Under the old regime, jokes about elections, the dollar or even mentioning the president's name could mean arrest or worse
world2 days ago
Iranian demonstrators gathered on Sunday outside the former US embassy in Tehran to mark the anniversary of the 1979 hostage crisis that has for decades shaped relations between Washington and Tehran.
The hostage crisis began in November 1979 following the Islamic revolution led by Iran's late supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini which ousted the Western-backed Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi.
Students loyal to Khomeini stormed the embassy building and held 52 staff hostage for 444 days while demanding that Washington hand over Iran's recently toppled shah, who was being treated in the United States for cancer.
Washington officially broke off relations with Tehran in 1980, midway through the crisis, and they have been frozen ever since.
"Death to Israel, Death to America!" chanted crowds of Iranians outside the building, which is currently a museum known as the "Den of Spies", and covered with striking anti-American murals.
Others burnt the Israeli and US flags. Iranians have held the rallies annually since 1979.
Regional tensions have soared since the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, triggered by the Palestinian Hamas militant group's unprecedented attack on Israel.
Israel, an ally of the US and long-standing foe of Iran, has since engaged in a deadly conflict with Iran-backed groups including Hamas and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
On October 26, Israel conducted air strikes on military sites in Iran in response to Tehran's October 1 attack on Israel, itself retaliation for the killing of Iran-backed militant leaders and a Revolutionary Guards commander.
Israel has warned Iran against responding to its attack.
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed on Saturday a harsh response against Israel and the US to attacks on Iran and its allies.
"The enemies, both the USA and the Zionist regime, should know that they will definitely receive a tooth-breaking response to what they are doing against Iran, the Iranian nation and the resistance front," Khamenei said in a speech to students in Tehran.
Sunday's event took place days ahead of the US elections pitting Republican Donald Trump against Democrat Kamala Harris.
Under the old regime, jokes about elections, the dollar or even mentioning the president's name could mean arrest or worse
world2 days ago
Last minute delay comes amid heightened political crisis; Han accused by opposition of acting against the will of people
world2 days ago
France has been mired in political deadlock since Macron gambled on snap elections this summer in the hopes of bolstering his authority
world2 days ago
Ankara is in close touch with Syria's new leaders and focussing on the voluntary return of Syrian refugees
world2 days ago
Rail, Tram and Bus Union state secretary Toby Warnes told local media it had never been the union's plan to cause major disruptions on New Year's Eve
world2 days ago
The 50,000-year-old female mammoth has been nicknamed 'Yana' after the river in whose basin it was discovered this summer
world3 days ago
The aid group raises an alarm over the worsening humanitarian situation in the besieged Palestinian territory
world3 days ago
Jordanian foreign minister says HTS leader Al Sharaa realises threat of Daesh; Qatar's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs also arrives in Damascus
world3 days ago