Iran lies at the centre of the area known as the Middle East and has been at the crossroads linking Africa, Asia, and Europe since the beginning of recorded history.
• In 7000 BC, the area was home to half of the world’s population, a mix of Arabs and Caucasians.
• Being at the crossroads, the area experienced continuous invasion by Macedonians, Arabs, Turks, Mongols, Europeans, Russians, and now the USA, seeking to control politics, religion and resources.
• 633-651 – Muslim conquest of Iran. Majority accepted Sunni Islam but Persians remained Persians.
• Mongols dominated from 1219-1370 and Shia Muslims ruled Iran from 1378-1501.
• 1501 – Iran reunified as an independent state ruled by often foreign-backed Shah monarchies.
• 1804-1828 Russo-Persian Wars – Iran was caught between two imperial powers, Britain and Russia.
• 1900 – Oil became a critical resource with 55 per cent of proven reserves residing in the Middle East. Four of the six largest reserves are in the Middle East (Saudi Arabia has 297 billion barrels, Iran has 211, Iraq has 142, Kuwait 103), Venezuela has 301 billion barrels, and Canada has 170.
• 1901 to 1952 – Anglo-Iranian Oil company (BP) enjoyed a monopoly on Iranian oil.
• 1921 – Persian Coup established a constitutional monarchy, the Pahlavi dynasty. Replaced Islamic law with western law – women resisted a ban on traditional hijab in public.
• 1952 – Iran nationalized the oil company – Britain sent war ships and imposed a crushing embargo.
• Churchill planned a coup – Truman (D) sympathized with nationalists vs imperialists. UK left Iran.
• 1953 – Eisenhower (R) changed US policy and sided with Britain. MI6 and CIA organized a coup to depose Iran’s only democratically elected government. Like us, Iranians were upset about outsiders seeking to change their religion and culture.
• 1973 – OPEC proclaimed the Arab oil embargo targeting nations supporting Israel vs Palestine. Created oil shortages for western countries and an oil revenue windfall for OPEC and Iran.
• 1977 – Shah Reza Pahlavi viewed as a pro-western puppet of USA – oppressive, brutal, corrupt. Ayatollah Khomeini opposed the Shah and was exiled for 15 years.
• US President Carter (D) enacted human rights policy in which countries guilty of human rights would be deprived of US arms and aid. Gave Iranian population courage to oppose their repressive regime.
• 1977-1979 Demonstrations and strikes – 52 American embassy employees held for 444 days.
• 1979 – Shah left for exile, Ayatollah Khomeini was invited back and formed a Shia theocracy. Khomeini was considered less of a threat than Russian Marxism.
• 1980 – Saddam Hussein’s Sunni forces attacked Shiite Iran. Ended in stalemate in 1988.
• 1983 – Iran proxies bombed US embassy in Beirut, killing 241 US servicemen.
• 1990 – 1991 US launched Operation Desert Storm after Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait.
• 2003 to 2011 – US launched a second and unjustified attacked on Iraq. Iran sided with Iraqi Shiites and was complicit in the killing of US troops by Shiite militia.
• 2013 – US CIA finally acknowledged the 1953 coup in Iran was carried out under CIA direction.
• 2013 – Iranian population elected a moderate president (Rouhani), theocracy remained supreme
• 2015 – Obama (D) wrote Iran Nuclear Agreement with USA, UK, Russia, France, China, Germany, EU. After 62 years, an opportunity to resolve Iran’s grievances against UK and US aggression. Iran’s moderates in government and the general population were finally and fully engaged.
• I have known and worked with several Iranians. They are no different than us. Iran was always a cradle of science contributing to medicine, mathematics, astronomy and philosophy. But those living in that troubled part of the world have endured centuries of brutal treatment from corrupt regimes, most often as a result of foreign interventions. Hopefully they will soon get a break.
• Today, Iran’s population is same as Germany (83 million) and is second in the Middle East to Egypt’s 101 million.
• But, in spite of having the world’s third largest oil reserves, Iran’s GDP per capita at $20,000 is barely above the world average of $18,000 per capita and is now decreasing due to sanctions.
• 2016 – Enter Donald Trump with his extreme ego, ignorance of history, legendary bullying nature. To get elected, Trump campaigned against every Obama initiative including Iran nuclear deal.
