“Death to America” was the rallying cry of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, where the United States is still called the “Great Satan.”
In the late seventies, many Muslims took the Iranian revolution seriously. People hoped that the revolution would bring about major changes in the weakened Muslim nation, which had almost lost its Islamic and national identity under repressive regimes.
The Muslim Brotherhood was among those who believed this and hoped that the revolution would reform the Islamic world, which was torn by internal and external conflicts, with most regimes following the American-led West.
However, the falsehood of this slogan soon became clear and the Islamic world realised the deception when it found Iran adopting a sectarian approach. Then the revolution came to reveal the fact that Iran’s aim was to promote its sect and not Islam, which calls for equity, justice and moral values.
We saw how Iranians bombed oil plants, hijacked planes, threatened the security of pilgrims in Makkah and occupied a part of the United Arab Emirates, not to mention its espionage cells that aim to destabilise the Gulf.
Yet people were convinced of the credibility of this slogan on hearing the political discourse of the revolution against the Americans and seeing Hezbollah’s hostility to Israel. They believed that the Iranian revolution would defend the oppressed and uphold the belief that “There is no God but Allah and Muhammad (PBUH) is His messenger.”
God has now shown us the truth of this revolution by breaking news of the cooperation between the West and Iran under the auspices of the Great Satan, America.
While addressing the issue of Iran’s nuclear programme, we were astonished by the Great Satan’s pressure on most Gulf states to change their hostile policy towards Iran, review their political rhetoric by forgetting unpleasant history, try to forget the three occupied islands, and even coordinate to fight against Sunnis in the region, starting with the Muslim Brotherhood.
Overnight, we started seeing the Great Satan, the Iranian Quds Force and some Gulf armies fighting a common enemy in the Levant.
Under the eyes of the Arabs, cooperation between the United States, Iran and the Gulf states reached Yemen, resulting in the occupation of Sana’a by the Iranian-backed Shia group, the Houthis.
Even during the recent Gaza war, we expected Iran to support the Palestinians; instead we watched the entire world support Israel under the supervision of Zionist officials.
Today, we hear senior Iranian officials openly saying that the Americans must realise that the fall of Bashar Al Assad’s regime in Damascus would threaten Israel’s security and existence. It is as if they are declaring that Iran’s goal in supporting the Syrian government over the years was to save Israel! Perhaps this ideological coup explains Iran’s behaviour in the region and the even stranger actions of the Americans.
When the Houthis entered Sana’a, was their slogan “Death to America”?
They destroyed the Islamic University, burned the Reform Party’s offices and attacked mosques, but were kind enough to send protection to the US embassy.
The author is a writer and political analyst
