Former Iranian Political Prisoner Flips the Script on the Left’s Trump-Iran Narrative, CNN Cuts to Break [WATCH]

A former Iranian political prisoner said during a television interview that the recent U.S. military operation against Iran should be viewed in the context of a long-running conflict rather than the start of a new war.

Kian Tajbakhsh, an Iranian-American academic and former political prisoner in Iran, appeared on CNN on Thursday night and discussed Operation Epic Fury and the broader history of tensions between the United States and the Iranian regime.

During the interview, Tajbakhsh argued that Iran has considered itself in conflict with the United States for decades.

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“To simplify it, I would put it this way,” Tajbakhsh said.

“I don’t think it’s right to say that President Trump has started a war with Iran. I think President Trump wants to finish a war that Iran started in 1979, 47 years ago.”

The year Tajbakhsh referenced corresponds with the Iranian Revolution, when the U.S.-backed monarchy was overthrown, and the Islamic Republic of Iran was established.

Since that time, relations between the United States and Iran have been marked by decades of diplomatic tension, economic sanctions, proxy conflicts, and military confrontations.

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Tajbakhsh said his understanding of the regime’s perspective was shaped by his experiences working in Iran in the early 2000s.

During that time, he said he had contact with senior officials in the Iranian government while working on development-related projects.

“In 2003, 2004, when I was there in Iran, working on projects at a very high level, I was talking with deputy ministers…going back and forth,” Tajbakhsh said.

He described a conversation that took place at Iran’s Foreign Ministry in Tehran with a senior official.

“I was in the foreign ministry in Tehran, where I met someone who was very senior, and he was semi-sympathetic to the projects we were doing. But as I was leaving, he looked me in the eye, and he said, “You, as an Iranian-American, I want you to know something and listen very carefully.”

According to Tajbakhsh, the official told him directly that the Iranian leadership believed it was already engaged in conflict with the United States.

“He said, “We in this building…[representing the regime]…we believe we are at war with the United States.”

Tajbakhsh said the official described the situation at the time as a form of cold war between the two countries.

“He said at that time it was a cold war, but it’s a war nonetheless.”

The remarks come amid renewed tensions following Operation Epic Fury, the U.S. military operation targeting Iran’s leadership and military infrastructure.

The operation has drawn international attention and debate over whether the action represents an escalation or a continuation of longstanding hostilities.

Tajbakhsh also addressed the Obama administration’s approach to Iran during the interview, particularly the nuclear agreement reached in 2015 between Iran and several world powers.

“What happened with President Obama is that, for better or worse — and I’m not going to litigate that here — he decided that given the four big problems that have always been on American objectives with Iran, that is enrichment, ballistic missiles, proxies and democracy inside Iran, that he would put all the last three aside and focus only on the nuclear deal,” Tajbakhsh said.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, was signed in 2015 and was designed to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

Critics of the agreement argued that it did not address other aspects of Iran’s military and regional activity.

Tajbakhsh said the focus on nuclear issues alone had long-term consequences.

“Now, I’m not going to say that was good or bad. I don’t think it was a great idea, but what we have seen, and this is also maybe controversial, and I think a lot of my liberal friends are going to hate me for this…is that unfortunately you can draw a straight line from the 2015 nuclear deal to October 7th.”

The October 7 reference points to the large-scale attacks carried out by Hamas against Israel, which have been widely discussed in connection with Iran’s broader network of regional allies and proxy groups.

Tajbakhsh’s comments were made during a segment hosted by CNN anchor Abby Phillip.

The discussion was part of ongoing media coverage surrounding the U.S. military operation and the broader geopolitical tensions involving Iran, Israel, and the United States.

The interview added another perspective to the public debate over the nature of the conflict between the United States and Iran and how policymakers and analysts interpret the history of confrontation between the two nations.

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