Amid a spiralling conflict with Israel and deepening unrest at home, exiled Iranian crown prince Reza Pahlavi has issued a call for regime change in Tehran, declaring that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has “gone into hiding underground” and that the Islamic Republic is “in the process of collapsing.”
“The Islamic Republic has reached its end,” Pahlavi said in a social media post. “What has begun is irreversible. The future is bright, and together, we will pass through this sharp turn in history.”
His remarks come as anti-regime sentiment mounts across Iran in the wake of airstrikes and political turmoil. Pahlavi, son of the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, is urging Iranians to rise up from “Bandar Abbas to Bandar Anzali, from Shiraz to Isfahan,” in what he says is the final chapter of the Islamic Republic.
KHAMENEI IS LIKE A FRIGHTENED RAT, SAYS PAHLAVI
He portrayed Khamenei as a weakened, panicked leader: “Khamenei, like a frightened rat, has gone into hiding underground and has lost control of the situation.”
“The end of the Islamic Republic is the end of its 46-year war against the Iranian nation,” Pahlavi said.
The exiled royal also appealed directly to Iran’s military and security personnel, many of whom he claims are already reaching out to him privately. “Do not sacrifice yourselves for a decaying regime,” he wrote. “By standing with the people, you can save your lives. Play a historic role in the transition.”
Pahlavi assured Iranians that a post-regime future has been mapped out, rejecting fears of civil war or chaos. “We have a plan for Iran’s future and its flourishing,” he said. “We are prepared for the first hundred days after the fall… for the establishment of a national and democratic government — by the Iranian people and for the Iranian people.”
“A free and flourishing Iran lies ahead of us. May we be together soon,” Pahlavi concluded.
WILL US JOIN ISRAELI STRIKES ON IRANIAN NUCLEAR SITES?
As the conflict between Israel and Iran enters its fifth day, US President Donald Trump is carefully weighing the United States’ possible responses. With tensions escalating rapidly, Trump is consulting with his national security team to consider various options to join Israel’s ongoing strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, according to US media reports.
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