Prior to the 1979 Iranian revolution, Persian Jews enjoyed tolerance and prosperity, as they did for much of ancient history. Yet the current regime’s hatred of Jews and the Jewish state is also not exceptional, as Lawrence Franklin writes:
When Zoroastrianism was declared the official state religion during the Sassanid Dynasty (224–651 CE), the plight of Iran’s Jews deteriorated. This fusion of state and religion gave Zoroastrian clerics more political power than the monarchy. It also led to the enforcement of intolerant uniform rules of worship for all of Persia’s citizenry. . . . The Sassanids burned synagogues and outlawed the celebration of the day of rest, Shabbat. One Sassanid monarch, [referred to in the Talmud as] “Feroz the Wicked,” had most of the Jews of Isfahan murdered.
Later, in most of the Safavid (1502–1736) and Qajar (1781–1925) dynastic eras, the monarchs’ relationship with Iran’s Jews was at best problematic. . . . For centuries, there were forced conversions, the closing of synagogues, and destruction of Hebrew books. Outward signs distinguished Jews from the rest of Iran’s “loyal” citizens. Throughout the Safavid era, Iran’s Jews were forced to wear colored hats and non-matching shoes. . . . Attacks occurred: Muslim imams whipped up their followers in anti-Jewish diatribes.
Read more on Gatestone: http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/5222/iran-jews