Following U.S. President Trump’s preemptive strikes, the leading opposition against Iran’s head-of-state wants a revolution.
(Paris) — On Monday, Reza Pahlavi, the leader of a movement to usher in a liberal Democratic Iranian government, called for the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to turn himself into authorities at a live-streamed press conference.
“The only solution for Iran’s liberation and for peace is for this regime to no longer be there,” stated Pahlavi in a Q&A following his speech. Ultimately, he asked Western powers to not “throw another lifeline” to Iran’s current administration.
The conference happened days after President Trump ordered military strikes on three nuclear enrichment facilities located in Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow. He claimed the bombing stymied the eastern country’s ability to produce nuclear weapons.
Yet, Pahlavi warned that it failed to “diminish” Iran’s “intent to acquire and use nuclear weapons” from allied nations, such as North Korea. “If the West throws the regime a lifeline there will be more chaos,” he emphasized in his talk.
While Republican lawmakers stand behind Trump’s efforts, Democrats chided the decision. “Trump is out of control and does not contribute to an establishment of peace,” posted ranking House member, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA). Of whom, pointed out that the U.S. president said he would deliberate the current agreement with Iran in wake of its conflict with Israel.
“The United States at one time had an agreement with Iran, and that agreement was monitored closely. But Trump withdrew from that agreement when he took office,” she expressed.
On the other hand, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said Trump’s move was “the right call.” Johnson has been an unwavering supporter of Trump and falls in line with his backing. “The world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, which chants ‘Death to America,’ simply could not be allowed the opportunity to obtain and use nuclear weapons.”
One outspoken critic of the present head-of-state is Republican strategist, Michael Steele, who explained on Micheal Nance’s podcast that the Trump Administration is not operating in a functional way to go to war.
Steele, a former RNC Chairman, explained that Secretary Kristi Noem revised the daily intelligence briefings to weekly Fox News-styled broadcasts to accommodate Trump – who does not like to read. “This speaks to the lack of intellectual capacity to comprehend and understand the words that are provided to you that lay out in specificity the true nature of the threats we have around the globe and how you should respond as president.”
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Although Pahlavi acknowledged the Administration’s military movement, purportedly on behalf of Israel, he insisted that the transference of power must come from within.
To that end, he informed the press that he is establishing a formal channel for security and military personnel who want to break from theKhamanei Administration to join a governing effort for a Democratic transition.
“This is our Berlin moment,” he asserted as encouraging Iranians to partake in a push for a power shift.
For years, Pahlavi, eldest son of Iran’s late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, has lobbied for a return to Democratic practices. Exiled in 1979 when Islamic fundamentalists took power from his father, the Iranian Crown Prince moved to the U.S. with his family as a teen. He was living in Potomac, Md., a Washington D.C. suburb. Last year, he listed his home for $3.1 million, and sold it this past May.
When Pahlavi’s patriarch led Iran, the Middle-Eastern republic received billions in military and financial assistance from both the U.S. and the U.K. In exchange, the super-powers gained substantial access to Iran’s oil reserves.
The foreign aid started as a way to remove the Soviet Union’s military presence out of the region during the Cold War, but blossomed into the OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) agreement, and subsequent rise of the petrodollar.
Over time, concern amongst dissenters grew. They voiced concerns that there was too much Western influence in the predominantly Muslim state. The counter turned into the Iranian Revolution, which ousted liberal authority.
Eventually, the Shah fled after decades of holding back opposition. Added to his woes, he left for cancer treatment on January 16, 1979, after being diagnosed.
Seeking refuge in the U.S. under the Carter Administration, it was later that year, on November 4, 1979, that the revolution made its way to the U.S. embassy. Notably, having overtaken the building. Holding hostages for 444 days, it was known as the Iranian Hostage Crisis, which ended under the Reagan Administration.
Later accounts establish that Reagan’s team manipulated the situation which postponed detainee release until after the elections, in order to maintain the narrative that Carter was weak. Thus, highlighting Reagan as the better choice.
The Shah died shortly after in Cairo on July 27, 1980.
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When the Pahlavi family relocated to America, they settled in Connecticut. The Shah’s wife, Farah, moved into a Greenwich house owned by the Rockefeller land holdings. A friend of the Shah dynasty was David Rockefeller, a chairman of the Chase Manhattan Bank, who also financially sponsored their flight from Iran during the revolution.
Reza, who was 17-years-old at the time of his family’s dominion usurpation, is noted as living in Connecticut for several years. Soon after the Pahlavi family arrived, he joined the Airforce and trained as a jet fighter pilot.
While in the States, Reza received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California, while his mother lived between the Washington DC area and Paris. Most of his work has been through several organizations. Included, the National Council of Iran, an exiled opposition group, and he also launched the Phoenix Project of Iran think tank. Both are still active, with the latter being the go-to for Ayatollah Khomeini proponents.
In an interesting turn of events, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu invited Pahlavi to Israel in 2023 to express support of his campaign for a Democratic Iran. Pahlavi accepted.
The historic meeting was the first time an Iranian political figure publicly visited Israel. Pahlavi and his wife, Sarah, attended a ceremony held at the National Holocaust Memorial and Museum. His goal was to “deliver a message of friendship from the Iranian people, engage Israeli water experts on ways to address the regime’s abuse of Iran’s natural resources and pay respects to the victims of the Holocaust on Yom HaShoah.”
“I want people to know that the Islamic Republic does not represent the Iranian people,” he posted on X (Twitter).
Two years later, on June 12, Israel launched attacks on Iran, killing top generals and scientists with a barrage of ballistic missiles. Iran responded with ongoing strikes. Both countries sustained damages and casualties.
In the exchange of attacks, Trump denounced Iran before it destroyed the nuclear sites. In response, the Khomeinei vowed to retaliate.
At press time, Iran struck multiple U.S. bases in the neighboring Qatar.
