Iran
Persian (Farsi-speaking) Core
• Population 66,429,284
(July 2010 est.)
- Persians 51%
-Azeris (Turkic) 24%
-Mazandarani 8%
- Kurds 7%
- Arabs 3%
Ethnic Minorities
Straddle Boundaries
Azeris
Kurds
Arabs
Baluchis
Shi’a and Sunni Regions
Shia – 89%
Sunni– 9%
The Creation of Modern Iran
• Early in the nineteenth century, the Iranians began to face
pressure from two great world powers, Russia and
Britain.
• Iran lost all its territories in the Caucasus to Russia. Then,
in the second half of the century, Russia forced the
Iranians to give up all claims to territories in Central
Asia.
• Britain twice landed troops in Iran to prevent the Iranians
from reasserting a claim to portions of Afghanistan.
• Under the Treaty of Paris in 1857, Iran surrendered to
Britain all claims to territories in present-day
Afghanistan.
Creation of Modern Iran
Russian
Empire
• In 1907, Britain and Russia
agreed to divide Persia into
spheres of influence. British
occupy oil rich “Arabistan”
• The Qajar Dynasty, which Ottoman
Empire
had ruled Persia since 1795,
was weakened.
Kuwait
Afgh.
British
India
Reza Shah, 1921
• Enlisted in Persian Cossack Brigade
when 16. No formal education
• Reza Shah emphasizes pre-Islamic
imperial glories, Persian core. Takes
family name of Pahlavi.
• Nationalist but also modernizer,
– Offends clerics
• Retakes control of Arabistan from
Britain, renames Khuzestan, 1925
• Renames Persia as Iran, 1935
Reza Khan Program
• Secularization  seizure of
religious lands.
• Replaces Sharia law with the French civil code
• Adopted Western model for schools.
The Rule of Reza Khan
• Reza Shah imposed European dress on the population. He
opened the schools to women and brought them into the
work force. In 1936 he forcibly abolished the wearing of
the veil.
• When the clergy opposed his reforms, several religious
leaders were jailed or sent into exile. In 1936, in one of the
worst confrontations between the government and
religious authorities, troops violated the sanctity of the
shrine of Imam Reza in Mashhad, where worshipers had
gathered to protest Reza Shah's reforms. Dozens of
worshipers were killed and many injured.
World War II
• In the Second World War Reza Shah,
sympathizing with the Germans, refused
to allow the allies to pass through Iran to
supply the Soviet Union with war
materials. So the Allied forces occupied
Iran in 1941 and
• British and Soviets invade, force him into
exile, 1941. Remained even after the war
was over.
• Install son Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as
Shah
• British reoccupy Khuzestan oil fields;
• Soviets occupy Northwest Iran
After World War II
• Mahabad Republic under Soviet domination in Azeri/Kurdish
region, 1945-46
• Truman threatened nuclear weapons use to force withdrawal of
Soviet troops from NW Iran, 1946
•Britain controls Khuzestan oil fields
Enter the U.S.
• In 1947 Iran and the United States signed an
agreement providing for military aid and for a United
States military advisory mission to help train the
Iranian army. Begins a long period of US influence in
Iran.
The Mossadeq Debacle
• In the summer of 1952, a swell of nationalism
forced the Shah to name a socialist, Mohammed
Mossadeq, as prime minister.
• Mossadeq nationalized the British oil interests in
Iraq.
• The administration of President Harry S Truman
was sympathetic to Iran's nationalist aspirations.
• Under the administration of President Dwight D.
Eisenhower, however, the United States came to
accept the view of the British government that no
reasonable compromise with Mossadeq was
possible and that, by working with the Tudeh,
Mossadeq was making probable a communistinspired takeover.
• In June 1953, the Eisenhower administration
approved a British proposal for a joint AngloAmerican operation, code-named Operation Ajax,
to overthrow Mossadeq.
The Mossadeq Debacle
• The plan initially seemed to have
failed, the Shah fled the country.
• CIA agent Kermit Roosevelt directs
military coup, installs Shah as
supreme leader.
