November 13 Rally Held; IRGC Commander Defends U.S. Embassy Occupation

On the anniversary of the U.S. embassy occupation in Tehran in 1979, a government-organized rally took place on Sunday morning in Tehran and other cities in Iran, where slogans against the U.S., Israel, and Saudi Arabia were chanted. Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), strongly defended the embassy occupation in his speech in Tehran, stating that if the Americans had remained in the embassy, the revolution would not have lasted forty years, and according to him, 'the revolution would have been over in the first decade.' Jafari mentioned that 'officials' were aware of the decision to occupy the U.S. embassy but that 'a limited number of students spontaneously attacked the U.S. embassy to make it appear that this decision came from the crowd.' He also addressed U.S. President Trump, saying, 'Mr. Trump! Never threaten Iran because the terrified cries of your soldiers in Tabas and American and British sailors in the Persian Gulf are audible.' The occupation of the U.S. embassy in Tehran and the hostage-taking of 66 American diplomats for 444 days created a long-lasting crisis and led to the severing of relations between the two countries. In a text read at the government rally on November 13, any form of negotiation with the U.S. was opposed. In recent months, several officials of the Islamic Republic, including the head of the Foreign Policy Commission of the Parliament, have implicitly called for negotiations with the U.S., but Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has prohibited any new negotiations with the U.S. Every year, on the anniversary of the U.S. embassy occupation, a government rally is held in front of the embassy building, managed by the Islamic Propaganda Organization, where slogans against the U.S. are chanted. This year's rally coincided with the complete reinstatement of all U.S. sanctions, and the organizing body stated that this year's event had 'special significance compared to previous years.' Meanwhile, the public session of Parliament on Sunday ended two hours earlier due to representatives' attendance at the rally. In previous years, some officials of the Islamic Republic have acknowledged the negative impacts of the U.S. embassy occupation on Iran. For instance, Ali Motahari, the Deputy Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, stated that the prolonged occupation of the U.S. embassy in Iran presented an image 'like ISIS' of Iran, and Saddam Hussein exploited Iran's 'isolation' after this incident to attack Iran. In the resolution of the November 13 rally, referring to the words of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, it was declared that 'we express our firm opposition to the repetition of any negotiations on any subject.' This year, a banner of a hundred-dollar bill was spread on the ground, and participants walked over it. In recent months, reports about the complete reinstatement of U.S. sanctions have led to turmoil in Iran's currency market and sparked protests in several cities in Iran in August. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, later announced that 'the most severe sanctions against this ruthless regime will be imposed,' stating, 'The time will come when the officials of the Islamic Republic will finally be smart and will negotiate for a real agreement.' However, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic has previously expressed regret over past negotiations with the U.S. and stated that, like Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, he prohibits negotiations with the U.S. Many political figures inside and outside Iran have previously called for direct negotiations between Iran and the U.S. and criticized the Islamic Republic's policies in the region. Meanwhile, Hossein Salami, the deputy commander of the IRGC, stated on a television program that 'the battle with the Islamic Republic will take the scale of war outside the region.' He said, 'We have now reached a power that can threaten their vital interests under the right conditions.' He emphasized that 'U.S. aircraft carriers are within the range of precision ballistic missiles that can target moving targets.' Previously, Islamic Republic officials have threatened that if the U.S. military attacks Iran, its bases in the region will be targeted.