In 1951, a new hope was rising in the streets of Tehran. A man, who came not from royalty nor from any foreign-sponsored background, was elected Prime Minister through the will of the people. His name was Mohammad Mosaddegh. He was an educated, principled, and patriotic leader. One of his very first—and boldest—decisions was to nationalize Iran’s oil.
At the time, Iran’s oil was completely under the control of the British-owned Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (now BP). For decades, millions of barrels had been exported while the Iranian people lived in poverty, unemployment, and deprivation. Mosaddegh declared that the oil belonged to the Iranian nation, and it would now serve the interests of the Iranian people. This announcement shook the West—particularly Britain and the United States.
In 1953, the CIA and MI6 jointly launched a covert operation named Operation Ajax. Through this operation, fake news was spread, religious groups and bazaar merchants were incited, orchestrated protests were arranged, and finally, Mosaddegh was overthrown in a military coup. In his place, monarchy was restored, backed entirely by the West.
The monarchy was no ordinary crown—it was Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, a man seen as a loyal servant of the Western agenda. Once in power, the Shah crushed democracy, silenced public voices, and turned Iran into a police state. He founded Savak, the notorious intelligence agency responsible for abductions, torture, and silencing of dissidents. Freedom of expression, political opposition—even basic human rights—were all under threat. Meanwhile, the Shah squandered the nation’s wealth on golden palaces, extravagant crowns, and lavish celebrations. In 1971, he spent millions of dollars on the 2,500-year monarchy festival in Persepolis while ordinary Iranians struggled for bread.
Eventually, the people of Iran had enough. In 1979, they rose in a historic Islamic Revolution. The Shah fled the country, and a new, sovereign, people-powered government was established in Iran. This revolution was a monumental defeat for Western imperialists—and they’ve never truly recovered from it.
But history has a strange way of repeating itself. In recent days, Isr@el launched a direct attack on Iran, and the name given to this operation was “Rising Lion.” That name is not random—it refers to the lion symbol from the old Pahlavi-era Iranian flag. The message is clear: Western powers still wish to see the return of the Pahlavi monarchy in Iran. The goal remains the same—to reimpose a regime that once served foreign interests and oppressed its own people.
This is the same West that speaks of democracy, liberty, and human rights—yet it was they who crushed Iran’s democracy in 1953, propped up a dictator, and now support actions aimed at bringing back that same old tyranny.
The story of Mohammad Mosaddegh is not just about one man—it is about a nation’s struggle for sovereignty. Today, as Western powers and Isr@el once again attempt to subjugate Iran, we must remember:
Nations that forget their history are doomed to live in chains.
