Iran War Cover-up (Part 2: 1977-2019)

See previous post: Part 1: 1800-1976

President Jimmy Carter takes office. He called Iran an ‘island of stability’ and praised the Shah. But inside Iran, the Shah was hated. Millions believed he was an American puppet – a king put in place by the CIA in 1953, propped up by U.S. weapons, and more loyal to Washington than to his own people. Those people were about to rise up and sweep him away forever. The Shah, weakened by cancer and pressure from Washington, begins to waver, issuing a “liberalization” policy that unleashes waves of protests. ^{(02) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution}

• The 1953 coup was never forgotten. The CIA had overthrown their democratically elected prime minister and put the Shah back on the throne. For Iranians, this was proof he was installed and propped up by America ^{(03) ‘Long live the Shah’: the truth behind the slogan https://newsroom.co.nz/2026/01/17/long-live-the-shah-darker-than-it-sounds/ (04) History of the CIA – We were just plain asleep https://erenow.org/common/legacy-of-ashes-the-history-of-the-cia/39.php}
• The U.S. embassy was enormous. With over 1,000 staff, they believed it was headquarters directing Iran’s affairs
• Khomeini. An extremely religious man rallies the people against the Shah. (Throughout this entire post, and also in Part 1)

All the people who hated him (students, religious leaders, factory workers) start organizing openly. The Shah can’t decide whether to crack down or give in, so he does a little of both, which only makes things worse.

His main points that he used to mobilize the coming revolution in 1979:

1. The Shah was a puppet of the West, installed by the CIA
   This was a cornerstone of Khomeini’s message, particularly after the 1953 coup that overthrew Mossadegh. He argued the Pahlavi dynasty was fundamentally illegitimate from the start, referring to Reza Shah (the first Pahlavi king) as a “British puppet” installed by force, not the will of the people. After the 1953 coup, the Shah was seen as an American agent, and Khomeini directly challenged him: “Which people have voted for you?”. He also pointed out that the Shah was a “Western-backed” monarch who violated the constitution by interfering in government affairs, making his regime illegitimate.
2. The Shah was a brutal dictator who crushed Islam and oppressed the people
   Khomeini’s rise to prominence began with his opposition to the Shah’s “White Revolution” in 1963, a series of reforms that included land reform and granting women the right to vote.
   Khomeini called it a “scandalous” and “anti-Islamic” act, sending a telegram to the Shah that it was a Western plot to corrupt Islam and create division. ^{(05) Cambridge University Press – https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/critical-introduction-to-khomeini/gendered-khomeini/CFED8CD6B677D2C159C2D51B23F44B90} 
   His arrest in 1963 sparked massive riots, and the regime’s violent suppression of protests, particularly the 1978 “Black Friday” massacre where hundreds were killed, proved Khomeini’s claims of tyranny to be true for many Iranians. His followers also attacked the Shah’s corruption, the gaping wealth inequality, and the brutal tactics of the SAVAK secret police.
3. The Shah was a slave to the West, and his “modernization” was a cultural plague
   Khomeini brilliantly harnessed the intellectual concept of “Gharbzadegi” (Westoxification) – the idea that Western culture was a poison infecting Iranian society. The Shah’s regime was depicted as a “neo-colonial” force imposing a hollow, immoral Western lifestyle that alienated Iranians from their true identity. The Shah’s 1971 party (which cost hundreds of millions of dollars while poverty was rampant) became a powerful symbol of the Shah’s disconnect from his people and his servitude to Western luxury. (see part 1)
   Khomeini raged against the Shah’s policy of unveiling women, equating it with national humiliation: “They have put chamberpot-shaped hats over your heads and gladdened your hearts with naked women in the middle of the streets and swimming pools.”
   He saw Western music as a tool to incite sexual immorality and weaken the nation’s character. “Music rouses the spirit of lovemaking, of unlawful sexuality, and of giving free reign to passion while it removes audacity, courage and manly valor.” He argued it was “forbidden by the sacred Law” and should be banned. ^{(06) Project MUSE – https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/23/monograph/chapter/1273011}
   A key part of the “Westoxification” narrative was that it made Iranian men weak and effeminate. In this view, a “West-stricken man” was a “gigolo” who “is always primping; always making sure of his appearance. He has even been known to pluck his eyebrows!” ^{(07) Academia.edu – https://www.academia.edu/33869543/Anti_Colonialism_on_Nationalist_Discourses_surrounding_the_Politicization_of_the_Veil_in_Revolutionary_Algeria_and_Iran} 
4. Monarchy itself was un-Islamic; true rule belongs to God
   Perhaps most fundamentally, Khomeini challenged the 2,500-year-old concept of Iranian monarchy itself, not just the specific Shah. He argued that monarchy was a “malevolent form of governance” that was incompatible with the Islamic principle of monotheism, which dictates that “no human being is entitled to oblige other human beings to obey him“. This was the revolutionary core of his message. To replace the Shah, he offered a radical new system: Velayat-e faqih, or rule by the Islamic jurist. He argued that establishing this Islamic government was “more necessary even than prayer and fasting”.

