An exiled Iranian prince says the regime is collapsing after Khamenei’s death

Iran’s exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi said on Saturday that the Islamic Republic is “collapsing” and that Iranians are ready to take their country back a week after US and Israeli attacks shook the regime.

The operations, which began last week, led to the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and nearly 50 other government figures, creating what Pahlavi described as a critical moment of change.

“The current situation is that people have been waiting for an opportunity to return to the streets to take their country back. We see many aspects of the state crumbling. A lot of people at home are ready to step in and that’s what it will take to have a successful and sustainable transition,” he said during an appearance on Fox News’ “My View” with Lara Trump.

After the death of the supreme leader, Pahlavi said that the Iranian people will not accept any results that are consistent with the current regime.

“Only a clean break will ensure that not only do we get a democratic solution and other exceptions to this regime, but there will be people who are not in any form or situation directly related to this regime,” he said.

Pahlavi, who is the son of the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, has called for a change of power from a democracy to a democracy and said he will help guide that change promoted by a coalition of forces, including people inside Iran and members of the country’s army.

“Revolution involves leaving the people of Iran with that option, and only the ballot box should determine the outcome and who will be responsible for our country in the future,” he said. “I think what we would expect from any government, including, of course, the current Trump administration is to realize that the best way to help the Iranian people is to allow them to make that choice freely and support that choice as a Western democracy, as the best democracy in the world.”

SENIOR IRANIAN TEACHERS ‘EXPOSED’ AFTER QOM STRIKE, RECONCILIATION CONTINUES

The leader of the Iranian opposition and the son of the last shah of Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Reza Pahlavi, held a press conference in Paris on June 23, 2025. (Joel Saget / AFP via Getty Images)

When asked if other forms of government were possible, Pahlavi said the Iranian people would not accept “anything less than a democratic outcome.”

“I don’t see any way outside of democracy that is sustainable, viable, or acceptable. The only way people will accept the result is to ensure that they are in control of their destiny,” he said. “And I don’t think there is any other way than a democratic process to ensure that. That is a way of stability, long-term progress, a guarantee to protect all citizens of all their rights.“

Pahlavi said a democratic Iran would bring greater stability to the region and open up significant economic opportunities for the United States.

He said the Iranian market has been closed for almost a century, adding that the US economy could see more than $1 trillion in the first decade of the new Iranian leadership.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS PROGRAM

The sun sets behind smoke rising after a US-Israeli military strike in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Vahid Salemi/AP Photo)

“As a democracy, the Iranian people will commit to establishing good relations with our neighbors, bring peace to the region, bring stability, which will eventually lead to development, prosperity, something that will be good for us, but it will also be good for our partners,” he said. “I think America has a lot to gain from that. And don’t forget that after the dust settles and we reach that future, Iran is open to economic opportunities.”

Pahlavi has lived in exile since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that overthrew the Iranian monarchy and established the Islamic Republic. In recent years, he has sought to position himself as an unifying opposition figure.

Related Article