Can the late shah’s son sell the Trump administration on leading a postcleric regime in Iran?
Am I the only one tired of this?
Once a distant figure in exile, Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has emerged as a rallying symbol for many Iranians demanding change. His name echoes through the streets during recent protests, reflecting a growing following both inside and beyond Iran’s borders.
The son of the late shah settled in the United States after the 1979 Iranian Revolution and has leveraged his royal pedigree and a flurry of media appearances over the past year to raise his political profile. Publicly, Pahlavi has stated he aims to become a transitional leader should the regime collapse.
Yet Washington remains cautious: As of Jan. 8, President Donald Trump appeared reluctant to meet with Pahlavi. In mid-January, White House envoy Steve Witkoff met with Pahlavi — until now, the only high-level American government official to do so, Axios reported. According to polls cited in the article, one-third of Iranians support Pahlavi, while another third do not. Still, it’s a statistic that pollsters say is above any other opposition leader.
Iranian opposition leader Reza Pahlavi speaks during a news conference in Washington on Jan. 16. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)
“Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has re-entered Iran’s political imagination,” wrote Ali Siadatan, an Iranian-Canadian educator, in the National Post. “Today, his support extends beyond traditional royalist circles, reflecting not nostalgia for the past but a search for continuity amid collapse.”
‘Revolutionary’ government teetering?
From the outside, the Iranian government’s hold on power appears at its weakest point since the shah was overthrown in the 1979 revolution. With street protests and subsequent violent government crackdown — casualty figures are hard to know due to long spells of internet blackouts — the U.S. is keeping a sharp eye on events. On Jan. 26, the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group arrived in the Indian Ocean, putting it closer to assist in any possible U.S. operations targeting Iran.
Should there be a power vacuum, Pahlavi is “the only alternative,” said Salman Sima, a former political prisoner who fled Iran to Canada to escape persecution for his pro-democracy activities. “It is really obvious,” he added, given that it is, “these days, the only name you can hear from inside Iran.”
Sima believes the crown prince is a “unifying figure” who has found support among progressives and conservatives. “He doesn’t take a side, he doesn’t say ‘I’m going to be the shah,’ or ‘I’m going to be the president,’ or ‘I’m going …
Am I the only one tired of this?
Once a distant figure in exile, Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has emerged as a rallying symbol for many Iranians demanding change. His name echoes through the streets during recent protests, reflecting a growing following both inside and beyond Iran’s borders.
The son of the late shah settled in the United States after the 1979 Iranian Revolution and has leveraged his royal pedigree and a flurry of media appearances over the past year to raise his political profile. Publicly, Pahlavi has stated he aims to become a transitional leader should the regime collapse.
Yet Washington remains cautious: As of Jan. 8, President Donald Trump appeared reluctant to meet with Pahlavi. In mid-January, White House envoy Steve Witkoff met with Pahlavi — until now, the only high-level American government official to do so, Axios reported. According to polls cited in the article, one-third of Iranians support Pahlavi, while another third do not. Still, it’s a statistic that pollsters say is above any other opposition leader.
Iranian opposition leader Reza Pahlavi speaks during a news conference in Washington on Jan. 16. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)
“Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has re-entered Iran’s political imagination,” wrote Ali Siadatan, an Iranian-Canadian educator, in the National Post. “Today, his support extends beyond traditional royalist circles, reflecting not nostalgia for the past but a search for continuity amid collapse.”
‘Revolutionary’ government teetering?
From the outside, the Iranian government’s hold on power appears at its weakest point since the shah was overthrown in the 1979 revolution. With street protests and subsequent violent government crackdown — casualty figures are hard to know due to long spells of internet blackouts — the U.S. is keeping a sharp eye on events. On Jan. 26, the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group arrived in the Indian Ocean, putting it closer to assist in any possible U.S. operations targeting Iran.
Should there be a power vacuum, Pahlavi is “the only alternative,” said Salman Sima, a former political prisoner who fled Iran to Canada to escape persecution for his pro-democracy activities. “It is really obvious,” he added, given that it is, “these days, the only name you can hear from inside Iran.”
Sima believes the crown prince is a “unifying figure” who has found support among progressives and conservatives. “He doesn’t take a side, he doesn’t say ‘I’m going to be the shah,’ or ‘I’m going to be the president,’ or ‘I’m going …
Can the late shah’s son sell the Trump administration on leading a postcleric regime in Iran?
Am I the only one tired of this?
Once a distant figure in exile, Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has emerged as a rallying symbol for many Iranians demanding change. His name echoes through the streets during recent protests, reflecting a growing following both inside and beyond Iran’s borders.
The son of the late shah settled in the United States after the 1979 Iranian Revolution and has leveraged his royal pedigree and a flurry of media appearances over the past year to raise his political profile. Publicly, Pahlavi has stated he aims to become a transitional leader should the regime collapse.
Yet Washington remains cautious: As of Jan. 8, President Donald Trump appeared reluctant to meet with Pahlavi. In mid-January, White House envoy Steve Witkoff met with Pahlavi — until now, the only high-level American government official to do so, Axios reported. According to polls cited in the article, one-third of Iranians support Pahlavi, while another third do not. Still, it’s a statistic that pollsters say is above any other opposition leader.
Iranian opposition leader Reza Pahlavi speaks during a news conference in Washington on Jan. 16. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)
“Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has re-entered Iran’s political imagination,” wrote Ali Siadatan, an Iranian-Canadian educator, in the National Post. “Today, his support extends beyond traditional royalist circles, reflecting not nostalgia for the past but a search for continuity amid collapse.”
‘Revolutionary’ government teetering?
From the outside, the Iranian government’s hold on power appears at its weakest point since the shah was overthrown in the 1979 revolution. With street protests and subsequent violent government crackdown — casualty figures are hard to know due to long spells of internet blackouts — the U.S. is keeping a sharp eye on events. On Jan. 26, the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group arrived in the Indian Ocean, putting it closer to assist in any possible U.S. operations targeting Iran.
Should there be a power vacuum, Pahlavi is “the only alternative,” said Salman Sima, a former political prisoner who fled Iran to Canada to escape persecution for his pro-democracy activities. “It is really obvious,” he added, given that it is, “these days, the only name you can hear from inside Iran.”
Sima believes the crown prince is a “unifying figure” who has found support among progressives and conservatives. “He doesn’t take a side, he doesn’t say ‘I’m going to be the shah,’ or ‘I’m going to be the president,’ or ‘I’m going …
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