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The Iranian Revolution The Islamic Republic
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Book Synopsis Revolutionary Iran by : Michael Axworthy
Download or read book Revolutionary Iran written by Michael Axworthy and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2016-03-10 with total page 535 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Revolutionary Iran, Michael Axworthy guides us through recent Iranian history from shortly before the 1979 Islamic revolution through the summer of 2009, when Iranians poured into the streets of Tehran by the hundreds of thousands, demanding free, democratic government. Axworthy explains how that outpouring of support for an end to tyranny in Iran paused and then moved on to other areas in the region like Egypt and Libya, leaving Iran's leadership unchanged. The Iranian Revolution of 1979 was a defining moment of the modern era. Its success unleashed a wave of Islamist fervor across the Middle East and signaled a sharp decline in the appeal of Western ideologies in the Islamic world. Axworthy takes readers through the major periods in Iranian history over the last thirty years: the overthrow of the old regime and the creation of the new one; the Iran-Iraq war; the reconstruction era following the war; the reformist wave led by Mohammed Khatami; and the present day, in which reactionaries have re-established control. Throughout, he emphasizes that the Iranian revolution was centrally important in modern history because it provided the world with a clear model of development that was not rooted in Western ideologies. Whereas the world's major revolutions of the previous two centuries had been fuelled by Western, secular ideologies, the Iranian Revolution drew its inspiration from Islam. Revolutionary Iran is both richly textured and from one of the leading authorities on the region; combining an expansive scope with the most accessible and definitive account of this epoch in all its humanity.
Book Synopsis An Island of Stability by : Mark Thiessen
Download or read book An Island of Stability written by Mark Thiessen and published by Sidestone Press. This book was released on 2009 with total page 80 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1979, the world was taken by surprise when the Iranian people revolted against their westernized ruling elite, and traded in the Shah for a radical Islamic republic ruled by the most senior Shiite cleric, ayatollah Khomeini. The Islamic revolution of Iran was a breaking point in history. It was the defining moment for Islam in the twentieth century and fuelled the Islamic confidence that has since then only grown. The roots of the revolution were deeply entrenched in the recent history of Iran, yet in the West, almost no one knew what was happening. The rise of ayatollah Khomeini and the Islamic republic seemed to have come out of nowhere. In this book, historian Mark Thiessen tries to answer the most important questions of the Islamic revolution. What happened, and where did it come from? This book explores the background of the revolution, and gives a detailed account of its course. It analyzes the rise of Khomeini, and his ideology. By studying the archives of the Dutch embassy in Tehran, Thiessen finally tries to find out about the way the Dutch mission experienced and interpreted the revolution, at a time when the outcome was not yet clear.
Book Synopsis Reconstructed Lives by : Haleh Esfandiari
Download or read book Reconstructed Lives written by Haleh Esfandiari and published by Woodrow Wilson Center Press. This book was released on 1997-07 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iranian women tell in their own words what the revolution attempted and how they responded. The Islamic revolution of 1979 transformed all areas of Iranian life. For women, the consequences were extensive and profound, as the state set out to reverse legal and social rights women had won and to dictate many aspects of women's lives, including what they could study and how they must dress and relate to men. Reconstructed Lives presents Iranian women telling in their own words what the revolution attempted and how they responded. Through a series of interviews with professional and working women in Iran—doctors, lawyers, writers, professors, secretaries, businesswomen—Haleh Esfandiari gathers dramatic accounts of what has happened to their lives as women in an Islamic society. She and her informants describe the strategies by which women try to and sometimes succeed in subverting the state's agenda. Esfandiari also provides historical background on the women's movement in Iran. She finds evidence in Iran's experience that even women from "traditional" and working classes do not easily surrender rights or access they have gained to education, career opportunities, and a public role.
