The protests were hijacked by Reza Pahlavi and notions of Persian supremacy, then brutally repressed by a violent regime

With fear, surveillance and brute force only set to increase, there are disturbing parallels with Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, says Sanam Vakil of Chatham House

After easing pressure on the population since last summer, Iran's rulers have unleashed a fierce crackdown in response to an unprecedented protest movement. Isolated by the…