Revolutionary Transnationalism in the Persian Gulf

Abstract

This article analyzes the material networks, connections, and solidarities formed between revolutionary Iranian and Arab organizations in the Persian Gulf in the 1970s. In the context of decolonization and the Cold War, it explores how the Iranian Left engaged with the Dhufar Revolution (1965–76), which was crushed by a British-led colonial war that the shah of Iran and his forces supported. Using Persian, Arabic, and English sources, the author shows how a radical internationalism was forged through regional networks, a praxis of guerrilla warfare, and a common political struggle against imperialism and reactionary Gulf monarchs, tying together revolutionaries from both sides of the Gulf.