A larger-than-life, but not actually alive, Ruhollah Khomeini is trotted our for a very special military ceremony.



Mehr News Agency

The Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran this morning reenacted a very important moment in their country's history with a very bizarre ceremony. The solemn event was photographed by the state-run Mehr News Agency, the website of which has since gone down (as it often does). Fortunately, we have preserved the photos and reproduce them below.

But before the photos comes the history. On this day in 1979, Iranian religious leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned home after 14 years in exile. He had been forced out by the secular and U.S.-backed Shah, who rightly feared his popularity. While in exile, he made high-profile sermons, wrote books, and circulated audiotapes explaining his vision for a Shia theocratic state. The revolution began in 1977 and, by the time the Shah fled in January 1979, Khomeini was living in France. When he flew home on February 1 he was joined by U.S. reporter Peter Jennings and others, and was met by millions of cheering Iranians at the airport. He declared his opposition to the interim government, led a popular campaign against it, and by the end of the year had established the Islamic Republic, with himself as Supreme Leader.