Jihad of Construction or Construction Jihad ( ''Jahād-e Sāzandegī''), or simply Jihad ( ''Jahād'') was one of

Organizations of the Iranian Revolution Several organizations, parties and guerrilla groups were involved in the Iranian Revolution. Some were part of Ayatollah Khomeini's network and supported the theocratic Islamic Republic movement, while others did not and were suppressed when Khome ...

. The organization began as a movement of

volunteer Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency ...

s to help with the 1979 harvest, but soon was institutionalized and took on a broader, more developmental role in the countryside. It was involved with

road building A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. The ...

, piped water,

electrification Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. In the context of history of technology and economic development, electrification refe ...

clinics A clinic (or outpatient clinic or ambulatory care clinic) is a health facility that is primarily focused on the care of outpatients. Clinics can be privately operated or publicly managed and funded. They typically cover the primary care need ...

, schools, and

irrigation canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface f ...

s. It also provides "extension services, seeds, loans," etc. to small farmers. During the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...

, the organization held a

combat engineer A combat engineer (also called pioneer or sapper) is a type of soldier who performs military engineering tasks in support of land forces combat operations. Combat engineers perform a variety of military engineering, Tunnel warfare, tunnel and l ...

ing responsibility. They were active in various operation of the war, most notably in

Operation Fath ol-Mobin Operation Fath-ol-Mobin (, a Quranic phrase meaning "Undeniable Victory" or "Manifest Victory") was a major Iranian military operation conducted during the Iran–Iraq War, in March 1982 and resulted to the Battle of Shush. The operation was le ...

Operation Beit-ol-Moqaddas Operation Beit-ol-Moqaddas (; Operation Jerusalem), also known as the Operation Toward Beit-ol-Moqaddas (), was an Iranian operation conducted during the Iran–Iraq War. The operation was a success, as it achieved its standing aim of liberati ...

Operation Kheibar Operation Kheibar was an Iranian offensive in the Iran–Iraq War. It was part of the Battle of the Marshes. Prelude After the unsuccessful major offensive named Operation Dawn V aimed directly at Basra, Iran opened a front at the lakes of th ...

, and

Operation Dawn 8 The First Battle of al-Faw was a battle of the Iran–Iraq War, fought on the al-Faw peninsula between 10 February and 10 March 1986. The Iranian operation is considered to be one of Iran's greatest achievements in the Iran–Iraq War. The Ira ...

. Iranian leader

Ayatollah Khomeini Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (17 May 1900 or 24 September 19023 June 1989) was an Iranian revolutionary, politician, political theorist, and religious leader. He was the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the main leader of the Iranian ...

has called them the "trench-less trench-makers" ( ''sangar-sāzān-e bi-sangar''). The organization engaged in development activities overseas in

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

(from 1987),

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

and

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

(1989),

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

and

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

(1991), and

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

(1993). It was also active in

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, and

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

. The title for a Jihad member is ''Jahādgar'' (). The title for the commanders is '' Sardār-e Jahādgar'' (). In 2001 it was merged with the Agriculture Ministry to form the

Ministry of Agriculture Jihad The Ministry of Agriculture Jihad ( ''Vezārate Jahād-e Kešâvarzi'') is an Iranian government body established in 2001 responsible for the oversight of Agriculture in Iran. The ministry has been called Jihad of Construction but it was merged ...

Imam Khomeini’s visit of the Rural District during a Jihad-e Sazandegi Project Ceremony

Young and revolutionary groups played a key role in the formation of the Jihad-e Sazandegi (Construction Jihad), joining together to launch grassroots activities for building infrastructure such as buildings and roads (or other foundational facilities) in rural areas of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. For example, after the construction of a health center (health house) in the village of Sheikh Abad near

Qom Qom (; ) is a city in the Central District of Qom County, Qom province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the seventh largest metropolis and also the seventh largest city in Iran. The city is ...

(the present-day Sheikh Abad district in city of

), Seyyed Ruhollah Khomeini, at the invitation of the youth from Jihad-e Sazandegi, personally attended the village to inaugurate this newly established facility. This event took place after June 1979 and before the beginning of the Iraqi invasion of Iran in 1980.

Imam Khomeini’s visit of the Rural District during a Jihad-e Sazandegi Project Ceremony

References

Further reading