<Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> <P> By 1977, the Shah's policy of political liberalization was underway . Secular opponents of the Shah began to meet in secret to denounce the government . </P> <P> Led by the leftist intellectual Saeed Soltanpour, the Iranian Writers Association met at the Goethe Institute in Tehran to read anti-government poetry . Ali Shariati's death in the United Kingdom shortly after led to another public demonstration, with the opposition accusing the Shah of murdering him (although it was later ruled he died naturally of a heart attack). </P> <P> The chain of events began with the death of Mostafa Khomeini, chief aide and eldest son of Ruhollah Khomeini . He mysteriously died at midnight of 23 October 1977 . SAVAK and Iraqi government declared heart attack as the cause of demise, though many believed his death was attributed to SAVAK . Khomeini remained silent after the incident, but in Iran with the spread of the news there was a wave of protest in several cities and mourning ceremonies in major cities were held . The mourning of Mostafa was given a political cast by Khomeini's political credentials, their enduring opposition to the monarchy and their exile . Thus dimension of the ceremonies went beyond the religious credentials of the family . </P>

The overthrow of shah in iran in 1979