"Veritas vos liberabit"- "The truth will set you free."
19 August 1953: The Day of Infamy, When Hope and Democracy were Destroyed in Iran “It’s Always About Oil”
Iran and the Curse of Oil
Plundering and exploitation by, and pennies from hevean for, Britain and the US, humiliation, poverty,inequality, divisions, fear, torture, socioeconomic upheavals, revolution, invasion, bombs, missiles, destruction, and death for the Iranians. What a tragedy, what an inhumanity.
N.B. It is my sincere hope that this posting will lead to a better understanding of Crisis in the Middle East in general and Iran in particular
“It’s Always About Oil”
Lest We Forget: The day the UK and the US destroyed Mossadegh,they also destroyed Hope and Democracy in Iran
‘There is no better way to govern Iran than democracy and social justice.’- Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh
“It’s Always About Oil”: CIA & MI6 Staged Coup in Iran 1953, Destroying Democracy in Iran
'We look at the 70th anniversary of the August 19, 1953, U.S.- and U.K-backed coup in Iran, which took place two years after Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh nationalized Iran’s oil industry that had been controlled by the company now known as British Petroleum. “If nationalization in Iran of oil was successful, this would set a terrible example to other countries where U.S. oil interests were present,” explains Ervand Abrahamian, Iranian historian and author of Oil Crisis in Iran: From Nationalism to Coup d’Etat and The Coup: 1953, The CIA, and the Roots of Modern U.S.-Iranian Relations. While the CIA has historically taken credit for Mosaddegh’s overthrow, “the British have not admitted their leading role,” notes Iranian filmmaker Taghi Amirani, whose documentary film Coup 53 uncovers the influence of MI6 agents who sought to preserve their imperial-era access to Iranian oil and pulled in the Americans by promising a “slice.” Seventy years later, says Amirani, “We are still living with the ripples of this disastrous event.”-More on this later.
April 7, 2026, another Date That Will Live in Infamy too
On April 7, 2026, Donald Trump, the President of the United States wrote on social media that "a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again." He was speaking of Iran, one of the oldest civilisations and cultures in the world, and the birthplace of human rights, first articulated over 2,600 years ago by Cyrus the Great.
Our accountability to history and truth to preserve our human dignity and to protect our humanity
‘We hear very often of the “Islamic Golden Age,” which lasted from the 8th to the 13th century BCE, but when we look further into history, it was in fact much more of a Persian Golden Age. When looking at Persian history and heritage, there is so much to be proud of — and endlessly fascinated by. The flourishing of Persian people and civilization has led to an expansive contribution of science, literature, art, and math to the modern world. While we may know a few that come to mind, below is a much more comprehensive (and maybe surprising!) list of some of the many incredible contributions to the world...’: The Most Comprehensive List of Persian Contributions to the World
Zoroastrianism the ancient religion of Persia that has shaped the world
The Art of Persia: The Everlasting Magnificent Story of Beauty, Wisdom and Love
"Veritas vos liberabit"- "The truth will set you free."
Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh
Prime Minister of Iran, 1951-1953
Photo credit: The Mossadegh Project
Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh (1882-1967) was a lawyer, professor, author, governor, member of the parliament, finance minister, foreign minister, and democratically elected prime minister of Iran. He fought both internal corruption and foreign interference, enacted social reform and nationalised the oil industry. In 1953 he was overthrown by a British- American Coup, arrested and tried as a traitor in a military tribunal court,..., and Iran has not known democracy ever since..’.
One of the most effective ways to respond to the inhumanity and injustices of the past is to ensure that the current and future generations do not forget what happened
…’Why is that the great majority of the population in the west are totally unaware of what crimes their governments have been up to in other people’s land?
Why is it that hardly anybody in Britain knows anything about the history of their country’s actions in Persia, the modern Iran, for example?
‘Why is it that hardly anybody knows anything about perhaps the most well known oil company in the world, B.P (British Petroleum), the former Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, and still further the former Anglo-Persian Oil Company?
Why is it that nobody knows anything about the riches that Britain got from Iran, in what Churchill had termed, ‘Pennies from Heaven’, enabling the British navy to rule the seas, maintaining, and nourishing the British Empire!
