Despite declaring neutrality, Iran is invaded and occupied during WWII.
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Production excerpts from Archival's "The Third Path," an upcoming 12-part series covering the recent history of Iran.

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Staff Credits -
Director/Producer: Shannon Niehus
Creative Director: Michael Knapp
Editor: Rosalee Chan
Multimedia Artist: Miriam Heller
Graphic Design: Matt Heller
Visual Effects: Jim Millen
Researcher: Ladan Sepehri and Golzar Sepehri
Assistant Producer: Maureen Sandlin

Production Credits -
DP: William Knights
Camera Operator: Tim Jolly
Grip: Jamie Burr

Video Transcript -

In 1939, as we know, war breaks out in Europe, and Iran again declares its neutrality as it had done in 1914. And again, this neutrality is not respected by the belligerents.

In June 1941, Hitler attacks the Soviet Union, and the Soviet Union now becomes an ally of the Western powers. The Western powers, Britain in particular, have to convey support, ammunitions, weapons to the Soviet Union.

In the meantime, thanks to Reza Shah, a railway had been built connecting the Caspian Sea to the Persian Gulf, the Trans-Iranian Railway, which meant that it became very easy for British ships to enter the Persian Gulf, load everything they had to send to the Soviet Unions on trains, have them go to the shores of the Caspian Sea, where these goods would be picked up by Russian ships. And for this reason, Iran had to be occupied.

What’s sad about this is that there was no declaration of war. There had been a number of ultimatums, and then on August 25th, in a surprise attack, British forces sink the entire Iranian Navy. The Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Navy is actually killed on that occasion. Soviet troops invaded from the north, very much in line of what Russian troops had done in 1909. Iran becomes an occupied country because the United States soon joins the occupiers.

And so from 1941 to 1945, 1946 Iran is an occupied country. The three occupying countries promised Iran to maintain its sovereignty, to maintain its independence. Reza Shah is forced into exile. In the meantime, his son has been put on the throne. So as of 1941, we get the beginning of the rule of Mohammad Reza Shah, the second and last ruler of the Pahlavi dynasty who rules until 1979.

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