Iranians mark anniversary of 1979 US embassy takeover, vow victory in Palestine

Thousands of Iranians gather on the streets to mark the anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the US embassy in Tehran, chanting “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” while condemning Washington’s support of Israel as it fights Hamas in Gaza.

The rally — which was called for by the state — came as the Israel-Hamas war entered its fourth week. About 1,400 people in Israel were killed, most of the civilians, and over 240 taken hostage after Hamas’s surprise attack on October 7.

Hamas, in unverified claims, says over 9,000 people have died in Gaza.

People assemble outside the former US embassy in Tehran, with some burning American and Israeli flags.

Protesters stomp on images of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden. Others carried banners calling the US the “Great Satan.” The banner on the main podium read: “We trample America under our feet.”

Parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, addresses the crowds while criticizing US support of Israel. “We consider the criminal US a principal culprit in all these crimes,” in Gaza and against Palestinians, he says.

Qalibaf claims that the Hamas attack on Israel has caused “irreparable” intelligence and security damage to the Israeli state.

In a statement published on behalf of the protesters at the end of the commemoration, they call for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza and warn the US, Britain and France that the crisis might expand in the region.

The statement ended with a vow that Iranians would stand by Palestine “until final victory.”