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Washington: The exiled son of the former shah of Iran said he believed Donald Trump was “a man of his word” as he appealed for the US president to strike Iran to protests against the Islamic Republic in Tehran, despite the demonstrations abating.
Reza Pahlavi, whose father was overthrown as monarch in the 1979 Iranian revolution, asked for help from the international community “sooner rather than later” as he pitched himself as the natural transitional leader for the country once the regime fell.
Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi, exiled son of the last shah of Iran, at a news conference in Washington.Credit: Bloomberg
“I am uniquely positioned to ensure a stable transition,” he said at a news conference in Washington, where he lives. Speaking in English, he said demonstrators in Iran were carrying his placard and chanting for his return – although it is difficult to gauge the true extent of his support.
Pahlavi’s directed his plea to the world, but it was chiefly aimed at Trump, who toyed with military strikes during the week but has so far held off, citing commitments by the regime to stop killing protesters and cancel as many as 800 planned executions.
Shortly after Pahlavi spoke, Trump was asked by reporters whether help was still “on its way”, as he pledged earlier in the week when he encouraged protesters to keep fighting and “take over” Iran’s institutions.
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“We’re going to see,” Trump said. “As you know Iran cancelled the hanging of over 800 people … I greatly respect the fact that they cancelled that.”
Trump also rejected reports that he opted not to strike Iran this week due to intense lobbying from US allies in the region, including Israel, Saudi Arabia and Oman.
“Nobody convinced me, I convinced myself,” he said. “They cancelled the hangings, that had a big impact.”
Iran has not publicly confirmed such cancellations. The country’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, denied the government planned to execute any political prisoners during an earlier interview with Fox News.
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Human Rights Activists in Iran, an advocacy group, said at least 2677 people had been killed in the protests. It also said Iran had executed 52 people on murder and drug-related charges since January 5 while the protests have raged.
Pahlavi said Iranians would continue to fight for freedom no matter what, even as reports from the ground indicated the demonstrations have abated amid brutal repression by the Islamic theocratic regime.
Several residents of Tehran reached by Reuters said the capital had now been comparatively quiet for four days. Drones were flying over the city, but there had been no sign of major protests on Thursday or Friday.
Pahlavi said more lives would be saved if the international community decided to intervene sooner – militarily, but also by increasing economic sanctions, providing satellite internet access and expelling Iranian diplomats.
“If the world does care about Iranian loss of life then they better act and equalise the playing field for us so we have a better chance to succeed with less casualties and less death,” Pahlavi said.
The Pentagon confirmed it was moving a carrier strike group from the South China Sea towards the Middle East amid the tensions, although that could take up to 10 days. US media reported Trump had been told more forces were required in the region to combat retaliation from Iran to any potential strike.
“Clearly, President Trump did say that if the regime was to hit the Iranian people hard, they would face serious consequences,” Pahlavi said on Saturday (AEDT). “I believe the president is a man of his word. How many days it might take, who knows? Hopefully, sooner rather than later.”
Before the news conference, reporters were shown video of protesters who were apparently injured or killed at the hands of the regime, as well as demonstrators chanting: “Long live the shah.” The chant has been heard in several protests, although others are calling for the fall of the Islamic Republic without a return to monarchy.
The son of the deposed monarch pitched himself as the obvious person to head a transitional government in Iran, detailing a plan by which Iranians would design and endorse a constitution and elect a parliament.
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The system of government could be a republic or a monarchy, he said. He denied he could become another dictator or repressive monarch, saying Iranians knew his track record on democracy and human rights.
“They know they can trust me because they’ve never seen me waver from this,” Pahlavi said.
A day earlier, he posted a video on social media outlining a vision for Iran that would confront terrorism and extremist Islamism, as well as organised crime and drug trafficking. It would normalise relations with the US, recognise the state of Israel, and pursue the “Cyrus Accords” between Iran, Israel and the Arab world.
Analysts saw Pahlavi’s messaging as chiefly directed towards Trump, who has expressed scepticism about the exiled crown prince’s popularity in Iran and whether he would have enough support to lead.
“He seems very nice, but I don’t know how he’d play within his own country,” Trump told Reuters on Wednesday. “And we really aren’t up to that point yet.”
Pahlavi reportedly met Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff last weekend. He would not comment about other meetings with Trump administration officials.
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