Tasnim � Iranian Army Commander Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi praised the country�s military forces for acting like an iron dam protecting people against the enemies.

In an address to a health service parade marking the Army Day and the Ground Force Day in Tehran on Friday, Major General Mousavi assured the Iranian nation that the Armed Forces will keep protecting them like a �sympathetic brother�.

The Iranian Armed Forces are an iron dam in the face of the adversaries, the top commander emphasized.

No Army in the world enjoys popular support like in Iran, he underlined, saying the Army forces will stand by the nation amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus and will �dedicate their lives� to protection of the Iranian nation.

Paying tribute to all units serving in the Army Ground Force, the Air Force, the Air Defense and the Navy, Major General Mousavi said more than 11,000 forces from the Army medical division have rushed to help the Health Ministry personnel in the efforts to contain the coronavirus epidemic.

This year, the Army decided to carry out an alternative plan for military parades to prevent any gathering of people in order to contain the spread of the coronavirus and help the medical staff in the battle with COVID-19.

The Iranian Armed Forces set up a Biodefense Headquarters after the outbreak of coronavirus in Iran and have offered extensive services to treat the patients.