Islamic Revolution of 1979

"The Islamic Republic of Iran was proclaimed in 1979 after followers of the Ayatollah Khomeini drove the U.S.-backed Shah Reza Pahlavi into exile." 

"On balance," the Iranian revolution of 1979 "was more about introducing new ideas into the religio-political lexicon of Muslims than it was about asserting Iranian independence and sovereignty," Mahan Abedin wrote January 3, 2007, in Asia Times.

"From the very beginning the revolution's leaders made clear that theirs was an 'Islamic' revolution and as such it constituted the greatest Islamic revivalist project of the modern era. Iranian revolutionaries saw the charismatic leadership of ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini as the culmination of the legacies of Islamic revivalists beginning with Seyed Jamaledin Afghani (Asadabadi), Mohammad Abduh, and Mohammad Rashid Rida and continuing with Hassan al-Banna and Sayed Qutb," Abedin wrote.

"First and foremost, it marked the first time that modern 'Islamists' were propelled into power. Second, Iranian revolutionaries embarked on an ambitious long-term plan to Islamize Iranian society. Third, the new regime (despite its Shi'ite appearance) was wholeheartedly wedded to exporting the 'Islamic revolution' to sympathetic audiences the world over. ...

"To consolidate and export the revolution, Iranian leaders developed an entire infrastructure of new Islamic rhetoric based on timeless Islamic terms and concepts. Such terms as mustazafin (dispossessed), estekbar (arrogance) and taghout (satanic rule) gained wide currency throughout the Arab world. Today, these terms are widely used by the so-called Jihadi Salafis who - on the surface at least - profess profound contempt for the Islamic Republic.

"More broadly, these terms constitute the basic language of Islamists everywhere, irrespective of their position toward the Islamic Republic. While the Iranian revolution has failed to develop a significant political constituency in the Muslim world (with the obvious exception of Lebanon), its language and imagery have been adopted everywhere. On this account Iranian leaders can claim a measure of success," Abedin wrote.

Related SourceWatch Resources

 * arc of instability
 * Iran
 * Iraq Study Group
 * Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (President of Iran)
 * Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI)
 * war in Iran

General

 * Iran, CIA/The World Factbook (Updated March 15, 2007).
 * History of Iran: Islamic Revolution of 1979, Iran Chamber Society.
 * Iranian Revolution in the Wikipedia.

Articles & Commentary

 * M. Mobin Shorish, "The Islamic Revolution and Education in Iran," Comparative Education Review, February, 1988.
 * Ivor Benson, "Iran -- Some Angles on the Islamic Revolution," The Journal of Historical Review, Summer 1989.
 * "Iran marks 20th anniversary of Islamic revolution," CNN, January 31, 1999.
 * Iqbal Siddiqui, "The Islamic Revolution in Iran: an inspiration, an example and an experiment," Muslimedia, February 1-15, 2000.
 * Golnaz Esfandiari, "Iran: 25th Anniversary Of Islamic Revolution Commemorated Amid Serious Political Crisis," Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, February 11, 2004.
 * "Iranians mark Islamic revolution," BBC News, February 11, 2004.
 * Shaul Bakhash and Haleh Esfandiari, "The 25th Anniversary of Iran's Islamic Revolution: Looking Back and Ahead," Washington Institute for Near East Policy, February 27, 2004.
 * Francis Harrison, "Reviving Iran's revolutionaries," BBC News, February 11, 2005.
 * Wesley Yang, "The philosopher and the ayatollah. In 1978, Michel Foucault went to Iran as a novice journalist to report on the unfolding revolution. His dispatches — now fully available in translation — shed some light on the illusions of intellectuals in our own time," Boston Globe, June 12, 2005.
 * A. Savyon, "Iran's 'Second Islamic Revolution': Fulfilled by Election of Conservative President," MEMRI, June 28, 2005.
 * "Iran's Ahmadinejad hopes to spread 'new Islamic revolution'," Agence France Presse (Iran Focus), June 29, 2005.
 * "300 men holding power in Iran since Islamic Revolution," Iran Focus, July 4, 2005.
 * Houchang Hassan-Yari, "Iran: Defending The Islamic Revolution -- The Corps Of The Matter," Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, August 5, 2005.
 * A. Savyon, "The 'Second Islamic Revolution' in Iran: Power Struggle at the Top," MEMRI, November 17, 2005.
 * Dahr Jamail, "Iraq's Shias Head for Uncertain Govt," antiwar.com, February 2, 2006.
 * "Iran: Facing a demographic revolution," CBC News (Canada), May 8, 2006.
 * Mahan Abedin, "Iran and the US: An unbreachable divide," Asia Times, January 3, 2007.
 * "Tehran ups nuclear defiance as it marks revolution. Iran has kicked off a series of anniversary festivities for the Islamic revolution by shrugging off UN sanctions over its nuclear programme," Agence France Presse (France24.com), February 1, 2007.
 * Mike Shuster, "Export of Iran's Revolution Spawns Violence," NPR, February 14, 2007.