Great post. I would only add (1) that Khomeini's nationalism makes a lot more sense in the context of his being a 13 year-old boy who watched British ("Dunsterforce") and Russian troops march roughshod all over his country in 1915, and (2) the regime's atomic power ambitions are more understandable when you start asking how the clerics intend to provide 150 million people with electricity.
Ottoman and Russian in the main though it would be unclear Khomeini witnessed any of this since he did not live in north-western Iran. Dunsterforce didn’t enter Iran until the spring of 1918 and was far too small -certainly to begin with - to have a significant impact on the economy. As for energy needs, true up to a point although Iran’s civil nuclear programme would have be substantively larger than current plans allow to cater for a population of that size and more to point Iran has the second largest reserves of natural gas, largely untouched.
Apart from the assassination of soleimani, there was the assassination of Fakhrizadeh, the godfather of Iran’s nuclear programme whose death sparked discussion in Iran about vulnerabilities within the security establishment that had facilitated it. There was also another senior IRGC official whose name sadly escapes me at the moment.
I'm glad I joined this substack. I learn stuff!
I'm feeling optimistic about this revolution.
Great post. I would only add (1) that Khomeini's nationalism makes a lot more sense in the context of his being a 13 year-old boy who watched British ("Dunsterforce") and Russian troops march roughshod all over his country in 1915, and (2) the regime's atomic power ambitions are more understandable when you start asking how the clerics intend to provide 150 million people with electricity.
And thank you!
Ottoman and Russian in the main though it would be unclear Khomeini witnessed any of this since he did not live in north-western Iran. Dunsterforce didn’t enter Iran until the spring of 1918 and was far too small -certainly to begin with - to have a significant impact on the economy. As for energy needs, true up to a point although Iran’s civil nuclear programme would have be substantively larger than current plans allow to cater for a population of that size and more to point Iran has the second largest reserves of natural gas, largely untouched.
“The recent spate of assassinations of individuals hitherto thought untouchable”. Can someone give some examples? I must’ve missed this news.
Apart from the assassination of soleimani, there was the assassination of Fakhrizadeh, the godfather of Iran’s nuclear programme whose death sparked discussion in Iran about vulnerabilities within the security establishment that had facilitated it. There was also another senior IRGC official whose name sadly escapes me at the moment.