After AK-47 training on TV, Iran arranges mass weddings for those ready to 'sacrifice life' | IN PICS
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "After AK-47 training on TV, Iran arranges mass weddings for those ready to 'sacrifice life' | IN PICS")
Iranian couples take part in a mass wedding ceremony, clerics arrive in a military jeep Photograph: (AFP | WION Combination image)
Iran held mass wedding ceremonies in Tehran amid war tensions with the US, while state TV expanded its “Sacrifice Life for Iran” campaign featuring AK-47 training for civilians. Authorities said millions joined mobilisation efforts as public weapons drills spread across the country.
Amid reports of resumption of the war, Iran has organised large-scale wedding ceremonies for hundreds of couples across major public squares in Tehran. However, the most interesting part was that the newlyweds were reportedly participants in Iran’s “self-sacrifice” campaign. This comes at the backdrop of Iranian State TV launching ‘Sacrifice Life for Iran’ campaign that features military instructors and presenters giving training of how to load, unload, and fire Kalashnikov (AK-47) rifles. According to Iranian media, more than 100 couples participated in a ceremony at Imam Hossein Square alone. The events were broadcast live on state television. Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and President Masoud Pezeshkian has also signed up for the initiative.
AFP reported that couples and Imams arrived at Imam Hossein Square in military jeeps equipped with mounted machine guns before taking part in ceremonies overseen by clerics. The venue was decorated with balloons and featured a giant portrait of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since assuming leadership following the death of his father and predecessor Ali Khamenei during the first day of the war.
Iran's 'Sacrifice Life for Iran’ campaign
Iran has justified the 'Sacrifice Life for Iran’ campaign saying it was confronting “major powers and global oppression” and described weapons familiarisation as part of “educational, cultural and moral” training. According to him, the programmes were intended to teach the concepts of “jihad, resistance and defence”. He said that the public should identify with a collective sense of readiness and responsibility.
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AK-47 and Kalashnikov training
In the news show on Iranian state TV, the host appeared to be using an early East German MPi-KMS assault rifle, a variant of the AK-47 platform chambered in 7.62×39mm. While some military experts explained the handling of the rifles, TV presenters themselves were seen holding and firing weapons as part of on-air educational segments. Reports also claimed that visuals from Tehran’s Tajrish Square show men and women participating in public weapons training exercises. Similar footage have also emerged from Tehran’s Tajrish Square taking part in open-air weapons training. Teenagers in Kerdia described the training as the 78th phase of the nationwide “presence in the field of power” campaign.
