-
Introduction The study of modern authoritarian regimes invariably necessitates an examination of their internal security apparatuses. In the case of Iran under Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi (1941-1979), the Organization of National Intelligence and Security (SAVAK) served as the linchpin of the state’s coercive architecture. Historiography of the late Pahlavi period often treats SAVAK as a synonym for brutality, a narrative cemented by revolutionary discourse and victim testimonies. While accurate in describing its methods, this characterization can obscure a fuller academic understanding of SAVAK as a complex institution born from specific Cold War exigencies and a particular logic of governance. This…