Iran’s perilous path

Shah of Persia, Reza Shah Pahlavi (1877 - 1944) in military uniform. (Photo by General Photographic Agency/Getty Images)

25 Feb 1975, St.-Moritz, Switzerland --- From left to right: Reza II Pahlavi, the Crown Prince, their father, the Shah of Iran Mohammed Reza Shah Pahlavi, his wife and mother HIM Farah Pahlavi Empress (or Shahbanu) of Iran, holding their youngest daughter, Leila Pahlavi during a winter vacation. --- Image by © James Andanson/Sygma/Corbis

BLACK FRIDAY - This picture was frontpaged by Iranian newspaper Kayhan, Thursday, February 22, 1979, and capition stated it was taken in Jaleh square, Teheran, September 08, 1978. It shows Shah's troops who surrounded the crowd. Many victims lie in the middle of the street. Paper added that several of these pictures have been locked in a safe, waiting for the proper time to be published. (AP-PHOTO/em/HO)

Islamic Fundamentalist cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, center, waves to followers as he appears on the balcony of his headquarters in Tehran, Iran on Friday, Feb. 2, 1978, the second day of his return from exile. Thousands jammed surrounding streets to get a view of the Ayatollah. (AP Photo/Campion)

One of 60 American hostages-his hands bound blindfolded-is displayed to the crowd outside the American embassy in Tehran, Nov. 9, 1979. Some of the militant Iranian students who seized the embassy in the Iranian capital flank the hostage. (AP Photo)

27th September 1980, Abadan, Jazire-ye Abadan, Iran --- An Iranian soldier watches as smoke billows from multiple burning oil refineries in Abadan, Iran. Abadan, which contains a high concentration of oil fields and refineries, became a front-line city during the Iran-Iraq War, resulting in most of the city being destroyed by Iraqi attacks. --- Image by © Henri Bureau/Sygma/Corbis

(TEH-4) Funeral for Airbus victims - Seventy-six coffins containing the remains of some of the 290 victims of the Iran Air passenger plane which was shot down Sunday in the Persian Gulf by the USS Vincennes are arrange in a line in front of the Iranian parliament prior to a funeral procession in Theran Thursday, according to the official Iranian news agency which released this photo. (AP-Photo/IRNA) 7.7.1988

Mourners reach out to the body of Iran's leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini as his broken coffin is passed overhead during funreal ceremonies for the Islamic fundamentalist in Tehran, June 6, 1989. The Iranian news agency reported eight people killed and hundreds injured in the crowd's frenzy during the funeral. (AP Photo)

Carrying pictures of Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, women march in downtown Tehran Saturday, May 23, 1998, to celebrate the anniversary of his election last year. Khatami's landslide victory against a hard-liner on May 23 shook the foundations of Iran's clerical rule. The 20 million people who voted for him, mainly women and students, have claimed his victory as a triumph for civil liberties in this Islamic republic. (CP Photo/Mohammad Sayyad)

29 Jan 2002, Washington DC, United States --- President George W. Bush makes his first State of the Union address to a Joint Session of Congress. --- Photo by Martin H. Simon/Corbis SABA --- Image by © Martin H. Simon/Corbis

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad watches to his supporters during a public meeting in Kermanshah, Iran on December 19, 2006. Photo by Parspix/ABACAUSA.COM (Pictured : Mahmoud Ahmadinejad)

Students tear up a picture of U.S. President-elect Barack Obama during an anti-Israel and anti-U.S. rally outside the former U.S. embassy in Tehran January 20, 2009. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN)

Former Iranian prime minister and presidential candidate, Mir Hossein Mousavi, waves to his supporters during a campaign rally at Enghelab (Revolution) stadium in the city of Karaj, 40 km west of Tehran, Iran on June 6, 2009. Mousavi, a moderate, has emerged as the main challenger to hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who is seeking a second term in office. Photo by Farzaneh Khademian/ABACAUSA.COM (Pictured : Mir Hossein Mousavi)

Thousands of supporters of Iran's hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (portraits) wave national flags during a massive rally to celebrate his victory in the presidential elections in Tehran's Valiasr square on June 14, 2009. Ahmadinejad defended his June 12 re-election but his defeated rival, Mir Hossein Mousavi, demanded the result be scrapped, setting the stage for further tense confrontations after the authorities cracked down on opposition protests. AFP PHOTO/ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

People carry the body of a man allegedly shot by pro-government militia near a rally supporting leading opposition presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi in Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 15, 2009. Hundreds of thousands gathered in Azadi (Freedom) square in Tehran to support Mousavi, who claims there was election fraud in Friday's vote.(AP photo)