Why are these Iranians waving red flags?
Thousands of mostly conservative Iranians rallied on the outskirts of Tehran Thursday to commemorate the death of the founder of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, 37 years ago. Revenge was the theme of the day. Participants told CNN they are skeptical of the peace talks with the US, and instead want their leadership to exact revenge for the killing of their Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February. The war has added to the country’s woes; the crackdown on anti-regime demonstrations earlier in the year killed thousands. CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the government but maintains full editorial control of its reports.
Why are these Iranians waving red flags?
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The great-grandson of the founder of the Islamic Republic struck a defiant tone in an interview with CNN on Thursday, saying Iran shouldn’t compromise on its demands to end the war.
Tehran has, “no reason to back down from our position,” Seyyed Ahmad Khomeini, the great grandson of the regime’s first Supreme Leader, Ruhollah Khomeini, told CNN at an event in Tehran province.
“From now on, you should be asking us how we could be willing to trust the United States again,” Khomeini said. “Then we will tell you what the Americans must do this time.”
Ruhollah Khomeini led the 1979 Islamic Revolution that deposed Iran’s Western-backed monarch, the shah, and went on to brand the US the “Great Satan” and Israel the “Little Satan.”
The young Khomeini, who doesn’t hold a government position, spoke at the main ceremony commemorating his great grandfather’s death 37 years ago. The event featured references to the US-Israeli war against Iran, with many of the participants calling for retribution, some waving red flags with the word “revenge” written on them in Persian.
While advocating a hard line against the US, Ahmad Khomeini, himself a public figure in Iran, did not reject negotiations to end the conflict.
“Iran has never shied away from dialogue. Even when it was attacked in the middle of negotiations, Iran stood firm and returned to the negotiating table,“ he said, warning that Tehran was ready for another round of military action if necessary.
“We never had enmity toward the American people that would require improving relations with them. Our enmity has been with American politicians, and it will remain so. Nothing can erase that,” Khomeini added.
Editor’s note: CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the government but maintains full editorial control of its reports.