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Today in History - 19th August

19th August 1953 - American and British intelligence orchestrate Iranian coup d'etat

72 years ago today, the democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran, Mohammad Mosaddegh, was overthrown in a coup d'etat, orchestrated by the British and American intelligence services.The decision to overthrow Mosaddegh was largely motivated by a desire to protect Anglo-American oil interests in Iran. Shortly after being elected in 1951, Mosaddegh nationalised the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company; the AIOC had been owned by the British government, with the Iranians only receiving a small percentage of the profits, a practice which they viewed as exploitative.

Britain responded by imposing an oil embargo on Iran, and begun plotting for ways to remove Mosaddegh from power. In October 1952, Iran cut diplomatic ties with Britain, and all British officials were ordered to leave the country, with Mosaddegh accusing them of plotting against him and his government. America subsequently sided with the British; with the Cold War just beginning, they were fearful that Mosaddegh could side with the Soviet Union, and thus joined the Brits' efforts to oust him.

Operation Ajax, as it was known to the CIA, or Operation Boot, as MI6 called it, commenced on August 15th 1953. The Brits and Americans pressured the Shah (monarch) into signing a decree dismissing Mosaddegh from his post, and then bribed a small group of military officials into arresting the Prime Minister at his palace. However, they were fought off by troops loyal to Mosaddegh, and it appeared that the coup was unsuccessful. The Shah subsequently fled to Rome in fear.

But the Brits and Americans did not accept defeat, and over the following days ramped up their efforts, spreading anti-government propaganda in Iranian media, paying civilians to demonstrate against Mosaddegh, and staging riots in Tehran. Many members of the police and military, some of whom had been bribed, subsequently turned on the government, and began seizing key points in Tehran. Mosaddegh's palace was then shelled, and, whilst he managed to escape, hewas forced to surrender, with General Fazlollah Zahedi, selected by Anglo-American intelligence, succeeding him as Prime Minister. The Shah returned to Iran in triumph; however within 30 years he would be overthrown himself, losing his power in the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

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