JNS
Reza Pahlavi told JNS at the Israeli-American Council summit that “Iranians who stand in solidarity with the free world, with the Israelis, are the answer to the problem, not this regime.”
The time for solidarity between Israelis and the Iranian people is over, and it is now time for action, Reza Pahlavi, the exiled Iranian crown prince, told JNS on Friday afternoon at the Israeli-American Council summit in Washington, D.C.
The son of the last shah of Iran, Pahlavi, who is based in the Washington area and who founded the National Council for Iran, told JNS that there is a need for maximum pressure on Iran and major support for the country.
“We have to put an end to this regime,” he told JNS, of the Islamic Republic of Tehran, after he addressed the IAC summit.
The solution will come “at the hand of the Iranian people,” not via “foreign warfare or intervention,” Pahlavi told JNS. He added that Iranians, who “have been fighting alone,” need wider support.
“We need to be able to organize campaigns,” he told JNS. “We need to be able to organize labor strikes in Iran, which is the quickest way to bring this regime down in paralysis.”
Pahlavi also said there must be an effort to maximize defections in order to minimize resistance when the time comes.
“I think the role that America plays in this is critical. It goes without saying that the Israeli government has to be able to see eye-to-eye with some key governments in the region, whether it’s the Saudis or governments like the British, or the French, or the German government or the European Union,” he said. “If we get the proper leadership in place and coordination, I believe that we can succeed and prevail.”
JNS asked how Pahlavi and his partners can convince world leaders that the troubles in the Middle East are broader than Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis—that they emanate from Iran.
The exiled prince hearkened back to an interview he said he gave nearly 40 years ago. “I said, ‘Look, when you have a fire, you send and dispatch your fire trucks, and you may eventually extinguish those fires. But have you ever tried to find out who is the arsonist?’” Pahlavi said.
“If you don’t find the arsonist, or if you don’t stop the arsonist, fires upon fires upon fires will be lit here, here and here,” he said.
It’s clear that the Islamic Republic has been lighting fires around the region, Pahlavi said.
“The eye of the octopus is sitting in Tehran. It’s not sitting in Beirut. It’s not sitting elsewhere,” he said. “Now, if you understand that an end to all these problems, that resolves many problems at the same time—the nuclear threat, terrorism financing of proxies, it’s all connected to the regime in Tehran—the best solution is to put an end to it, not because you asked for it, but because, first and foremost, the Iranian people asked for it.”
Pahlavi directed the attention of JNS to a yellow ribbon on his lapel, symbolizing his support for the hostages being held in Gaza.
“Let’s not forget, the first hostages have been millions of Iranians for four decades. Under this regime, we have to free them first,” he said. “Iranians who stand in solidarity with the free world, with the Israelis, are the answer to the problem, not this regime.”
“The only solution at the end is to put this regime to rest,” he said of the Islamic Republic.
Envisioning a day when Israelis and Iranians can speak freely, Pahlavi said he imagines that their conversations will revolve around “joint venture investments, development, resources, Iran on its path of reconstruction.”
One of the reasons that he traveled to Israel last year was to “talk to the Israeli water experts because we are facing a serious water crisis,” he told JNS. “We have to use the best technologies for agricultural issues, water desalination.”
The exiled prince added that the “natural relationship” between Iran and Israel is “a huge strategic partnership in the region, not just to the benefit of Iran and Israel” but to the “collective benefit.”
It is not, he said, supposed to be “running away from rockets and missiles and bombs exploding here and there.”
