Thirty-five years ago, the monarchy of the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was toppled and replaced by a government led by Islamic cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. On February 11, 1979, revolutionary forces and rebel troops seized control in Iran, paving the way for Khomeini's elevation to power.
Anniversary: Iran's 1979 Revolution
![Protesters hold a portrait of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini during the 1979 revolution.](https://gdb.rferl.org/95d1171e-43f0-4ea3-8853-f90526779966_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Protesters hold a portrait of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini during the 1979 revolution.
![Iranian demonstrators in Tehran show support for the return of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.](https://gdb.rferl.org/d5300a06-ae55-4817-9a8b-722c9a59c33e_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Iranian demonstrators in Tehran show support for the return of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
![Khomeini greets supporters on February 1, 1979, the day of his return from exile in France.](https://gdb.rferl.org/f4e362cc-442e-4050-958a-dedb60428c59_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Khomeini greets supporters on February 1, 1979, the day of his return from exile in France.
![Supporters of the Islamic revolution demonstrate in Tehran, February 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/d6beb461-f29b-4f88-99e4-0e5a4113d66f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Supporters of the Islamic revolution demonstrate in Tehran, February 1979.
![Khomeini at the Behesht Zahra cemetery on the day he returned from Paris, February 1, 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/d8954b88-068a-4bd9-b2b3-0a4f63c5b503_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Khomeini at the Behesht Zahra cemetery on the day he returned from Paris, February 1, 1979.
![Some one million people gather in Freedom Square in Tehran as the Iranian Revolution begins in 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/709bfc6d-8d33-4cba-9b88-f2fd4dbfb684_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Some one million people gather in Freedom Square in Tehran as the Iranian Revolution begins in 1979.
![Women hold portraits of Khomeini in 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/d412e62e-28b3-48bc-8986-2ab814f61bfd_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Women hold portraits of Khomeini in 1979.
![Supporters of the Islamic revolution demonstrate in Tehran in 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/31cd7f75-c26e-4c49-bfc4-6c0c50298fe3_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Supporters of the Islamic revolution demonstrate in Tehran in 1979.
![Large fires erupted in Tehran during the fall of Shah Reza Pahlavi's regime in February 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/c94cbc76-cef5-4c5b-a315-06f741531021_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Large fires erupted in Tehran during the fall of Shah Reza Pahlavi's regime in February 1979.
![Islamist students take over the U.S. embassy in support of the Iranian revolution in November 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/72273140-f93d-464d-b14f-bec2cbb92ef6_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Islamist students take over the U.S. embassy in support of the Iranian revolution in November 1979.
![American hostages in Iran during seizure of the U.S. embassy by Islamist students.](https://gdb.rferl.org/3ede7f28-76db-441d-a840-3eafe76002c1_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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American hostages in Iran during seizure of the U.S. embassy by Islamist students.
![Khomeini introduces Mehdi Bazargan as interim prime minister during the Islamic revolution in February 1979.](https://gdb.rferl.org/5ed4ebc7-ff1b-4f36-b826-c7ad848ccb1f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Khomeini introduces Mehdi Bazargan as interim prime minister during the Islamic revolution in February 1979.
![The front page of the "Kayhan" newspaper on February 11, 1979, dedicated to Iran's revolution.](https://gdb.rferl.org/55bf8c36-8e1a-49dc-84df-1580dab1348f_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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The front page of the "Kayhan" newspaper on February 11, 1979, dedicated to Iran's revolution.