TEHRAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Iran on Saturday started 10-day Fajr (Dawn) celebrations for the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
The first day of the celebrations on Feb. 1 marks the return of Sayyid Ruhollah Khomeini, the late leader of the Islamic Revolution, to Iran from exile.
Earlier in the day, the incumbent supreme leader of Iran Ali Khamenei, in the company of the senior Iranian civil and military officials, paid tribute to Khomeini's mausoleum in the suburbs of the capital Tehran, the state TV reported.
The Islamic Revolution in Iran resulted in the overthrow of the U.S.-backed Shah regime on Feb. 11, 1979.
For the past decades, the Iranian governments have launched major civil projects during the annual 10-day Fajr celebrations.
A notable project to be launched this year is to send the Zafar (Victory) satellite to space by the indigenous Simorgh rocket.