The Hamzeh Seyyed al‑Shuhada Headquarters was established in 1982 to develop coordination among the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Army, and the Gendarmerie of the Islamic Republic of Iran in confronting anti‑revolutionary elements in the western and northwestern regions of the country. It was based in Urmia city and covered the West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, and Kermanshah provinces. The headquarters officially began its activities on August 10, 1982.

After the victory of the Islamic Revolution, during 1979 and 1980, there was little unity among the IRGC, the Army, and the Gendarmerie in the Kurdish regions of Iran. Coordination between the organizations often depended on personal relationships among commanders, and most anti‑insurgency operations were carried out according to the local policies of each province. Yet, the units of these organizations stationed across the West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, and Kermanshah provinces needed to operate in a coordinated manner.⁠[1] To create unified management and balanced coordination across all Kurdish regions, the Hamzeh Headquarters was formed.⁠[2]

The headquarters was set up mainly to confront anti‑revolutionary groups as the primary obstacle to security; establish lasting security by involving local populations in defense; plan and execute both regular and irregular operations across West Azerbaijan and Kurdistan; coordinate the delivery of logistical support; synchronize operational and intelligence activities of the IRGC, the Army, and the Gendarmerie; foster a greater understanding and coordination among officials in West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, and Kermanshah provinces; create a unified command in defensive and internal‑security operations; and strengthen the cooperation between the IRGC and the Army in securing the region.⁠[3]

Each of the three military bodies— IRGC, Army, and Gendarmerie— appointed its own commander within the headquarters. Muhammad‑Ebrahim Sanjaqi was appointed commander of the Hamzeh Headquarters of the IRGC, Colonel Hassan Abshenasan commanded the Hamzeh Headquarters of the Army, and Bijan Bahram‑Poor commanded the Hamzeh Headquarters of the Gendarmerie.⁠[4]

The meetings between commanders of the IRGC, Army, and Gendarmerie revealed that one of the major weaknesses of Iranian forces in the Kurdistan front was the lack of combat engineering capability. Forces would capture high ground, yet due to the absence of roads, bridges, fortifications, supply routes, and engineering support, they would eventually fall back into Iraqi hands.⁠[5] To support Iranian forces in the northwest, the Central War Support Headquarters of Jahad‑e Sazandegi in Tehran sent a combat engineering battalion from Semnan— responsible for managing nine engineering battalions from various provinces— to Urmia.⁠[6] The commander of this engineering battalion in 1982 was Abolfazl Hassan‑Beyki.⁠[7]

The structure of the headquarters included permanent units and units placed under its operational control. Permanent units included the IRGC commands of Kurdistan and West Azerbaijan, the Shahid Boroojerdi Headquarters in West Azerbaijan, the Shahid Shahramfar Headquarters in Kurdistan, the Forward Hamzeh Headquarters, the Shahid Kazemi Headquarters in Kermanshah, the Quds Headquarters covering all three provinces (West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, and Kermanshah), the Special Shuhada Brigade, the Quds Special Brigade, the Shahid Boroojerdi Brigade, the Beit al‑Muqaddas Brigade, and regional brigades such as Shahid Javani, Shahid Kazemi, Shahid Hojjati, Shahid Tiyareh, and others. Combat‑support units included artillery, air defense, heavy weapons, and engineering. Service‑support units included logistics, medical services, communications, planning, budgeting, and financial support. Operational units— such as the 14th Imam Hussain (as) Division, the 8th Najaf Ashraf Division, and the 27th Muhammad Rasulullah (pbuh) Division— were temporarily placed under Hamzeh Headquarters’ command depending on operational needs.⁠[8]

With the establishment of the Hamzeh Headquarters, the pattern of operations in the western and northwestern regions changed. Once Iranian forces captured and cleared an area, defensive and development measures were immediately taken to secure it. The first operation conducted under this new approach was the liberation of the Piranshahr– Sardasht axis on November 7, 1982, which was successfully completed.⁠[9]

In a congratulatory message on November 16, 1982, Imam Khomeini (ra) praised the achievements of the Hamzeh Headquarters in clearing anti‑revolutionary elements from Kurdistan and West Azerbaijan. His message highlighted the significance of the headquarters’ role:⁠[10] “ Extend my congratulations to all the combatants of Islam and especially those who are fighting the enemy in the area of operation of the Hamzeh Seyyed al-Shuhada Headquarters. Islam and the pious Muslims look forward to such victories from you, and you shall not be erased from the memory of any of us. You are the beloved sons of the nation. The victory that you earned was an honor for the nation. I hope that this victory will endure until the last stage”.⁠[11]