Khomeini’s genius was in using these broad themes to create a massive, multi-class alliance. By the end, Khomeini had built a powerful narrative: the Shah was not a king, but a puppet; his reforms were not progress, but corruption; and his foreign backers were not allies, but enemies of Islam. This was the message that brought millions into the streets.

Oct 1977: The Shah, under pressure from President Carter’s human rights campaign, begins a policy of “liberalization.” Political prisoners are released and opposition figures are allowed to speak openly. Khomeini’s son, Mostafa, dies mysteriously in Najaf; Khomeini blames SAVAK, fuelling outrage. ^{(08) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution} 

Jan-Sept 1978: Protests erupt and are brutally suppressed. In January, a government newspaper article insults Khomeini, sparking Qom seminary protests. In August, a fire kills over 400 in a cinema in Abadan; the Shah’s regime is blamed. On September 8, “Black Friday,” the military opens fire on a massive protest in Tehran’s Jaleh Square, killing hundreds. The violence solidifies Khomeini’s status as the undisputed leader of the opposition. ^{(09) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution} 

Oct 1978: Khomeini is expelled from Iraq by Saddam Hussein. He moves to France, where he gains unfettered access to Western media and international journalists. From his new base in Neauphle-le-Château, his speeches are recorded and distributed globally, reaching millions inside Iran. ^{(10) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruhollah_Khomeini} 

(There is so much more to this year in France, but this page is already getting huge and we have to get through many more years)

Khomeini, after living in exile in France, becomes the symbol of opposition. His speeches, recorded on cassette tapes, are smuggled into Iran and passed from hand to hand. Millions begin chanting his name. The army tries to control the crowds.

Protests explode across Iran. On September 8, 1978, the military opens fire on a massive protest in Tehran’s Jaleh Square, killing hundreds-“Black Friday.” The Shah imposes martial law, but the protests only grow. The King is stunned and loses the will to fight. ^{(12) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution}

16 Jan 1979: The Shah and his family flee Iran, never to return. He dies in exile in Egypt a year later. ^{(13) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammad_Reza_Pahlavi} 

1 Feb 1979: Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returns to Tehran on a chartered Air France plane (after 14 years exile). Millions line the streets to welcome him. The 2,500-year-old Persian monarchy is over. It is the most joyful and terrifying moment in modern Iranian history. ^{(14) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution  (15) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruhollah_Khomeini}

1 Apr 1979: In a national vote, Iran abolishes its 2,500-year-old monarchy and becomes a religious state. Khomeini is now the Supreme Leader (a position with power over the army, the courts, and the media). ^{(16) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Revolution}

Khomeini argued that the Shah had deliberately used Western propaganda to create a “painful cultural dislocation” in Iran’s youth. In a Time interview, he was featured as the “Man of the Year” (recognizing him as having done the most to change the news, for better or for worse), where he stated that the Shah “brainwashed the people with Western propaganda” and “by pushing our youth toward the West, he created a painful cultural dislocation.” ^{(17) Time Magazine – https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,923858-4,00.html}  

