Mousa Namjoo (; 17 December 1938 – 29 September 1981) was an Iranian military officer who served as the

minister of defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

from August to September 1981.

Biography

Namjoo was born in

Bandar-e Anzali Bandar-e Anzali () is a city on the Caspian Sea in the Central District of Bandar-e Anzali County, Gilan province, Iran, serving as the capital of both the county and the district. History Anzali is an old city in ancient Iran, first s ...

on 17 December 1938. He graduated from Officers' School. He was married and had three children. He worked at the National Military Academy with the rank of colonel. He was instrumental in developing a cooperation between the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps and army before and during the Iran Iraq war. He also fought in the war. He was appointed minister of defence and armed forces logistics to the interim government led by

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Mohammad-Reza Mahdavi Kani on 2 September 1981.

Death

Namjoo was killed in a plane crash together with 80 other people on 29 September 1981 near

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

. The aircraft was a US-made

C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...

transport plane. Other leading military figures killed in the crash were Valiollah Fallahi, Javad Fakoori and Yousef Kolahdouz. They were returning to Tehran from southwestern battlefront with Iraq. On 1 October 1981, a funeral service was held for Namjoo and other victims at the military academy in Tehran. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini made a speech following the incident indicating the Mujahedeen Khalq as the perpetrator without clearly condemning the leftist group.

Legacy

Namjoo's biography entitled ''A Man with Orange Color'' was published by Ezzatollah Alvandi in 2005.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Namjoo, Mousa 20th-century Iranian politicians 1938 births 1981 deaths Defence ministers of Iran Islamic Republic of Iran Army colonels Islamic Republic of Iran Army personnel of the Iran–Iraq War People from Bandar-e Anzali Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Iran Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1981