Shah leaves Iran, 1979 (The Royal Watcher)
SHAH'S REQUEST FOR AMERICAN AID GENERATES HUMANITARIAN CONFLICT
The admittance of the shah to the U.S. on medical grounds created a humanitarian conflict,
infuriating Iranians who blamed the American government for helping their enemy.
infuriating Iranians who blamed the American government for helping their enemy.
January 17, 1979, The New York Times
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In the midst of the revolutionary chaos the Ayatollah Khomeini returned and was soon the nation's new leader. Meanwhile, the self-exiled shah found he was truly a man without a country. |
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The shah requested entry to the U.S. on February 22, 1979. President Jimmy Carter encouraged him not to come. His admittance to the U.S. could be seen as the U.S. helping him return to power, which would anger the new Iranian government.
Lloyd Cutler's Congressional Research Service report "Iran-Regulations, Publications, 1–4/80”, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum,
January 2, 1980 (Click to enlarge) |
"Shah and Farah Pahlavi in exile at Morocco", Iran Politics Club
The shah was suffering from lymphatic cancer and residing in Mexico but required medical treatment only available in New York. When the shah’s condition came to light, Carter permitted the shah’s entrance into the U.S. on humanitarian grounds on October 23, 1979. Iranians were incensed.
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