• 2018 – Trump (R) withdrew from the Iran Nuclear Agreement and imposed crippling sanctions. No evidence that Iran violated the nuclear agreement. No other country withdrew. Sanctions undermined the moderates, provoked the hardliners, and wasted the opportunity. (After WW1, crippling sanctions by UK and France led to Hitler’s agitation starting WW2.)
• 2019 – Iran retaliated to sanctions with attacks on US and UK ships and US embassy in Baghdad, Iraq.
• 2020 – Trump (R) ordered the killing of Iran’s top military leader – Iran vows retaliation.
• After vowing to withdraw from the Middle East, Trump sends 3,500 troops back to the Middle East.
• Trump claims his decisions to end the nuclear agreement and to assassinate the Iranian general were to prevent more planned attacks on US assets and citizens. That is Trump’s typical short-sighted and self-serving view that ignores the fact of 60 years of US provocation. Trump’s impulsive, uninformed, foolish and self-serving decisions will haunt the USA for another 60 years.
Before 1800, the world had less than one billion people and it took weeks for communications and people to move between continents. Bull-headed selfish strongmen were often successful leaders in those conditions. But those conditions no longer exist.
In today’s world, fast approaching eight billion people, all with instant communications and the ability to fly from Beijing to Chicago in half a day, what is needed are leaders with a strong sense of fairness who can listen, reconcile, compromise, and work together for the good of all mankind.
Hugh Holland is a retired engineering and manufacturing executive now living in Huntsville, Ontario.
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Paul, there is indeed a long history of terrible decisions and actions by many previous US administrations and by extension the CIA. The horrors from many of those wars and instability caused is tragic, to be sure. I have mentioned this fact in other comments on this particular piece. Wars of all types are bad. Some sadly seem unavoidable.
But it must be clearly understood who Soleimani was. He engaged in activities that clearly qualifies in all democratic nations as terrorism. Inside Iran, he commanded the bloody Quds Force, which was brutal towards even Iran’s own people that the regime saw as threats. Outside of Iran, he had direct involvement and oversight for the Iranian proxy terror organisations Hezbollah (in Lebanon), Houthis (in Yemen), Asaib Ahl al-Haq (in Iraq) and Shi’ite brigades in Afghanistan and Pakistan. These organizations collectively are directly responsible for countless atrocities and killings.
The Iranian proxies he had influence over also reached well beyond the Middle-East, including into Columbia, Mexico, Peru, and El Salvador. His death was also mourned or condemned by regimes with some of the worst human rights records, repression or corruption in the world. (China, Russia, Venezuela, Cuba). Interestingly, N. Korea remained largely silent…
But his worst legacy is undoubtedly in Syria. In the end, Assad remained in power, due in large part to Iran’s help. Soleimani was Iran’s lead commander there, and he supported and directly advised Assad. The tragic outcomes are all too well known – over half a million Syrians brutally murdered, bombed, tortured, incinerated, gassed or disappeared, in what may be one of the worst genocides in recent history. Their blood is on Soleimani’s hands too.
Soleimani was by most measures the most feared, brutal, powerful player in the world of global terror alive (up until last week). Your comparison to general Powell or general Westmorland is entirely unfair and inaccurate. A real comparison might be to al qaeda leader Osama bin Laden or ISIS founder Abu Bakr al Baghdadi.
Here is a good piece that describes just some of Soleimani’s history: https://www.voanews.com/extremism-watch/how-qassem-soleimani-managed-irans-proxies-middle-east
Hugh you are missing my point or I am not explaining myself very well? It is your article, you set the tone. Would you host a party and insult half your guest as they walk in the door? Diplomacy and tact are more likely to sway people then insults. When you write with such certainty that you are right and Trump is wrong it alienates many of us from commenting or respecting your opinion. Why would we bother reading your future left wing anti Trump articles? We know what to expect.
I think your take on Donald Trump’s intelligence is very naive especially when his accomplishments are considered. He beat a long list of republican candidates in the primaries, then defeated the democrats to become president and now the US economy is operating at record levels by every metric not seen for 50 years. Like him or not I just don’t see how in your words an uninformed, foolish, ignorant, short sighted guy could accomplish this. Was he just lucky? Would you rather have the Clinton’s in power?
