In Wake of Unrest, Britain Replacing U.S. as Iran's 'Great Satan'
Washington Post / Tara Bahrampour
17-Jul-2009 (2 comments)

For the past three decades, the United States has been Iran's "Great Satan." Schoolchildren learned to chant "Down With U.S.A." Conservative clerics sermonized against America. Anti-American murals depicting images such as a skull-faced Statue of Liberty dotted Tehran.But since Iran's disputed presidential election last month, another Satan has gained ground: Great Britain. Since Iranians took to the streets to protest the official vote results, the government has expelled two British diplomats, kicked out the longtime British Broadcasting Corp. bureau chief, and arrested British Embassy staff members, accusing them of fomenting the unrest. Last week, an adviser to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called Britain "worse than America" for its alleged interference in Iran's post-election affairs. Although complaints about British meddling are enjoying a resurgence, they are hardly new. For many Iranians, especially those whose memories go back several decades, the British reach is long and deep. "To the older generation of Iranians, it's as if the sun has never gone down on the British Empire," said Mehrzad Boroujerdi, director of Middle Eastern studies at Syracuse University. "They are considered the masters of political intrigue, and players such as the U.S. are considered to be novices, new kids on the block."

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Ali Lakani

Yes, but now Iranians think it's Russia

by Ali Lakani on

Forget about what IRI is saying!  Listen to these people at the Friday Prayers yesterday.  The slogan leader can't get them to say "Death to USA," "Death to Israel," or "Death to Britain."  All they want to say is "Death to Russia."

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=InKo75c-l1A



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IRANdokht

the slogans

by IRANdokht on

Obviously I was not there but death to Russia seems to have been an impromptu alteration of the slogan that was being shouted out by the official government "slogan machine" at the friday prayer.

People changed the slogans on the spot, so instead of what the government wanted them to say, they picked the country that's been the most supportive of the government.

I think they did a great job considering there was no way of rehearsing. If you have FB try this link, they even changed the word "rahbar" to "mellat" without missing a beat.

IRANdokht