The current conflict in Iran can be seen to have started at a certain point throughout history. Much of the instability and conflict that Iran is facing has sourced from a single event in its history. There was a time where Iran was democratic and peaceful. But after Operation Ajax in 1953, the course Iran took as a nation slowly built up towards this extremist state it is today.

Operation Ajax, also known as Operation Boot, was the coup that occurred against the democratically elected popular prime minister Mohammed Mossadegh who was replaced by General Zahedi, who aligned himself with the Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Shah.

_Mossadegh

He created and led the political movement, National Front, which was focused on nationalising Iranian oil which at the time was controlled by the Anglo Iranian Oil Company (AIOC), now known as BP. The AIOC was nationalised in 1914 by the UK government and had from 1901 the right to explore and exploit oil fields in the entire territory of Iran for the period of sixty year. This conflict between Mossadegh’s desire for a national Iranian oil company and the UK’s desire to keep their nationalized business is what caused the 1953 coup in Iran.

Britain’s replacement of Mossadegh with the Shah was devastating for the future of Iran. The Shah acted as a tyrannical leader, ruling for 37 years. He banned religious headwear wearing outdoors, he banned all opposition parties, turning Iran into a 1 party state. Additionally, he censored the media, newspapers, books and broadcasting were all heavily censored by the regime. Finally, he enforced all of this through SAVAK, his secret police which he created with support from the US and Israel which enacted brutal torture, detention and murder to silence political opponents to the Shah.

The Shah would eventually in 1979 be overthrown by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in the Islamic revolution.

After the Islamic revolution, the US allowed the Shah to seek exile in their lands, this is where his son, Reza Pahlavi resides today who still fights for Pahlavi rule to return to Iran. Fearing a second repeat of the 1953 Coup, radical Iranian students stormed the US Embassy and took control, starting the Iranian hostage crisis. This only worsened relations between Iran and the US.

Iran continued after this with heavy sanctions, which forced Iran to adapt itself towards an unconventional type of warfare. In the Islamic Republic’s viewpoint, competing with the US military head on is impossible. Instead, Iran started funding and arming groups across the Middle East, like Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen, creating a network to protect themselves from another Western coup.

This build-up of proxy groups and hidden weapons is what created the current warfare we see today. Because the US pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal and put even harsher sanctions on Iran, the conflict has turned cold. Today, this warfare involves regular drone strikes on US bases, cyberattacks, and threats to global shipping lanes.

In conclusion, the involvement the West had in Iran’s politics throughout their recent history led to a sense of resentment from Iran towards the west. This eventually led to the current conflicts, such as the 2026 Iran war and the 12 Day war in 2025.