Under heavy pressure by the National Front, the assassin of Razmara (Khalil Tahmasebi) was released and pardoned, thus proving the movement's power in Iranian politics. Subsequently, Tahmasebi was released from prison, recognized as a national hero, and received a steady stipend from the Mossadegh administration. [25]:274 The referendum was widely seen by opponents as treason, and an act against the Shah who was stripped of military power, and control over national resources. “Coup 53“, a documentary by Taghi Amirani, is an extensive visual account of the removal from power of Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh in the 19th August 1953 Coup, a historical event that continues to reverberate as a theme within Iranian society. [131]:92[25]:92 At least eleven of the captured army officers were tortured to death between 1953 and 1958. [48]They hoped to fill the Majlis with deputies who would vote to depose Mosaddegh. Working with pro-Shah forces and, most importantly, the Iranian military, the CIA cajoled, threatened, and bribed its way into influence and helped to organize another coup … [29] The release of the declassified documents, which marked the first US official acknowledgement of its role, was seen as a goodwill gesture on the part of the Obama administration. On his re-election as prime minister, Winston Churchill took an even harder stance against Iran. An army general was installed as prime minister. By late 1952, the Truman administration had come to believe that participation by U.S. companies in the production of Iranian oil was essential to maintain stability in Iran and keep Iran out of Soviet hands. The New York Times recently leaked a CIA report on the 1953 American-British overthrow of Mosaddeq, Iran's Prime Minister. [27]:17 On 26 May 1908 the company struck oil at a depth of 1,180 feet (360 m). Faced with having to leave Iran for The Hague where Britain was suing for control of Iranian oil, Mosaddegh's cabinet voted to postpone the remainder of the election until after the return of the Iranian delegation from The Hague. Subsequently, Tahmasebi was released from prison, recognized as a national hero, and received a steady stipend from the Mossadegh administration. Based on new documentation and extensive interviews of participants, Mohammad Mosaddeq and the 1953 Coup in Iran (Syracuse University Press, 2004) offers an abundance of new information, analysis and insights into the staging of the overthrow as well as the historical, political, and social context which made it possible. • The shah signs a royal decrees dismissing Mossadegh. in Iran – A special report. With a change to more conservative governments in both Britain and the United States, Churchill and the U.S. Eisenhower administration decided to overthrow Iran's government though the previous U.S. Truman administration had opposed a coup. CIA gave Zahedi's government $5 million after the coup[18][page needed] with Zahedi himself receiving an extra million. On August 19, 1953, democratically-elected Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh was overthrown in a coup orchestrated by the CIA and British intelligence, after having nationalized the … Part of the problem stemmed from the fact that Mosaddegh was connected by blood to the former royal Qajar dynasty, and saw the Pahlavi king as a usurper to the throne. The Central Intelligence Agency had successfully pressured the weak monarch to participate in the coup, while bribing street thugs, clergy, politicians and Iranian army officers to take part in a propaganda campaign against Mosaddegh and his government. But the reformers were at root nationalists, not communists, and the issue that galvanized them above all others was the control of oil. As a condition for restoring the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, in 1954 the US required removal of the AIOC's monopoly; five American petroleum companies, Royal Dutch Shell, and the Compagnie Française des Pétroles, were to draw Iran's petroleum after the successful coup d'état—Operation Ajax. This page was last edited on 25 April 2021, at 01:26. The related conflict was ended when the US lobbied for the Iranian Army to reassert control over the two occupied territories. The Shah remained intransigent. [132], The authoritarian monarch appreciated the coup, Kermit Roosevelt wrote in his account of the affair. On August 19, 1953, anti-Mossadegh forces seized power and Mossadegh went into hiding. Soon, massive protests, engineered by the U.S., took place across the city to assist the coup. [14][page needed], Reza Shah attempted to attenuate the power of the colonial forces in Iran, and was successful to a large extent. [18]:3 British intelligence officials' conclusions and the UK government's solicitations were instrumental in initiating and planning the coup, despite the fact that the U.S. government in 1952 had been considering unilateral action (without