BBC Discovers Brutality, Skips Western Meddling Chapter
The BBC's recent exposé on morgue videos from Tehran, showing nearly 200 bodies from protest crackdowns, paints a grim picture. While focusing on the brutality of the Iranian government, the narrative conveniently omits the well-documented history of Western interference. Have we forgotten the 1953 CIA-MI6 coup that overthrew Iran's democratically elected prime minister Mossadegh, installing the
Shah and paving the way for decades of authoritarian rule? (See: 'Mohammad Mossadegh and the 1953 Coup in Iran' by Mark J. Gasiorowski, International Journal of Middle East Studies, 1987). One might wonder if the same media outlets reporting on current crackdowns would dedicate similar fervor to, say, Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses, a key US ally and major purchaser of Western arms. Or
perhaps, the BBC's selective outrage is just another page from the 'regime change playbook,' where condemnation is amplified when it aligns with geopolitical interests, priming audiences for increased sanctions or intervention, rather than genuine concern for human rights. It’s easier to point fingers at Tehran than to acknowledge the long shadow of Western policies that, some argue, created this
very environment.