Iran gave Arafat Israel's embassy — then the alliance cracked | ARAFAT AND THE AYATOLLAH Part 2 of 4

History Onion · 2:54

February 1979. Days after the revolution topples the Shah, Yasser Arafat becomes the first foreign leader welcomed to revolutionary Tehran — embraced by Ayatollah Khomeini himself. Iran severs ties with Israel and hands the PLO the former Israeli diplomatic mission, which becomes the first Palestinian embassy in the city; the street outside is renamed Palestine Street. It is the high-water mark of the alliance. And in that very first private meeting, a fault line opens: Khomeini casts Palestine as an Islamic cause; Arafat holds it a national one, "for Muslims and Christians alike." Part 2 of the story of the teacher and the revolution that would turn its back on him. ▶ Follow for Part 3 — The Traitor and the Fool: the Iran–Iraq war and the rupture. Some scenes are cinematic reconstructions of documented events. All quotes, dates, and sources are historically verified. #shorts #history #Arafat #Iran #MiddleEast #Khomeini #Palestine #PLO