The sound of sirens still echoes in the ears.
The scent of smoke, rubble, and fear has not yet faded from the memory of the streets.
Tehran\u2014on the days when its sky was unsafe and its hearts were anxious\u2014saw the rise of silent heroes; unarmed, yet powerful; not to fight, but to save.
The shadow of missiles still hangs over memories.
Streets once full of life turned within minutes into scenes of destruction and screams.
Women clutching their children, men clearing debris with bare hands, and rescuers in the red uniforms of the Red Crescent searching through dust and blood for a sign of life.
In the heart of those harrowing days are names that departed in silence yet became a cry\u2014a cry of sacrifice, a cry of devotion.<\/p>\n
One of those names is Mojtaba Maleki<\/strong>\u2014a young man from the generation of the 1370s (1990s), who devoted his life to saving others, and whose death became a deeper meaning of living. His final mission was like all the others: helping the injured, rescuing the trapped, easing the pain of those buried under fear and rubble. His dream was martyrdom. In every prayer, he asked God to grant him that destiny\u2014and in the end, he reached his greatest wish. According to the Red Crescent Society, on Monday, June 26<\/strong>, the news came that the Zionist regime<\/strong> had attacked a Red Crescent ambulance, and two rescuers were martyred in service. One of them was Mojtaba Maleki<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Hossein Nikbakht<\/strong>, Mojtaba\u2019s friend and colleague, was beside him that Monday during the intense rescue operations in Tehran.<\/p>\n \u201cWe took pictures, joked, and talked about relief work and martyrdom. That same afternoon, western Tehran was attacked again, and they were dispatched for another operation. He recalls entering the zone to assess damage when the first explosion hit\u2014followed by another, even stronger.<\/p>\n \u201cMoments later, I regained consciousness and realized I was injured\u2014but I stood up and started looking for my colleagues. He moved toward their vehicles parked a short distance away.<\/p>\n \u201cOur ambulance was completely burned\u2014nothing left of it. They hoped to find him alive.<\/p>\n \u201cAbout an hour later, we saw soldiers carrying two bodies. He had been married only a few short years. Together, they had painted countless dreams for the future. \u201cSince his teenage years, Mojtaba wanted to complete Red Crescent courses. \u201cThat morning, June 26, Mojtaba left for his mission like every other day. \u201cBy noon, I heard that Israel might attack several places in Tehran\u2014IRIB, Chitgar, and others. She continues, her voice trembling:<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a nurse. When my shift ended, I called him again\u2014but someone else answered. Hazrati-Fard<\/strong>, another rescuer present at the scene, was wounded in the same attack. \u201cI don\u2019t even know what happened. He adds:<\/p>\n \u201cFrom day one, Mojtaba always said\u2014with the crisis we\u2019re in, we must stay by the people\u2019s side. The sound of sirens still echoes in the ears.The scent of smoke, rubble, and fear has not yet faded from the memory of the streets.Tehran\u2014on the days when its sky was unsafe and its hearts were anxious\u2014saw the rise of silent heroes; unarmed, yet powerful; not to fight, but to save.The shadow of missiles still […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2087,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1292","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-1"],"yoast_head":"\n
He was neither a military commander nor a public figure in the media; but with a heart full of faith, he went on missions every day\u2014missions that sometimes smelled of smoke, sometimes of tears, and finally, of blood.
A humble rescuer who, from his youth, had learned how to extend a helping hand instead of a fist, and how to stand firm in the heart of disaster rather than flee.<\/p>\n
But this time, the enemy was waiting\u2014ruthless and deliberate\u2014targeting ambulances and taking the lives of the most defenseless.
Mojtaba left\u2014with that same familiar smile seen in the last photo taken beside his comrades.
He left, but his story remained: the story of those who came quietly, gave their lives so that the name of Iran would endure, so that humanity itself would endure.<\/p>\n
\u201cNameless heroes\u201d is the best title for them\u2014the rescuers who wear the sacred uniform of humanity, who run into fire and ruins to serve; who give their lives to save another.
The unknown and humble heroes of this land, during the twelve sacred days of defending the motherland, stood firm for the name of Iran\u2014at the cost of their lives.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cNone of us had ever seen war, but we were completely ready.\u201d<\/h3>\n
\n
None of us had ever seen war\u2014we had no real image of it.
Those were the hardest days of our lives.
Among all disasters, war was the most painful, seeing destroyed homes, women and children pulled from the ruins, hoping to find a single living soul.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
There was one ambulance and one rescue vehicle.
Hossein was supposed to go with Mojtaba in the ambulance, but plans changed\u2014three others went instead, and he went with the rescue truck.<\/p>\n\n
I found everyone except Behnam and Mojtaba.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n
I had seen in Gaza that the Zionist regime even attacks rescuers, but I couldn\u2019t believe it until I saw our ambulance destroyed.
A few minutes later, Behnam came toward us, covered in blood\u2014but there was no sign of Mojtaba.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n
Soon after, another covered body was brought\u2014it was Mojtaba Maleki, our dear friend, married just two or three years ago, along with another rescuer named Amirhossein Jamshidpour<\/strong>.
Those two bodies were ours.
The entire team was devastated, so they didn\u2019t let us see the remains\u2014but later I heard Mojtaba had been struck by shrapnel in the head and chest.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\nFrom his teens, he pursued Red Crescent training<\/h3>\n
His grieving wife speaks of his lifelong passion for volunteering and helping others:<\/p>\n\n
He used to tell me that once, when he was very young and waiting in line for bread, an old man in front of him suffered a heart attack.
No one knew how to help, and the man died before his eyes.
That tragic moment pushed Mojtaba to learn first aid and emergency care\u2014and he eventually earned the Degree of Sacrifice<\/strong>, the highest Red Crescent training rank.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\nHis wish was martyrdom<\/h3>\n
\n
But that day\u2019s goodbye felt different,\u201d his wife says softly.
\u201cWe had been married almost three years. His lifelong wish was martyrdom.
He always prayed for it\u2014and in the end, he reached it.
When the Zionist attacks on our beloved Iran began, I was terrified.
I knew what my husband\u2019s purpose was.
He would often say, \u2018We must wipe Israel off the map; we must end global oppression, and we are capable of it.\u2019<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\nThe last phone call<\/h3>\n
\n
I called him many times that morning, begging him to be careful.
The last time we spoke was around 5:30 PM. He sounded very busy.
I reminded him again to stay safe. He said, \u2018We\u2019re on alert; don\u2019t worry. Whatever God wills, will happen.\u2019<\/em>
I said goodbye\u2014never knowing it would be the last time I\u2019d hear his voice.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n
They told me a missile had struck part of Tehran during an operation.
Mojtaba and three ambulances had gone to rescue the injured.
But the enemy had been waiting\u2014drones hovering above\u2014deliberately targeting the ambulances.
Defenseless, unarmed people\u2014killed while trying to save their fellow citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\nA rescuer\u2019s testimony from the battlefield<\/h3>\n
His heavy voice reveals how painful the memory still is.<\/p>\n\n
All I could think about was finding Mahdi and Mojtaba.
We were moving away from the ambulance when it was hit.
Mojtaba was gone.
I was thrown by the blast.
When I regained consciousness, a colleague was dragging me away.
I screamed and fought to go back. I wanted to reach my teammates.
But they forced me into another ambulance.
My ears were ringing; I couldn\u2019t hear.
All I could think about were my friends.
I still can\u2019t believe they\u2019re gone.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n
All of us rescuers go on missions with love, to serve.
And each time we went to a war zone, we hugged, took a photo together, and said goodbye\u2014because maybe that mission would be our last.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"