• The Shah returned to the country.
Mossadeq was sentenced to three
years' imprisonment for trying to
overthrow the monarchy, but was
subsequently allowed to remain
under house arrest in his village
outside Tehran until his death in
1967.
Shah Reza Pahlavi
• West sees as Shah as bulwark
vs. Communism, Arab nationalism,
Islamist fundamentalism
• Emphasized glorious past,
huge palaces, kleptocracy
• U.S. sold nuclear technology
to Shah
Shah Mohammad Reza Reforms
• Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi continued to make
reforms similar to those institute before WWII by
his father.
• Many clerical leaders opposed land reform and the
extension of suffrage to women. These leaders
were also concerned about the extension of
government and royal authority that the reforms
implied.
• In June 1963, Ayatollah Sayyid Ruhollah Musavi
Khomeini, a religious leader in Qom, was arrested
and exiled after a fiery speech in which he directly
attacked the shah.
Shah Under Fire, 1970s
• By the 1970’s, many Iranians,
disillusioned with what they perceived to
be an authoritarian and ineffective
regime, formed a number of underground
groups committed to armed struggle
against the Shah’s regime.
• There were two distinct revolutionary
movements.
– A religious movement demanding return to a
society based on the Shari'ah and ulama
administration.
– The second was a liberal movement that
wanted Westernization, greater democracy,
economic freedom, and human rights.
– These two groups gradually merged to form a
unified front against the Shah’s government.
The Shah’s Chief
Opponents?
1. Oil field workers.
2. Students and other intellectuals.
3. Middle class businessmen.
4. Iranian nationalists.
5. Muslim clerics.
Q6
The Revolution Comes
• The spark that erupted into revolution came
on January 9, 1978 when police opened fire
on students in Qom protesting the visit of
President Jimmy Carter to Iran and
demanding that Ayatollah Khomeini be
allowed to return to the country. 70 students
were killed.
• This set in motion a pattern of protestrepression that steadily destabilized the
Shah's government and reduced its
legitimacy in the eyes of both Iranians and
the world.
• On September 8, a day Iranians call "Black
Friday," the Shah’s troops fired on a Tehran
demonstration and killed several hundred
people.
• On September 9, the Shah declared martial
law and imprisoned many opposition
leaders.
The Revolution Comes
• Demonstrations continued to grow. On January
16, 1979, the Shah left Iran. Secular
government under Bani Sadr takes over.
• On February 1, Khomeini returned to Iran to a
welcoming crowd of several million people.
• On February 12, the secular Prime Minister
fled.
• On March 30 and 31, 1979, a national
referendum was held to determine the kind of
political system to be established. Over 98
percent voted in favor of an Islamic republic.
• Khomeini proclaimed the establishment of the
Islamic Republic of Iran on April 1, 1979.
Reasons for the
Fall of the Shah
 The Shah spent the oil profits for top of
the line American military hardware.
Little money to reinvest back into the
Iranian economy.
 Religious leaders angry with the Shah
for too much “Westernization.”
 Government corruption.
 The Shah’s constitutional violations of
the basic human rights of his citizens.
Ayatollah Khomeini
(Ruled 1979-1989)
 1902 – 1989.
 Islamic scholar (studied in
Qom).
 Began to speak out against
the Shah in the 1960s.
 Arrested and imprisoned
several times by the Shah.
 Deported in 1964 to Iraq, then
to France in 1978.
Islamic Republic
• Khomeini crushes pluralism,
consolidates control, using U.S &
Iraqi threats as pretext
• Executes leftists, Kurds, Azeris, and
People’s Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI)
• Women’s rights restricted
by religious militia
Hostage Crisis, 1979-81
• In November 1979, mobs overran the American embassy, taking 52
American diplomats hostage.
• Carter’s rescue raid fails to free hostages; they are released the
moment Reagan is inaugurated in January 1981
• Turning point in U.S. Iran Relations: Crisis strengthened Iran & U.S.
hardliners
Carter Doctrine
• Carter Doctrine 1980: “Let our position be absolutely clear: An attempt by
any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded
as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such
an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military
force.”
