Valiollah Fallahi

Valiollah Fallahi (1931 – 29 September 1981) was an Iranian military officer and prominent figure during the Iran–Iraq War.

Early life Valiollah Fallahi was born in 1931 in Village of Kulej, where he completed his primary education before attending the Nezam High School in Tehran.

Career In October 1951, he entered the Officers' Academy, graduating as a Second Lieutenant in the armored branch. He began his military service in the 92nd Armored Division of Khuzestan.

Due to his opposition to the Pahlavi government, Fallahi was imprisoned four times between 1951 and 1973. Despite this, his strategic intellect and high expertise made him an elite, highly respected officer within the Imperial Iranian Army, earning constant esteem from senior commanders. Holding the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, he served as a United Nations peace monitor for the Vietnam ceasefire from 1972 until mid-1974 alongside a group of Iranian officers. On October 4, 1978, after achieving the rank of Brigadier General, he was transferred to Shiraz to serve as the Deputy Commander of the Shiraz Infantry Center.

Fallahi served as commander ground forces Following the victory of the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Until June 1980 he was the deputy commander of joint staff. He was appointed by Abolhassan Banisadr as joint chief of staff in June 1980.

Death

On 29 September 1981, he died along with several other top commanders, including General Javad Fakouri (Air Force Commander), General Yousef Kolahdouz (Acting Commander of the Revolutionary Guards), Colonel Sayyid Mousa Namjoo (Defence Minister) and Commander Jahanara in a plane crash that was due to land in Tehran after takeoff from Ahvaz.

Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini made a speech following the incident and made a reference to Mujahedeen Khalq as the perpetrator without clearly condemning the leftist group.