The exiled son of Iran’s last monarch has urged the international community to actively support protesters seeking to overthrow the country’s clerical leadership, declaring that the Islamic Republic’s collapse is inevitable.
Reza Pahlavi, a US-based opposition figure and son of the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, said he was confident Iran’s current system would fall “not if, but when”.
Speaking at a news conference in Washington on Friday, he called on world powers to move beyond statements of concern and take practical steps to support Iranians facing a violent crackdown.
Pahlavi specifically urged foreign governments to target Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard leadership, arguing that weakening its command and control structures would limit the regime’s ability to repress dissent.
Such measures, he said, would “facilitate our task and prevent more loss of life”. He also called for increased economic pressure on Tehran, the expulsion of Iranian diplomats, and demands for the release of all political prisoners.
The protests began on 28 December as demonstrations over rising prices, economic hardship and a rapidly depreciating currency.
They quickly spread across Iran, evolving into broader calls for the removal of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei and an end to clerical rule. Protesters have chanted slogans including “Death to the dictator” and openly challenged the authority of the state.
According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, at least 2,677 protesters have been killed, with more than 1,600 additional deaths under review.
The group estimates that around 19,000 people have been arrested. Iranian authorities have rejected these figures, describing the unrest as “riots” orchestrated by foreign enemies.
Pahlavi claimed that parts of Iran’s security forces have refused to participate in the crackdown, alleging that the authorities have instead relied on fighters from foreign militias to suppress demonstrations.
He also appealed for international help in restoring communications, calling for the deployment of satellite internet services such as Starlink after Iran imposed a near-total internet blackout earlier this month.
“The Iranian people are taking decisive action on the ground,” Pahlavi said. “It is now time for the international community to join them fully.”
While declining to comment on reports of meetings with senior US officials, Pahlavi said he believed Washington would ultimately stand with Iranian protesters.
Former US president Donald Trump has previously warned Tehran against executing demonstrators and said the United States would take “very strong action” if that occurred, though he later claimed the killings had stopped.
Iranian officials have warned that any US military action would trigger retaliation against American and Israeli interests in the region. Amid heightened tensions, the United States and the United Kingdom have reduced personnel at the Al-Udeid air base in Qatar as a precautionary measure.
Pahlavi also outlined his vision for Iran’s future, vowing to return to the country and support the drafting of a new constitution based on democracy, secular governance and individual freedoms.
However, he stressed that decisions about leadership and the country’s political system must ultimately be made by the Iranian people themselves.