Iran officials tout ‘Trump-burning’ celebration amid battle of narratives
Al Jazeera
Iranian state media calls for turning fire festival into a symbolic protest by burning figures of US President Trump and Israeli PM Netanyahu.
Tehran, Iran – Iranian authorities are organising street-level events across the country over the coming days to maintain security control and send more messages of defiance to the leaders of the United States and Israel in the third week of their war.
Wednesday is the last day in the Iranian calendar, and Iranians have for thousands of years marked it with Chaharshanbe Suri, a festival of fire and celebration to symbolise the triumph of light over darkness and welcome Nowruz, or the Persian New Year.
The general prosecutor’s office in Tehran sent text messages to people on Monday to say they are prohibited from using fireworks and explosives or from lighting fires during celebrations, as is the custom, since they may be “misused by spying or rioting elements of the enemy”.
But state television urged Iranians to mark this year’s festivities by making and setting ablaze effigies of US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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