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution at Forty by : Suzanne Maloney
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution at Forty written by Suzanne Maloney and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2020-02-25 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How Iran—and the world around it—have changed in the four decades since a revolutionary theocracy took power Iran's 1979 revolution is one of the most important events of the late twentieth century. The overthrow of the Western-leaning Shah and the emergence of a unique religious government reshaped Iran, dramatically shifted the balance of power in the Middle East and generated serious challenges to the global geopolitical order—challenges that continue to this day. The seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran later that same year and the ensuing hostage crisis resulted in an acrimonious breach between America and Iran that remains unresolved to this day. The revolution also precipitated a calamitous war between Iran and Iraq and an expansion of the U.S. military's role in maintaining security in and around the Persian Gulf. Forty years after the revolution, more than two dozen experts look back on the rise of the Islamic Republic and explore what the startling events of 1979 continue to mean for the volatile Middle East as well as the rest of the world. The authors explore the events of the revolution itself; whether its promises have been kept or broken; the impact of clerical rule on ordinary Iranians, especially women; the continuing antagonism with the United States; and the repercussions not only for Iran's immediate neighborhood but also for the broader Middle East. Complete with a helpful timeline and suggestions for further reading, this book helps put the Iranian revolution in historical and geopolitical perspective, both for experts who have long studied the Middle East and for curious readers interested in fallout from the intense turmoil of four decades ago.
Book Synopsis Cultural Revolution in Iran by : Annabelle Sreberny
Download or read book Cultural Revolution in Iran written by Annabelle Sreberny and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2013-10-17 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Islamic Republic of Iran has entered its fourth decade, and the values and legacy of the Revolution it was founded upon continue to have profound and contradictory consequences for Iranian life. Despite the repressive power of the current regime the immense creativity of popular cultural practices, that negotiate and resist a repressive system, is a potent and dynamic force. This book draws on the expertise and experience of Iranian and international academics and activists to address diverse areas of social and cultural innovation that are driving change and progress. While religious conservatism remains the creed of the establishment, this volume uncovers an underground world of new technology, media and entertainment that speaks to women seeking a greater public role and a restless younger generation that organises and engages with global trends online.
Author :Charles River Charles River Editors Publisher :Createspace Independent Publishing Platform ISBN 13 :9781985644410 Total Pages :104 pages Book Rating :4.6/5 (444 download)
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution by : Charles River Charles River Editors
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution written by Charles River Charles River Editors and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-02-19 with total page 104 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: *Includes pictures *Profiles Ayatollah Khomeini and his ideology and leadership before, during, and after the Revolution *Highlights the causes, key events, and effects of the Revolution *Includes footnotes and a bibliography for further reading The Iranian Revolution of 1979 has been described as an epochal event, called the peak of 20th century Islamic revivalism and revitalization, and analyzed as the one key incident that continues to impact politics across Iran, the Middle East, and the even the world as a whole. As a phenomenon that led to the creation of the first modern Islamic Republic in the world, the revolution marked the victory of Islam over secular politics, and Iran quickly became the aspiring model for Islamic fundamentalists and revivalists across the globe, regardless of nationality, culture, or religious sect. When Ayatollah Khomeini was declared ruler in December 1979 and the judicial system originally modeled on that of the West was swiftly replaced by one purely based on Islamic law, much of the world was in shock that such a religiously driven revolution could succeed so quickly, especially when it had such sweeping consequences beyond the realm of religion. Revolutions are nothing new, but most revolutions, especially those in the West, have tended to remain secular. Even when religious ideology and themes were present, as in the English Civil War of the 1640s, these were not dominant driving forces behind the revolution, nor were they a significant factor in its immediate results. Even outside the West, this has mostly proven to be true; the nationalist revolution and war for independence in Turkey, led by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, was a battle for separation of church and state that called for democratic principles of equality, and the result was the formation of a modern and secular Turkey. However, the revolution that swept across Iran proved to be starkly different from past revolutions of the world. Its most influential leaders came from the orthodox clergy, and its most pronounced important goals were the