1 / 8

Iran

Iran. Culture. many ethnic groups (Persian dominant group) speak Farsi Shia majority. Oil. 60-85% of national revenue Reserves: 3 rd largest in ME 4 th largest in world. US-Iran relations. after WWII – friendly

svein
Download Presentation

Iran

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Iran

  2. Culture • many ethnic groups (Persian dominant group) • speak Farsi • Shia majority

  3. Oil • 60-85% of national revenue • Reserves: 3rd largest in ME 4th largest in world

  4. US-Iran relations • after WWII – friendly • Shah (king) Mohammad Reza Pahlavi looked to US for help with modernization • 1950s-60s the shah used oil wealth for economic and social reforms: health care, education, water, roads, women given right to vote • Islamic based laws changed to laws based on justice • Shah’s reforms created a small wealthy class (westernized)

  5. Islamic Revolution • religious leaders felt Islamic traditions were being replaced • alliance with US criticized • shah's gov't • corrupt • didn’t help the poor • used secret police to silence critics • 1979 shah fled b/c of unrest

  6. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini • fundamentalist against western influence • made Iran a theocracy: nation ruled by religious leaders • Koran basis of laws

  7. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini • women wear veils in public and lost right to vote • banned western movies and music • 52 Americans held hostage for 15 months • US imposed a trade boycott - hurt Iran's economy (video clip)

  8. today • use western technology, but reject values • nuclear weapons scandal • June 2009: President Ahmadinejad wins disputed re-election • http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/06/13/iran.election/#cnnSTCVideo

More Related