In 1979, American newspapers highlighted that Turks demanding autonomy for Azerbaijan and other non-Persian ethnic groups in Iran posed a significant threat to the Islamic Revolution.
According to reports from the U.S. media in 1979, after the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Turks demanding autonomy for Azerbaijan and other non-Persian ethnic groups in the country organized protests against the government established by Ayatollah Khomeini. American newspapers and the Associated Press provided detailed coverage, particularly about the Tabriz events in December 1979 and the Muslim People's Republic Party, founded by supporters of Ayatollah Shariyatmadari, which had taken control of the region.
The Register-Guard newspaper, published in Eugene, reported on Sunday, December 9, citing the Associated Press, that ethnic Turks were flying five military aircraft over Tabriz as a show of force and had taken control of Tabriz Radio and Television, the airport, and the mayor's office.
"Ethnic Turkish rebels flew five U.S.-made military planes over Tabriz as a demonstration of force against Ayatollah Khomeini’s central government in Tehran. Among the rebels were members of the Iranian armed forces who, on Thursday, took control of Tabriz Radio and Television, the airport, and expelled the provincial governor from his office," Register-Guard reported.
The newspaper also mentioned that Ayatollah Mohammad Kazem Shariyatmadari, the prominent Tabriz-based cleric, opposed the provisions in the new Islamic constitution that would establish a theocratic state in Iran and pave the way for Ayatollah Khomeini's lifelong rule.
According to Register-Guard, "During those days, an Iranian state television special program suggested that Rahmatullah Moghaddam, a political leader of the Turkish minority in Iran from Maragheh, was a U.S. spy."
On the following Monday, December 10, the Spokane Daily Chronicle reported under the headline "Turks Reject Khomeini," describing the events in Tabriz on Sunday. The report cited information from the Associated Press and NBC Television.
According to the newspaper, "Ethnic Turkish rebels in control of Tabriz repelled a delegation sent by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's regime after heavy fighting. In the battle, Khomeini supporters regained control of the Tabriz radio station and the governor's office, but were unable to hold them."
"The Revolutionary Guards on Thursday reclaimed the governor’s office taken by the Turks. Afterward, about 4,000 Khomeini supporters attacked the radio station and drove out 20 to 30 armed Turks. [Later] hundreds of Turks marched towards the station, chanting slogans in support of Khomeini. Khomeini’s supporters opened fire. Tens of thousands of Turks and local armed groups joined the march towards the station, retaking the building," Spokane Daily Chronicle added.
These events were also covered under the headline "The Uprising of Turks in Iran Intensifies" in the Milwaukee Sentinel on the same day.
On December 14, Schenectady Gazette (now Daily Gazette) published a short article titled "Iranians Protest Khomeini," reporting that approximately 100,000 protesters, dressed in white shrouds, marched through the dilapidated streets of Tabriz, chanting in Turkish, "We are neither East nor West, we are the children of Shariyatmadari," declaring their support for Ayatollah Shariyatmadari.
Schenectady Gazette also reported that after high-level meetings in Tabriz and the holy city of Qom, the Khomeini government announced "progress" in efforts to restore peace and address the demands for autonomy in the Azerbaijani region.
Months earlier, on April 3, 1979, the Sun Journal, published in Lewiston, wrote in an analysis that "the future of the Iranian Islamic Revolution depends on how the autonomy demands of the five main ethnic minority groups in the country – Turkmen, Turks, Kurds, Arabs, and Baluchis – are addressed."
The Sun Journal also published a map from the Associated Press showing the regions inhabited by these five ethnic groups.
NBC- Turkish people protest against Khomeini - 1980 - Tabriz, Iranian Azerbaijan
 Turks Reject Khomeini - Spokane Daily Chronicle – December 1979 |
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Fighting Intensifies in Tabriz – 12 Dead
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Ayatollah Mohammad Kazem Shariatmadari |
Link to the original article in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Təbriz üsyanı - Amerika qəzetləri 1979-cu ildə nə yazırdı? [Fotoqalereya & Video]