As Iranian and American diplomats near yet another tentative nuclear deadline Friday, Iran’s people are preparing their “Death to Israel” banners.
Friday is Iran’s Quds Day celebration, which every year since 1979 has marked the last Friday in Ramadan as a showy rejection of Israel and Zionism. Since then, many other countries throughout the Muslim world have joined in the annual observance. (RELATED: Iran Tries To Wriggle Out Of Nuke Talks With A HASHTAG)
Though Thursday saw diplomats announce yet another 4-day extension of the talks in Vienna — which were originally meant to end by June 30 — there remains a chance that they will be concluded Friday.
That means that there’s a chance news of a deal will arrive while Iranians are taking to the streets, chanting officially-approved slogans against the U.S. and Israel. (RELATED: Why Iran Banned Street Parties Ahead Of A Pending Nuke Deal)
Younger Iranians are reportedly more reluctant to participate in the official celebration of anti-Americanism and anti-Zionism. But the government still uses the occasion to strengthen its rhetorical stance against its gravest enemies.
In the build-up to the holiday, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been promoting slogans and images on his official Instagram account. In Persian, Arabic and English, he vows, “The issue of Palestine will not be removed from the Islamic Republic’s agenda.”
Here he is, delivering the line in a speech earlier this year:
And this popular graphic echoing the logo of Hezbollah bears the slogan, in Persian and Arabic, “We Stand By Our Oath.”
Other Khamenei-endorsed social media accounts include @_FightingTheZionists and @Al.Qods, alluding to the traditional Islamic name of Jerusalem. Here, a rocket is accompanied by the caption “We love the struggle against Zionism.”
And this Hebrew caption reads “Israel must be wiped from the face of the earth.”
When a framework for a final nuclear agreement between the U.S. and Iran was announced in April, Iranians posted grateful photos online of President Barack Obama’s press conference, which was a historic first for Iran’s highly censored media. (RELATED: Iranians Welcome Obama To Official TV With Selfies)
But if positive news emerges for Iranians amid their ritual condemnation of the U.S. and Israel, it is unclear how ordinary Iranians will react.
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