TEHRAN – A museum dedicated to the Sacred Defense (the 1980-1988 Iran–Iraq war) will be inaugurated in the southwestern city of Abadan on September 23 on the occasion of the Sacred Defense Week (starting September 21).

During the war, Abadan was besieged for 12 months but never captured by Iraqi forces, until the Iranians broke the siege. However much of the city, including the oil refinery, which was the world’s largest refinery, was badly damaged or destroyed by the siege and by bombing.

The museum will be a memorial for Iranian generations to come to promote the sacrifices and great deeds the previous generation did for the sake of Islam and Iran, ILNA quoted Gholamreza Shariati the governor-general of Khuzestan province as saying on Sunday.

There are such museums across the country including the Sacred Defense Museum and the Peace Museum in Tehran.

The Sacred Defense Museum showcases a patchwork of domestically-manufactured armaments such as rockets, tanks, and artillery pieces. The complex has vast garden areas, water features, and children’s play areas as well.

The Tehran Peace Museum is a member of the International Network of Museums for Peace. The main objective of the museum is to promote a culture of peace through raising awareness about the devastating consequences of war, with a focus on the health and environmental impacts of chemical weapons.

ABU/MG