Exclusive: Iran’s Exiled Prince Says Trump Giving Protesters ‘Greater Strength’ 

Protesters in Iran have been given "greater strength" by President Donald Trump's threat against the ruling regime in Tehran, should it increase its crackdown on the unrest, the country's exiled prince and prominent opposition figure Reza Pahlavi told Newsweek. 

Pahlavi, whose name has been a regular refrain of chants in the protests that started on December 28, said Trump's warning had already made a difference in how the ruling regime was responding to the unrest, in which at least 48 people have been killed and thousands arrested, according to rights groups. 

"The warning he has issued to the regime gives my people greater strength and hope—that unlike President Obama and President Biden who sold out the people of Iran, President Trump stands with them," Pahlavi said in emailed comments to Newsweek. 

Pahlavi, 65, is the exiled son of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran, who was toppled in the 1979 Islamic Revolution that brought clerical leaders to power and the creation of the Islamic Republic. 

Protests prompted by the collapse of Iran's currency, the rial, as well as wider economic woes wrought by snapback UN sanctions, have morphed into widespread discontent against Iran's regime and prompted demonstrators right across the country to call for Pahlavi's return. 

Pahlavi—who lobbied for Trump's help in an X post on Friday after the U.S. president pledged to hit Iran "very hard" if violence against protesters continued—said he welcomed Trump's "clear warnings to the criminal leaders of the Islamic Republic and his support for the Iranian people."

"It likely already has made a difference in how the regime has acted," Pahlavi said, adding that "Iranians are writing his name on walls and thanking him."

"When the regime and its security forces see that violent repression will carry consequences and that the Iranian people will not be abandoned, it raises the cost of brutality and affects behavior inside the system," Pahlavi said. 

"President Trump doesn't need to listen to the so-called experts in DC or those who tell him this regime can be reformed from within," he said. "All he needs is to listen to the people of Iran on the streets who are asking for his help."

He added: "European leaders can learn from President Trump’s moral clarity on Iran, here."

On Friday, protesters took to the streets following a call by Pahlavi. He reiterated his demand on Saturday, calling for further street demonstrations for two more nights to seize city centers.

Protesters in Mahdasht, Alborz province, were seen setting fires in the streets on Friday night. In a video on social media, the chant "this is the final battle, Pahlavi will return," could be heard, according to independent outlet Iran International. It added that chants of "death to Khamenei" could also be heard, referring to the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Khamenei said in a speech on Friday that the Islamic Republic would not back down, raising the prospect of security forces increasing the violence against demonstrators. 

The Iranian judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei said this week the regime "will show no mercy to the rioters." This was a switch from previous messaging, in which the authorities said that the protests would be allowed if there could be dialogue with merchants and demonstrators over the economic problems the country faces.  

The unrest is the biggest test for the ruling regime since protests in 2022 that were sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died in custody after her arrest for allegedly violating Iran's strict hijab laws.   

Israel's 12-day war against Iran in 2025 and sanctions over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program have added new dimensions to the unrest compared with over three years ago. As in previous protests, Iran's authorities have cut internet access.

Pahlavi said that some of the ingredients that were missing in the past are now coming together. Defections from within the system—including refusals to repress—have begun, and the international environment has shifted.  

"In the past, Iranians appealed for support and were met with hesitation or silence. Today, there is growing recognition that this regime is irredeemable and has reached the end of the road," he said. 

"What makes this moment different is that the Islamic Republic is at its weakest point, and the Iranian people are on the streets not only because of economic misery or injustice, but because they are fed up with the entire system."

He added: "Trump pursued maximum pressure in his first term and has rightly reimplemented that approach... and when applied consistently and without lifelines, this pressure constrains the regime and raises the cost of repression."

Snapback sanctions have added pressure to the regime, "not because sanctions alone bring freedom—but because they deny this regime the oxygen it needs to survive," he said.

Pahlavi's Democratic Vision 

Iranians have taken to the streets across the world in support of the protests within Iran, with chants for Pahlavi heard in cities including New York, Toronto and even parts of New Zealand.  

Hamidreza Azizi, an Iran expert at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, told Newsweek on Friday that the slogans in support of the monarchy show a deep sense of nostalgia among some segments of society for the pre-1979, pre-revolutionary era. 

"Many people, in one way or another, want a return to what they perceive as the glory and prosperity of the Shah's era. For that reason, they view Reza Pahlavi as a continuation of his father’s legacy," said Azizi.  

At the same time, there are many others who hold a generally positive view of the pre-revolutionary period—often in contrast to the Islamic Republic—but who do not see Pahlavi, the monarchy, or its restoration as a viable or desirable option under current circumstances, Azizi said. 

"While these slogans may help mobilize people and foster unity against the Islamic Republic in the short term, it is still unclear whether monarchism will emerge as the option people ultimately rally around going forward," Azizi added. 

Pahlavi told Newsweek he had stepped forward to lead the transition to democracy and that his role was to bring together monarchists and republicans, secular and religious, activists and professionals, civilians and members of the armed forces. 

He said the future of Iran must be decided by the Iranian people, through a free constitutional process and genuinely free elections. "I have been clear that I will remain entirely impartial in that process, so that Iranians can finally choose their system of governance freely," he said.

Pahlavi said some Iranians favor a constitutional monarchy, others a republic, and all must have the right to present their visions and let the people decide at the ballot box. "My responsibility is not to predetermine the outcome, but to guarantee the process," he said.

He backs the Iran Prosperity Project which is led by the National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI) and was unveiled in Washington, D.C. in April 2025, which provides a roadmap for economic recovery, and Iran's reintegration into the global community. 

The first phase would be keeping the country functioning, securing essential services, restoring economic confidence, and maintaining basic governance, followed by a constitutional process and national elections.

"For the first time in 46 years, the demand is clear, vivid, and nationwide—an end to this criminal regime," Pahlavi said.