CONSPIRACY THEORY ?

CONSPIRACY THEORY ?

The story began when in October 1952 Mohammad Mosaddeq (1882-1967) declared Britain an enemy and cut off all diplomatic relations. Mosaddeq vehemently argued that Iran must begin profiting from its vast oil reserves instead of allowing Britain to exploit this rich resource as it had done for many years. The direct consequence of such a brave policy was that the British and American intelligence services reached the conclusion that the Prime Minister Mosaddeq should be ousted. The plot, known as Operation Ajax was in fact a coup d’état against a democratic, elected and very popular government of Mosaddeq. The coup which was organized and indirectly operated by the CIA and MI6 was in fact the very first chapter of this long story.

The perception of many Iranians about the British and their secret agenda towards Iran may clearly demonstrate in a very famous political satire called My Uncle Napoleon by Iranian author Iraj Pezeshkzad. The British government through out this novel is lampooned for being responsible for any event, no matter how trivial, that occurs in Iran. Apart from the hilarious aspect of this fiction, the story highlights a well accepted general belief amongst Iranians, the British government is a cunning old fox because of its vicious strategic abilities and the fact that it never gives up.

Since the revolution in 1979, the Anglo-Iranian political relationship has just been an emotional roller coaster. A series of dramatic events occurred over many years. These included the closure and reopening of the British embassy in Tehran, the religious edict issued by Khomeini to kill Salman Rushdie, the British government’s role in implementing sanctions against Iran because of its nuclear program and the last but not least seizing 15 Royal Navy personnel in the Persian Gulf. All these events indicate a deep and long lasting animosity between two governments. After all perhaps David Miliband made a valid point when he asked the Iranian government and the west not to be imprisoned by their history.

This dramatic story has another twist in its tail. The Iranian authorities have now put the embassy’s chief political analyst, Hossein Rassam on trial in Tehran. Rassam is accused of spying and inciting unrest over Ahmadinejad’s re-election in June. The Foreign Office announced the charges as unjustified and the trial as the latest Iranian provocation which can only bring about further discredit on the regime. As unpredictable as the fate of Hossein Rassam seems to be, there is a striking point here which should not be missed, Rassam is simply a hostage held by the Iranian authorities. The regime is going to use him in order to give the foreign powers a lesson not to cross the red lines which have clearly been identified by the Iranian government. Rassam as a political analyst is clearly not someone, who could by any stretch of the imagination, orchestrate a velvet revolution. Such accusation can only be possible if the prosecutor and the people behind the scene are motivated by the old British conspiracy theory in their minds

This trial, accusation of espionage and an attempt of the British government to promote a velvet revolution in Iran remind me of the words of a former British ambassador in Iran. He said, “Tehran was an interesting place to serve because it is one of the very few places left on earth where people still believe we have some influence.”

Shahin M