ouster of the monarch, who was deemed anti-Islam and blasphemous, and the complete return of Iranian government and society to fundamental Islamic principles. As one of the leading scholars on Iran, Nikki R. Keddie, wrote, this revolution was "aberrant," refusing to fit into the theoretical and academic ideas of what modern revolutions should be like. Yet, there is no doubt that the Iranian Revolution ultimately led to a complete overhaul and restructuring of the age-old political, economic, social, religious, and ideological orders in Iran. Former Iranian Finance Minister Jahangir Amuzegar put it aptly, "The historical oddity, if not uniqueness, of the Iranian revolution can be seen in its four salient features: its unforeseen rapid rise; its wide base of urban support; its vague ideological character; and, above all, its ultimate singular objective, to oust the Shah." Furthermore, while the focus of the revolution was primarily about Islam, the revolution was also colored by disdain for the West, distaste for autocracy, and a yearning for religious and cultural identity. Though these are features of many other revolutions, the Iranian one was particularly unprecedented in the suddenness and rapidity of its occurrence, as well as the sheer amount of mass popular support it gained. Much of the world, including the U.S. and its Western allies, were initially caught off guard by the sudden occurrence and unanticipated strength of the revolution. The Islamic Revolution That Reshaped the Middle East explores the events leading up to the Iranian Revolution, as well as the political, economic, social, and religious characteristics of Iran before 1979. It also looks at the revolution and the lasting influence it has had both domestically and globally.
Book Synopsis Inside the Islamic Republic by : Mahmood Monshipouri
Download or read book Inside the Islamic Republic written by Mahmood Monshipouri and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2016 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The post-Khomenei era has profoundly changed the socio-political landscape of Iran. Since 1989, the internal dynamics of change in Iran, rooted in a panoply of socioeconomic, cultural, institutional, demographic, and behavioral factors, have led to a noticeable transition in both societal and governmental structures of power, as well as the way in which many Iranians have come to deal with the changing conditions of their society. This is all exacerbated by the global trend of communication and information expansion, as Iran has increasingly become the site of the burgeoning demands for women's rights, individual freedoms, and festering tensions and conflicts over cultural politics. These realities, among other things, have rendered Iran a country of unprecedented-and at time paradoxical-changes. This book explains how and why.
Book Synopsis Social Origins of the Iranian Revolution by : Misagh Parsa
Download or read book Social Origins of the Iranian Revolution written by Misagh Parsa and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 1989 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Misagh Parsa develops a structural theory of the causes and outcomes of revolution, applying the theory in particular to Iran. He focuses on the ends and means of various groups of Iranians before, during, and after the revolution. For Parsa, revolution is not a direct result of ideologies, which may be less important than structural factors such as the nature of the state and the economy, as well as each group's interests, capacity for mobilization, autonomy, and solidarity structures. Existing theories of revolution explain earlier revolutions better than the Iranian revolution. In Iran most of the protest was in urban areas, the peasants never played a major role, and power was transferred to the clergy, not to an intelligentsia. In the 1970s, oil revenues increased, the economy developed rapidly but unevenly, and the state's expanded intervention undermined market forces and politicized capital accumulation. Systematic repression of workers, aid to the upper class, and attacks on secular and religious opposition showed that the state was serving the interests of particular groups. When the state tried to check high inflation by imposing price controls on bazaaris (merchants, shopkeepers, artisans), their protests forced the state to introduce reforms, providing an opportunity for industrial workers, white-collar workers, intellectuals, and the clergy to mobilize against the state. Thus, structural features rendered the state vulnerable to challenge and attack. Parsa's thorough explanation of the collective actions of each major group in Iran in the three decades prior to the revolution shows how a coalition of classes and groups, using mosques as safe gathering places and led by a segment of the clergy, brought down the monarch of 1979. In the years since the revolution, the conflicts that existed before the revolution seem to be reemerging, in slightly altered form. The clergy now has control, and the state has become centrally and powerfully involved in the economy of the country.
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution And The Muslim World by : David Menashri
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution And The Muslim World written by David Menashri and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-07-09 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book delineates the Islamic revolution's impact mainly on the Muslim Middle East and examines the first decade of the revolution. It deals with the repercussions of the revolution in several Shi'i communities and examines Sunni polemical writings on the Shi'a and the Iranian revolution.
