US sanctions add edge to Iranian rally
DUBAI: Thousands of Iranians chanting ‘‘Death to America’’ have rallied to mark the anniversary of the seizure of the US Embassy during the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the imminent reimposition of US sanctions on Iran’s oil sector.
Students attending the governmentorganised rally in Teheran, broadcast live by state television, burned the Stars and Stripes, an effigy of Uncle Sam and pictures of President Donald Trump outside the former embassy compound.
Hardline students stormed the embassy on November 4, 1979, soon after the fall of the USbacked shah, and 52 US citizens were held hostage there for 444 days. The two countries have been enemies ever since.
State media said millions turned out for rallies in towns and cities, swearing allegiance to the clerical establishment and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Rallies are staged on the embassy takeover anniversary every year. But rancour is especially strong this time, following Trump’s decision in May to withdraw from world powers’ 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and reimpose sanctions on Teheran.
The other signatories — Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China — remain committed to the accord.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the penalties to be imposed today ‘‘are the toughest sanctions ever put in place on the Islamic Republic of Iran.’’