The fall and potential rise of Iran-Israel relations - opinion

Earlier this month, Iran’s exiled crown prince spoke of a world where Israel and Iran worked together on the world stage. It is hard to fathom an Iran that does not seek the destruction of Israel, but this was not always the case. For decades, Iran and Israel’s relationship was amicable until Iran fell into its current pit of darkness. Evaluating how Iran reached this point may shed light on how to pull the terror state back to normalcy. 

In 1979, Iran’s leader, shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was overthrown through an Islamic fundamentalist revolution that set the country back decades. The royal family was forced into exile, country-hopping in search of asylum. In this moment of darkness, it would have been easy for the Pahlavi family to fade away, living out their lives in luxury in a foreign land. Instead, the shah’s family decided to spend the next 45 years working to break through the shadow over Iran.

The shah also curried real favor internationally, having positive relations with Israel and a close friendship with US president Richard Nixon; they had known each other since Nixon’s days as vice president. For many, the shah was seen as the man who would turn Iran into a global power, which appeared accurate. Iran’s economy became a real force in the region and thrived culturally and academically. In qualitative and quantitative metrics, Iran was shifting in a positive direction for its people. 

It would be incorrect to say everyone felt the impacts; opportunity gaps did exist, and the government was accused of using police forces to silence political dissent. Some in Iran opposed reform efforts and took advantage of those who felt disenfranchised within the changing nation. These actors would seize their moment while the shah was seeking cancer treatment in the United States, paving the way for Islamic cleric Ruhollah Khomeini to return from his exile in France as the first supreme leader of Iran.

Losing an ally in the Middle East

Regardless of the shah’s connections, he had to travel to Egypt, Morocco, the Bahamas, and finally Mexico before being granted a haven. Upon his arrival in Mexico City, he was met by former president Nixon, who stated, “If the United States does not stand by its own friends, we are going to end up with no friends.” These words were brushed aside as president Jimmy Carter allowed the new regime to take hold in Iran, costing the US and Israel a valuable ally in the Mideast. 

Ayatollah Khomeini declared Iran an Islamic Republic and severed all ties to the Western world. The ayatollah’s followers took 53 hostages – American diplomats and citizens – during their overthrow of the government. 

All of the shah’s domestic advances cratered as Iran fell into a religious theocracy. Women were forced into strict dress codes and lost the social progress they had gained under the shah. This moment radically changed Iran’s trajectory; if any revolutionaries had hoped for a more equal and opportunistic nation, they would be tragically mistaken. 

Over the next half-century, Iran deeply sowed the roots of the revolution. Today, it is a terror state that props up terrorist cells across the Middle East. From Hamas and Hezbollah to the Houthis, Iran is directly raging war against Israel and neighboring nations that do not fit their model of sharia law. 

Within Iran, political opposition is subjected to arrests, forced disappearance, and execution. The regime executes hundreds of individuals annually, many without any form of due process or ability to access a fair judgment.

Although the shah passed away in 1980, his wife and son have continued his work for the last four decades. Empress Farah Pahlavi and Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi seek to promote democracy and religious freedom within Iran while bringing attention to ongoing human rights abuses by the regime. This work in exile goes beyond their mission; by continuing to speak out, the Pahlavi family provides opposition to the Islamic fundamentalists who hold their home hostage. 

Hope for a free Iran

The crown prince serves as a symbol for the Iranian diaspora and protesters in Iran who dream of a free Iran. Every time there is a protest or crack in the ayatollah’s regime, the Pahlavi family can be found promoting the cries of those in the streets who are seeking a better life. 

In honor of their work to save their home, the empress and crown prince will jointly receive the Architect of Peace Award at a gala dinner at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library in Yorba Linda, California, on October 22. 

The US failed to stand with this family after years of faithful friendship; president Carter sat by as an ally was toppled by forces that chanted “Death to America and Israel” and saw Western ideology and human rights as antithetical to their own. 

Former president Nixon was the only American representative at the shah’s funeral in Cairo, illustrating our abandonment of the shah in his final year. We should rectify that error by standing with his family and encouraging aid to pull Iran out of 45 years of turmoil. 

The writer was granted the American Israel Public Affairs Committee Activist of the Year Award in 2019 and 2020. He is an Arizona State University-Watts College of Public Service master of public policy graduate.