Heir apparent of the exiled Iranian monarchical dynasty, Reza Pahlavi has urged Iranians to continue their mass protests until the 47-year-old Islamic republic has fallen.
The son of the last shah of Iran has called for a referendum to determine the polity of a successor regime and pressed monarchists to take part in the demonstrations.
“People are calling on me to step in and lead this transition. I’m here to lead and help our nation go through that transition. But beyond liberation, we have to have a plan, a plan for a stable, smooth transition,” he told Fox News.
It is not known how much support the 65-year-old, who is in exile in the US, has in his homeland.
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He was born in 1960 in Tehran and is the eldest son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was ousted in the 1979 clerical coup led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Although born into a gilded world of luxury, the Pahlavi family is not of aristocratic origin. Reza Pahlavi’s grandfather, who founded the self-designated “imperial” dynasty, was an army officer who served as war minister and prime minister. He was elected shah following the overthrow of Ahmad Shah, the last monarch of the Qajar dynasty, which ruled from 1789-1925.
During his father’s coronation in 1967, Reza Pahlavi was named crown prince. While serving in Iran’s air force, he was sent in 1978 for pilot training in the US and in 1979 he began studies at Williams College but dropped out.
When his father went into exile in Egypt, Reza Pahlavi enrolled at the American University in Cairo but did not complete his degree. In 1985, he belatedly obtained a degree in political science by correspondence from the University of Southern California.
After his father’s death in 1980, Pahlavi, then aged 20, proclaimed himself shah of Iran. However, the US refused to acknowledge him as it had recognised the Islamic revolutionary government.
Pahlavi persisted by promoting ties to pro-monarchy groups. Despite rejection by other factions, especially leftists, he urged all to form a “national resistance” and is its most high-profile figure.
He has reverted to the Pahlavi traditional courtship of Israel. In April 2023, he became the most senior Iranian personality to visit Israel which recognised him as the main leader of the opposition.
The Pahlavi family has long-standing ties to Israel, whose external spy agency, Mossad, along with the CIA, trained the Pahlavi Savak secret police that tortured opponents and brutally crushed dissent.
This has been a key reason why Iran’s ruling Islamist party has rejected Israel and supported anti-Israeli Palestinian militants Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza, Hizbullah in Lebanon, and Yemeni Houthis.
Iranian protesters, however, have focused on Iran’s involvement in these external causes and chanted: “Neither Gaza nor Lebanon! My life for Iran.”
