In a post on his X account on Thursday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei wrote, “Today, 3 September, marks the anniversary of the martyrdom of Rais Ali Delvari – a symbol of Iran’s resistance to British imperialism. On a day such as this, it is worth remembering Scott Bessent – the man who, in explaining his view of Iran, reached back to childhood memories of a backyard in South Carolina, where venomous snakes were killed with a machete and a rake.”
That is precisely where Bessent goes wrong, he said, adding, “He [Scott Bessent] mistakes the depth of Iran’s history and culture for the size of a childhood yard. More than a century ago, the British Empire brought the full weight of its power and brutality to Bushehr and Tangestan. They killed Rais Ali Delvari but the resistance continued… . Your brutal “war of choice” – an unlawful and unprovoked aggression – was meant to drive the Nation of Iran to collapse.”
“What has collapsed instead is the illusion of your absolute power, and with it every claim to moral standing. History is far larger than a kid’s memories and ‘their’ backyard.”
And history has a clear judgment for those who still cast themselves as heroes of the yard, armed with a machete and a rake, while knowing nothing of Rais Ali Delvari, Baghaei emphasized.
Every year, September 3 is named in the country’s official calendar after the National Day of Resistance against Colonialism and the commemoration of Ra’is Ali Delvari.
MNA
