While revealing new details about one of the most famed CIA operations of all times — the spiriting out of six American diplomats who escaped the 1979 U.S. Embassy seizure in Iran — the intelligence agency for the first time has acknowledged something else as well.

The CIA now officially describes the 1953 coup it backed in Iran that overthrew its prime minister and cemented the rule of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi as undemocratic.

Other American officials have made similar remarks in the past, but the CIA’s acknowledgment in a podcast about the agency’s history comes as much of its official history of the coup remains classified 70 years after the putsch. That complicates the public’s understanding of an event that still resonates, as tensions remain high between Tehran and Washington over the Islamic Republic’s rapidly advancing nuclear program, its aiding of militia groups across the Mideast and as it cracks down on dissent.

The “CIA’s leadership is committed to being as open with the public as possible,” the agency said in a statement responding to questions from The Associated Press. “The agency’s podcast is part of that effort — and we knew that if we wanted to tell this incredible story, it was important to be transparent about the historical context surrounding these events, and CIA’s role in it.”

  • @Stamets@startrek.website
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    1 year ago

    Really frustrating that this article does what Argo did and turn the entire rescue operation into an American affair, completely ignoring the fact that the Canadians were integral to every single part of the plan. Also that the Canadians were putting themselves in extreme risk to help the Americans. However by looking at that movie and this article you’d think that it was completely resolved by 2 CIA agents. Former president Jimmy Carter even said that “90 percent of the contributions to the ideas and the consummation of the plan was Canadian but Argo gives almost full credit to the CIA.”

    Getting a little tired of his historical erasure when Canadians were the ones who risked literally everything to save the Americans. You guys claim the hero role in so much. Please just let us keep ours, damn. Not bad enough that the Canadian hero who was at the center of all this had to fly to LA to change the Argo ending because it was so outrageously offensive to Canada. At least that was a movie. Meanwhile CIA can publicly acknowledge overthrowing entire governments but can’t give me and my Leaf People a single shred of credit.

    • @CosmicTurtle@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      This isn’t limited to Argo. Hollywood absolutely steals real life events and turns them into America is Awesome movies.

      U-571 should have been about the British navy.

      Let’s not look past the white washing of stories as well. Last Samurai. Now You See Me 21…both movies where the stories are about Asians but played by Caucasians.

      • Skua
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        Funnily enough, Last Samurai belongs in the first category too. There were some real-life white military officers who were employed as advisors and ended up fighting against the Meiji government in the late 18th century. They were French, though, not American.

      • @Stamets@startrek.website
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        I completely agree with all your points except for the last movie you mention. Unless there’s another movie I’m unaware of called Now You See Me, that movie is about a handful of ‘magicians’ who ‘rob a bank’ and then piss off the FBI. There are no main characters in the movie that are Asian at all. That’s probably a problem of it’s own, but there’s no instance of white washing there.

          • @Stamets@startrek.website
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            I don’t know if anyone from 21 was involved in NYSM but I get your confusion. A lot of the stylistic choices of the movie are pretty similar.

            So yeah, then I 100% back everything you say buddy. Hollywood is a fucking wreck.

            Also I dunno who’s downvoting you but that’s pretty shitty of them.

      • @skozzii@lemmy.ca
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        91 year ago

        Every Hollywood movie is re-written to have the American be the hero, this is no different.

    • @some_guy
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      231 year ago

      I had a history professor who was a freedom fighter from Chile. He taught us Colonial American History. Gave me a lot of new appreciation for how people were harmed in the settling of the New World. Spoke of the fear of the black cloud of the USA in South America. Great course.

    • SeaJ
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      101 year ago

      That one will take another 20 years.

      • SeaJ
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        1 year ago

        Allende was not a communist…

        And no, having a coup against democratically elected leaders is not moral at all.

        • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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          Couping nazis our would’ve been nice but I guess I’m the only one here who gives a shit about minority lives.

          Edit also he was

          • SeaJ
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            The Nazis were not voted into power by a majority. His appointment was undemocratic. They also suspended elections. That is a shit example.

            And no, Allende was not communist. He was left leaning but he was far from a communist. Anyone with a cursory knowledge of the situation knows that. You are clearly just trolling.

            • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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              -161 year ago

              The Nazis were not voted into power by a majority.

              They were

              His appointment was undemocratic.

              Perfectly in-line with the laws at the time.

              They also suspended elections.

              After the fact.

              Allende was not communist.

              “…has been described as the first Marxist to be elected president in a liberal democracy in Latin America.[9][10][11]”

              “…create the society of communism which Marxists see as true democracy”

              I’m literally reading wikipedia for you lmao. Try again after you read a book or two young lad.

              • SeaJ
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                The Nazis never got more than 37% of the vote. A majority is more than 50%. In their last election they got less than 33%. Hitler’s appointment was not democratic. I don’t give a shit of the laws if the Weimar Republic allowed it. That does not make it democratic.

