"Vulture" writer Bill Wyman in 2017 ranked the song number ten of all the band's 139 songs, calling it "one of the greatest rock singles of all time." Wyman further wrote, "Like other Clash songs, this song requires some historical context" about Iran, starting from the 1953 coup d'état—which overthrew the democratically elected leader Mohammad Mosaddegh—to the 1979 Revolution—resulting in overthrowing Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's (the Shah) rule and then hostage crisis at the US embassy in Tehran, rupturing their diplomatic relations—followed by Jimmy Carter—who was criticised for the handling of the hostage crisis—losing his 1980 US presidential election to Ronald Reagan.