From Mosaddegh to Today: How Cold War Coups Explain the Iran War

Drawing on decades of research, Al-Marashi traces the emergence of American “hybrid warfare” from World War II through the Cold War, examining key moments such as the 1953 coup in Iran and the 1954 overthrow of Jacobo Árbenz in Guatemala. He will discuss how these interventions established a strategic playbook that combined military force with political and economic pressure.

The talk will also consider the long arc of U.S.–Iran relations, from early Cold War tensions to the 1979 revolution and subsequent decades of conflict, including the 1980 hostage rescue attempt and the 1988 downing of an Iranian passenger aircraft.

Extending this framework into the present, Al-Marashi will examine how hybrid warfare has evolved in the twenty-first century, connecting Cold War precedents to more recent events in Venezuela, the July 2025 conflict, and the ongoing war with Iran.

The program will be followed by a complimentary reception in the garden.

Ibrahim al-Marashi is an Associate Professor of History at California State University, San Marcos, visiting faculty at The American College of the Mediterranean, in Aix-en-Provence, the Department of International Relations at Central European University, in Vienna, and teaches corporate intelligence at International University of Monaco. His publications include Iraq’s Armed Forces: An Analytical History (2008), The Modern History of Iraq (2017), and A Concise History of the Middle East (2024).

As the museum will be closed during this program, please enter through the garden side gate, which will open 30 minutes before the start time. Theater doors open 15 minutes before the start time. Seating is first come, first served. An RSVP does not guarantee admission once capacity is reached. No late entry.

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