IRNA - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a message commemorated heroes of Iran-Iraq imposed war, saying we stood tall.

"We commemorate our fallen heroes�40 yrs after Saddam�s invasion & start of 8 yr Iran-Iraq war," Zarif wrote in his Twitter account on Monday.

"We stood tall, with the world supporting the aggressor�even w/ chemical weapons," he added.

"Let's remember:
-We can only rely on ourselves;
-Those who start a war don�t end it;
-War has no winner," Zarif noted.

Earlier, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei described acceptance of the ceasefire with Iraq after eight years of war by the Late Founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini as a wise decision.

In July 1987, the UN Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 598 urging Iraq and Iran to accept a cease-fire and hold negotiations under the auspices of the UN.

In 1988, Imam Khomeini accepted a ceasefire under Resolution 598.

Sacred Defense Week starts in Iran on September 21. The Week is annually celebrated nationwide in commemoration of martyrs and war veterans of the Iraqi imposed war on Iran during 1980-88.

Iraq�s eight years of the imposed war claimed the lives of 230,000 Iranian soldiers and left near 600,000 war-disabled. While, about 43,000 Iranians were Prisoners of War (PoWs) in Iraq and many others were Missing in Action (MIAs).

The braveness of the Iranian soldiers during those years of war is unprecedented in the history of contemporary conflicts.