On this day in 1978, the Iranian military attacked a crowd of protesters, killing ~88 and injuring between 205-8,000. The violence increased the unrest, leading to a general strike and the Shah fleeing the country in January 1979.

The massacre, known as Black Friday, began when thousands of protesters gathered in Tehran's Jaleh Square for a religious demonstration, unaware that the government had declared martial law a day earlier due to widespread political unrest.

Some sources estimate that 4,000 people were shot down by tanks, guns, and military helicopters. The deaths were described as the pivotal event in the Iranian Revolution that ended any "hope for compromise" between the protest movement and regime of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

The massacre led to widespread protests, and a general strike in October shut down the petroleum industry that was essential to the administration's survival. The Shah fled Iran in January 1979, clearing the way for the Iranian Revolution, led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.