Exiled Iranian crown prince Reza Pahlavi has urged US President Trump to act quickly against Iran’s regime as nationwide protests and a deadly crackdown continue
Reza Pahlavi Urges Trump to Act Quickly Against Iran (Source: X/ ANI)
Iran’s exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi has called on US President Donald Trump to act “sooner rather than later” against Iran’s clerical leadership, as nationwide protests continue and reports of a violent crackdown grow.
In an interview with CBS News, Pahlavi said, “We need action to be taken.” He warned that any delay would only lead to more deaths. “The best way to ensure that there will be less people killed in Iran is to intervene sooner, so this regime finally collapses and puts an end to all the problems that we are facing,” he said.
Pahlavi has been living in exile since his father, Iran’s last shah, was removed in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. He said he has been in contact with the Trump administration, though he did not reveal details of those talks.
Pahlavi claimed Trump’s red lines had already been crossed and accused Tehran of trying to mislead the world by acting as if it was ready to negotiate. “The game-changer would be for this regime to know that they cannot rely anymore on a continued campaign of repression without the world reacting to it,” he said.
Asked if he was seeking regime change, Pahlavi said Trump’s public support for Iranians meant backing their demand. “And their ask is that this regime has to go,” he said.
Pahlavi also said he represents Iranians living abroad and claimed that chants of his name during protests show that people see him as a possible transitional figure.
“I’m a bridge and not the destination at this point,” he said.
Trump told reporters on Sunday night that Iranian leaders had contacted him and “called to negotiate”, even as the US president continued to warn of possible military action.
He said he was reviewing his options after warning that the United States would step in if the Iranian government began “killing people like they have in the past.” “We’ll be hitting them very hard where it hurts,” Trump said. “And that doesn’t mean boots on the ground, but it means hitting them very, very hard where it hurts.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt later said the administration is keeping all options open, including airstrikes.
According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, more than 500 people have been killed and over 10,000 have been arrested as the protests entered their third week.
When asked if it was right to keep encouraging demonstrations despite the violence, Pahlavi said, “This is a war and war has casualties.” He added that action is needed to limit further deaths. “In order to preserve and protect and minimize the death toll… action is needed,” he said.
Pahlavi, who has not returned to Iran in nearly five decades, said he is ready to sacrifice his life for the movement. “How could I not possibly be prepared to die for them? To die for liberty, to die for saving our nation? I’m prepared to do that,” he said.
He also said this wave of protests, sparked by the collapse of Iran’s currency last month, is different from earlier uprisings. “Today, the ask is not just for reform… It is now putting an end to this regime,” he said.
Pahlavi praised Trump’s leadership, saying, “Unlike some predecessors… he’s a man that means what he says and says what he means.”
