The Road to Authoritarian Violence: From the Coup of 1953 to the Revolution of 1979

Abstract

Mossadeq’s sympathies towards liberalism and nonviolence, and his advocacy of civic nationalism, provoked powerful domestic and international enemies, which ultimately led to his demise in 1953. Aside from the United States and Britain, powerful domestic actors such as the CIA’s principle man General Zahedi, Ayatollah Kashani and the violent fundamentalist group Feda’iyan-e Islam were instrumental in inciting violence that resulted in the coup. Following the coup, the Shah and his political allies placed their faith in ruling through an authoritarian dictatorship. On the eve of the 1979 revolution, two dominant opposition groups stood out. Marxism influenced the first group, while the other marched under the banner of Islamic revivalism. Fatally, both intellectual groups put their faith in Ayatollah Khomeini — unknowingly digging their graves.