The Secret C.I.A. Operation That Haunts U.S.
Matthew Spolar Brian Kamerzel
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Khomeini ran Iran as a theocracy from 1979 until his death in 1989, imposing a conservative dress code that restricted women’s rights. The crackdown sparked a protest movement in 2022 after a 22-year-old woman accused of violating the dress code died in the custody of Iran’s morality police. That movement has led to demands for an end to the Islamic republic’s rule.

In 2013, the C.I.A. finally acknowledged its role in the effort to overthrow Mossadegh. Today, the United States’ meddling 70 years ago continues to shape international relations and diplomacy.

“It’s a little bit like two rail lines, they run parallel but they never come together,” said Steven Kinzer, a former New York Times correspondent who covered the region. “Until somehow that logjam can be broken, these two countries are going to remain lamentably separated.”