And then, as a token of their thanks to the people of Iran for all Britain had made from Iranian oil, Britain with the help and support of the US, staged the CIA/MI6 coup d'état against the democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh., which in turn has pushed back the dream of democracy in Iran, if not for ever, but at least for generations to come.
To my mind, in contrast to what some people might argue ignorance is a bliss, for me, it is a very destructive vice that seeks to destroy humanity. Ignorance imprisons the mind and makes one vulnerable to exploitation and humiliation. This is why I strongly believe that unless we discover the key to truthfulness and total honesty in our schools, high schools and universities, and teach accordingly, then, nothing will change. Crimes after crimes will be done in our name, again and again, as they have been done in the past…’-Read more
“It’s Always About Oil”: CIA & MI6 Staged Coup in Iran 1953, Destroying Democracy in Iran
‘We look at the 70th anniversary of the August 19, 1953, U.S.- and U.K-backed coup in Iran, which took place two years after Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh nationalized Iran’s oil industry that had been controlled by the company now known as British Petroleum. “If nationalization in Iran of oil was successful, this would set a terrible example to other countries where U.S. oil interests were present,” explains Ervand Abrahamian, Iranian historian and author of Oil Crisis in Iran: From Nationalism to Coup d’Etat and The Coup: 1953, The CIA, and the Roots of Modern U.S.-Iranian Relations. While the CIA has historically taken credit for Mosaddegh’s overthrow, “the British have not admitted their leading role,” notes Iranian filmmaker Taghi Amirani, whose documentary film Coup 53 uncovers the influence of MI6 agents who sought to preserve their imperial-era access to Iranian oil and pulled in the Americans by promising a “slice.” Seventy years later, says Amirani, “We are still living with the ripples of this disastrous event.”
“It’s Always About Oil”: Watch the Video HERE
and How the US Turned Iran Into a Dictatorship: Watch the Video HERE
See also:
‘Declassified British files highlight a little known aspect of the joint MI6/CIA coup against Iran’s democratically elected government in August 1953 – UK covert action in support of leading radical Shia Islamists, the predecessors of Ayatollah Khomeini.’- Iran 1953: MI6 plots with Islamists to overthrow democracy
“It’s Always About Oil” and COUP 53- The Movie
‘While making a documentary about the CIA/MI6 coup in Iran in 1953, Iranian director Taghi Amirani and editor Walter Murch (Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, The English Patient) discover never seen before archive material hidden for decades. The 16mm footage and documents not only allow the filmmakers to tell the story of the overthrow of the Iranian government in unprecedented detail but also leads to explosive revelations about dark secrets buried for 67 years. Working with Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel, Schindler’s List, The English Patient) to help bring the lost material to life, what begins as a historical documentary about four days in August 1953 turns into a live investigation, taking the filmmakers into uncharted cinematic waters. The roots of Iran's volatile relationship with America and Britain have never been so forensically and dramatically exposed.’- Watch COUP 53 HERE
The Coup: 1953, the CIA, and the Roots of Modern U.S.-Iranian Relations
‘In August 1953, the CIA orchestrated the swift overthrow of Iran's democratically elected leader and installed Muhammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in his place. Over the next twenty-six years, the United States backed the unpopular, authoritarian shah and his secret police; in exchange, it reaped a huge share of Iran's oil wealth. The blowback was inevitable, as this “relevant, readable” (Kirkus Reviews) history by noted Iran scholar Ervand Abrahamian shows. When the 1979 Iranian Revolution deposed the shah and replaced his puppet government with a radical Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the shift reverberated throughout the Middle East and the world, casting a long, dark shadow over U.S.-Iran relations that extend to the present day.’- Learn more and buy the book HERE
Further related readings:
A Vision for a Troubled World, a World in Pain and Agony
Let the Cyrus Cylinder Shine Light and Hope in the Darkness Again
Cyrus the Great: 'King of the World'
Cyrus The Great: 'Conqueror, Liberator, Anointed One'
Cyrus Cylinder: A Beacon of Hope for a Peaceful Middle East