Millions of people in Iran took to the streets on Wednesday on the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, state media reported.
State television showed government supporters on the major thoroughfares in the centre of the capital, Tehran.
Millions of Iranians participated in the celebrations in more than 1,400 cities and around 40,000 villages, according to the state news agency, IRNA.
The state also showcased military equipment as is traditional at anniversary celebrations, including mobile truck launchers with mock-ups of ballistic missiles this year, images from pro-government media showed.
Ministers and military officers also participated in the celebrations.
President Masoud Pezeshkian called for national unity.
“Today, more than ever, we need unity in the face of threats, conspiracies, misguided developments or misinformation that sometimes deceives our young people,” he said in a speech.
“I apologise to the noble people for the shortcomings that exist.”
On Tuesday evening, supporters of the Islamic Republic shouted “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest) over the rooftops of the metropolis of Tehran.
The expression became the symbolic call of the revolution against the Shah’s rule in 1979.
This year’s anniversary is overshadowed by the brutal suppression of mass protests in early January.
“Death to the dictator” also echoed from the houses, a reference to Iran’s religious leader and head of state, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The latest wave of protests was triggered by the severe economic crisis in Iran.
While initially traders took to the streets, the protests quickly developed into a nationwide uprising against the hardline Islamic system of government.