• Central Command created, draft registration initiated, psychological
conditioning of Americans for possible Mideast war
U.S. Central Command
“American vital interests in the
Central Region are long-standing.
With over 65% of the world’s oil
reserves located in the Gulf states
of the region— from which the
United States imports nearly 20%
of its needs; Western Europe 43%;
and Japan, 68%--the international
community must have free and
unfettered access to the region’s
resources.”
--General J. H. Binford Peay III,
Central Command (1997)
Cited in Blood and Oil by Michael Klare
(Metropolitan Books, 2004)
Iran-Iraq War,
1980-88
• Iraq seized Khuzestan oil fields
after Iranian Revolution, backed
secessionist Arab rebels
• Fought to bloody stalemate:
Use of trenches, human wave
tactics, chemical weapons.
• Iraqi Shi’as fought for Iraq;
Iranian Arabs fought for Iran
Secretary Rumsfeld &
Saddam Hussein: 1983
Iran-Iraq War,
1980-88
• U.S. supported Iraq with
intelligence, naval escorts
• Reagan also later supplied
Hawk missiles and other military
supplies to Iran in “Iran-Contra
Scandal” (to illegally raise funds to
fight Sandinistas in Nicaragua)
• Kissinger: “bleed both sides”
U.S. Naval War,
1987-88
• U.S. Navy escorts reflagged
Iraqi and Kuwaiti oil tankers
under Iranian missile threat
• U.S. battles with Iranian gunboats;
attacks oil platforms
• “Accidentally” shot down
Iranian civilian jetliner
• Fear of Strait of Hormuz closure
The Human Cost
 375,000 Iraqi casualties
 Over 1,000,000 Iranian
casualties
Rafsanjani Presidency,
1989-97
• Ayatollah Akbar Rafsanjani not
confrontational to West
• Neutral in Gulf War, 1991;
• Accelerated nuclear energy program
• Rafsanjani is heavily associated with the
Iranian business class. He is best described as a
pragmatic conservative, who supports a centrist
position domestically and a moderate position
internationally, seeking to avoid conflict with
the United States.
Khatami Presidency,
1997-2005
• Youth supported “moderate” President Mohammad
Khatami;
• During his two terms as president, Khatami
advocated freedom of expression, tolerance and civil
society, constructive diplomatic relations with other
states, and an economic policy that supported a free
market and foreign investment.
• Some people have criticized Khatami for being
unsuccessful in achieving his goal of making Iran
more free and democratic. In a 47-page "letter for the
future", Khatami said his government had stood for
noble principles, but had made mistakes and faced
obstruction by hardline elements in the clerical
establishment.
Ahmadinejad, 2005 - Present
• Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, son of a
blacksmith, but attained PhD in civil
engineering
• Served in the Iran-Iraq war as a member
of Army of the Guardians of the
Revolution.
• Was populist mayor of Tehran before
being elected President with 62% of the
vote
• Built alliance of poor with religious
conservatives
• Conservatives gained electoral support
after President Bush placed Iran in “Axis
of Evil”
Structure of the Iranian Government
Assembly of Experts
• The responsibilities of the Assembly of Experts are to appoint
the Supreme Leader, monitor his performance and remove him
if he is deemed incapable of fulfilling his duties. The assembly
usually holds two sessions a year.
• Although the body is officially based in the holy city of Qom,
sessions are also held in Tehran and Mashhad. Direct elections
for the 86 members of the current assembly are held every
eight years and are next due in 2014.
• Members are elected by the people for an eight year term.
Only clerics can join the assembly and candidates for election
are vetted by the Guardian Council.
• The assembly is dominated by conservatives such as its
chairman, Ayatollah Ali Meshkini. Former President Akbar
Hashemi-Rafsanjani, who lost the 2005 presidential election to
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is deputy chairman.
The Supreme Leader
•
•
•
The role of Supreme Leader in the constitution is based on the ideas of Ayatollah
Khomeini, who positioned the leader at the top of Iran's political power structure.
