Iran’s propaganda machine has produced a new bellicose song to serve as background music for video scenes of a missile destroying the U.S. Capitol.
“We will destroy the palace of oppression,” say the lyrics, according to a translation by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) released Wednesday.
The video debuted Sunday on state-owned Channel 1 as a lead-up to a televised speech by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The ayatollah recently condemned his foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, for leaked remarks in which he criticized the late, revered Gen. Qasem Soleimani for what he saw as military meddling in Mr. Zarif’s diplomatic affairs.
“This was a big mistake that must not be made by an official of the Islamic Republic,” the Supreme Leader told the nation, according to Reuters.
Perhaps it was no coincidence that the new nationalistic song, “A Vigilant and Strong Nation,” lamented the death of Gen. Soleimani, who commanded Iran’s foreign intervention Qods Force, in a U.S. military strike in January 2020. Then-President Trump approved rubbing out Mr. Soleimani in a drone missile strike as he left the Baghdad airport by car on a mission that U.S. officials said was intended to plan more attacks on U.S. troops by Iran-backed Iraqi militia groups. Also killed was a senior Iraqi militia leader who was also officially designated a terrorist by the U.S. government.
Iran’s provocative film of the U.S. Capitol destruction comes as President Biden has made restarting the 2015 Iran nuclear deal — which Mr. Trump repudiated three years later — as one of his top foreign policy objectives.
“You took my heart, oh Soleimani, to the city of the crying eyes,” the state-sponsored song says. “We are the avengers. We are united.”
A refrain goes: “We are the avengers. We are united. We are the avengers. We are united.”
“Today, Ali wants Ali’s army. The Leader wants a vigilant and strong nation. With Ali’s army, we will destroy the palace of oppression. The good tidings of Jerusalem’s liberation come from Iran. The path and the land are ready, let us go.”
The video shows a rocket launching from what appears to be a desert base and then scoring a direct hit on the Capitol, which bursts into flames.
“The path and the land are ready. Let us go,” say the lyrics.
• Rowan Scarborough can be reached at rscarborough@washingtontimes.com.
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