2.4 KiB
| category | tags | summary | born | died | location | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Political Figure |
|
First prime minister of revolutionary Iran under Khomeini who sought to normalize relations with the U.S. before being ousted by extremists. | 1907-09-01 | 1995-01-20 | Tehran, Iran |
Mehdi Bazargan was the first prime minister appointed by the revolutionary government of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in Iran. He was a member of the National Front and a supporter of Mohammed Mossadegh, representing Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini compromise between the fundamentalists and the middle class.1
Mehdi Bazargan believed that both the Soviet Union and the United States were evil, but preferred the United States to the "godless communists." He sought to normalize relations with Washington, D.C. and allowed the United States Embassy in Tehran to operate, continuing to deal with the United States.1
Mehdi Bazargan faction was in a tense power struggle with extremist fundamentalist groups who opposed any relationship with the United States. Israel intelligence, concerned about an imminent Iraq attack on Iran, urged Jimmy Carter to support Mehdi Bazargan government, as he was willing to negotiate with the United States and accept help in reorganizing his military. However, the Jimmy Carter administration adopted a hands-off policy.1
Mehdi Bazargan desperately needed United States arms and help against the Iraq threat. He resigned on November 4, 1979, after radical "students" took over the United States Embassy and held staff hostage, a desperate attempt to draw attention to themselves due to the lack of United States aid.1
Earl Brian and Robert McFarlane arranged a meeting with Mehdi Bazargan in late January 1980 in Tehran to discuss the hostage situation. Mehdi Bazargan was still thought to be very close to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Mehdi Karrubi.1
Footnotes
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Ben-Menashe, Ari. Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network. Sheridan Square Press, 1992 (TrineDay reprint, 2015). ↩︎