SAVAK (Persian: ساواک, short for سازمان اطلاعات و امنیت کشور Sazeman-e Ettelaat va Amniyat-e Keshvar, Organization for Intelligence and National Security) was the domestic security and intelligence service of Iran from 1957–1979. Persian (Local names: فارسی Fârsi or پارسی Pârsi)* is an Indo-European language spoken in Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan as well as by minorities in Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, India, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Southern Russia, neighboring countries, and elsewhere. ... The following is a partial list of intelligence agencies, past and present. ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the song by the Smashing Pumpkins, see 1979 (song). ...

History

SAVAK was founded in 1957 with the assistance of the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Its mission was to place opponents of the Shah's regime under surveillance and to repress dissident movements through intimidation, exile, imprisonment, assassination, and torture. Though estimates vary widely, it was likely responsible for thousands of deaths. Its first director was General Teymur Bakhtiar, who was assassinated by SAVAK agents and replaced by General Hassan Pakravan. Pakravan was replaced in 1965 by General Nematollah Nassiri, a close associate of the Shah, and the service was reorganized and became increasingly active in the face of rising (actual) Islamic and (feared) Communist militancy and political unrest. Former director Pakravan and Nasiri were eventually executed by the Revolutionary Guard after the Islamic Revolution. 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an intelligence agency of the United States government. ... His Majesty Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi (اعلیحضرت محمدرضا شاه پهلوی; October 26, 1919 – July 27, 1980) also knows as Aryamehr, was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 until... Teymur Bakhtiar (تیمور بختیار in Persian) (1914–1970) was an Iranian general and the founder and head of SAVAK from 1958 to 1961, when he was dismissed by the Shah. ... Hassan Pakravan was an Iranian General and the second director of SAVAK, serving from 1961 to 1965. ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... General Nematollah Nassiri was the director of SAVAK, the Iranian intelligence agency during the rule of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. ... His Majesty Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi (اعلیحضرت محمدرضا شاه پهلوی; October 26, 1919 – July 27, 1980) also knows as Aryamehr, was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 until... Islam (Arabic:  ) is a monotheistic religion based upon the teachings of Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure. ... This article is about communism as a form of society and as a political movement. ... Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (Persian سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی - Sepah Pasdaran Enghaleb Islam-e), often shortened to Revolutionary Guards, or called by its Persian name Sepah, tranlated to English as Pasdaran, is a military organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran. ...

Operations

SAVAK had virtually unlimited powers of arrest and detention. It operated its own detention centers, like Evin Prison. SAVAK had routinely subjected detainees to physical torture according to some sources. In addition to domestic security the service's tasks extended to the surveillance of Iranians (especially students on government stipends) abroad, notably in the United States, France, and the United Kingdom. Evin Prison (زندان اوین) is a prison in Iran, located in the north of Tehran. ... A stipend is a form of payment or salary, such as for an internship or apprenticeship. ...

SAVAK agents often carried out operations against each other. Teymur Bakhtiar was assassinated by SAVAK agents in 1970, and Mansur Rafizadeh, SAVAK's United States director during the 1970s, reported that General Nassiri's phone was tapped. Hussein Fardust, a former classmate of the Shah, was a deputy director of SAVAK until he was appointed head of the Imperial Inspectorate, also known as the Special Intelligence Bureau, to watch over high-level government officials, including SAVAK directors. Fardust later became director of SAVAMA, the post-revolution carbon copy of the original SAVAK organization. Teymur Bakhtiar (تیمور بختیار in Persian) (1914–1970) was an Iranian general and the founder and head of SAVAK from 1958 to 1961, when he was dismissed by the Shah. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... General Nematollah Nassiri was the director of SAVAK, the Iranian intelligence agency during the rule of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. ... The Ministry of Intelligence (وزارت اطلاعات), is the primary intelligence agency of Iran. ...

Post-Revolution

Following the departure of the Shah in January 1979, SAVAK's 3,000 central staff were targeted for reprisals; many of the senior officials were executed. However, the organization was closed down shortly before the end of the monarchy and the gain of power by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in February 1979. Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Ruhollah Mosavi Khomeini ( ) (Persian: روح الله موسوی خمینی RÅ«ollāh MÅ«savÄ« KhomeynÄ« (May 17, 1900[1] – June 3, 1989) was a Shi`i Muslim cleric and marja (religious authority), and the political leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution which saw the overthrow of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah... For the song by the Smashing Pumpkins, see 1979 (song). ...

SAVAK has been replaced by the SAVAMA, Sazman-e Ettela'at va Amniat-e Melli-e Iran, later renamed the Ministry of Intelligence. The latter is also referred to as VEVAK, Vezarat-e Ettela'at va Amniat-e Keshvar, though Iranians and the Iranian press never employ this term and use its official name as a Ministry. According to informed observers, the new organization is structurally identical to the old one and retains most of the same people. A few local chiefs have been replaced. The new director of SAVAMA was deputy director of SAVAK: he was an old friend of the late Shah. The Ministry of Intelligence (وزارت اطلاعات), is the primary intelligence agency of Iran. ...

SAVAK Directors

• Teymur Bakhtiar (1957-1961)
• Hassan Pakravan (1961-1965)
• Nematollah Nassiri (1965-1978)
• Nasser Moghadam (1978-1979)

Teymur Bakhtiar (تیمور بختیار in Persian) (1914–1970) was an Iranian general and the founder and head of SAVAK from 1958 to 1961, when he was dismissed by the Shah. ... Hassan Pakravan was an Iranian General and the second director of SAVAK, serving from 1961 to 1965. ... General Nematollah Nassiri was the director of SAVAK, the Iranian intelligence agency during the rule of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. ... General Nasser Moghadam was the fourth and last director of SAVAK. He succeeded General Nematollah Nassiri, who was arrested as a scapegoat by the Shah in 1978 in an attempt to stave off the impending revolution. ...

See also

• VEVAK

The Ministry of Intelligence (وزارت اطلاعات), is the primary intelligence agency of Iran. ...

External links

• Ministry of Intelligence and Security VEVAK - Iran Intelligence Agencies at website of Federation of American Scientists