The Brief

The U.S. attacks on Iran over the weekend, in conjunction with the Israeli military, marked a stunning new phase in relations between the two countries.
But it is hardly the first time Washington and Tehran have clashed politically and militarily.

Here are some key historical moments between the U.S. and Iran.

1953: U.S. helps orchestrate coup that overthrows Mohammad Mosaddegh

Great Britain had controlled Iran's oil industry for decades, but in 1953 Iran's elected prime minister, Mohammad Mosaddegh, nationalized the country's oil sector.

That move prompted Great Britain to appeal to the U.S. for help, and what resulted was a CIA-led campaign to topple Mosaddegh's government. The coup allowed Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last shah (or king) of Iran, to consolidate power around himself. (The CIA, long suspected of having a hand in the revolt, officially acknowledged its role in 2013.)

Mosaddegh was imprisoned and later placed under house arrest until his death in 1967. Pahlavi went on to lead Iran for the next two and a half decades, becoming a strong U.S. ally.

1979: Iranian Revolution and U.S. hostage crisis

Iranian opposition leader in exile Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini gives a speech as journalists surround him at Roissy airport near Paris on Jan. 31, 1979, before boarding a plane bound for Tehran. Khomeini establishes an Islamic republic in Iran.

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In early 1979, following months of protests by secularists, Islamists and leftists against his autocratic rule, Pahlavi fled Iran and entered the U.S.

The revolution had been led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, a Shia cleric who was living in exile near Paris after being expelled by Pahlavi in 1964. Khomeini returned to Iran and oversaw the country's transition to an Islamic republic, becoming Iran's supreme leader. Khomeini established a hard-line theocracy and labeled America the "Great Satan."
In November of that year, a group of Iranian students stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran and captured 66 Americans.

A U.S. rescue attempt in the spring of 1980 codenamed Operation Eagle Claw, which was approved by President Jimmy Carter, was hampered by mechanical problems, a severe dust storm and a crash that killed eight service members. It failed to secure the release of the hostages.

After 444 days in captivity, the remaining 52 hostages were released on Jan. 20, 1981 — the day President Ronald Reagan was inaugurated.

Early 1980s: The Iran-Contra affair

Reagan's tenure was also marked by a now-infamous transaction with Iran.

Officials in his administration were discovered to have sold weapons to the country in the hope that it would help secure the release of American hostages held in Lebanon by Hezbollah, a militant group allied with Iran.

The Reagan administration used the proceeds of the arms sales to fund the paramilitary Contra rebel group fighting against the socialist Sandinista government in Nicaragua.

Reagan confirmed the story in a 1986 White House press conference and took public responsibility for what's become known as the Iran-Contra affair.

Late 1980s: Tensions in the Persian Gulf

Thousands of people mourn in July 1988 in Tehran, during the funeral service for those who died when an Iranian passenger jet was shot down over the Gulf by the U.S. military.

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Iran and Iraq were engaged in a war since 1980, and toward the end of that decade, Iran began to attack oil tankers belonging to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, Iraq's financial supporters.

In 1987 the U.S. begins a military campaign known as Operation Earnest Will to protect Kuwaiti tankers.

During that operation in 1988, the U.S. frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts struck an Iranian mine, which punched a 15-foot hole in the hull but did not kill any American sailors.

Still, that incident touched off another military operation called Operation Praying Mantis, in which U.S. forces retaliated for the explosion by attacking several Iranian oil platforms.

Also in 1988, the U.S. Navy shot down the civilian Iran Air Flight 655, killing all 290 people on board. U.S. forces mistook the plane for an Iranian fighter jet.

2015: Obama inks the Iranian nuclear deal

The U.S. reached a deal with Iran and five other world powers to curb Iran's nuclear capabilities in exchange for the removal of some punishing United Nations sanctions.

The deal allowed Iran to continue enriching uranium for civilian energy purposes, but President Barack Obama argued that it would curb the country's ability to create a nuclear bomb. Iran also agreed to increased inspections of its nuclear facilities.

In 2018, Trump during his first term pulled the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on Iran.

The Biden administration held indirect talks with Iran, and when Trump returned to office in 2025 he signed an executive order with the goal of exerting "maximum" pressure on Iran to end its nuclear weapons ambitions.

2020: U.S. drone strike kills Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani

A major recent development in U.S.-Iran relations occurred not in Iran itself but in neighboring Iraq.

Just a few days into 2020, U.S. forces launched a drone strike near the Baghdad International Airport and killed Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, among others.

Soleimani, who led an elite branch of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps known as the Quds Force, was seen as one of the country's most influential officials.

Khamenei responded at the time that "harsh retaliation is waiting" for the U.S. Several days later, Iran fired at least a dozen ballistic missiles at two military bases in Iraq that house U.S. troops. The Pentagon said the following month that 109 U.S. troops suffered brain injuries in the strikes.

2025: U.S. and Israel strike Iranian nuclear sites

In June, the U.S. and Israeli militaries launched a dramatic assault on several Iranian nuclear sites. For the U.S., the military escalation followed what had largely been a diplomatic effort to deter Tehran from pursuing a nuclear weapon.

Trump said in a speech from the White House that the goal of the operation was to scuttle Iran's nuclear enrichment capabilities.

"Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated," Trump said, though there are questions about exactly how much damage was dealt.