UK support) to assist the Mosaddegh government. He wrote in his memoirs that while he had been a king for over a decade, for the first time he felt that the people had "elected" and "approved" of him, and that he had a "legitimate" popular mandate to carry out his reforms (although some in the crowd may have been bribed). In August 1952, Iranian Prime Minister Mosaddegh invited an American oil executive to visit Iran and the Truman administration welcomed the invitation. It has even been suggested that Roosevelt's activities between 15 and 19 August were primarily intended to organize "stay-behind networks as part of the planned CIA evacuation of the country," although they allowed him to later "claim responsibility for the day's outcome." The earlier agreed-upon Soviet-Iranian oil agreement would never be honored. The CIA has publicly admitted for the first time that it was behind the notorious 1953 coup against Iran's democratically elected prime minister Mohammad Mosaddeq, in documents that … Mosaddegh was imprisoned for three years, then put under house arrest until his death until 1967. The result of this event was that under the direct orders of Mohammad-Rezā Shāh Pahlavi, the administration of the country got out of the hands of the parliament to find itself under the supervision of an illegitimate government. TEHRAN, Iran (UP) -- Iranian troops loyal to the Shah overthrew Premier Mohammed Mossadegh in a bloody coup today and besieged him in his burning home, shouting for his death. [45], The National Iranian Oil Company suffered decreased production, because of Iranian inexperience and the AIOC's orders that British technicians not work with them, thus provoking the Abadan Crisis that was aggravated by the Royal Navy's blockading its export markets to pressure Iran to not nationalise its petroleum. Mosaddegh was arrested, tried and convicted of treason by the Shah's military court. [79], While the broad outlines of the operation are known, "...the C.I.A. Another tactic Roosevelt admitted to using was bribing demonstrators into attacking symbols of the Shah, while chanting pro-Mosaddegh slogans. [5] Other men paid by the CIA were brought into Tehran in buses and trucks, and took over the streets of the city. It allowed for the shah to issue royal decrees (Farman), gave him the power to appoint and dismiss prime ministers (upon votes of confidence from Parliament), appoint half of the members of the Senate (which was not convened until 1949),[15] and introduce bills to and even dissolve Parliament. [123], Oil nationalization law led to a "direct conflict" between Mosaddegh and the British government. The volume of historical records "focuses on the evolution of U.S. thinking on Iran as well as the U.S. Government covert operation that resulted in Mosadeq's overthrow on 19 August 1953". CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (, PRIME MINISTER MOSSADEGH AND AYATULLAH KASHANI FROM UNITY TO ENMITY: AS VIEWED FROM THE AMERICAN EMBASSY IN TEHRAN, JUNE 1950 - AUGUST 1953, International Journal of Middle East Studies, 19, 1987, p. 261, Iran in Revolution: The Opposition Forces by E Abrahamian – MERIP Reports, Annie Jacobsen, "Surprise, Kill, Vanish: The Secret History of CIA Paramilitary Armies, Operators, and Assassins," (New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2019), p. 88, 1959–2000 assassination attempts on Fidel Castro, 1965–66 Indonesia, Transition to the New Order, Learn how and when to remove this template message, protests and a widespread tobacco boycott, Nationalization of the Iranian oil industry, 1957 alleged Jordanian military coup attempt, List of modern conflicts in the Middle East, United States involvement in regime change. Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh was soon overthrown in a coup orchestrated by the CIA and British intelligence. The 1953 Iranian coup d'état (known in Iran as the 28 Mordad coup) saw the overthrow of the democratically elected government of Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh on 19 August 1953 and the installation of a military government. The Anglo-Persian Oil Company was then renamed the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC). The new Shah, unlike his father, was initially a mild leader and at times indecisive. The Shah's le- The Shah was reinstalled … The Shah was overthrown in 1979. Preserving this close relationship was more important to U.S. officials than saving Mosaddeq's tottering regime." For many years, Iran has defined itself in part by its opposition to my country, and there is indeed a tumultuous history between us. After Mossadegh's government had shut down the British embassy in Tehran in 1952, suspecting it was a center of espionage, the CIA took the lead in running the coup … Mohammad Mosaddeq was an Iranian politician who served as the 35th Prime Minister of Iran, holding office from 1951 until 1953, when his government was