Iran’s supreme leader marked Wednesday’s anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy with an affirmation that the slogan “Death to America” is still meaningful.
“The slogan ‘death to America’ is backed by reason and wisdom; and it goes without saying that the slogan does not mean death to the American nation; this slogan means death to the US’s policies, death to arrogance,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said, according to Iran’s Press TV.
The anniversary of the embassy seizure is called the National Day of Fighting Global Arrogance in Iran.
“The truth is that U.S.’s objectives regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran have not changed at all, and they would not spare a moment if they could destroy the Islamic Republic, but they can’t,” the ayatollah said.
According to the Islamic Republic News Agency, President Hassan Rouhani told a meeting of the Cultural Revolution Supreme Council that the embassy takeover anniversary is important to remember their “second revolution.”
“The U.S. embassy takeover formed the pillars of the country’s independence and fighting against the arrogant power by the Islamic Revolution in Iran,” Rouhani said.
Asked about the ayatollah’s defense of the “Death to America” slogan, State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau told reporters today that she “can’t speak to what Iran is thinking.”
“We’re not going to react to every comment by an Iranian leader,” Trudeau added.
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