Marking the 47th anniversary of the disappearance of Imam Musa al-Sadr, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the disappeared cleric’s path and legacy remain alive and inspiring.
“In an era when our region is facing growing insecurity and the stability and integrity of nations are targeted by unprecedented seditions, the ideas and views of Imam Musa al-Sadr shine like a bright torch, guiding us toward unity, empathy, and steadfastness,” Baqaei wrote in a message on his X account on Sunday night.
Sadr was a highly revered Shiite cleric of Iranian descent, who founded the Lebanese Amal (Hope) Movement in 1974. He had gone to Lebanon in 1959 to work for the rights of Shiite Muslims in the port city of Tyre, located about 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Beirut.
The prominent Shiite cleric disappeared on August 31, 1978, during an official visit to the Libyan capital Tripoli.
He was accompanied by Sheikh Mohammad Yaqoub and journalist Abbas Badreddine.
Lebanon still holds former Libyan officials responsible for the disappearance of the trio.
Since Muammar Gaddafi was deposed and killed in 2011, Lebanon and Iran have repeatedly called on the Libyan government to launch an investigation into Sadr's disappearance.