At least 10,000 Iranians protested outside the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran on Monday on the anniversary of the 1979 seizure of the building. The crowd was at least ten times bigger than previous years. Annual demonstrations take place at the site, marking the date on which activists stormed the embassy 34 years ago, but this year's protests were larger than usual as they were fueled by Iranians angry at President Hassan Rouhani recent move to reopen dialogue with the West. The crowd was made up of mostly students and old revolutionaries from 1979 with equal numbers of men and women. U.S. and Israeli flags went up in flames, as protestors chanted "death to America" and waved anti-U.S. banners. Several protesters told NBC News they were taking part because they did not trust the U.S. and did not want Iran to do a deal with its arch-enemy. The sentiment follows Rouhani presenting a far more moderate approach to international relations than his predecessor, the hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
