Hawzah News Agency- a deep and precise look at the recent statements of the US Secretary of State—and particularly his brazen use of the language of civilizational and religious confrontation—reveals that the enemy, having suffered a humiliating defeat in the physical battlefield and hard military front against Islamic Iran, now seeks to cast Iranians as the enemy of Western civilization through a selective and distorted narrative of general history.
In his recent speech alongside the historic Acropolis in Athens, Greece, Marco Rubio described the United States as the heir and guardian of Greek civilization. He also highlighted the burning of Athens during the Greco-Persian Wars, using the historical past to frame a duality between Western civilization and Iran—a narrative that serves less as a genuine reading of history and more as an attempt to legitimize America's current warmongering against Iran.
America's Goal in the Historical and Civilizational War Against Iran
From the perspective of Hamidreza Mirrokni, a journalist and political researcher, the purpose of this historical fabrication is clear. He stated: "The Americans, who have faced a strategic dead end in their recent war against Iran, are trying to transform their military aggression from a blatant criminal act of aggression into a battle to defend Western civilization by constructing a false historical foundation."
Mirrokni added: "In this framework, Iranians must be portrayed as a warmongering and destructive people so that an attack on our country appears not as aggression against an independent nation, but as confrontation with what Washington calls a civilizational threat. The US Secretary of State speaks of the burning of Athens by Iranians 2,500 years ago without mentioning the context. For instance, he fails to mention that the Athenian attack on Sardis and the burning of its temple in 498 BC provoked Iranians to attack Athens in retaliation. More importantly, if the burning of Greek buildings is a sign of Iranian warmongering, how should the burning of Persepolis and the looting of Iran by Alexander the Great's forces be interpreted?"
Planning a Civilizational War Against Iran
He continued: "The greater contradiction lies in the fact that the Achaemenid era—the very period Rubio wants to portray as a symbol of Iranian warmongering—is one of the most important periods in ancient Iranian and world history, in which ideas about human rights, tolerance toward nations, and respect for diverse traditions gained prominence and global resonance. In reality, what Trump's Secretary of State is pursuing is the planning of a civilizational war against Iran—a confrontation that stands in clear opposition to the discourse of dialogue among civilizations. Iran has always spoken of dialogue and interaction, but America wants to rewrite history selectively and turn its current war against our country into a historical and civilizational battle."
A War That Has Taken on a Civilizational Nature
Dr. Hakimeh Saghafi-Biria, a faculty member at the University of Tehran, also wrote in a note on this occasion: "The recent remarks by Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, against the Iranian people—claiming that Iranians' roots go back to Achaemenid looters—show that the opposing side has reached a state of desperation. During the war, we also witnessed threats from Trump about destroying Iranian civilization, and we saw that their declared objectives changed repeatedly. This means that the phrases they used to explain their goals were constantly shifting. But gradually, as if a curtain has been lifted, depending on who their audience is, their deepest objectives are revealed—objectives that ultimately come back to the discussion of moving beyond Iranian civilization."
She added: "It seems that America's problem with Iran is no longer merely a nuclear issue or a tactical dispute; it has taken on a civilizational nature. When we speak of an existential war, it means that the opposing side sees the issue as far beyond political differences and conventional matters in international relations."
The university professor noted: "On the other hand, it must be noted that the accusation of hegemony and expansionism against Iran does not align with this country's historical reality. If we examine Iran's history over the past few centuries, we see that such an image is incompatible with our historical reality. In contrast, if we look at contemporary Western history, we don't even need to go back to ancient Greece and Rome; the same contemporary history shows that hegemony, expansionism, and the seizure of other nations' property and resources are part of the historical record of Western powers, especially America. Therefore, it seems that their recent remarks are less a description of Iran's reality and more like a mirror held up to themselves, attributing their own characteristics to Iran."
Iranophobia Remains on the Great Satan's Agenda
She also wrote in another part of this note: "Iranophobia has always been one of the propaganda pillars of various governments ruling America, and particularly some media giants that are structurally linked to pro-Zionist currents have played a role in reproducing this image. Therefore, Iranophobia has always been on the agenda, and this is not particularly surprising, as it is part of the mechanism of America's confrontation with Iran."
Your Comment