The government of Iran criticized Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday through one of its Indian consulates, condemning the American diplomat for visiting the Taj Mahal, widely considered the most breathtaking architectural achievement in India.
The Iranian consulate in Hyderabad published a message on the social media site Twitter reproducing an image of Secretary Rubio and wife Jeanette in front of the Taj Mahal mausoleum, claiming the structure was an Iranian achievement in an apparent attempt to link the site, built in 1631, to the current Islamist terror regime subjugating Tehran, which came to power in 1979.
“If Rubio knew the history or architecture, he wouldn’t have posed for a picture here,” the consulate claimed, implying that Rubio held bigoted views towards Iranians in general.
“This monument was built out for the love of emperor’s Iranian wife, crafted by the genius of Iranian architects — meanwhile his government today threatens to wipe out Iranian civilization, insulting other civilizations,” it claimed.
The post referenced a message President Donald Trump published on his website, Truth Social, in April in which he claimed that Iran’s “whole civilization will die tonight” without a cessation of hostilities. The comment was made during Operation Epic Fury, a U.S. military action to limit Iran’s missile and drone capabilities and eliminate the most belligerent leaders in Iran’s dictatorship.
“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Trump wrote at the time. “However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?”
Iranian civilization did not “die” on April 7 and Trump ultimately approved a unilateral and indefinite ceasefire to allow for negotiations leading to long-term peace between America and Iran. Those negotiations are ongoing and the ceasefire remains in place at press time, despite some limited American strikes on Iranian targets. Most recently, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced late on Monday that it had conducted airstrikes against Iranian missile-launching sites and ships planning to place mines in the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has impeded the free flow of commercial traffic for months.
Rubio concluded an eventful visit to India on Monday with a stop at the Taj Mahal.
Reporters spotted, among other American officials accompanying Rubio, the iconic American disco band the Village People, who performed for the first time in India on Sunday during a celebration marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The band also performed “Happy Birthday” for Rubio, whose birthday is on May 28.
The Village People have their own recent connection to Iran, via Trump, as Iranian dissidents began using their song “Y.M.C.A.” to express support for Trump’s operations to weaken the regime oppressing them. In particular, Iranians celebrated that Operation Epic Fury had killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the longtime “supreme leader” of the dictatorship.
“I think it’s really cool that Iranians would use my song to celebrate a possible change in their country,” Village People co-founder Victor Willis wrote in a statement in March, referring to Iran. “When Jacques and I wrote Y.M.C.A. back in 1978, neither of us had any idea of the significance the song would hold for the world over 48 years later. Jacques [Morali] and [producer] Henri [Belolo] would be very proud. As am I. Hopefully peace will come soon to the people of Iran.”
Historians have verified Iran’s claimed links to the Taj Mahal, though Persian identity in the 17th Century differed dramatically from the Iranian regime’s claim to represent all Persians today. According to the Indian government, the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan ordered the construction of the Taj Mahal to honor his late wife Mumtaz Mahal, who was ethnically Persian. UNESCO also identifies ethnically Persian architect Ustad-Ahmad Lahori as the “main architect” of the project.
Some in India bristled at the idea that the Taj Mahal was an Iranian achievement and not the pride of India. The Times of India noted in a report this week that, while Mumtaz Mahal was “of Persian descent,” she was born in Agra, India, and Lahori was from Lahore, modern-day Pakistan, despite also believed to be ethnically Persian.
The Indian outlet World Is One News (WION) also highlighted that tens of thousands of people worked on physically building the monument, not all of whom were Persian.
“According to Encyclopaedia Britannica, more than 20,000 workers from India, Persia, the Ottoman Empire, and Europe participated in the project,” WION relayed. “UNESCO records that artisans, masons, stone-cutters, calligraphers, and dome builders were recruited from across the Mughal Empire, Central Asia, and Iran.”
“The current Islamic Republic is not exactly the uncontested heir to ancient Persian civilization any more than Las Vegas is the custodian of Roman democracy,” the Times of India pointedly added.
The Indian outlet The Print noted that some Indian online observers also objected to the Iranian government presenting itself as indivisible from all Persian culture.
“Marco Rubio understands the Iranian civilisation and understands that the transnational Islamic Republic terrorist regime does not represent the Iranian civilisation,” one social media user highlighted by The Print observed. “He’s going to help the Iranian civilisation liberate itself from the Islamic occupation.”