The Supreme Leader, currently Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (since 1989), appoints the head
of the judiciary, six of the members of the powerful Guardian Council, the commanders of
all the armed forces, Friday prayer leaders and the head of radio and TV. He also confirms
the president's election. The Leader is chosen by the clerics who make up the Assembly of
Experts.
Periodic tension between the office of the Leader and the office of the president has often
been the source of political instability. It increased during former president reformist
Mohammad Khatami's term in office - a reflection of the deeper tensions between
religious rule and the democratic aspirations of many Iranians.
Khamenei’s Philosophy
• Khamenei is consistent in his opposition to the United
States which is a theme of his speeches no matter
whether the topic is foreign policy, agriculture or
education.
• He has declared that it is "clear that conflict and
confrontation between" the Islamic Republic of Iran
and the U.S. "is something natural and unavoidable"
since the United States "is trying to establish a global
dictatorship and further its own interests by
dominating other nations and trampling on their
rights."
Signs of Fractures within the
Clergy
• Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei recently spent 10 days in the
seminary city of Qom trying to bridge differences among clerics after the
worst unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
• Khamenei, who has the final say on all state matters in Iran, supported
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after his disputed election victory in
June 2009 and dismissed claims of widespread vote fraud. But many senior
clerics in Qom didn't side with Ahmadinejad and have increasingly adopted
a critical language against the government.
• Some experts on Iranian affairs believe the 71-year-old Khamenei may be
trying to pave the way for his hard-line son, Mojtaba, to one day take over
at the pinnacle of Iran's ruling system.
• Such a succession would further alienate Iran's moderate voices. The
younger Khamenei is considered a guiding force for the vast paramilitary
network, known as the Basij, used to crush opposition demonstrations and
bully reformist leaders.
Signs of Fracture within the Clergy
• In recent weeks, authorities have blocked the websites of at least three
senior reform-minded clerics to limit their access to the public and
supporters.
• Grand Ayatollah Nasser Makarem Shirazi, one of the leading religious
scholars in Qom, accused Ahmadinejad's government last month of lying
about the country's economic situation.
• "Statistics about reducing inflation are constantly released but contradict
what the people see by their own eyes," Shirazi was quoted by the media as
saying. "When state statistics don't correspond with reality, people lose
confidence in government."
• The Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, who died last December,
spent years under house arrest after falling out with Khomeini. Last year,
he decried the "despotic treatment" of protesters at the hand of the Islamic
leadership and accused ruling clerics of committing "crimes ... in name of
Islam."
Guardian Council
• This is the most influential body in Iran and is currently controlled by
conservatives. It consists of six theologians appointed by the Supreme Leader and
six jurists nominated by the judiciary and approved by parliament.
• Members are elected for six years on a phased basis, so that half the membership
changes every three years.
• The council has to approve all bills passed by parliament and has the power to
veto them if it considers them inconsistent with the constitution and Islamic law.
The council can also bar candidates from standing in elections to parliament, the
presidency and the Assembly of Experts.
• Reformist attempts to reduce the council's vetting powers have proved
unsuccessful and the council banned all but six of more than 1,000 hopefuls in
the 2005 Presidential elections.
• Two more, both reformists, were permitted to stand after the Supreme Leader
intervened. All the female candidates were blocked from standing.
Expediency Council
• The Council is an advisory body for the Leader with an
ultimate adjudicating power in disputes over legislation
between the parliament and the Guardian Council. The
Supreme Leader appoints its members (25-30), who are
prominent religious, social and political figures.
• In October 2005, the Supreme Leader gave the Expediency
Council "supervisory" powers over all branches of government
– delegating some of his own authority as is permitted in the
constitution.
• It is not clear exactly how much this will affect the Council's
influence, although observers say it is likely to strengthen the
position of its present chairman, former President Hashemi
Rafsanjani, who was defeated in the 2005 presidential
elections by Mahmoud Amadinejad.
The President
• The president is elected for four years and can serve no more than two
consecutive terms. The constitution describes him as the second-highest
ranking official in the country. He is head of the executive branch and is
responsible for ensuring the constitution is implemented.