overthrown in the 1953 Iranian coup d'état orchestrated by the United States' Central Intelligence Agency and the United Kingdom's MI6.Born: June 16, 1882, TehranDied: March 5, 1967, Najmiyeh Hospital, Tehran Despite Mosaddegh's popular support, Britain was unwilling to negotiate its single most valuable foreign asset, and instigated a worldwide boycott of Iranian oil to pressure Iran economically. [20] At the time, the American government was already preparing to aid Mosaddegh in his oil dealings with the British, and believed him to be anti-communist—considerations which made the U.S. government skeptical of the plot. "[Albright] acknowledges America's role in the coup, but does not offer an apology. The Cinematograph narrator said: The British government used the BBC Persian radio for advancing its propaganda against Mosaddegh and anti-Mosaddegh material were repeatedly aired on the radio channel to the extent that Iranian staff at the BBC Persian radio went on strike to protest the move. [18][81] The overthrow of Iran's elected government in 1953 ensured Western control of Iran's petroleum resources and prevented the Soviet Union from competing for Iranian oil. [15][page needed][37][page needed], The British soldiers withdrew from Iran after the end of the war. A referendum to dissolve parliament and give the prime minister power to make law was submitted to voters, and it passed with 99.9 percent approval, 2,043,300 votes to 1300 votes against. "In Saudi Arabia, to Britain's extreme disapproval, Washington endorsed the arrangement between ARAMCO and Saudi Arabia in the 50/50 accord that had reverberations throughout the region. [65], The Shah stayed in a hotel in Italy until he learned what had transpired, upon which he "chokingly declared": "I knew they loved me. [16] Initially, Britain mobilized its military to seize control of the British-built Abadan oil refinery, then the world's largest, but Prime Minister Clement Attlee opted instead to tighten the economic boycott[17] while using Iranian agents to undermine Mosaddegh's government. [86], "The Central Intelligence Agency, which has repeatedly pledged for more than five years to make public the files from its secret mission to overthrow the government of Iran in 1953, said today that it had destroyed or lost almost all the documents decades ago. U.S. oil companies had shown no interest in Iran in 1951 and 1952. Robin Wright on the CIA's newly admitted involvement in the 1953 overthrow of Iranian Prime Minister, Mohammed Mossadegh. Mohammad Mosaddeq was an Iranian politician who served as the 35th Prime Minister of Iran, holding office from 1951 until 1953, when his government was overthrown in the 1953 Iranian coup d'état orchestrated by the United States' Central Intelligence Agency and the United Kingdom's MI6.Born: June 16, 1882, TehranDied: March 5, 1967, Najmiyeh Hospital, Tehran "[31]:32[32] During the latter half of the 19th century, the concession policies of the monarchy faced increased opposition. [90][91][92], In a January 1973 telephone conversation made public in 2009, US President Richard Nixon told CIA Director Richard Helms, who was awaiting Senate confirmation to become the new U.S. Cognito Comics/Verso Books has published a nonfiction graphic novel of the history,[164] Operation AJAX: The Story of the CIA Coup That Remade The Middle East,[165] that covers events leading to how the CIA hired rival mobs to create chaos and overthrow the country. From Washington, it seemed that enemies were on the march everywhere. Word of the shah's support for the coup spreads quickly in Iran. In 1949, the Soviet Union successfully tested a nuclear weapon. [13][page needed][14][page needed][15][page needed] Despite the CIA's role in creating the conditions for the coup, there is little evidence to suggest that Kermit Roosevelt Jr. or other CIA officials were directly responsible for the actions of the demonstrators or the army on 19 August. [19][20][21], Following the coup in 1953, a government under General Fazlollah Zahedi was formed which allowed Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran (Persian for an Iranian king),[22] to rule more firmly as monarch. A glut existed in the world oil market. [citation needed], U.S. objectives in the Middle East remained the same between 1947 and 1952 but its strategy changed. [34][35][36] Massive popular protests had forced Mozzafar al-Din Shah to allow for the Constitution of 1906, which limited his powers. It’s important to recognize those who make an impact on their world. In 1909 he married Zahra Khanom, one of Nasir al-Din Shah’s granddaughters. These consequences resonated with dramatic effect in later years. Donald Wilber, one of the CIA officers who planned the 1953 coup in Iran, wrote an account titled, Clandestine Service History Overthrow of Premier Mossadeq of Iran: November 1952 – August 1953. 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