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution by : Brendan January
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution written by Brendan January and published by Twenty-First Century Books. This book was released on 2008-01-01 with total page 164 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines how the Iranian Revolution became a showdown between the ideas and values of Islam and those of the West and how it recast the face of the Middle East.
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution by : John L. Esposito
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution written by John L. Esposito and published by University Press of Florida. This book was released on 1990 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A wonderfully concise yet complete survey of the background and status of Islamic revivalism in all of its various forms in each region."--SAIS Review "A rich and thoughtful study of one of the most significant events of recent times."--School of Oriental and African Studies Bulletin Marking the tenth anniversary of the Ayatollah Khomeini's triumphant return to the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1989 proved a benchmark year in Iran's history, with the condemnation of author Salman Rushdie to execution, the denunciation or Iranian liberals and the West, the removal of Khomeini's chosen successor, and the death of Khomeini himself. John L. Esposito introduces The Iranian Revolution with an explanation of why the present is a turning point for Iran. He isolates the export of Islamic revolution as central to the Republic's character. A concise description of the complexities of that issue is followed by a discussion of its effects within and outside Iran, with the majority of the collection then devoted to insightful analyses of the Republic's impact throughout the Islamic world. International experts from Iran, Europe, Africa, and the United States assess worldwide impact of the Iranian Revolution on other Muslim societies and give us a remarkable analysis of the status of Islamic revivalism in a far-flung array of Islamic statues and societies--Lebanon, Bahrain, Egypt, Tunisia, Nigeria, Turkey, the USSR, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Iraq. The book owes its quality not only to the currency of its subject matter but also to its distinguished contributors, who address such issues as the failure of the Iranian revolution to replicate itself in other countries and the extent to which Iran's experience has shaped the politics, economics, and cultures of other countries. Sponsors of the book and of the 1989 conference that inspired it are the Middle East Institute, the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and Royal Institute of International Affairs. This objective and thought-provoking assessment of the Islamic Republic of Iran's success to date in implementing its objectives, as well as its prospects for the future, makes timely reading for anyone seeking an understanding of the revolution's impact. Contents Part I. Iran 1. Introduction, by John L. Esposito and James P. Piscatori 2. The Iranian Revolution: A Ten-Year Perspective, by John L. Esposito 3. Iran's Export of the Revolution: Politics, Ends, and Means, by R. K. Ramazani 4. Iranian Ideology and Worldview: The Cultural Export of Revolution, by Farhang Rajaee Part II. The Middle East 5. Iraq: Revolutionary Threats and Regime Responses, by Philip Robins 6. The Impact of the Iranian Revolution on the Arabian Peninsula and the Gulf States, by David E. Long 7. Lebanon: The Internal Conflict and the Iranian Connection, by Augustus Richard Norton 8. The Impact of the Iranian Revolution on Egypt, by Shahrough Akhavi 9. Tunisia and Libya: Responses to the Islamic Impulse, by Lisa Anderson Part III. Southwest Asia and Central Asia 10. The Mujahidin and the Future of Afghanistan, by Olivier Roy 11. Soviet Central Asia: Does Moscow Fear Iranian Influence? by Martha Brill Olcott Part IV: Southeast Asia 12. Malaysian and Indonesian Islamic Movements and the Iranian Connection, by Fred R. von der Mehden 13. The Iranian Revolution and the Muslims in the Philippines, by Cesar Adib Majul Part V. Africa 14. Islamization in the Sudan and the Iranian Revolution, by John O. Voll 15. Islamic Revivalism in Nigeria: Homegrown or Externally Induced? by Ibrahim A. Gambari 16. The Global Impact of the Iranian Revolution: A Policy Perspective, by John L. Esposito and James P. Piscatori John L. Esposito is director of the Center for International Studies and professor of religious studies at the College of the Holy Cross.