14 Nov 1979: Ten days after the US Embassy hostage seizure, President Jimmy Carter responded by freezing approximately $12 billion in Iranian assets, banning Iranian imports, and imposing a trade embargo. ^{(19) Office of the Historian – https://history.state.gov/milestones/1977-1980/iran-hostage-crisis} 

In April 1980, the US formally severed diplomatic relations with Iran. These initial sanctions were technically lifted in January 1981 as part of the Algiers Accords that secured the hostages’ release, but they marked the beginning of a new, permanent sanctions regime. ^{(20) The Business Standard – https://www.tbsnews.net/explainer/explainer-why-un-sanctions-returned-iran-and-what-led-them-1253711-amp}

20 Jan 1981: The 52 American hostages were released after 444 days in captivity. The hostages were freed just minutes after Ronald Reagan was sworn in as president. The release agreement was formalized by the Algiers Accords where Iran released the hostages and the U.S. unfroze approximately $8 billion Iranian assets, lifted the trade embargo, and pledged not to intervene in Iran’s internal affairs. ^{(21) Iran hostage crisis negotiations https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_hostage_crisis_negotiations (22) Algiers Accords (1981) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algiers_Accords_(1981)}

Iraq invades Iran, starting a brutal eight-year war. A million people die. The U.S. supports Iraq secretly. Iran fights alone, using human waves of teenage boys to clear minefields. The war ends in stalemate, but it hardens the new regime. 

The IRAN You Aren’t Allowed to see – Unseen IRAN – March 2026 | YouTube
(This video is placed here to remind me to finish watching it!) :)

The founder of the Islamic Republic dies. A man named Ali Khamenei becomes the new Supreme Leader. He held that title until he was assassinated in February this year (2026). ^{(25) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Khamenei} 

Iran recovers from the war. The reformist president Mohammad Khatami (1997-2005) advocates for dialogue with the West, but is blocked by conservative clerics. ^{(27) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammad_Khatami}

In 2002, an Iranian opposition group reveals two nuclear sites that Iran had not told the world about. This raises Western fears that Iran might be trying to build a nuclear bomb. Iran denies this and says it only wants energy. The UN nuclear agency (IAEA) begins inspections but cannot confirm or rule out a weapons program. ^{(29) IAEA – https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/focus/iran} 

The U.S. intelligence community later concludes that Iran had a weapons program in the early 2000s but halted it in 2003. Whether Iran ever actively tried to build a bomb remains disputed. ^{(30) Office of the Director of National Intelligence – https://www.dni.gov/index.php/newsroom/reports-publications/reports-publications-2007/item/1943-iran-nuclear-intelligence-assessment-2007} 

Young Iranians pour into the streets after a disputed election. The regime cracks down brutally. The hope for reform dies.

Iran signs the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with world powers, trading nuclear program limits for sanctions relief. ^{(32) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joint_Comprehensive_Plan_of_Action}

President Donald Trump unilaterally withdraws the U.S. from the JCPOA and reimposes “maximum pressure” sanctions on Iran. ^{(33) Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_withdrawal_from_the_Joint_Comprehensive_Plan_of_Action (34) Council on Foreign Relations – https://www.cfr.org/timeline/irans-1900s-revolution}

The US reinstated and expanded sanctions targeting Iran’s oil exports, shipping, banking, and central bank. ^{(35) Zhong Lun Law Firm – https://www.zhonglun.com/research/articles/55734.html (36) Türkiye Today – https://www.turkiyetoday.com/region/what-is-behind-irans-sanctions-from-1979-to-today-3212935}

I could expand a lot in each of the sections (especially Khamenei) but I really want to move on to “now”, Part 1 and 2 have taken weeks of reading so far. I might return to this post again in time, but I really need to start Part 3 now.

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