Iran's Deputy Speaker of Parliament: Prolonged Occupation of US Embassy Presented a Daesh-like Image of Iran

The Deputy Speaker of Iran's Parliament states that the prolonged occupation of the US Embassy in Iran led to a portrayal of Iran that resembled 'Daesh' and that Saddam Hussein exploited Iran's 'isolation' following this incident to attack the country. Ali Motahari, on Thursday, November 4, in a note on his Instagram, described the occupation of the US Embassy as a 'natural reaction of the Iranian people' stemming from the 'enthusiasm of the early revolution' and also 'US actions against the Islamic Revolution.' He emphasized that the prolonged occupation of the embassy 'was not in the interest of the revolution and the Iranian people' and during the 444 days, 'an inappropriate image of the Islamic Revolution was displayed worldwide.' According to Mr. Motahari, Iran found itself in 'unnecessary isolation' due to this action, and Saddam Hussein took advantage of this 'isolation' to attack Iran. He added, 'No country supported us... because a Daesh-like image of Iran had been presented. Later, the Algiers Agreement was overall detrimental to us and imposed significant financial damages.' A group of leftist students known as 'Followers of the Line of Imam' attacked the US Embassy building in Tehran on November 4, 1979, taking 52 of its staff hostage. The pretext for this action was the US's refusal to hand over the Shah for trial in Iran. The US Embassy staff were held captive for 444 days, and since then, diplomatic relations between Iran and the US have been severed. Jimmy Carter, the then President of the United States, retaliated by first issuing Statement No. 4702 on November 12, 1979, banning the import of Iranian oil products into the US, and two days later, issuing Executive Order No. 12170, which ordered the seizure of all Iranian assets in the US and with American financial institutions in Europe. Subsequently, under the Algiers Agreement, which led to the hostages' release, part of Iran's cash deposits, including foreign reserves, bonds, and gold bars, were freed, while some remained seized. Following the Vienna nuclear agreement, claims related to Iran's military purchases from the US, along with their interest, were paid to the Iranian government. Some analysts also consider the occupation of the US Embassy as a factor in what they describe as 'provocation' of Saddam Hussein by the US to attack Iran. However, officials of the Islamic Republic and some students involved in this action still defend it, deeming it appropriate for the circumstances of the time. Meanwhile, the newspaper Etemad reported that among the student occupiers, some, like Ebrahim Asgarzadeh, consider that behavior 'wrong,' while others, like Mohsen Mir-Damadi and Abbas Abdi, still defend that action. According to this newspaper, Abbas Abdi stated in a speech on Wednesday, 'The atmosphere demanded the occupation of the embassy.' Mr. Abdi also said, 'I am not a fool to defend my actions at 20 when I am 60. I do not defend that event by today's standards; it occurred in its own circumstances.' Abbas Abdi met with Barry Rosen, the press attaché of the US Embassy in Tehran during the hostage crisis, in Paris in 1998. Barry Rosen stated after the meeting that Mr. Abdi apologized to him. However, Abbas Abdi denied this, stating he is not in a position to consider the issue as a personal matter, whether right or wrong, to apologize for it. Every year on the anniversary of the US Embassy occupation, a government rally is held in front of the embassy building, managed by the Islamic Propaganda Organization, with slogans against the US being chanted. Hossein Salami, Deputy Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, threatened during this year's November 4 ceremony that 'if the US does not fulfill its commitments under the JCPOA, we will send this agreement to the museum and return to square one.'