Pompeo Congratulates Iranians on Yalda Night; 'The End of the Dark Night is Bright'

Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, congratulated Iranians on the celebration of 'Yalda Night' on Friday, December 21. Mr. Pompeo wrote on his Twitter: 'As the proud nation of Iran celebrates the longest night of the year and the victory of light over darkness, I wish them prosperity and freedom.' The U.S. Secretary of State also referenced a poem by the Iranian poet Nizami Ganjavi: 'In despair, there is much hope - the end of the dark night is bright.' Meanwhile, the Persian Twitter account of the U.S. State Department noted that Andrew Peek, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iran, was a guest of an Iranian-American family in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. for Yalda Night and became familiar with the traditions and roots of this Iranian celebration during this warm visit. Yalda Night, or Shab-e Chelleh, is one of the oldest rituals of Iranians and celebrates the beginning of the shortening of the night. Yalda rituals are held in most regions of Iran, and according to a study conducted by the Media Studies and Research Center of the Hamshahri Institute in 2009, 72% of people in Tehran reported that they celebrate Yalda Night. Nearly 40% said they hold this ceremony to preserve national customs, and 41% said they read Hafiz or take Hafiz fortune-telling on this night. News related to this year's Yalda Night is accompanied by unprecedented price increases and the doubling of the cost of the Yalda basket. According to Donya-e-Eqtesad, 'Minimum calculations show that a three-person household must spend about 128,000 tomans to prepare a Yalda basket. This is while last year [2018], the same basket could be prepared for 65,000 tomans.' In this context, the Iranian Parliament's Research Center recently reported that the poverty line for a four-person family in Tehran County was estimated at 2,728,000 tomans this summer, which is a 22.4% increase compared to the previous summer. Last year, severe air pollution in major Iranian cities made headlines on Yalda Night, with newspapers even using the headline 'Yalda of Suffocation.' Last year also saw the widespread arrest of young people who were celebrating on Yalda Night, which was among the 'Yalda news.' In this context, regarding Yalda Night at the Leader's House, Yalda Night is still awaiting registration with UNESCO, from sacred pistachios to verses with Hafiz. Yalda 2019 was 'twice as expensive' as Yalda 2018, with severe government repression and the danger of protests going 'underground.' What doctors and eyewitnesses recount about the injured in the protests reveals the limitations of relations between China and Iran amidst the protests. 1. 'Doctors' statement' about 'evidence' of the killing of protesters under treatment. 2. Accounts from three eyewitnesses of the massacre and the situation in several cities in Isfahan Province; 'like war-torn areas.' 3. The death of the last Mossad representative in Tehran amidst the Iran crisis. 4. Trump announced an agreement to hold a meeting about Greenland in Davos. 5. Trump emphasized 'stopping executions in Iran': we do not know what will happen in the future.