• In practice, however, presidential powers are circumscribed by the clerics
and conservatives in Iran's power structure, and by the authority of the
Supreme Leader. It is the Supreme Leader, not the president, who controls
the armed forces and makes decisions on security, defense and major
foreign policy issues.
• All presidential candidates are vetted by the Guardian Council, which
banned hundreds of hopefuls from standing in the 2005 elections.
• Conservative Tehran mayor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president in
2005 after he defeated former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani in a
second round run-off poll. Mr Rafsanjani complained of an "illegal"
campaign to discredit him. Mr Ahmadinejad is Iran's first president since
1981 who is not a cleric. Ahmadinejad was re-elected in June 2009.
• Ahmadinejad has tried to expand his influence into key roles, such as
foreign policy, which has been the sole domain of the ruling clerics. He
also has forged close ties with the ultra-powerful Revolutionary Guard,
which has a hand in everything from the country's nuclear program to
commercial banking.
Parliament
• The 290 members of the Majlis, or parliament, are elected by
popular vote every four years. The parliament has the power to
introduce and pass laws, as well as to summon and impeach
ministers or the president.
• However, all Majlis bills have to be approved by the
conservative Guardian Council.
• The first reformist majority was elected in 2000, but this was
overturned four years later in elections in 2004. Many
reformist candidates were banned from standing.
• Elections in April 2008 resulted in conservative victory
because many reformers were not allowed to run.
Conservatives/Islamists won 167 seats, reformers 39,
independents 74, religious minorities 5, others 5.
Oil-Based Economy
•
•
•
•
10% of world reserves (2nd to Saudi Arabia)
Provides 85% of government revenues
Most oil is in SW, in Arab minority region of Khuzestan
Other parts of the economy lagging: unemployment now stands at around
14%. 18% of people below poverty line.
• Economic inefficiency and insufficient investment - both foreign and
domestic - have prompted an increasing number of Iranians to seek
employment overseas, resulting in significant "brain drain."
British Take Oil
In Arab Region, 1908
• British had engineered “protectorate” status
for “Arabistan” region in SW Persia, 1897
• Oil discovered by British
in Arabistan, 1908
• Start of Anglo-Persian Oil-the future British Petroleum (BP)
• British and Russians occupy
Persia during World War I
Ethnic Groups &
Energy Resources
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Effects of Sanctions on Iran
• Banking: The fourth rounds of UN sanctions, enacted on 09
June 2010, are designed to target Iran’s financial sectors and
make it difficult to transfer and secure currency. The United
States augmented the sanctions with additional financial and
travel restrictions on eight of Iran’s top government officials in
an executive order signed on 29 September.
• Oil and Gasoline Production: Oil production is also under
scrutiny. Iran’s daily production has already fallen from an
average of 4.2 million barrels per day of crude oil to 3.7
million barrels per day, though Iranian oil minister Masoud
Mir-Kazemi claimed that the sanctions are having “no impact
at all on production, not only for crude oil, but not even for
gasoline.”
Effects of Sanction on Iran
• Foreign Investment: Several major investors in Iran have already begun to
cut back or completely shut down their operations in Iran due to the
difficulties of operating under the new restrictions. Statoil, Eni, Royal Dutch
Shell, Total, and Inpex all agreed to shut down their operations in Iran and
pull investments to avoid falling under the U.S. sanctions. Several other major
companies, including India’s Reliance, Kuwait’s Independent Petroleum
Group, Russia’s Lukoil, and Turkey’s Tupras all agreed to halt sales of refined
petroleum to Iran, in accordance with new sanctions enacted this year. Japan
stated on 03 September 2010 that all new oil and gas investment in Iran had
been suspended.
• The main reason for the effectiveness of the latest round of sanctions is
increased support for the sanctions by most major European countries,
allowing the United States to enforce unilateral sanctions against energy
investments in Iran. While the laws have been on the books since the mid
1990s, the U.S. has previously lacked the support necessary to enforce them.