Iran\u2019s exiled crown prince and opposition leader Reza Pahlavi said the current wave of nationwide protests rocking the Islamic Republic insists regime change now is closer than ever.<\/b>
\nIran\u2019s exiled crown prince and opposition leader Reza Pahlavi said the current wave of nationwide protests rocking the Islamic Republic would not be happening without President Trump \u2014 and insists regime change now is closer than ever.
\u201cPresident Trump\u2019s words of support for the Iranian people have mattered,\u201d Pahlavi exclusively told The Post. \u201cThey have given courage to Iranians who are risking their lives for freedom. This moment would not exist without the pressure that has been placed on the Islamic Republic.\u201d
As protesters chant against the ayatollahs in cities, towns and villages across Iran, Pahlavi said the contrast between the regime and the people could not be clearer.
\u201cThe ayatollahs chant \u2018Death to America.\u2019 The Iranian people feel very differently,\u201d he said. \u201cThey want a free country that is at peace with the world \u2014 including with the United States and Israel.\u201d
Pahlavi, whose father Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was Shah of Iran until the Islamic Revolution ousted him in 1979, accused the regime of slaughtering civilians to cling to power, saying \u201chundreds, maybe thousands\u201d of unarmed Iranians have been killed in recent days.
While welcoming US action to defend civilians and disrupt the regime\u2019s machinery of repression, he drew a firm line: \u201cWe do not need foreign boots on the ground.\u201d
The protests have been fueled by grinding economic misery \u2014 a crisis Pahlavi said is entirely man-made.
\u201cThe suffering of my compatriots is not an accident. It is the result of a system that has taken the wealth of Iran and used it to fund repression, regional wars and nuclear ambitions instead of putting it in the pockets of Iranian families,\u201d he said. \u201cA country with Iran\u2019s resources should not have people who cannot afford bread or medicine.\u201d
If the regime collapses, Pahlavi said he envisions a \u201cprosperous\u201d Tehran that unlocks its \u201ctrue potential\u201d \u2014 re-entering the world stage, offering foreign investment opportunities and taking care of its people.
\u201cA free Iran can be a prosperous Iran: a country that trades with the world, attracts investment, creates jobs, and allows its young people to build a future at home instead of fleeing abroad,\u201d he said. \u201cFor years, I have brought together economists, technocrats, legal experts and former public servants inside and outside Iran who are ready to implement this plan immediately.\u201d
\u201cThis is how we move from poverty and repression to prosperity and dignity,\u201d he added.
Pahlavi said he already has a plan to secure the country over the first 180 days as it transitions from the radical Islamist theocracy to a thriving democracy.
Under his \u201cIran Prosperity Project,\u201d he outlined a phased transition beginning with an emergency period to keep services and security running, followed by stabilization to restore confidence and basic governance, and then a constitutional process and national elections.
\u201cWe\u2019ve been preparing openly and transparently to avoid chaos,\u201d he said, noting the project includes more than 100 experts ready to act immediately, alongside global business leaders. \u201cOur goal is not just to survive the transition. It is to unlock Iran\u2019s true potential.\u201d
Pahlavi called the current nationwide demonstrations \u201cunprecedented,\u201d saying millions took to the streets despite bullets, arrests and communications blackouts.
\u201cThey have shown \u2014 in their millions \u2014 they want change,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen millions of Iranians mobilize, it sends a message not just to the regime, but to the world.\u201d
The regime\u2019s internet and phone shutdowns, he warned, are aimed at enabling mass killings in the dark.
\u201cThey\u2019re trying to push the country into darkness so they can massacre innocent Iranians without witnesses,\u201d he said, urging the free world to keep Iranians connected and their voices heard.
Pahlavi also revealed growing cracks inside the regime\u2019s own ranks. Through secure channels set up for security forces and officials willing to defect, he said \u201ctens of thousands\u201d have already reached out.
\u201cNow is the moment for those in uniform to step back from repression,\u201d he said, \u201cand stand with the people of Iran.\u201d
As the unrest spreads and global attention intensifies, Pahlavi said the choice is stark.
\u201cThe eyes of the world are now upon Iran,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n