Kamal Ghorui
In the aftermath of the US-Israel war with Iran and the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, videos showing Iranians celebrating with a YMCA-style group dance while waving Shah-era Iranian, US, and Israeli flags have gone viral on social media. The scenes, largely emerging from diaspora communities, reflect jubilation among Iranians who opposed the Islamic Republic and viewed Khamenei’s death as the symbolic collapse of a tyrannical system that had ruled for decades. While the response inside Iran has been tightly controlled, abroad the moment has triggered open celebration and renewed discussion about regime change.
Iranian celebrations spill into the streets after Khamenei’s death
Videos circulating online show Iranians celebrating Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s death with a YMCA-style group dance, performed indoors and in organised gatherings where participants wave Shah-era Iranian, US, and Israeli flags. The simple, synchronised arm movements, familiar worldwide, have taken on political meaning in this context, symbolising freedom, defiance of the clerical regime, and solidarity with countries seen by participants as instrumental in ending Khamenei’s rule.
The celebrations were not limited to indoor gatherings. One of the most widely shared clips shows Iranians and Israelis celebrating together on the streets of Golders Green in London. Hundreds of people packed a residential street late at night, waving Israeli flags alongside Iranian tricolours bearing the Lion and Sun, the emblem used before the 1979 revolution. The roughly one-minute video, filmed under streetlights and posted with the caption “Persian and Jew celebrating together,” quickly amassed millions of views.Throughout the footage, celebrants repeatedly chant “Am Yisrael Chai,” meaning “The people of Israel live,” while flags ripple above the crowd. Some participants appear to be wearing kippot, and at one point a woman is lifted onto someone’s shoulders as cheers erupt around her. Multiple pre-revolutionary Iranian flags are visible alongside blue-and-white Israeli flags, underscoring the political message of the gathering. The crowd is made up largely of Iranian immigrants and refugees celebrating alongside Jewish Londoners.
Operation Epic Fury and the trigger for celebrations
The celebrations appeared to be a direct reaction to Operation Epic Fury, the joint US-Israeli campaign that killed Khamenei and several senior Iranian officials. According to reports, Khamenei had been tracked for months before the strikes. News of his death spread rapidly, prompting spontaneous gatherings among segments of the Iranian diaspora within hours of the announcement.
