Daijiworld Media Network - Tehran
Tehran, Oct 5: Iranian women volunteers underwent firearms and military training at a civilian training centre in Tehran on Sunday, as tensions with the United States and Israel remained high.
The training was held at a centre set up at Imam Hussein Square in central Tehran. Footage from the facility showed women listening to military officials and instructors before practising with firearms, including handguns.
Iran opened another civilian military training centre at Haft-e Tir Square on Saturday as part of a programme aimed at preparing civilians to defend the country in the event of a possible ground attack by US or Israeli forces. The training initiative is part of Iran's broader voluntary national-defence mobilisation campaign.
Iranian military officials have said civilian volunteers will receive basic military training before being offered more advanced courses. The programme is being conducted at designated training facilities in Tehran, with personnel from Iran's armed forces involved in the instruction.
Reports said the training includes weapons handling and other defence-related exercises. Footage and photographs from the Imam Hussein Square facility showed civilians being trained in the use of firearms, while other reports showed instruction involving longer-barrelled weapons, multiple rocket launchers and air-defence systems.
Women and men are participating separately in the training. According to reports from the training programme, women receive instruction three days a week, with each session lasting around three hours, while men undergo longer training sessions. The programme also includes first-aid and other emergency-preparedness training.
A 45-year-old participant, Raheleh Ghadiri, said learning how to defend her family and neighbourhood in wartime would help ease her fears.
The civilian training programme follows an earlier mobilisation campaign in which Iran called on volunteers to prepare for national defence. In September, hundreds of thousands of people participated in a government-organised rally in Tehran linked to the "Janfada-ye Iran" campaign, under which volunteers were offered limited military and emergency-response training.
The latest training comes against the backdrop of the continuing conflict and heightened tensions between Iran, the United States and Israel. Iranian authorities have been preparing civilians for the possibility of renewed military confrontation, while Washington and Tehran have continued to exchange warnings.
The development has also highlighted Iran's efforts to expand civilian preparedness beyond its regular military and security forces as concerns persist over the possibility of further escalation.