Tens of thousands of Iranians marked the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, with this year’s event being the first since President Donald Trump’s return to the White House, which also saw the reactivation of his “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran, reports AP.
This annual observance commemorates the fall of the American-backed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and the establishment of Iran’s Shiite theocracy, amid ongoing uncertainty within the country. Iran is grappling with crippling sanctions that are devastating its economy, with the looming threat of additional sanctions from Trump, even as the president hints at a willingness to negotiate over Iran’s rapidly developing nuclear programme. Iran’s currency, the rial, plummeted to a record low of 928,500 rials to the dollar on Monday, a drop of more than 6% since Friday.
On the same day, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei strongly criticised the notion of talks with the United States, calling such negotiations “unwise, unintelligent, and dishonourable.” He also implied that there should be no dealings with the US, although he did not explicitly forbid engagement with Washington.
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Iran’s reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian, who had previously taken a more conciliatory approach to the West, also adopted a firmer stance in a speech at Azadi (Freedom) Square in Tehran. He described the nation as being in a “full-fledged economic war.”
“Trump announces that he wants to talk, but at the same time, he signs off on all these plots," Pezeshkian said. "They spread the idea that the country is weak. We are strong.”
“We will never bow to foreigners,” he added.
Despite sub-zero temperatures, demonstrators gathered in Azadi Square, waving flags, balloons, and banners. In addition to anti-American and anti-Israeli slogans such as “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” protesters also held images of Khamenei, who has ultimate authority over all state matters.
One demonstrator held up a sign reading, “We are going to wipe out Israel.”
Iran's military displayed replicas of some of its missiles at the square, and people took selfies in front of a truck featuring men wearing masks of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu behind bars.
“I know there are many economic problems, but I am here to show that we will support our country no matter the threats from Trump or the Israelis,” said Mohsen Amini, a 48-year-old teacher.
Hamideh Zamani, a 31-year-old homemaker in a black Islamic chador, attended with her two children. “We will resist any threat from the West without fear," she said. "We learned this from our fathers, to dedicate ourselves to the cause of the Islamic Republic.”
Iranian state television broadcasted events across the nation, encouraging more people to participate. As an official holiday, the day took on a festive atmosphere, with schools and government offices closed, and many workers joining the public demonstrations.
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The Islamic Revolution began amid widespread discontent with the rule of the shah, who, suffering from terminal cancer, fled Iran in January 1979. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned from exile, and the government fell on February 11, 1979, after days of massive protests and violent clashes between demonstrators and security forces.
In April, Iranians voted to establish an Islamic Republic, with Khomeini as the country’s first Supreme Leader. Later that year, after the United States allowed the ailing shah to enter for cancer treatment, anger reached a boiling point, resulting in the seizure of the US Embassy in November 1979 by militant students. The ensuing 444-day hostage crisis marked the beginning of decades of hostility.