Who was the young Iranian martyr that became a role model for Sunni Bosnians?

Hossein Fahmideh was a 13-year-old Iranian who—at a time when Saddam’s forces attacked Iran in 1980—knew of no other option, but to block the enemy tanks from entering the city of Khurramshahr by wearing a grenade belt, while blocking their path. Saddam’s forces overtook the young boy. With this shocking brave move, he blocked the tanks and turned himself into a great hero among Iranians.

For the martyrdom anniversary of Hossein Fahmideh,Khamenei.ir presents selections from speeches that Ayatollah Khamenei made about him.

Today, thanks to Islam, the Iranian government is a strong and prideful nation. The message of the revolution--thanks to Islam and your efforts--has been conveyed; this is what the prophets (pbut) sought; they wanted the world to receive their words. Today, in the heart of Europe, they talk about the same things you do. Your very own youngsters have taught the Bosnians, "struggle for the sake of God”. Your youth have done that, otherwise they [Bosnians] wouldn’t know how to. A young man who once fought for the sake of God in Bosnia, told me that when young Bosnian men saw an image of the Martyr Hossein Fahmideh—the sacrificing 13-year-old boy--on Iranian currency, they realized he was wearing a headband. They asked, "What is it for?” I replied, "This is a symbol used by our mobilized forces (Basijis) who wore headbands in the battle field, fighting for the sake of God.” Then the young, Bosnian, Muslim men stood in rows, tore their shirts into pieces and brought them to us, asking us, "Please write the same exact sentence from his headband, on our pieces of clothing.” We wrote it for them and they wore them around their foreheads; such actions echoed the message of "Allah Akbar” (God is the Greatest) throughout Europe. The entire world fought against them. Last year, it was said that the Bosnians would soon be defeated, but this year you can see that the Bosnians are progressing. This is what fighting while having faith in God brings about. Your own country has progressed. Today, it continues to be faced with challenges, from the enemies of God. The Iranian nation is resisting, struggling, and fighting. Each era requires its own type of resistance. Today, resistance can be recognized through development and construction. It is about fighting to protect the culture of endeavor (jihad) and martyrdom; it is fighting on the path of God and with the Party of God, to thoroughly consolidate Islamic values within the country. Thanks to your persistence, these new forms of resistance will achieve victory by the Grace of God; another one of our noble Imam’s (as) goals will become a reality and this nation will once again defeat the enemy.

Statements from a public address in Sari; October 14, 1995.