdel-Moneim|first2=Mohamed Alaa|year=2011|title=A Handbook of Military Conscription and Composition the World Over|publisher=Lexington Books|pages=152–153|isbn=978-0739167526}}
In addition to the army (Artesh), Iran also maintains the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a separate military force established after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The IRGC is tasked with safeguarding the ideological foundations of the Islamic Republic and defending the regime against internal and external threats. It operates its own ground, naval, and air units, as well as the elite Quds Force, which is responsible for extraterritorial operations. The IRGC functions independently of the Artesh and often holds significant influence in strategic, security, and economic affairs within the country.
The dual military structure of the Artesh and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has led to structural inefficiencies, these include overlapping command hierarchies, redundant logistics networks, and parallel military systems across all service branches. This setup has been criticized for its lack of transparency, limited parliamentary oversight, and its questionable contribution to national defense.{{Cite web |last= |date=2025 |title=Two Armies, One People and No Security |url=https://www.visegrad24.com/articles/two-armies-one-people-and-no-security |access-date=2025-05-09 |website=www.visegrad24.com |language=en}}
History
{{main article|Military history of Iran|Naval history of Iran|Air force history of Iran}}
{{see also|List of wars involving Iran}}
= Classical antiquity =
{{main|Military of the Sasanian Empire|Seleucid army}}
= Early modern =
{{main|Military of Safavid Iran|Military of Afsharid Iran}}
Missions and deployments
File:UN peacekeepers from Iran with UN APCs.jpg battalion in a 2012 parade|left]]
File:Defense.gov News Photo 031229-F-9629J-022.jpg|left]]
The Iranian army has fought against two major invasions in contemporary times. The 1941 invasion by the Allies of World War II resulted in a decisive loss for the Iranian forces, the deposition of Iran's Shah and five years of subsequent occupation, while the 1980 Iraqi invasion began the Iran–Iraq War, which lasted almost eight years and ended in status quo ante bellum. The army has also been actively engaged in quelling tribal and separatist rebellions beginning in the 1940s in order to protect Iran's territorial integrity.
= Extraterritorial operations =
From 1972 to 1976, Iranian troops were sent to Oman to fight with the Royal Army of Oman against the Dhofar Rebellion. In 1976, a contingent was sent to Pakistan to assist the Pakistan Army against the Insurgency in Balochistan. Iranian personnel were also reportedly present in the Vietnam War.
In 2016, members of the special forces of Iran were deployed to fight in the Syrian civil war.{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160502064150/https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/04/iran-army-brigade-65-green-berets-syria-deployment.html|archive-date=2016-05-02|first=Abbas|last=Qaidaari|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/04/iran-army-brigade-65-green-berets-syria-deployment.html|title=Who sent Iranian Green Berets to Syria?|publisher=Al-Monitor|date=28 April 2016|access-date=29 April 2016}}
= International peacekeeping missions =
{{Main|Iranian peacekeeping missions}}
The Iranian Army participated in UN peacekeeping missions in the 1970s, sending a battalion to replace Peruvian forces in the Golan Heights as part of the Disengagement Observer Force. After the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the bulk of the forces were part of the Interim Force in Lebanon until late 1978. Replaced by Finnish forces, Iranian peacekeepers were withdrawn in 1979 following the Islamic revolution.{{Citation|last1=Mays|first1=Terry M.|year=2010|volume=29|series=Historical Dictionaries of International Organizations|title=Historical Dictionary of Multinational Peacekeeping|publisher=Scarecrow Press|page=279|isbn=978-0810875166}}{{Citation|year=2005|volume=78|series=World Country Study Guide Library|title=Iran: Country Study Guide|publisher=Int'l Business Publications|page=141|isbn=0739714767}}
In 1993, the Iranian Army reestablished its professional peacekeeping units and declared that they are ready to be dispatched at the UN's directive.{{cite web|url=http://www.unic-ir.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1191:iranian-peacekeepers-ready-to-serve-un-missions,-anytime,-anywhere%E2%80%94army-colonel&catid=9:eventenglish&Itemid=228&lang=en|title=Iranian Peacekeepers Ready to Serve UN Missions, Anytime, Anywhere—Army Colonel|publisher=United Nations Information Centre - Tehran|date=26 May 2015|access-date=25 April 2016}} Since then, Iran has deployed forces in Ethiopia and Eritrea in 2003 and the African Union Mission in Darfur in 2012.{{citation needed|date=July 2021}}
The Iranian Army's maritime branch has launched several missions to fight piracy off the coast of Somalia,{{cite web|first=Sam |last=Wilkin|editor-last=Pomeroy|editor-first=Robin|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-iran-navy-idUSKBN0MZ11C20150408|title=Iran deploys warships off Yemen's coast|publisher=Reuters|date=8 April 2015|access-date=25 April 2016}} securing the release of many other countries' sailors.{{cite web|first=Sam |last=Wilkin|editor-last=Pomeroy|editor-first=Robin|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/01/20121619222856166.html|title=US navy frees Iranians held by pirates|publisher=Al Jazeera|date=7 January 2012|access-date=25 April 2016}}
= Aid missions =
The Iranian Army has deployed forces to help the Red Lion and Sun and Red Crescent societies in rescue and relief missions after domestic natural disasters, including clearing roads, reestablishing communications, supplying goods, airlifting equipment, transporting casualties and personnel and setting up field hospitals and post-hospital care centres.{{Citation|first=Reza|last=Razani|year=1973|title=The Engineering Aspects of the Qir Earthquake of 10 April 1972 in Southern Iran: A Report to the National Science Foundation|publisher=National Academies|page=141}}{{Citation|first1=Hassan|last1=Abolghasemi|first2=Gholamreza|last2=Poorheidari|first3=Ali|last3=Mehrabi|first4=Ghasem|last4=Foroutan|date=October 2005|title=Iranian military forces in the Bam earthquake|journal=Military Medicine|volume=170|issue=10|pages=859–861|doi=10.7205/MILMED.170.10.859|pmid=16435759|doi-access=free}}
= Future missions =
In 2021, the Iranian Army had announced that it will launch a satellite into space.{{cite news |title=ورود ارتش ایران به باشگاه سازندگان ماهواره |url=https://www.khabarfoori.com/بخش-دفاعی-32/2916826-ورود-ارتش-ایران-به-باشگاه-سازندگان-ماهواره |agency=Khabar Fori |date=2021-12-31}}
Anniversary
{{main|Islamic Republic of Iran Army Day}}
Equipment
{{main|Equipment of the Iranian Army|List of aircraft of the Iranian Air Force|List of equipment of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Defense Force|List of current ships of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy}}
{{see also|List of former Iranian naval vessels|Historical equipment of the Iranian Army}}
Commanders
{{main|List of chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of Iran|List of commanders of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army}}
Military academies
{{main|AJA University of Command and Staff|AJA University of Medical Sciences|Imam Ali Officers' Academy|Shahid Sattari Aeronautical University|Khatam al-Anbia Air Defense Academy|Imam Khomeini Naval University of Noshahr}}
Symbols and uniforms
See also
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
{{Commons category|Islamic Republic of Iran Army}}
- [http://aja.ir/Portal/Home/ Official site of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161002141507/http://www.aja.ir/Portal/Home/ |date=2016-10-02 }}
{{Iran Military}}
{{Islamic Republic of Iran Army}}
{{Commander in Chiefs of the Iranian Army}}