In this picture released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attends a meeting with thousands of students in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019. Khamenei said his country has outmaneuvered the United States in the four decades since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The comments by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei came a day after protesters angered by Iran raising government-set gasoline prices by 50% had blocked traffic in major cities and occasionally clashed with police. That came after a night of demonstrations punctuated by gunfire, in violence that reportedly killed at least one person.
The protests have put renewed pressure on Iran’s government as it struggles to overcome the U.S. sanctions strangling the country’s economy after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers over a year ago.