Leader: 1953 coup, not embassy takeover, ‘starting point’ in US-Iran row

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has dismissed as a “lie” the US assertion that the 1979 takeover of their embassy in Tehran is what set off the ongoing dispute between Iran and the United States, saying the "starting point" of the row goes back to the CIA-orchestrated coup of 1953.

Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks during a meeting with students from across the country on Wednesday, ahead of the national Student Day and the National Day of Fight against Global Arrogance, which Iranians celebrate on November 4.

“Some think that America is an untouchable power, but if we look at the events of this day (November 4), it turns out that no, it is completely vulnerable,” he said.

The Leader was making a reference to the takeover of the American embassy in Tehran, also known in Iran as the “Den of Espionage,” less than a year after the Islamic Revolution toppled the US-backed Pahlavi dictatorship in 1979.

He said November 4 — the 13th of Aban — is a historic day which will not be forgotten. “Use these experiences. The future belongs to you,” he told the students.

“They say the reason the Americans stood against the Iranian people was the move you made in the embassy,” he said. “That is, ‘you attacked our embassy and a dispute emerged between us [which led to] a fight and an enmity.’ They lie. This is not the case.”

Rather, he continued, the beginning of disputes between Iran and the US was August 19, 1953, when the Americans staged a coup against the national government of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh.

“Mosaddegh’s government was a national government. His problem with the Westerners was only the issue of oil. He neither was a Hojatoleslam (top Islamic cleric) nor did he promote Islam. The issue was just related to oil, which was in the hands of the British. He said that the oil should be in our hands. This was his only crime.”

He also said Mosaddegh made a mistake by trusting the Americans on the assumption that the Americans would support him against the British. But the Americans stabbed him in the back, he said.

“They arrested Mosaddegh and his entourage and everyone [else],” he said. “Some were executed later, and some were imprisoned for many years.”

“Our dispute with the Americans started that day. Now, American politicians are hypocritically and shamelessly saying that 'we support the Iranian nation,'” Ayatollah Khamenei added.

The Leader recounted atrocities committed by the Americans against the Iranian nation over the last 70 years, saying that the nation, to the Americans’ chagrin, has thwarted all their enmities.

He maintained that compared to the period of the 1953 coup, the Americans are now resosting to more complicated plots. “But we trust our youth and authorities and we know that they can overcome these complex methods.”

The Leader then pointed to recent riots that erupted in mid-September after the unfortunate death of a young Iranian woman in police custody, saying the joint statement of Iran’s top intelligence bodies contained important information about the unrest and showed that the enemy had orchestrated detailed plots for Tehran and other cities.

Those who were linked to foreign powers and committed crimes across the country, unlike the provoked youth, must be dealt with, Ayatollah Khamenei said.

He called the unrest part of the enemy’s “hybrid war” against Iran rather than mere street riots.

“The enemy, namely the United States, the Zionist regime, some insidious and malicious European powers and some groups, came to the field with all of their capabilities,” he said, adding that they used their intelligence agencies, media capacity and the internet as well as their experiences in Iran and other countries to harm the Iranian nation.

On the Shiraz terrorist attack last week, for which Daesh claimed responsibility, the Leader called for tough punishment for the perpetrators of the crime.

“Who are the people who commit these crimes and where do they get their orders from? Of course, these are definitely not our children and youth. The perpetrators of these crimes must be identified and whoever is proven to have participated in these crimes will undoubtedly be punished,” he said.

He also censured the so-called supporters of human rights for their silence after the terrorist attack, saying, “Why have they not condemned the Shiraz incident and why do they repeat a false claim thousands of times on their platforms on the internet?”

According to Ayatollah Khamenei, signs of a new world order are emerging around the world, and the youth need to recognize Iran’s role and position in the imminent world order.

“The dimensions and nature of the new order are not exactly known, but its layout can be drawn,” he said, pointing to the decline of the US power in the world as one of the outcomes.

“Unlike in the past, when the Americans considered themselves the only dominant power in the world, the US does not have an important position in the new order and is isolated,” he added.

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