On November 4, thousands of Iranians chanted “Death to America” outside of the former U.S. embassy in Tehran. It was one of more than 1,000 rallies held across Iran to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the embassy’s seizure. In 1979, students stormed the compound to protest the Carter administration’s decision to take in the ailing former shah for medical treatment. Student leaders later said their intention was to hold the embassy for a few days, but 52 Americans ended up being held for 444 days. 

On November 3, Iran’s supreme leader renewed the ban on talks with the United States. “No problem will be solved with meetings and with negotiations,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told students on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. “The same wolfish qualities which existed in those days, exist in the United States in the present time as well,” he said, recalling U.S. support for the shah. “Throughout the history of U.S.-Iran relations, the United States has always shown enmity towards Iran.” 

Iran “remains the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism,” according to a new State Department report.

For almost four decades, the U.S. embassy in Iran was off-limits to visitors. Students seized the embassy on November 4, 1979 to protest the Carter administration’s decision to take in the ailing former shah for medical treatment. Student leaders later said their intention was to hold the embassy for a few days, but 52 Americans ended up being held for 444 days. 

October 28

Justice: The Iranian lawyer of two French citizens detained in Tehran said prosecutors had provided no evidence of espionage or security-related charges. Roland Marchal was arrested in June while visiting his Iranian-French colleague Fariba Adelkhah, who was also detained. The attorney said the cases were still under review by the prosecutor and have not gone to trial. 

As commander of Iran’s elite Qods Force, Qassem Soleimani has become one of the most powerful military leaders in the Middle East. He has reportedly masterminded major military operations, bombings and assassinations since he took over the external operations wing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in 1998.

After Turkey’s invasion of Syria on October 9, Iran called on its longstanding ally and neighbor to rethink its plan to create a buffer zone inside Syria. “We are calling on our friendly and brotherly neighbor Turkey to act with more patience and restraint, and to revise its decision and chosen path,” Rouhani said in an interview with the Islamic Student News Agency. “We have openly said that the only solution to ensure safety and security in southern Turkey and northern Syria is the presence of the Syrian army.”

By Andrew Hanna

In April 2016, Iran, India and Afghanistan signed an agreement to develop the Iranian port of Chabahar as a shipping hub with rail links that connected India to Afghanistan through Iran—and circumvented Pakistan. Chabahar is on the Gulf of Oman and is Iran’s only port with access to the Indian Ocean.

On October 4, Microsoft reported that a group it calls Phosphorus made more than 2,700 attempts to identify email addresses of current and former U.S. officials, accounts associated with a U.S. presidential campaign and journalists covering political campaigns. Microsoft said it believed the group “originates from Iran and is linked to the Iranian government.” Phosphorus attacked 241 of the accounts between August and September. “Four accounts were compromised as a result of these attempts; these four accounts were not associated with the U.S.

Iranian newspapers, which reflect a broad spectrum of political views, provided positive coverage of President Hassan Rouhani’s visit to New York City for the U.N. General Assembly opening. Even the hardline newspaper, Kayhan, which is often critical of Rouhani, ran an editorial titled “Mr. Rouhani! Bravo.” Newspapers highlighted Rouhani’s many meetings with foreign leaders, emphasizing that Iran is not isolated despite U.S. sanctions. They also portrayed Rouhani as steadfast for refusing to meet with Trump for negotiations while Iran is under sanctions.