The coup overthrew Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq who nationalized Iran’s oil production in 1951 which had been under British control.
The 1953 Iranian coup d’etat was the overthrow of Mosaddeq in favor of strengthening the monarchical rule of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi on August 19 of that year.
Mosaddeq’s move became a source of serious concern for the US and Britain which saw their interests at grave risk.
Mosaddeq had earlier nationalized the Iranian oil industry and expelled the foreign corporate representatives from the country.
However, the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979 under the leadership of Imam Khomeini changed the course of history in the interest of Iranian nation.
Iranian nation led by Imam Khomeini took their destiny in their own hands and established an Islamic-democratic system.
Imam Khomeini in a historic address denounced the 1953 coup against the then elected Iranian government.
Recalling unpleasant events of 1953, Imam said that such nasty coup happened because of the then government had not attached enough significance to religious figures of that era. Imam also criticized the separation between religion and politics at the certain juncture of history.
In 2013, declassified documents said overthrow of elected prime minister Mossadegh was an act of US foreign policy and was carried out under CIA direction.
The ouster of the democratically elected Mossadegh and his replacement by the Western-backed autocracy of Shah Mohamed Reza Pahlavi set the context for the anti-American sentiment.