The fire of rebellion is raging in Iran. Now to further stoke this fire, the statement of the country's exiled Prince Raza Pahlavi has once again come out. Pahlavi has once again appealed to the people to take to the streets in large numbers. Reza Pahlavi posted on social media handle X on Friday. He appealed to the people in this post. He asked Iranians to resume protests across the country over the weekend.
This appeal comes just weeks after the protests, which were violently crushed by security forces. Opposition groups claim that more than 2 thousand 600 people died in this action.
Addressing his brave countrymen, the son of Iran's last Shah, who lives in the US, urged protesters to return to the streets from Saturday to Monday. Raise your voice of anger and protest, he wrote, and added that the world is watching your courage and will support your national revolution.
Even before this, people's anger had increased after one of his messages last week. A large number of protesters took to the streets. Protests started in the country on 28 December due to the economic crisis. Shopkeepers in Tehran had closed their shops. After this, these demonstrations gradually spread across the country. The unrest erupted into widespread violence late last week, leading to mass arrests, internet shutdowns and threats of execution of detained protesters.
Pahlavi has emerged as one of the most prominent voices of Iran's fragmented opposition and has consistently appealed to citizens to increase pressure on the government. But, the protesters have faced deadly force.
Addressing a news conference in Washington, Pahlavi earlier claimed that parts of Iran's security apparatus had refused to take part in the operation. The Iranian people are taking decisive steps on the ground, he said. Now the time has come that the international community should fully support them.
He demanded strong action against Iran's Revolutionary Guards and its command-and-control structure. For this, he advocated a step like surgical strike, which could weaken the government's ability to suppress protests.
America is continuously giving warnings to Iran during these demonstrations. Trump has warned Iran that if such killings of people continue, America will take action. But, now the risk of attack from America has reduced. The threat of US military action appeared to be diminishing when President Donald Trump said he had been informed that killings in Iran were slowing down. However, additional US military resources were still expected to be sent to the region.
Trump, who had previously warned of tough action if Iran executed protesters, later said Tehran's leadership had halted plans for mass executions. He wrote on social media: "I am extremely proud of the fact that Iran has canceled all the executions scheduled for tomorrow – which numbered more than 800 –." Thank you!
