During the eight-year Iran-Iraq War, field hospitals were built as emergency medical centers right along the warfronts, where doctors and nurses worked to treat the wounded. A field hospital is a mobile treatment facility typically set up in combat zones⁠[1]—or in disaster situations like earthquakes—using tents, prefabricated structures, or metal/concrete buildings.⁠[2] In wartime, field hospitals mainly provide medical support for ongoing military operations, stabilize casualties for safe evacuation, perform emergency surgeries within the operational zone, and deliver intensive pre- and post-operative care.⁠[3]

In 1966, Iran purchased six 60-bed containerized mobile hospital complexes from abroad to meet the army’s need for field hospitals. These were assigned to the Urmia Division, Kermanshah Division, Tehran Region 3 Support in Hurr Garrison, Ahvaz Division at Daghagheleh Station, Dezful Garrison Depot, and Mashhad Division.⁠[4] Later, in 1971, the 50-bed Shahbaz Hospital—a surplus facility left over from World War II—was purchased from Europe.⁠[5]

In the early days of the Iran-Iraq War, because of the shortage of field hospitals, wounded soldiers were often evacuated straight to city hospitals without initial care.⁠[6] As the war dragged on, the need grew for treatment centers close to the action but still in safe areas, out of reach of frequent enemy air attacks. By the end of the first year, the idea of underground bunker hospitals behind the main frontlines gained traction and was widely welcomed.⁠[7]

In 1981, during Operation Tariq al-Quds, the first field hospital was built and put into use by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) combat medical unit in Susangerd—using containers and tents.⁠[8] Then, on March 16, 1982, shortly before Operation Fath al-Mubin, the 50-bed mobile container hospital belonging to the 16th Armored Division (Army) from Qazvin was deployed at the Nourd (Sepanta) factory site, approximately 8 km along the Ahvaz–Khorramshahr Road. Consisting of 10 containers, the hospital began providing medical treatment to casualties.⁠[9]

On April 30, 1982, Operation Beit al-Muqaddas (liberation of Khorramshahr)⁠[10] unfolded along three axes: northern, central, and southern, with one field hospital assigned to each. The Quds Headquarters Field Hospital covered the northern axis in Dasht-e Azadegan. For the central area, the Fath Headquarters Field Hospital was set up on the Khorramshahr Road near Nourd and the Hamid Garrison. The southern axis had the Nasr Headquarters Field Hospital ready on the Abadan–Darkhoveyn Road, with four operating rooms and an emergency ward. Together, these three hospitals performed surgery on 2,000 wounded.⁠[11]

As the Sacred Defense continued and based on earlier experiences, more hospitals were constructed using hangar-like structures—mostly buried underground for camouflage—with the involvement of IRGC combat units and the Jihad-e Sazandegi Organization.⁠[12] The first of this kind was the Shahid Bakeri Field Hospital west of Dezful, constructed by the IRGC engineering unit in 1982 and used in Operation Preliminary Valfajr. It had about 181 square meters of floor space. Thirteen more underground hangar-style hospitals were subsequently built between 1983–1985 at various operational points, including Shuhada in southeast Dehloran, Shahid Borujerdi in Mehran, Sheikh Saleh in Javanrud, Shahid Raddanipour in Marivan, Vali-e Asr (as) in Sarpol-e Zahab, Cham Imam Hassan (as) between Qasr-e Shirin and Sarpol-e Zahab, Shahid Borujerdi in Baneh, Shahid Radmanesh in Marivan, Khatam-al Anbiya (pbuh) at Jofeir intersection (Khuzestan), Ramazan on the Ahvaz–Khorramshahr Road, Shahid Beheshti in Hoveyzeh, Zafar 15 kilometers from Abadan, and Karbala 150 kilometers from Mehran. They supported operations Valfajr 1, Valfajr 4, Valfajr 5, Kheibar, Badr, Valfajr 8, and Valfajr 10.⁠[13]

Until Operation Kheibar (1984), field hospitals were mostly hangar-style, but their lack of durability led IRGC commanders to decide on stronger concrete structures starting with Operation Badr—and continuing to the end of the war. The construction of the first reinforced-concrete, fortified field hospital began on 1985. The facility had a built-up area of 1,326 square meters and was located in the eastern Hoor region, near the Majnoon Islands, along the Jofeir area, at the start of Shahid Hemmat Road. Named Imam Reza (as) Field Hospital, it was established to support the Jofeir border strip and became operational after approximately one year.⁠[14] During Operation Badr (March 10, 1985), 11,930 wounded were treated at the hospital, and 91 surgeries were conducted.⁠[15]

Operation Valfajr 8 took place on February 9, 1986, in the Al-Faw area. Given the operation’s scale and complexity, the IRGC medical organization prioritized building and equipping field hospitals. Therefore, Fatemeh Zahra (sa) Field Hospital was opened in Chavibdeh (near Bandar Chavibdeh on the Bahmanshir River in Abadan Island). It resembled a small underground town—ambulances drove fully underground. Two bombings during Operation Valfajr 8 caused no serious damage to the hospital, and no patients or staff were harmed. Its location allowed casualties to arrive by boat via the Bahmanshir River, and it handled initial treatment for many chemical casualties in its dedicated chemical response site.⁠[16]

Covering an area of 2,894 square meters, the Ali ibn Abi Taleb (as) (Shahid Adab) Field Hospital was built by the IRGC in the Mared area, 11 Kilometers from Abadan.⁠[17] Its reinforced concrete structure, covered with earth, was put into service during Operation Karbala 4 in 1986.⁠[18] During Karbala 4, it handled 60,000 wounded with 8 operating rooms and 185 surgeries. Similarly, during Operation Karbala 5, the hospital treated 15,207 wounded and performed 1,970 surgeries.⁠[19]

Another key field hospital serving the forces throughout the Sacred Defense was Imam Hussain (as) Field Hospital. It was built in 1985, 35 km from Khorramshahr, by Khatam-al Anbiya (pbuh) Construction Headquarters in collaboration with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development. It was only 9,700 meters from the Iraqi border. The main building was embedded in a hill with a curved roof in three layers: high-strength concrete, lead, and 5 meters of sand and clay. This made the hospital bomb-resistant (up to 250-kg bombs) and fully camouflaged. Imam Hussain (as) Field Hospital had 302 rooms, 8 operating theaters, 25 emergency beds for regular patients, 20 for chemical casualties, 1,450 medical staff, and 120 support personnel.⁠[20] After Iran accepted Resolution 598, the hospital was occupied by Iraqi troops for 48 hours. Even tank shell marks remain on its walls to this day.⁠[21] After the war, Imam Hussain (as) Field Hospital was registered as a national heritage site of the Sacred Defense and, after restoration, turned into a museum.⁠[22]

Throughout the Iran–Iraq War, 48 container‑based, hangar‑type, and reinforced concrete field hospitals were constructed in combat zones.⁠[23] Some of these were bombed by the enemy, resulting in the martyrdom of medical personnel. Among those who have martyred in field hospitals is Colonel Dr. Ahmad Hejrati. He was martyred in a chemical attack on the Army’s 528 Soumar Field Hospital on December 26, 1986, while performing a surgical operation.⁠[24]

After the war ended, field hospitals were repeatedly deployed by the Iranian armed forces to help people during natural disasters. For example, following the Bam earthquake, the 88th Zahedan Division (Army) set up a 100-bed field hospital in the earthquake-affected area.⁠[25]

https://farsnews.ir/khuzestan/1714208593733016936