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution at Forty by : Suzanne Maloney
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution at Forty written by Suzanne Maloney and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2020-02-25 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How Iran—and the world around it—have changed in the four decades since a revolutionary theocracy took power Iran's 1979 revolution is one of the most important events of the late twentieth century. The overthrow of the Western-leaning Shah and the emergence of a unique religious government reshaped Iran, dramatically shifted the balance of power in the Middle East and generated serious challenges to the global geopolitical order—challenges that continue to this day. The seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran later that same year and the ensuing hostage crisis resulted in an acrimonious breach between America and Iran that remains unresolved to this day. The revolution also precipitated a calamitous war between Iran and Iraq and an expansion of the U.S. military's role in maintaining security in and around the Persian Gulf. Forty years after the revolution, more than two dozen experts look back on the rise of the Islamic Republic and explore what the startling events of 1979 continue to mean for the volatile Middle East as well as the rest of the world. The authors explore the events of the revolution itself; whether its promises have been kept or broken; the impact of clerical rule on ordinary Iranians, especially women; the continuing antagonism with the United States; and the repercussions not only for Iran's immediate neighborhood but also for the broader Middle East. Complete with a helpful timeline and suggestions for further reading, this book helps put the Iranian revolution in historical and geopolitical perspective, both for experts who have long studied the Middle East and for curious readers interested in fallout from the intense turmoil of four decades ago.
Book Synopsis Contesting the Iranian Revolution by : Pouya Alimagham
Download or read book Contesting the Iranian Revolution written by Pouya Alimagham and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-03-19 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examines the last forty years of Iranian and Middle-Eastern history through the prism of the Green Uprisings of 2009.
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution, Updated Edition by : Heather Wagner
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution, Updated Edition written by Heather Wagner and published by Infobase Holdings, Inc. This book was released on 2021-09-01 with total page 98 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On January 16, 1979, the shah of Iran left the country he had ruled for more than 37 years. The streets of Tehran, Iran's capital, filled with celebration as the news spread that the hated monarchy had been overthrown. The revolution in Iran, led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, was sparked by many factors, including a widening gap between the different classes of Iranian society, an aggressive campaign of modernization, an ambitious program of land reform, and the brutality of the shah's oppressive regime. Illustrated with full-color and black-and-white photographs, and accompanied by a chronology, bibliography, and further resources, The Iranian Revolution, Updated Edition explains how the revolution's role in propelling Iran from a monarchy to a theocracy dramatically altered life in Iran, and how its aftermath continues to shape the politics of the Middle East today. Historical spotlights and excerpts from primary source documents are also included.
Book Synopsis The Making Of Iran's Islamic Revolution by : Mohsen M Milani
Download or read book The Making Of Iran's Islamic Revolution written by Mohsen M Milani and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-03-09 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this fully revised and expanded second edition, Dr. Milani offers new insights into the causes and profound consequences of Iran's Islamic Revolution. Drawing on dozens of personal interviews with the officials of the Islamic Republic and on recently released documents, he presents a provocative analysis of the dynamics and characteristics of factional politics in Islamic Iran. Among the new issues covered are the events leading up to the Teheran hostage crisis, Ayatollah Khomeini's life and writings, President Rafsanjani's activities against the Shah, Rafsanjani's recent reforms, Iran's involvement in the Kuwaiti crisis, and the domestic and foreign policy challenges facing Iran in the post?Cold War era.The second edition is specifically revised for use as a text for courses dealing with Iran, the Middle East, and revolutionary movements.
