141.
   Amira broke the trance. “Let go of each other ! You will attract attention! Two teenage boys were found in bed together in 2005. The youngest, in tears pleaded the obvious, that everyone does it, but they were both hanged in public. This theocracy has a peculiar form of justice. If there is not enough evidence to convict, rather than set the plaintiff free, the judge can decide for himself whether he is guilty or not. If you two were found out, you would have a choice: hanging, stoning, being thrown off a cliff or cut in half with a sword.”

   The Bazaar was teeming with crowds of people. We followed Amira as she plunged into them. Conrad lifted the dogs to his shoulders. Amira smiled warmly at the sight then continued. “On August 15th, 1953, the coup was set in motion. Pro Shah soldiers and their CIA contacts spread throughout the city cutting phone lines and occupying the telephone exchange. But Mossadegh had been tipped off and some phone lines remained open. Soldiers sent to arrest Mossadegh were arrested themselves. The coup began to crumble and Zahedi went into hiding. The next morning Mossadegh announced that the coup attempt had failed. The CIA was devastated but Kermit Roosevelt managed to locate Zahedi and convince him that there was still a chance of success. They had to somehow get the news out to the public that the Shah had dismissed Mossadegh and appointed Zahedi in his place. Then their luck changed. The Shah had fled to Baghdad where he heard a radio address by Eisenhower announcing that the U.S. would not stand by while Iran drifted behind the Iron Curtain. He finally had the reassurance he needed and signed the decree replacing Mossadegh with Zahedi.”