Iran and the U.S., Part One: Four Days in August

This message comes from Progressive Insurance and the name your price tool. It helps you find car insurance options in your budget. Try it today at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Price and coverage match limited by state law. Not available in all states. Hey. It's Rand. We're all watching the current conflict between The United States and Iran, and it got us thinking about the origins of the incredibly complex relationship between these two countries. Today, we're bringing you the very first episode of THROUGHLINE, the story of how The US overthrew Iran's democratically elected prime minister back in 1953. It first ran in 2019, but it's just as relevant today as it was then. 08/15/1953. Shortly before midnight in Tehran, Iran's capital city, the air was thick with anticipation. Something big was about to happen. The elected prime minister of Iran, Mohammed Musa Del, was sitting at home, waiting. He knew something was coming. And he had no idea he'd still be prime minister by morning. So So with each tick, tick, tick of the clock, he knew that the future of Iran was at stake. One truckload of presidential guard soldiers were going to Mosaddegh's house at midnight. Their mission was simple. Go to Mosaddegh's house in the middle of the night. Knock on the door. Tell him he's fired. Mosaddegh would then protest undoubtedly and say, you can't fire me. I'm elected. And at that point, you would arrest him. That failed because Mosaddegh found out about the arrest. News of it leaked out. Then, there was a bit of panic among the army that was supposed to come out and support the arrest of Mossadegh. The phone lines were supposed to be cut. They were not cut. So there were a number of missteps that took place. And when the soldiers arrived at Mosaddegh's house to arrest him, other soldiers jumped out of the woods and arrested those guys. Mosaddegh's forces had foiled a coup attempt. He would stay prime minister. But little did he know, that night was just the beginning of a much bigger battle to come, and it would change the future of Iran and America. Iran British hating Premier Mosaddegh arrived in Cairo. Over premier Mosaddegh's growing house is a mute testimony to three days of bloody rioting culminating in a military coup. For the first time now, the CIA has released documents that show its role in the nineteen fifty three coup. You're listening to THROUGHLINE Where we go back in time to understand the present. Alright. Ronteen, you were born in Iran, and you've spent a bunch of time there. So I'm curious, how much had you heard about this American coup growing up? I definitely heard stuff about it, especially from my father, who would remind me all the time, like, the only reason we're here in The US is because what The US did to our democracy in 1953. Right? And, I would always just …