Iran commemorates 1979 revolution as nation is squeezed by anger over crackdown and tensions with US

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran marked the 47th day of its 1979 Islamic Revolution connected Wednesday arsenic the country’s theocracy remains nether pressure, some from U.S. President Donald Trump who suggested sending different craft bearer radical to the Middle East and a nationalist angrily denouncing Tehran's bloody crackdown connected nationwide protests.

The commemoration represented a spit-screen presumption of beingness successful Iran, with authorities tv showing hundreds of thousands of radical crossed the state attending pro-government rallies, which included the burning of American flags and cries of “Death to America!” The nighttime before, arsenic government-sponsored fireworks lit the acheronian sky, witnesses heard shouts from people’s homes successful the Iranian capital, Tehran, of “Death to the dictator!”

Meanwhile, President Masoud Pezeshkian got connected signifier astatine Azadi Square successful Tehran and insisted that Iran is consenting to negociate implicit its atomic programme arsenic fledgling atomic talks talks with America bent successful the balance.

Whether the talks win remains an unfastened question — and Mideast nations fearfulness their illness could plunge the portion into different determination war. A apical Iranian information authoritative traveled Qatar connected Wednesday aft earlier visiting Oman, which has mediated this latest circular of negotiations. Just earlier the official's arrival, Qatar's ruling emir received a telephone telephone from Trump.

In his code astatine the day ceremony, Pezeshkian besides insisted that his federation was “not seeking atomic weapons. ... and are acceptable for immoderate benignant of verification.” However, the United Nations’ atomic watchdog — the International Atomic Energy Agency — has been incapable for months to inspect and verify Iran’s atomic stockpile.

“The precocious partition of mistrust that the United States and Europe person created done their past statements and actions does not let these talks to scope a conclusion,” Pezeshkian said.

Yet moments later, helium added: “At the aforesaid time, we are engaging with afloat determination successful dialog aimed astatine bid and stableness successful the portion alongside our neighboring countries.”

Commemoration overshadowed by crackdown

On Iranian authorities TV, authorities broadcast images of radical taking to the streets crossed the state Wednesday to enactment the theocracy and its 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Others criticized Iran's exiled crown prince, Reza Pahlavi, who had been calling for anti-government protests.

“I americium present to accidental we don’t halt supporting our person and our state arsenic the Americans and Israelis are progressively threatening" us, said Reza Jedi, a 43-year-old participant.

Iranian missiles were connected display, arsenic were fragments that authorities described arsenic being from downed Israeli drones. Fake coffins draped successful the American emblem could besides beryllium seen, 1 bearing the representation of U.S. Navy Adm. Brad Cooper, the caput of the American military's Central Command.

Among Iran's 85 cardinal people, determination is simply a hard-line constituent of enactment for Iran's theocracy, including members of the country's almighty paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which crucially enactment down the protests past period successful a bloody suppression that killed thousands and saw tens of thousands detained, according to activists.

Also, galore Iranians often instrumentality portion successful pro-theocracy demonstrations arsenic they are authorities employees oregon crook up to bask the carnival ambiance of a government-sponsored holiday. Iran has 2.5 cardinal authorities employees, with a 5th successful Tehran alone.

While not straight addressing the bloodshed by authorities, Pezeshkian acknowledged the crackdown that began successful earnest connected Jan. 8 had “caused large sorrow.”

“We are ashamed earlier the people, and we are obligated to assistance each those who were harmed successful these incidents," helium said. “We are not seeking confrontation with the people.”

One antheral sadly watched the commemoration from a sidewalk successful Tehran, not taking part.

“I regularly participated successful the rally successful past years," said the man, who spoke connected information of anonymity for fearfulness of reprisal. "But however tin I bash that present arsenic the streets' asphalt were bloodied past month?”

A elder Iran authoritative visits Qatar

As the commemoration took place, elder Iranian information authoritative Ali Larijani near Oman for Qatar, a Mideast federation that hosts a large U.S. subject installation and 1 that Iran attacked successful June aft the U.S. bombed Iranian atomic sites during the 12-day Iran-Israel war.

Qatar has besides been a cardinal negotiator successful the past with Iran, with which it shares a monolithic offshore earthy state tract successful the Persian Gulf. Its state-run Qatar News Agency reported that ruling emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani spoke with Trump astir “the existent concern successful the portion and planetary efforts aimed astatine de-escalation and strengthening determination information and peace,” without elaborating.

Speaking to the Russian authorities transmission RT, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran inactive does “not person afloat spot for the Americans.”

“Last clip we negotiated, past June we were successful the mediate of dialog past they decided to onslaught america and that was a precise very atrocious acquisition for us,” Iran's apical diplomat said. “We request to marque definite that that script is not repeated and this is mostly up to America.”

Despite that concern, Araghchi said it could beryllium imaginable “to travel to a amended woody than Obama,” referencing the 2015 atomic woody with satellite powers Iran reached erstwhile erstwhile U.S. President Barack Obama was successful office. Trump successful his archetypal word unilaterally withdrew America from the accord.

Trump suggests sending different bearer to Mideast

The U.S. has moved the craft bearer USS Abraham Lincoln, ships and warplanes to the Middle East to unit Iran into an statement and person the firepower indispensable to onslaught the Islamic Republic should Trump take to bash so.

Already, U.S. forces person changeable down a drone they said got excessively adjacent to the Lincoln and came to the assistance of a U.S.-flagged vessel that Iranian forces tried to halt successful the Strait of Hormuz, the constrictive rima of the Persian Gulf.

Trump told the quality website Axios that helium was considering sending a 2nd bearer to the region, noting, “We person an armada that is heading determination and different 1 mightiness beryllium going."

It remains unclear what bearer could go. The USS George H.W. Bush has near Norfolk, Virginia, according to U.S. Navy Institute News. The USS Gerald R. Ford remains successful the Caribbean aft the U.S. subject raid that captured Venezuelan person Nicolás Maduro.

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