                We all know Wikipedia is the epitome of truth. 🙄 He was a democratic socialist by the time he was killed and never supported any sort of dictatorship. He was not pushing communism when he was president. Nationalization of basic resources, sure but that is a fast cry from communism. It is silly that the US even got involved. The Vuskovic Plan was failing and the next election likely would have resulted in a right wing government anyway.

                • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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                  -61 year ago

                  You should give a shit what the democracy in weimar allowed, that’s the point.

                  But you don’t care about the conversation, you want to brainwash people into thinking commies don’t want lgbtq+ killed.

          • @GlendatheGayWitch@lib.lgbt
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            How do you give a shit about minority lives? You’re defending Pinochet who led the coup in Chile and built concentration camps for political opponents. He followed in the footsteps of the nazis.

            Edit: fixed weird autocorrect

            • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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              -121 year ago

              Fix your opinion next time.

              There are rarely perfect options in politics. Anything is better than genocidal communists tho.

              • @Nacktmull@lemm.ee
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                Allende was a democratic socialist and legitimized by a democratic vote, he was neither genocidal nor communist. Pinochet on the other hand was a fascist dictator who ended democracy in Chile and sent political opposition to torture/death camps. Please educate yourself about history instead of spreading such ridiculous falsehoods …

        • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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          -421 year ago

          Commies trying not to be bloodthirsty killers responsible for murders of thousands of lgbtq+ community members and genociding entire ethnic minorities challenge: impossible

          Honestly the CIA and american power projection is responsible for the majority of peace in the modern world and we are in great debt to them for it

              • @Draedron@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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                191 year ago

                Same can be said about fascism. Or capitalism. Look at how many people want to remove rights of lgbtq in americs. Look how the nazis treated homosexuals (and communists)

                • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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                  -231 year ago

                  I mean, fascism is just an umbrella term for communism, nazism etc. Capitalism really is just the existence of money in terms of servicing transactions, something that has brought immense value to the world. How lemmy looks at issues like police brutality and concludes 'welp thats capitalism" is honestly kinda weird. Thought it was a joke at first but now I’m not that sure.

              • V H
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                31 year ago

                “They had the right colour uniform on when they carried out the mass murder, and that makes it better” <- how you come across.

                • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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                  -71 year ago

                  I don’t care how I come across to a violent conservative. I’m right, have not been proven wrong and absolutely mopping the floor with fascists atm.

                  Brigading, purposeful misunderstanding and enraged lashouts from you guys is only expected

            • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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              -171 year ago

              Define capitalism for me please. You’ll find it to be quite an extensive term, useless for these conversations. Prefer terms such as fascism, as fascism always leads to atrocities, regardless of the economic model, whereas there are of course plenty of capitalist countries with near-perfect human rights situations.

              It’s like saying I don’t like scarves and you come in and ask me to be consistent and feel the same way about all clothing.

              • @GiveMemes@jlai.lu
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                Can you define communism in the same way for me, please?

                I think you’ll find that your understanding of the subject, which, for the record, is just as vast as ‘capitalism’ is flawed.

                Communism and capitalism are economic systems.

                Fascism is a political ideology.

                You’re literally doing the arguing for me.

                • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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                  -121 year ago

                  Can you define communism in the same way for me, please?

                  Mass murder of minorities, for example sexual minorities. Genocide of ethnic minorities. Scared of those rich people with money, consolidates power and money to a closer set of people. Apparently also seizing the means of production plays a part in the lore but it’s really a secondary thing, it’s mostly mass murder.

                  Communism and capitalism are economic systems.

                  “Communism (from Latin communis, ‘common, universal’)[1][2] is a left-wing to far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology

                  If you’re going on the semantic route of arguing, make sure you’re even just a little bit right.

          • Dude I pull my ideology from the pre-soviet american socialists. Think IWW, me being a bloodthirsty asshole aint got jack shit to do with my economic ideology, my bloodthirst is from my social ideology which is largely seperate. Id sink my axe into a tankie just as easily as a fascist, blood is blood it spills all the same.

          • @emax_gomax@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Peace? There’s no global war but that’s less because of the US and more because of the UN. But there’s still conflict all over the place and many timeses because the US stuck its nose in something that was none of its business, f*cked shit up and then ran away leaving everyone else to deal with the fallout.

            • @SaakoPaahtaa@lemmy.world
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              -61 year ago

              Oh hey you’re the guy from my kindergarten, exactly the same arguments too!

              How you been? Still believe moonlandings were fake? That covid-thing must’ve got you riled up haha

  • Jennie
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    171 year ago

    cool. what do they want us to do now? applaud them for finally admitting something (that was obvious anyway) after 70 years?

  • V H
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    91 year ago

    I remember growing up in the 1980’s and 90’s when there were still a horrifying amount of people who refused to believe CIA did things like that at all, even in a relatively left-wing country like Norway.