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Exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi Urges Uprising as Israel-Iran Conflict Intensifies

Pahlavi unveiled a blueprint for a transitional government in his call for security force defections after Israel intensified airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Reza Pahlavi was the crown prince during Iran’s pro-Western monarchy, which was overthrown in the 1979 revolution that ushered in the Islamic Republic led by clerics.
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A man holds an image of Reza Pahlavi, as people protest against the Iranian regime, following the death of Mahsa Amini, outside Iran's consulate, in London, Britain, October 9, 2022. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo

Overview

  • In a June 17 video address and social media posts, Reza Pahlavi urged Iranians nationwide to rise up and “reclaim Iran” from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s regime.
  • Pahlavi claimed the Islamic Republic was collapsing, comparing Khamenei to a “frightened rat” and asserting that the regime’s repression apparatus is falling apart.
  • He outlined a five-point roadmap for the first hundred days after the regime’s fall, aiming to establish a national, democratic transitional government.
  • The prince directly appealed to Iran’s military, police and state employees to defect to avoid further bloodshed and join the popular movement for change.
  • Israel has stepped up airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear sites while invoking the pre-revolutionary “Lion and Sun” emblem, and President Trump has met with security advisers without ruling out US military involvement.