New Wave of Anti-U.S. Sentiment in Iran

A few weeks after the telephone conversation between Hassan Rouhani and Barack Obama, heralding more than any other time in past three decades the possible normalization of relations between Iran and the US, a huge wave of anti-US propaganda has been planned by radical Iranian fundamentalists. The new wave is not limited to specific political figures or an organized demonstration following the public Friday prayers, but this time the radicals have tried to create an anti-US atmosphere in cities all over Iran, and particularly in Tehran.

Over the recent days a religious-cultural organization in Tehran has designed dozens of billboards that present symbolic images of negotiations between Iran and US representatives, attempting to challenge the honesty of the American negotiators.

The words “American Honesty” are the most prominent words printed on the billboards. The designer presents the American side dressed in a combination of business attire and military fatigues and boots, accompanied by a dog, trying to show that Americans lack honesty and don’t observe diplomatic protocol even when they come to the negotiation table. In another illustration, the claws of a bird of prey (U.S.), is extended for a handshake with a human hand (Iran). During recent years, the US government’s “lack of trustworthiness and honesty” have been the most important points emphasized by Iran’s Supreme Leader. Ali Khamenei previously described the U.S. government’s behavior as one with an “iron hand, velvet glove.”

The cultural-religious organization that has designed the billboards is “The Islamic Revolution House of Designers.” During recent years, certain Hezbollah media figures such as Nader Talebzadeh, an anti-US filmmaker; Vahid Jalili, brother of former Iran nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili; and Vahid Yaminpour, member of the Islamic Revolution Stability Front, have engaged in propaganda through organizing modern cultural-media organizations in order to fill the media gap for the political spectrum known as Hezbollah in Iran. These organizations are active in the areas of information, documentation, publication, and festival organization, and have close ties with organizations affiliated with conservative cleric Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), and the Basij paramilitary group, a subsidiary of the IRGC.

The design and the widespread installation of these billboards in Tehran require strong financial resources as well as coordination with the Tehran Municipality. In addition to their power to penetrate the municipality, a few radical fundamentalist members of Tehran's city council seem to have paved the way for these organizations’ unfettered activity.

In another effort, several cultural-media organizations affiliated with the IRGC and Hezbollah institutions have launched “Great Down with USA Award” contest. The organizers have announced 13 tracks for this contest and participants can choose to participate in tracks such as “Why do we say ‘Down with America?”, “Why US is not trustworthy?”, “US and Breaking Promises,” “US and Self-conceit,” and “US and Human Rights.” The contest participants can submit different forms of documentaries and articles for consideration. In recent days, there has been a call on the internet for another contest by the name of “Stoning the Devil,” referring to a Hajj pilgrimage ritual, by a center called “Revolutionary People Poster Movement,” which also focuses on issues emphasized by the Supreme Leader against the U.S.

In a more recent development, supporters of Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi at the Qum Seminary have reported the establishment of two political committees whose mission is to “Avert Enemies of Muslims” and “Protect National Interests.” University and Seminary students active in these committees hold news conferences, conduct small seminars, and burn the American flag to display their opposition to any changes in Iran-US relations.

In another move, the official website of Iran’s Supreme Leader has also joined the media active in discussing negotiations with the US. The website has released an audio-photo documentary in which the experience of the 2007 Iran-US negotiations on the subject of Iraq are reported by members of the Iranian diplomatic delegation responsible for negotiating with the US.

Just a few days after Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani published a statement by Ayatollah Khomeini in his online memoirs about the possibility of negotiations between Iran and the US, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s website published the Supreme Leader’s memory of a visit with Ayatollah Khomeini whose message was resistance, rather than being intimidated by the US. Before this article several conservative figures had criticized Rafsanjani’s statements; the list of critics even included Mostafa Pourmohammadi, the Minister of Justice in Rouhani's cabinet.

Senior fundamentalist figures, especially among the radicals, have joined forces in the Iranian political scene to condemn the telephone conversation between Rouhani and Obama, opposing Rouhani’s public survey about Iran-US relations and criticizing the secrecy around nuclear negotiations while actively questioning Rouhani’s efforts.

They also emphasize that permission to establish relations with the US is only within the power of the Supreme Leader; that establishing ties with the US will not solve any of Iran’s domestic economic problems; and that taking confidence building steps in the nuclear case is also dependent on Majlis approval and the Supreme Leader’s permission. Emphasis on these points aims to neutralize the credibility and influence of figures such as Rafsanjani and to issue a serious warning to Rouhani who has put most of his focus on the diplomatic domain.

Opposition to the Rouhani administration’s diplomatic efforts intensified after Ali Khamenei called some of Rouhani and Zarif’s activities during their US trip as inappropriate. The interpretation emboldened the radicals. The daily Kayhan, one of the important opponents to a change in US-Iran relations,  suggested in a commentary that the negotiations between the two countries must continue in the absence of Wendy Sherman, the US chief negotiator.

Wendy Sherman has been accused of describing Iranians as people in whom “deception is part of the DNA” during an appearance before the US Congress. Despite several the emphasis by other media outlets about the incorrect translation of Sherman’s statements, Iran’s conservative media continue to use it to further their own agenda. In his earlier statements, radical cleric Ahmad Khatami has demanded that “the Iranian Foreign Ministry slap Wendy Sherman in the mouth.”

Radical forces in Iran have also launched widespread efforts to hold a much more vigorous November 4 celebration of the anniversary of the 1979 US Embassy seizure with special anti-US ceremonies this year.

But what is the most important goal of the widespread anti-US preparations? Some of the short-term goals of this propaganda is dedicated to emphasizing Ali Khamenei’s power and command in domestic political relations, as well as his decision-making power in issues such as relations with the US. There is also a mid-term objective on the agenda. The Iranian Leader would normally need to show the legitimacy of some of his decisions based on public opinion. For example, the crackdown on the Green Movement leaders and the 2010 house arrests of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi became a serious agenda item only after IRGC affiliated organizations, the political eulogists and the Sustainability Front were able to successfully hold pro-government demonstrations on December 30, 2009.

It appears that even though under the current circumstances Ali Khamenei has not yet expressed an opinion against establishing relations with the US, his supporters are trying to create an atmosphere against it, so that if the Supreme Leader decides to intervene, his actions would be displayed as in harmony with Iranian public opinion.

The breadth of the anti-US propaganda could also carry diplomatic messages. The existence of a powerful political media current inside Iran who wishes for animosity between the two countries to continue, would naturally tie Rouhani’s hands in implementing his diplomatic maneuvers and would send a signal to the west that they should balance their expectations of Rouhani cabinet in order to push the détente process more favorably.

Such actions are not unprecedented. In his memoirs about the 2003 nuclear negotiations, Rouhani wrote, “after the press conference [of the three European Ministers in Tehran], they told us that several students have gathered outside the Sa’adabad building and are chanting slogans. Mr. Kharrazi told Jack Straw, ‘See, what a tough job this is [to negotiate under such circumstances]? The students are demonstrating outside the palace. Jack Straw replied, ‘How much did you pay them?!’”

Answering Straw’s subtle question is not hard, but it won’t solve any problems. The radicals, their resources and their interests are a tangible fact of the Iranian political spectrum, even though it appears their numbers have dropped and their concerns have grown.