Iran celebrates anniversary of US embassy takeover

Iranian demonstrators today celebrated the 27th anniversary of the takeover of the US embassy in Tehran by militant students, warning the United States to learn from the incident.

“The Americans should have learned from the seizure of their embassy; they should know that threats will not affect the Iranian nation,” said Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, speaker of Iran’s parliament during the ceremony marking the anniversary.

Apparently referring to US support for imposing sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme, Haddad Adel added: “The Americans have no choice but to change their bullying policy to a logical and respectful approach.”

Thousands of Iranians, including Iran-Iraq war veterans and primary school children, chanted anti-US and anti-Israel slogans and burned the flags of the two countries outside the former US embassy.

They shouted “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” in front of the former embassy compound. Similar protests were held in other major cities.

Since the 1979 Islamic revolution, Iranians have celebrated the November 4 takeover of the embassy by militant students. The students took 52 American diplomats hostage for 444 days.

Iran test-fired new missiles in both first and second days of a 10-day war game only days after the US conducted naval manoeuvres in the Gulf, and as UN Security Council members wrangle over what steps to take against Iran for ignoring its call to cease uranium enrichment.