‘Erased from history’: Exiled Iranian crown prince Reza Pahlavi declares end of the Islamic Republic

Key Highlights

• A Warning to the Loyalists As the Supreme National Security Council in Tehran reportedly weighs an interim leadership structure, Pahlavi dismissed any attempt to maintain the status quo as "doomed to fail." “Any attempt by the remnants of the regime to appoint a successor to Khamenei is doomed to fail from the outset,” he said.
• “Whoever they place in his stead will have neither legitimacy nor longevity, and will undoubtedly be complicit in the crimes of this regime as well.” Pahlavi issued a direct and blunt appeal to Iran’s internal security apparatus, including the military, law enforcement, and the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, to abandon the "collapsing regime" before the transition becomes violent.
• “This is your final opportunity to join the nation, to help ensure Iran’s stable transition to a free and prosperous future, and to take part in building that future,” he told the security forces.
• Solace for the Grieving While Pahlavi noted that an assassination does not constitute a formal trial, he suggested the removal of the Supreme Leader offers a sense of closure to the thousands of families affected by decades of political crackdowns and recent protest suppressions.
• “The death of the criminal Khamenei, while it cannot bring back the spilt blood, can serve as a balm for the scorched hearts of the grieving families; the fathers and mothers, spouses and children in mourning; and the families of the selfless martyrs of Iran’s Lion and Sun National Revolution,” he stated.