The clearing of villages around Sanandaj and Marivan, known as the Operation Shuhaday-e Doolab, was carried out on March 26, 1982.⁠[12]

In cooperation with the Forward Headquarters of the Iranian Army Ground Forces in the northwest, the Hamzeh Headquarters formed the joint Malek Ashtar Headquarters to lead Operation Valfajr 2, which was launched on July 20, 1983.⁠[13]

In mid‑1983, Mostafa Izadi took command of the Hamzeh Headquarters. Over the next two years, the headquarters extended Iranian control over cities, main and secondary roads, intermediate regions, and border areas. The headquarters’ activities in 1983 included clearing operations in the Lajan region (east of Piranshahr) and the Mangoor region (southwest of Mahabad). Moreover, it coordinated and executed other military missions such as Operation Shahid Hussaini (September 4, 1983), which targeted villages between Bukan, Sardasht, and Baneh; Operation Ya Zahra (sa) (February 18, 1984), aimed at the Goltapeh region between Bukan, Takab, and Saqqez on the border of West Azerbaijan and Kurdistan; Operation Jahad (June 18, 1983), focused on border areas west of Sardasht and the heights of Kaseh-Shekan, Kani-Rash, and Rostam-Alyan; Operation Vahdat, which covered villages and heights around Baneh; and Operation Shahid Nasser Kazemi, which cleared areas south of Saqqez and west of Divandarreh. In addition, the headquarters secured the Mahabad– Sardasht and Urmia– Oshnavieh roads.⁠[14]

On October 20, 1983, Operation Valfajr 4 was launched in the Shiler region from the Baneh and Marivan axes, under the command of the Hamzeh Headquarters.⁠[15]

In 1984, Army units previously under Hamzeh Headquarters’ command were redeployed to the frontlines, and the IRGC took full command of the headquarters, coordinating with the Gendarmerie and Shahrbani. With the support and coordination of Hamzeh Headquarters, several operations were conducted in 1984 including Qaem (May 17) in the Saral and Khorkhooreh region between Sanandaj, Marivan, and Divandarreh; Nasr (July 18) northwest of Sardasht; Fath (August 16), which cleared 43 villages in the Lajan and Mangoor regions between Mahabad, Naqadeh, and Piranshahr; Fajr in the Alvatan region (September 9), targeting Alvatan and nearby villages around Sardasht; and Tharallah (as) (September 23) aimed at areas between Sardasht and Bukan.⁠[16]

In 1986, Hedayatollah Lotfian succeeded Mostafa Izadi as commander of the Hamzeh Headquarters. Under his leadership, IRGC and Gendarmerie units achieved significant success in dismantling anti‑revolutionary groups, and relative security was restored across most cities and roads in the region. However, anti‑revolutionary elements continued to infiltrate Kurdish areas and carry out operations.⁠[17]

Operations such as Ansarallah (June 11, 1985) in the Saral and Khorkhooreh region between Saqqez, Divandarreh, and Sanandaj; Ghadir‑e Khom (September 1, 1985) in the border region of Baneh; and Karbala 2 (September 1, 1986) to capture the Gerdeh‑Kuh and Gerdeh‑Mand heights were all launched with the support of the Hamzeh Headquarters.⁠[18]

The Hamzeh Seyyed al-Shuhada Headquarters divided its area of responsibility into three zones: north, central, and south. In early 1992, Ahmad Kazemi became commander of the Hamzeh Headquarters. During his time as commander, he implemented the “ Qadr Plan”, which involved removing many static security posts and replacing them with mobile IRGC maneuver units that pursued anti‑revolutionary groups on both sides of the border. The plan significantly improved security in Kurdish regions.⁠[19]

On June 8, 2018, the Hamzeh Seyyed al‑Shuhada Headquarters units engaged two armed terrorist teams in the general areas of Sarvabad and Oshnavieh and successfully eliminated them.⁠[20]

The Hamzeh Seyyed al‑Shuhada Headquarters continues to be responsible for maintaining security in the border regions of West Azerbaijan. Its current commander is Brigadier General Muhammad‑Taqi Osanloo.⁠[21]