Turkish Journal of Iranian Studies (TJIS) 6th issue.

Social movements have strategic functions for terrorist organizations. Accordingly, terrorist organizations try to instrumentalize social movements. In this context, the types of instrumentalization of social movements by terrorist organizations can be classified in three different ways: “narrativistic,” “tactical” and “seizing.” This study examines the instrumentalization strategy used by the PKK/PJAK during the Mahsa Amini protests in Iran in 2022. In this context, it tries to explain how the PKK/PJAK transformed the protests into a “Jin, Jiyan, Azadi” campaign as a result of the use of these three different forms of instrumentalization in line with its own organizational propaganda strategy. The methodological approach of the study was qualitative research. A literature review on terrorist organizations and social movements was conducted. Organizational data on the PKK/PJAK’s exploitation of the Mahsa Amini protests in Iran in 2022 was then collected and classified. In this context, the study sought to answer the following research questions: Why do terrorist groups seek to instrumentalize or exploit social movements? Under which circumstances and how terrorist organizations can instrumentalize social movements? How did the PKK/PJAK exploit and instrumentalize the social movement in 2022, in Iran, and how did it transform this movement into the Jin, Jiyan, Azadi campaign in the context of its organizational strategy?

In this study, the relationship between Iran and Al Qaeda has been treated as a case analysis related to the accusations of levelled against Iran by the US. It examines issues related to the relationship's historical background, the relationship's context, and structural changes. According to the research on this topic, several analyses show that the relationship between Iran and Al-Qaeda can be traced back to the period before 11 September 2001. The number of studies on Iran-Al Qaeda relations has increased significantly since 9/11. This is because the relationship between Iran and al-Qaeda has acquired a new dimension. The study aims to provide a comparative perspective by examining American foreign policy rhetoric, al-Qaeda leaders' statements, Iranian politicians' arguments, intelligence documents, academic studies, and news for objective analysis. The study's primary concern is to discuss the structure of the relationship between Iran and al-Qaeda and to analyse and conceptualize the factors that bring these two groups closer or further apart, which have two different sects and agendas. A literature review shows differing views on how Iran and al-Qaeda are related, but a common conceptual consensus has yet to emerge. This study uses the “process tracing method” to examine Iran-al Qaeda relations.

This article examines the oil nationalization crisis in Iran between 1951 and 1953, and the role of the U.S. Ambassador to Iran, Loy Henderson, in these events. Henderson’s tenure marked a critical period in U.S.- Iran relations, during which significant events occurred, such as the nationalization of Iran’s oil, the expulsion of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC) from Iran, and the subsequent coup against Mosaddegh. The nationalization of oil and the 1953 coup against Mosaddegh have attracted considerable attention from researchers, resulting in numerous studies on the subject. However, most of these studies focus on the policies of top decision-makers in the U.S. and Iran. In contrast, the role of U.S. Ambassador to Iran, Loy Henderson, who served between 1951 and 1954, has not received sufficient attention. Henderson sought to resolve the oil crisis diplomatically in line with U.S. interests, but he was unable to reach an agreement between the UK and Iran. Despite this, Henderson played an active role in the economic pressure applied to the Mosaddegh government and the 1953 coup against Mosaddegh. This study examines Henderson’s role in U.S.-Iran relations during the oil crisis of 1951-1953, focusing on this topic through FRUS archival documents and an interview with Henderson conducted as part of the Oral History project at the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum. The article argues that Henderson played a key role in resolving the oil crisis in line with U.S. interests. Henderson actively defended American interests in Iran, maintained relations with the Iranian government and the Shah, contributed to shaping U.S. policy in Iran, played an important role in the overthrow of Mosaddegh, in transferring control of Iranian oil to Western companies, and in the Shah’s return to power and the strengthening of his monarchy.

“Islam and Dissent in Postrevolutionary Iran: Abdolkarim Soroush, Religious Politics And Democratic Reform” is the introduction review of the book.

The Elamite Kingdom, founded in Southwestern Iran in the first quarter of the 3rd millennium BC by the Elamites, whose ethnic affiliation has not yet been definite, continued its political life until the middle of the 1st millennium BC. The Elamite Kingdom, the oldest and longest-lasting state in Iran, had a strong structure not only militarily and politically but also socio-culturally. One of the leading factors of this strong structure is the Elamite, which has survived to the present day through clay tablets and stone inscriptions. It is still being discussed which language family Elamite should be classified in, as it is known for certain that it does not belong to the Indo-European and Semitic language families. In this study, translated from English into Turkish, it is argued that Elamite and Turkish have similar aspects and various evidences are revealed in this direction. In this respect, the study is of interest not only to Elamologists and ancient historians, but also to Turkologists and philologists. Therefore, it was decided to translate this work, which has a rare place in its field, into Turkish, especially considering that it will contribute to the possible future studies of Turkish scholars on the Elamite-Turkish relationship. The study was written by Hâmit Zübeyir Koşay, one of Turkey’s leading philologists, archaeologists, historians and ethnographers. Koşay who realised that Elamite had similarities with Turkish during his research on Turkish and Turks, published the results he obtained by focusing on the Elamite-Turkish relationship in his several studies. This translated work is one of them. In the study, firstly, the migrations from various regions to Iranian lands in the Ancient Age and the socio-cultural developments in Iran in the Prehistoric Period are briefly discussed. Following these parts, the Elamite Kingdom was evaluated geographically, politically and culturally, and especially Bedrich Hrozny’s views on the Elamites and the Elamite Kingdom were included. In the last part of the study, the origin of the Elamites is analysed and the grammatical and lexical similarities between Elamite and Turkish are mentioned. In this section, which is supported by references to the papers of various scholars, grammatical similarities between Elamite and Turkish such as reduplication, possessive suffix and vowel harmony as well as the equivalents of seventeen Elamite words in Turkish are given. In conclusion, based on all these, the possibility that the Elamites and Turks may be ethnically related has been pointed out.