What role did the CIA and MI6 play in the 1953 coup against Mohammad Mosaddegh?

The 1953 coup in Iran was a joint covert operation orchestrated by the United States and the United Kingdom to remove Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh from power and restore the authority of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi.12

Following Mosaddegh’s 1951 decision to nationalize the Iranian oil industry—which had been controlled by the British—the United Kingdom sought to destabilize his government. When initial British efforts to remove him failed, they persuaded the United States to join the operation by leveraging Cold War fears that Mosaddegh might align with the Soviet-backed Tudeh Party.13

The United States took the lead in the operation, known as Operation Ajax. The CIA utilized agents to foment unrest through media disinformation campaigns and the harassment of political and religious leaders. These efforts successfully culminated in the overthrow of Mosaddegh’s government in August 1953. While the CIA long denied its involvement, it formally disclosed its role in the coup in 2013. This intervention is widely considered a precursor to the 1979 Islamic Revolution.13