I missed a few other important past failures… N. Korea joined the nuclear power club in 2006, adding both the H-bomb and ballistic missiles that can reach N.A. by 2017.
Iran used the resources and international legitimacy gained from the JCPOA to sponsor its expansion in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Lebanon, becoming the worlds largest state sponsor of terrorism. They also spent it on ballistic missiles (nuclear capable) that can now reach Europe, and (quietly) advanced centrifuges. They are less than a year away from nuclear breakout.
They didn’t spend the money on their people or economy, as the West had hoped.
Sorry, but the facts just don’t support the claims of foreign policy success of recent past US administrations. Quite the opposite.
US missile, are you serious? That is the most ridiculous conspiracy theory yet. The evidence is beyond clear what happened here. Iran screwed up, but they will certainly try to hide the truth. Just like Russia in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17.
Your hate for the man is blinding you Hugh.
Hugh Holland: “That statement insults the opinion of well more than 50% of the world.”
Only those who insist on believing the politically-motivated lies of the leftist mainstream media. The leftists (read elitists) are desperate to “prove” all sorts of things that are even plainly absurd to the most ignorant of the uninitiated. The Associated Press just today withdrew a headline which tried to blame Trump because the IRANIANS shot down a Ukrainian passenger jet. They were inundated with a huge backlash and re-framed the story and headline (without an apology, of course).
So Mr Wilkins by your standards, General Westmorland should have been assasinated for his contribution to the Vietnam War….Colin Powell should have been assasinated for his contribution to the Iraq Way…..this drone operator should be assainated for his assassination of Soleimani.
What the world does not need is any regime like the US trying to bypass international standards of justice. We saw too much of that by the CIA in the sixties, assassinating no fewer that 6 central and South American leaders because they were “communists” or socialists
Actually the period before, during and just after WW1 is very informative in mid east history. The Arabs were swindled, Israel was established. (I approve of the Jewish homeland and sympathize with the Arabs who were so badly mislead) The British were duplicious, the French conceited and the Italians and Germans out classed.
It is all necessary to appreciate the tribal grievances which still churn today in the mid east.
As with Afghanistan, the west generally gets its nose blodied when it interferes in eastern affairs. Crushing western mitary technology and might periodically and temporarily subdues the tribes but they lie in wait for the next oportunity to reclaim their land and pride all the while waring amongst themselves. It will never end. Europe and now North America have allowed the camel to thrust his head into the tent which will be everlastingly regretted. Cluck your tongues if you Iike but pay attention to what is going on around you.
Britt, Trump is not reckless or stupid? That statement insults the opinion of well more than 50% of the world.
Dave there no angels in this. To be fair, it started a long time ago and there is equal blame on both sides. But clearly Trumps sanctions on Iran have put Canada in the middle on his dispute with China and now on his dispute with Iran
I don’t know if I should just keep my mouth shut or not. But i’m thinking we all should read some of the history about what went on in the years before the second world war started. And just how the U’S was dragged into that and lost a lot of young men fighting to keep Europe free of german rule and never asked for anything in return except for enough land to bury there soldiers. Now every one hates them kind of makes me wonder just what people are thinking. I’m a proud Canadian but will still support the U’S.
The past 20 years of US administrations foreign policies have been a disaster by many measures. It has left millions dead in the Middle-East & N. Africa, a refugee crisis in Europe, a weaker NATO, a divided unstable Ukrainian, a more empowered and emboldened Russia, and the unprecedented rise of a new economic superpower in comunist China. If this is what success looks like, time to try something different.
That is partly why Trump was elected, and why traditional western elites and career bureaucrats along with the MSM who have been complicit, hate him so much. He pointed out all their failures and is trying a different approach.
Too early still to see if his path will produce better longterm results.
He will be judged in about 10 months by the US people.
Britt and Dave, there are no angels in this. There is no doubt more than one member of MI6, CIA or US military leader who Middle Easterners could brand as a terrorist or monster. Bush and Obama showed much more wisdom than Trump. Rex Tillerson, the former CEO of one of the world’s biggest companies and former secretary of state is one of the few Republicans with the courage to call a spade a spade in his assessment of Trump.
