E-Paper
In Iran protests against cleric rule, Shah Pahlavi's son emerges a key figure: What's his real heft on the ground?
As streets of Iran brim with resentment against Khamenei, Pahlavi is seeking to speak as a national leader, though he never returned to country in over 40 years
As Iranians took to streets over the past few days of intensified uprising against the clerical government and its handling of the economy, Reza Pahlavi, the exiled crown prince of Iran has emerged as a prominent voice. In fact, his repeated calls against the Islamic regime led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei renewed the protests that simmered Iran since December 28.
Pahlavi, 65, is the son of Iran's last Shah or king, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. The family fled Iran in 1979, months before the Islamic Revolution that marked the end of the monarchy in Iran. The exiled prince has given hints of his homecoming through his posts on X. “Do not abandon the streets. My heart is with you. I know that I will soon be by your side,” Pahlavi said in a post on Sunday.
He made similar claims through his social media posts on Saturday as he encouraged people to take to streets and protest against the government.
Also read: After Trump's 'freedom' remark, Israel on ‘high alert’ for possible US intervention in Iran
The prince, Pahlavi, is seeking to speak as a national leader, even though he has never set his foot in the country in over 40 years following the Islamic Revolution.
Support in homeland
As protesters raise slogans against Khamenei's regime, chants have also been raised in favour of the return of Shah's son, such as “Long live the shah”.
Other voices on the streets are calling for political change with slogans such as "Down with the dictator", a reference to Supreme Leader Khamenei, according to Reuters.
As Pahlavi continues to make repeated calls for uprising against the current Iranian government, this isn't the first time that Pahlavi done this. He voiced his support to mass demonstrations in 2009 over a contested election, and nationwide protests in 2022 over the death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman who died while in detention for allegedly violating the regime's dress code regarding headscarves in particular.
But his voice wasn't as prominent as it has been this time, as he even called on US President Donald Trump and leaders of the European countries for their intervention in Iran.
Is Pahlavi projecting himself as the leader of the movement?
During the 12-day war in June 2025 by Israel and US against Iran, Pahlavi had offered to “lead Iran's way to peace and democracy”.
"There is only one way to achieve peace: a secular, democratic Iran. I am here today to submit myself to my compatriots to lead them down this road to peace and a democratic transition," he said in a speech posted on X on June 23, shortly before the end of last year's brief war.
Over the past couple of weeks he has repeatedly posted messages on his social media handle from his home in the United States. He has long said he would let the people decide on who should rule them, but he has been clear that he wants an end to theocratic rule.
Is last Shah's son coming home?
But is the son of Iran's last Shah returning home? While nothing is known about it yet, Pahlavi hinted something of this sort in his recent social media post where he asked Iranians to reclaim the streets, asking workers in key economic sectors such as transport, oil, gas and energy to start a nationwide strike to bring the “Islamic Republic and its worn-out and fragile repression apparatus to its knees".
“I too am preparing to return to the homeland so that at the time of our national revolution's victory, I can be beside you, the great nation of Iran. I believe that day is very near,” he wrote on X on Saturday.
In messages sent from his home in the United States, he has repeatedly praised Iranians demanding change.