The attacks came roughly two months after the U.S. and Iran began a new round of talks to renegotiate a deal concerning Iran's nuclear program.

In March, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard had said that U.S. intelligence believes Iran "is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003."

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For the last three years, the record store and music venue Healing Force of the Universe has been operating on a sleepy street corner not far from Pasadena City College. Nearby businesses include a shoe repair store, a nail salon and several auto shops.

“We're kind of in a dead corner,” owner Austin Manuel said. “No offense if anybody lives here, but not a very foot-trafficked area, kind of a hard place to have a store.”

In spite of the location, Manuel said Healing Force has become a home away from home for musicians and music fans. One of them is Bobby Bradford, a jazz trumpet legend who lost his house and personal archive in the Eaton Fire. He performs regularly at the venue. (Healing Force has also partnered with LAist on fire recovery events.)

Its current location is set to close this month, but Manuel and his team are already raising funds to cover a move to another space: G-Son Studios in Atwater Village. The repurposed ballroom was the Beastie Boys' home base when they recorded their classic albums Check Your Head and Ill Communication. Run-DMC and Biz Markie stopped by at one point, and Beck also laid down tracks for his album Odelay there.

Inside Healing Force's space in Pasadena.

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The vibe

Healing Force sells records, of course, but these days it’s more of a nighttime performance space. Manuel said he wants people to feel comfortable striking up conversations after a show.

“I grew up in the church in the South, and I was like, ‘How do I design this so that it feels like a Southern church lady could come in here and feel welcome?’" Manuel said. “ I didn't want it to be too cool.  I wanted it to feel kind of suburban in a way.”

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Though the name might call to mind a cult slogan — and Manuel said they lean into that aesthetic on purpose — it’s actually a reference to the 1970 album Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe by saxophonist Albert Ayler.

At the venue, “people can kind of get … into a meditative zone,” Manuel said. “After the [January 2025] fires, it felt so good to come back together in this room and feel the healing of community.”

Healing Force's stage setup.

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The performances

The shows Healing Force puts on share a common thread: They’re meant to promote peace and relaxation, as well as deep, careful listening on the hi-fi sound system. But they’re an eclectic mix of genres. On one night, you might see L.A. spiritual jazz band Phi-Psonics, who turned a residency at the venue into a live album, Expanding to One.

On another night, you might catch a spaced-out electronic set, an up-and-coming singer-songwriter or a group of session musicians who’ve played with the likes of Paul Simon, Elton John and Lucinda Williams.

About the fundraiser

With the new space on Glendale Boulevard, Manuel said, Healing Force would triple its capacity for concerts, get a bar space and be closer to other venues in Northeast L.A.

“If 1,000 people gave $25, we would get there,” Manuel said – though he also said most people have been giving more.

You can read more about the fundraiser and donate at Healing Force’s GoFundMe.

See the Pasadena space before it closes

The venue is still open at 1200 E. Walnut Street and is holding events through this Halloween weekend. You can see their events calendar on their website.

The racist DNA of Jim Crow discrimination may be embedded in your housing documents.

The language in housing documents that restricts sale or use of a property only to a person of the white race is called a “restrictive covenant,” and in California the practice goes back to the 19th century and continued into the mid-20th century. While housing discrimination persists, the practice was found unconstitutional in 1948.

California counties are reporting mixed progress in meeting the demands of a 2021 law to excise the language from property records.

According to Sylvia Manzo, deputy recorder in the Orange County Clerk-Recorder’s office, the county finished the job in March of this year, removing racist language from more than 27,000 property documents with the help of computer software.

This 1924 property document from Bakersfield includes racist language limiting use of the property in question to people of "the white or Caucasian race."

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L.A. County is far from done. It says that with the help of an outside company hired in 2024, 50 million pages will be examined yearly, which would take about 10 years to finish the job.

Public agencies could use the public’s help.

Language examples

Here’s a 1924 example from a property in Bakersfield. The text reads, “That the lands herein conveyed shall never, at any time, be sold to or rented to or occupied by any person not of the white or Caucasian race.”

Or this language from a 1936 document relating to a Costa Mesa property: “That said premises shall not be sold, conveyed, rented, or leased to, or occupied by any person of African, Mexican, or Asiatic descent.”

How to get it taken out

The Restrictive Covenant Modification Form is at the heart of the effort to remove the racist language from housing documents. Each county has its own process. Some charge a fee; others don’t. Some require a notary certification for the signature; others don’t.

L.A. County:

Registrar-Recorder officials recommend these steps:

• Highlight or underline the unlawful provision on the recorded document
• Complete the Restrictive Covenant Modification Form
• Submit the form and the recorded document by email: RCM@rrcc.lacounty.gov or in person at the Norwalk headquarters at 12400 Imperial Highway in Norwalk
• Mail instructions are here.

Orange County:

The Orange County spokesperson says there may be some properties not caught by its software and urges the public to report them. Here’s the form

Riverside County:

Here’s the Riverside County form

San Bernardino County:

Here’s the San Bernardino County form

San Diego County:

Here’s the San Diego County form

Santa Barbara County:

Here’s the Santa Barbara County form

Ignoring the racist language in property documents, some say, reinforces the legacy of segregation, while taking steps to remove restrictive covenant language is a way individuals and organizations can repudiate policies that sought to discriminate.