AP News: A CIA-backed 1953 coup in Iran haunts the country with people still trying to make sense of it
August 25, 2023
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Seventy years after a CIA–orchestrated coup toppled Iran’s prime minister, its legacy remains both contentious and complicated for the Islamic Republic as tensions stay high with the United States.
While highlighted as a symbol of Western imperialism by Iran’s theocracy, the coup unseating Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh — over America’s fears about a possible tilt toward the Soviet Union and the loss of Iranian crude oil — appeared backed at the time by the country’s leading Shiite clergy.
Continue reading Iran Marks Anniversary of 1953 CIA-Backed Coup
Public opinion in Israel was once much more supportive of the previous legal structure. But a combination of events and political struggle swung many voters to the right. This evolution was vividly described by a distinguished American-born Israeli journalist, Larry Derfner, in his excellent and depressing 2017 book, No Country for a Jewish Liberal. This passage from my review sums up his outlook:
Ireland’s president has rebuked the government for launching a debate about the country’s longstanding military neutrality and the possibility of joining Nato, saying ministers were “playing with fire”.
Donald Trump is not the first president Asa Hutchinson wanted, and tried, to take down. Nor, I will contend, is he even the second.