Ayatollah Khamenei's visit to Tabas in 1980 after a failed US military operation

These April 25, 1980 file photos show Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the then Tehran Friday prayer leader and representative of the late Imam Khomeini, in a tour of the remains of the US soldiers and militray equipment after a major sandstorm in eastern Iran. US forces had entered Tabas in South Khorasan province to free the US hostages but were taken off-guard at night by dust and sand. IRNA/Archive