Iran Celebrates US Embassy seizure amid unparalleled uprising

The Iranian government held counter protests on Friday, with participants marking the 1979 hostage crisis at the US Embassy in Tehran.

The state-sponsored event comes as the Iranian regime faces a nationwide uprising following the death of 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini on September 16. Thousands of anti-government protesters have taken to the streets in recent weeks, demanding the downfall of the regime.

A group of religious college students in Iran stormed the US Embassy 43 years ago, taking 52 US diplomats and citizens hostage. The event followed the Islamic Revolution earlier in the year, when the secular Pahlavi dynasty was overthrown in favor of a religious theocracy under then-Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

There have been massive protests across Iran since the death in custody of Amini. She was arrested by security forces for violating the country's compulsory headscarf policy, stirring anti-government unrest across the nation. Iranian officials claim her death was due to illness, not because of treatment by police.

The counterprotests were concentrated in the capital, Tehran, but were also present in other parts of the country. Rallygoers convened in front of the capital's former US Embassy.

US President Joe Biden on Thursday expressed solidarity with anti-government protesters and promised to "free Iran" during a campaign event in California. A crowd held up cellphones with the message "Free Iran" as the president gave a speech.