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Arab Emirates — Iran on Saturday celebrated the 44th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution amid nationwide anti-government protests and heightened tensions with the West.
Thousands of Iranians marched through major streets and squares decorated with flags, balloons and placards with revolutionary and religious slogans. The military put on display its Emad and Sejjil ballistic missiles and cruise missiles as well as its Shahed-136 and Mohajer drones.
Protesters began pouring into the streets in September after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, an Iranian-Kurdish woman detained by the country’s morality police. Those demonstrations, initially focused on Iran’s mandatory headscarf, or hijab, soon morphed into calls for a new revolution.
In a speech at Azadi Square in the capital Tehran, President Ebrahim Raisi referred to the protests as a project by Iran’s enemies aimed at stopping the nation from continuing its achievements.
Raisi called the celebration “epic” and a show of “national integrity” while praising post-revolution achievements in the country.
The remarks prompted the crowd to chant “Death to the U.S.”
Meanwhile, Telewebion, a web TV service affiliated with Iranian state TV, was briefly hacked during Raisi’s speech, Iranian media reported. The khabaronline.ir news website said the interruption lasted 19 seconds .
“Edalate Ali” or “The Justice of Ali,” hackers group in a 44-sencond video published on Twitter invited people to take part in nationwide protests next week and urged Iranians to withdraw their money from their banks.
