'A first-rate study that not only goes far in explaining the key events of the last decade but also implicitly substantiates the classic Crane Brinton analysis.'Bernard Weiss, History: Review of New Books
The Mojahedin Khalq Organisation is an Iranian political party that helped Khomeini's religious sect in Iran bring about the Islamic revolution of 1979. This book provides a history of the Organization and its members, and addresses its relationship with western and international powers, most specifically the United States.
Comments on Study by Senior Former US Officials: Ambassador Bloomfield’s objective and thorough review of the history of the [MEK] since the early 70’s is a study that needs to be read by all. His work will be particularly useful to those in our administration charged with developing policy that is fair and consistent with the facts. --Former National Security Advisor General James L. Jones [This] unbiased review of the MEK’s history and goals…is long overdue, and a serious read for national security leaders developing regional and international policy on the MEK after its de-listing. --Former US Coordinator for Counterterrorism LTG Dell L. Dailey Ambassador Bloomfield’s analysis provides the most accurate assessment publicly available for understanding this long-maligned organization [the MEK], placing it in its proper local and historical context in pre- and post-revolutionary Iran. --Former State Department Director of Policy Planning and Special Envoy Ambassador Mitchell Reiss During my time as the Commander in Iraq from 2004-2007, my intelligence analysts struggled to reconcile reports about the MEK's past with reports from our leaders at Camp Ashraf on their daily interactions with the MEK. We would have welcomed this detailed look at their history. --Former US Army Chief of Staff General George W. Casey, Jr. This study portrays – devastatingly – how bureaucratic commitment to a point of view…can drive some within that bureaucracy to fight the impingement of inconvenient reality on their policy-driven view of the world. --Former US Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey Ambassador Linc Bloomfield’s account is tough but fair in setting the record straight….This report will benefit the policy process in Washington as the US seeks more effective approaches to avoiding a nuclear-armed Iran. Former Governor of New Mexico, Member of Congress and --US Ambassador to the UN Bill Richardson
The author argues that the Ayatollah Khomeini and his Islamic movement should be seen as a form of Third World political populism - a radical but pragmatic middle-class movement that strives to enter, rather than reject, the modern age.
"Growing up in the aftermath of the 1953 CIA coup in Iran exposed the young Masoud Banisadr to extremes of wealth and poverty, loyalty and betrayal. Years later in the United Kingdom, where Banisadr had gone to do postgraduate study, he decided to join the Iranian Mojahedin, an organization fighting to dislodge the regime that took power following the 1979 revolution." "Torn between two loves - his family and the cause - Masoud gave up normal life to pursue the revolution. But it wasn't long before the dream turned sour. The Mojahedin's revolutionary fervour demanded more than total sacrifice: he was pressured to divorce his beloved wife, alienate himself from his family and career, and remain separated for over a decade from his children." "Years later, following his defection from the organization, Masoud decides to tell his story."--Jacket.
An “absorbing” account of the CIA’s 1953 coup in Iran—essential reading for anyone concerned about Iran’s role in the world today (Harper’s Magazine). In August 1953, the Central Intelligence Agency orchestrated the swift overthrow of Iran’s democratically elected leader and installed Muhammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in his place. 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 United States-Iran relations that extends to the present day. In this authoritative new history of the coup and its aftermath, noted Iran scholar Ervand Abrahamian uncovers little-known documents that challenge conventional interpretations and sheds new light on how the American role in the coup influenced diplomatic relations between the two countries, past and present. Drawing from the hitherto closed archives of British Petroleum, the Foreign Office, and the US State Department, as well as from Iranian memoirs and published interviews, Abrahamian’s riveting account of this key historical event will change America’s understanding of a crucial turning point in modern United States-Iranian relations. A Choice Outstanding Academic Title “Not only is this book important because of its presentation of history. It is also important because it might be predicting the future.” —Counterpunch “Subtle, lucid, and well-proportioned.” —The Spectator “A valuable corrective to previous work and an important contribution to Iranian history.” —American Historical Review