On 7 January 1978, an article titled and Red and Black Colonization” appeared in the national daily Ettela’at newspaper. Written under a pseudonym by a government agent, it denounced Khomeini as a “British agent” and a “mad Indian poet” conspiring to sell out to neo-colonialists and communists.
Upon the publishing of the article, religious seminary students in the city of Qom, angered over the insult to Khomeini, clashed with police. According to the government, 2 were killed in the clash; according to the opposition, 70 were killed and over 500 were injured. Likewise, there are discrepancies between casualty figures in different sources.
