Iran is starting 11 days of celebrations to mark the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. Around the country, Iranians paused at 9:33 in the morning to remember the day that the revolution's leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, returned from a long exile in France.

Iranian TV showed images of men ringing bells, trains blowing their whistles, ships sounding their horns, and soldiers firing cannons to mark the symbolic return of Islamic Republic founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini on February 1, 1979.

The stern-faced leader of the Islamic Revolution which swept away Iran's monarchy arrived that day at 9:33 by plane from France after 15 years in exile. Large, exuberant crowds met him at Tehran's Mehrabad Airport.

As part of the anniversary celebrations children dressed in the colors of the Iranian flag paid homage to Ayatollah Khomeini by singing and chanting. Iran's revolutionary guards and basij militiamen also raced through the streets of Tehran on motorcycles, waving flags, to celebrate

There were no reported opposition demonstrations Monday and opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi have urged their supporters to turn out on February 11, when Iranians normally take to the streets to celebrate the revolution, VOA News reported.