Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of Tehran and other cities and towns across Iran on Monday, marking the date 40 years ago that is considered victory day in the country's 1979 Islamic Revolution.
In the capital, crowds streamed in the rain from a dozen of the capital's far-flung neighbourhoods to mass in central Tehran's Azadi, or Freedom Square, waving Iranian flags and chanting "Death to Israel" and "Death to America" - a chant that has been commonplace at anti-US rallies across Iran.
Central Enghelab, or Revolution Street, was decorated with huge balloons, and loudspeakers blared out revolutionary and nationalist songs to encourage people to join the rallies.
Monday's marches were also a backdrop to the military's display of Iranian-made missiles, which authorities showcase every year during the anniversary celebrations.
Iran has missiles with a range of up to 2,000 kilometres (1,250 miles), far enough to reach Israel and US military bases in the region.
Over the past decade, Iran has frequently test-fired and displayed its home-made missiles, sent several short-lived satellites into orbit and in 2013 launched a monkey into space.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Tehran would "not seek permission from anybody" over the country's missile development programme.
"For producing all types of anti-armour missiles, air defence missiles, all types of surface-to-sea, sea-to-sea, air-to-air missiles, and all types of surface-to-surface missiles, we have not and will not ask permission from anybody," he said.
President Hassan Rouhani during a ceremony in Tehran. Source: AP
'Forty years of failure'
Iran's Islamic revolution four decades ago inflicted "failure and broken promises" on the country, US President Donald Trump's chief foreign policy advisor said Monday.
"It's been 40 yrs of failure. Now it's up to the Iranian regime to change its behavior, & ultimately up to the Iranian people to determine the direction of their country," national security advisor John Bolton tweeted on the anniversary of the upheaval.
Bolton said that Washington would support "the will of the Iranian people, & stand behind them to ensure their voices are heard."
On February 11 1979, Iran's military stood down after days of street battles, allowing the revolutionaries to sweep across the country while the government of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi resigned.
It was also the day that Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini declared Iran an Islamic Republic.
The festivities to mark the anniversary start every year on February 1 — the day Khomeini returned home from France after 14 years in exile to become the supreme leader, as Shiite clerics took power.
They continue for 10 days, climaxing on February 11.
This year's anniversary comes as tensions rise with the US, and Iran is grappling with the aftermath of President Donald Trump's pullout last May (2018) from the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers and tough US economic sanctions, re-imposed in November.