Book Synopsis The Iranian Revolution by : Charles River Editors
Download or read book The Iranian Revolution written by Charles River Editors and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2014-07-28 with total page 60 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: *Includes pictures *Profiles Ayatollah Khomeini and his ideology and leadership before, during, and after the Revolution *Highlights the causes, key events, and effects of the Revolution *Includes footnotes and a bibliography for further reading The Iranian Revolution of 1979 has been described as an epochal event, called the peak of 20th century Islamic revivalism and revitalization, and analyzed as the one key incident that continues to impact politics across Iran, the Middle East, and the even the world as a whole. As a phenomenon that led to the creation of the first modern Islamic Republic in the world, the revolution marked the victory of Islam over secular politics, and Iran quickly became the aspiring model for Islamic fundamentalists and revivalists across the globe, regardless of nationality, culture, or religious sect. When Ayatollah Khomeini was declared ruler in December 1979 and the judicial system originally modeled on that of the West was swiftly replaced by one purely based on Islamic law, much of the world was in shock that such a religiously driven revolution could succeed so quickly, especially when it had such sweeping consequences beyond the realm of religion. Revolutions are nothing new, but most revolutions, especially those in the West, have tended to remain secular. Even when religious ideology and themes were present, as in the English Civil War of the 1640s, these were not dominant driving forces behind the revolution, nor were they a significant factor in its immediate results. Even outside the West, this has mostly proven to be true; the nationalist revolution and war for independence in Turkey, led by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, was a battle for separation of church and state that called for democratic principles of equality, and the result was the formation of a modern and secular Turkey. However, the revolution that swept across Iran proved to be starkly different from past revolutions of the world. Its most influential leaders came from the orthodox clergy, and its most pronounced important goals were the ouster of the monarch, who was deemed anti-Islam and blasphemous, and the complete return of Iranian government and society to fundamental Islamic principles. As one of the leading scholars on Iran, Nikki R. Keddie, wrote, this revolution was "aberrant," refusing to fit into the theoretical and academic ideas of what modern revolutions should be like. Yet, there is no doubt that the Iranian Revolution ultimately led to a complete overhaul and restructuring of the age-old political, economic, social, religious, and ideological orders in Iran. Former Iranian Finance Minister Jahangir Amuzegar put it aptly, "The historical oddity, if not uniqueness, of the Iranian revolution can be seen in its four salient features: its unforeseen rapid rise; its wide base of urban support; its vague ideological character; and, above all, its ultimate singular objective, to oust the Shah." Furthermore, while the focus of the revolution was primarily about Islam, the revolution was also colored by disdain for the West, distaste for autocracy, and a yearning for religious and cultural identity. Though these are features of many other revolutions, the Iranian one was particularly unprecedented in the suddenness and rapidity of its occurrence, as well as the sheer amount of mass popular support it gained. Much of the world, including the U.S. and its Western allies, were initially caught off guard by the sudden occurrence and unanticipated strength of the revolution. The Islamic Revolution That Reshaped the Middle East explores the events leading up to the Iranian Revolution, as well as the political, economic, social, and religious characteristics of Iran before 1979. It also looks at the revolution and the lasting influence it has had both domestically and globally.
Book Synopsis Inside the Iranian Revolution by : John D. Stempel
Download or read book Inside the Iranian Revolution written by John D. Stempel and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this Second Edition of Inside the Iranian Revolution, first published in 1981, author John Stempel describes his experience and insight as a U.S. Foreign Service Officer in Tehran from 1975-1979. He then continues with an updated chapters to describe what we can draw from the experiences of three decades ago and apply to the current diplomatic relationship between the U.S. and Iran. "John Stempel is a Foreign Service officer who was stationed in Tehran through the early stages of the Iranian revolution; he left four months before the hostages were taken. Mr. Stempel explains the strength and weaknesses that accumulated through the Shah's reign. Among the latter, he says, was the Shah's alternating between attempts to build genuine political support for his regime and reliance on the repressive tactics of his secret police. Mr. Stempel's concluding chapters are effective. He suggests that the Shah might have survived by being simultaneously more liberal and more ruthless-by offering more than a token of political participation to opposition groups, but then punishing those who would not support the liberalized regime. On the American side, Mr. Stempel points out the slowness to develop intelligence sources among opposition groups and the contradictory signals sent to the Shah. Mr. Stempel also implies that, once the hostage situation reached deadlock, the United States should have come more quickly to the recognition that military force was necessary." -- Amazon.com.