There are some reasons to believe that the airliner with 63 Canadian students and teachers from universities across Canada was brought down by a missile shortly after Iran’s missile hit the US base. Could it have been an Iranian missile? Or is it more likely to have been a US missile like the one that brought down Air Iran in 1988? Germany did not grovel under extreme sanctions following WW1. Will Iranians grovel under Trump’s tightening sanctions? Stay tuned. Time will tell.
“In today’s world, fast approaching eight billion people, all with instant communications and the ability to fly from Beijing to Chicago in half a day, what is needed are leaders with a strong sense of fairness who can listen, reconcile, compromise, and work together for the good of all mankind.”
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This is left wing?
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What’s the part that right-wingers are opposed to? “Strong sense of fairness”? “Listen, reconcile, compromise and work together?” Wait, I’ve got it! “Good of all mankind.”
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Do you people ever do reality checks on yourselves?
Interesting informative article and then as Ray Vowels points out it turned into a strong opinion piece as it took an abrupt left turn at the end. Obama, Bush and the Prime Minister of Israel among others all seriously considered taking out Saleimani. Years ticked by and many more Americans, allied soldiers and civilians were killed during his reign. Trump takes him out and it’s unquestionably the wrong the thing to do? Even most Democrats agree he was a monster and the world is better off now that he is dead but…. Trump is reckless and has no plan and has not considered the repercussions… blah blah blah?
Trump has an enormous ego and behaves differently than any other president but don’t let that cloud your judgment Hugh. Trump is not stupid or reckless. It insults half the people reading this opinion piece when Trump is judged as an idiot. Did he do the right thing is the important question that should be respectfully considered? I’m sure it was a difficult discussion with his team which he has talked about since 2016. He did not wake up on January 3rd and randomly decide to kill him.
A good summary of the external forces that have helped to shape modern Iran. To better understand how all of this was possible it is necessary to study the historical Shia/Sunni conflict that goes back to the death of Mohammad. For those with the patience I recommend “The Shia Revival” by Vali Nasr. This book is more than 10 years old but is still relevant. Only 163 pages. Gives insight on why the Ayatollahs seem to have a chip on their shoulders.
Soleimani was a terrorist, masquerading as a military commander, and one of the most brutal in recent history. That is hard fact. That is why he was taken out. Should have happened a long time ago, and many thousands of people who died because of him would be alive today. Just a minor point you overlooked Hugh..
Many thanks for this informative article that uncovers many nuances associated with the recent history of the Middle East – specially Iran – which most North Americans are unaware of or have forgotten. Articles like this are so crucial for developing a deeper understanding of what is going on there right now.
One event that isn’t mentioned in the article but which is remembered and has been mentioned in that region over the last 48 hours was the shooting down of an Iran Air commercial airliner, Flight 655, on 3rd July 1988, by an American Cruise missile launched from an American cruiser in the area. This all happened during the prolonged Iran-Iraqi War of the mid-1980s.
Here’s a BBC interview with an American photographer aboard the American warship that day – and his reflections on that tragic event, all part-and-parcel of the messy collateral damage of war for innocent civilians including children, lest we forget!
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/stories-44614512/when-the-us-shot-down-an-iranian-airliner
My only comment on all this is that if it was not for the Americans & Canadian’s and Australians and a few others the whole land mass over there would be German speaking and that everyone forgets; so we just keep blaming it all on the oil greedy north america. No matter Iran held oil ships and a lot of other stuff it’s America’s fault.. Again just my opinion.
But thanks for your comment anyways, Mr Vowels
To anyone that wants to understand the Middle East and why Americans (and Westerners) are so detested, I highly recommend a book called “The Seven Sisters” about the history of oil after the Standard OIl monopoly was (supposedly) broken up……All Middle East monarchies were hand chosen atrbitrarily by the US. The Saud family famously has been protected from its own citizens by the Americans. As bad as, the theocracy in Iran is, the American hand chosen monarchy was much more hated.
This what Trump has meant by Make America Great Again……
The last paragraph of this is just one person’s opinion of what we need for world leaders and I am not in agreement with it at all. Just My Opinion. The rest I guess is history i’m not sure id it right or wrong and not going to research it myself to find out.