Ten-Day Dawn celebrations begin in Iran marking the run-up to the 38th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which put an end to the monarchy of the US-backed Pahlavi regime in the country.
The festivities started all over Iran at 9:33 a.m. local time (0603 GMT), symbolically marking the precise time when the late founder of the Islamic Republic, Imam Khomeini, arrived back home from exile on February 1, 1979.
A special ceremony is also underway at Imam Khomeini’s mausoleum south of Tehran, with a host of senior state and military officials as well as thousands of people from all walks of life in attendance.
Simultaneously, special ceremonies are being held in more than 80 Iranian cultural centers in 60 countries to mark the first day of the Ten-Day Dawn period.
Imam Khomeini spent more than 14 years in exile, mostly in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf. He also spent some time in Turkey and France before his return to Iran.
Millions of people had converged on the capital from across the country on the day of his return. His arrival gave considerable momentum to popular protests against the US-backed Pahlavi regime, which eventually led to its overthrow ten days later.
The 10-Day Dawn festivities will culminate in nationwide rallies on February 10 this year, the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution.
On Saturday, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Imam Sayyed Ali Khamenei visited the mausoleum of the late Imam Khomeini to pay tribute to the founder of the Islamic Revolution.
Source: Press TV
