aug 20, 1985 - Iran-Contra Affair (Kyle)

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On August 20th 1985 senior officials in the Reagan administration secretly arranged for the United States to sell weapons to Iran because they believed that this would lead to the release of American hostages being held in Lebanon at the time which were taken by groups connected to Iran. During the time the U.S officials were secretly doing this Iran was under an official arms embargo and was considered highly likely a sponsor for terrorism. Despite this, the U.S official moved forward with the deal in secrecy, justifying their actions as necessary to save American lives and potentially open a friendly line of communication with Iran. The arms sales were later revealed to the public because a Lebanese magazine reported on the operation and it sparked a massive political scandal. The magazine also exposed that Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North was the central figure in organizing and covering up the operation leading to investigations and nation wide outrage.

At the same time this was all happening Oliver north and the Reagan administration were hell bent on supporting the Contra rebels in Nicaragua who were fighting against the communists leaning Sandinista government. Even after congress passed the Boland Amendments which banned the U.S government from funding them. To get around this Oliver North diverted the profits from the secret arms deals in Iran to fund the contras. In addition, later investigations revealed that drug trafficking was also connected to the U.S trying to fund the contras, with cocaine/crack being sold in the United States, particularly in black neighborhoods, which is one of the main reasons for the crack epidemic of the 1980s.

Matthews, Roland. “Iran-Contra Affair | Summary.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Feb. 2019, www.britannica.com/event/Iran-Contra-Affair.

‌History.com Editors. “Iran-Contra Affair - Definition, Timeline, President | HISTORY.” HISTORY, 10 Aug. 2017, www.history.com/articles/iran-contra-affair.

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