{"id":298170,"date":"2026-02-14T18:41:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-14T18:41:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/298170\/"},"modified":"2026-02-14T18:41:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T18:41:10","slug":"iranians-in-ireland-call-for-pahlavi-son-of-the-former-shah-to-bring-change-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/298170\/","title":{"rendered":"Iranians in Ireland call for Pahlavi, son of the former shah, to bring change \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Standing on a podium near the Spire on Dublin<\/a>\u2019s O\u2019Connell Street<\/a>, Roshin Farahani tells a gathering of Ireland\u2019s Iranian community that the \u201cpeople have responded to his call\u201d. <\/p>\n

In response, the crowd chants: \u201cReza, Reza Pahlavi\u201d, in tribute to the US-based son of the last shah of Iran<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many held photos of Pahlavi, one of which was accompanied by: \u201cMake Iran great again.\u201d<\/p>\n

The protest on Saturday afternoon was one of several held globally after the US-based crown prince called for Iranians to \u201ctake to the streets\u201d, just over a month after mass anti-regime protests saw thousands killed.<\/p>\n

Protesters waving large Iranian flags carried photos of Pahlavi, labelling him an \u201calternative for Iran\u201d. They chanted: \u201cThis is our turning point, freedom for Iran.\u201d<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Who is Reza Pahlavi? Opens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Farahani, one of the organisers of the Dublin protest, told those present the people of Iran have had their voices \u201csilenced\u201d by \u201cevil leaders who only know hate\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe stand here in Ireland with our voice intact. We have to be the voice for our people,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She echoed a number of calls previously made by Pahlavi, including an end to the regime\u2019s repression, the cutting off of any financial aid and the expulsion of the regime\u2019s diplomats.<\/p>\n

\"MembersMembers of Ireland\u2019s Iranian community protested in Dublin on Saturday. Photograph: Bryan O\u2019Brien <\/p>\n

Mohammad, who travelled from Galway, likened life in his native Tehran to a \u201ccemetery\u201d after speaking to family members living there.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are so sad … They are so shocked that they cannot do anything,\u201d he said, adding that it was the diaspora\u2019s \u201cresponsibility\u201d to make their voices heard.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0US sends largest aircraft carrier to Middle EastOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

He was one of several to voice his support for Pahlavi to lead a transition to a democratic state.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody can deny it was a kind of repression by the previous kingdom,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Regarded by some Iranians as authoritarian and \u201crepressive\u201d, opponents of the Pahlavi family, before its ousting in 1979, were tortured by the Pahlavi Savak secret police, a force trained by the CIA and Mossad, Israel\u2019s spy service.<\/p>\n

However, Mohammad and several others attending Saturday\u2019s protest trust Pahlavi to bring about a referendum that will decide Iran\u2019s fate. He is the \u201cbest option for the transition,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have two options: we continue with the regime that kills very easily, or we make a change.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has been living in a free country for ages, and he knows democracy,\u201d he said, adding: \u201cWe can trust him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others, such as Milad, a 25-year-old from northwest Iran, would like to see the monarchy restored, and Pahlavi made king, though this should be achieved only by a referendum, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Monarchy] works in Iran, I think,\u201d he said, adding: \u201cI wasn\u2019t living back then, but the only thing I can see is the country was growing even if they say back then was a dictatorship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Milad said his family, who remain in Iran, were \u201cphysically okay\u201d but \u201cmentally, absolutely not\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I talk to people, my friends, they are not the same person from before,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Masi, who travelled from Cork for the protest, said family and friends were \u201cas sad as anybody who is alive at the moment in Iran\u201d.<\/p>\n

During a communications blackout last month, she spent four days not knowing if her siblings were alive or dead. \u201cIt has been very distressful,\u201d she said, describing the crackdown on protests as a \u201cmassacre\u201d.<\/p>\n

She too hopes for a \u201cfair and transparent referendum\u201d brought about by Pahlavi, though she would vote for a republic over a monarchy.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t think that people inside Iran are not calling for Pahlavi. The time of Pahlavi is the latest history that Iranian people could actually be proud of their heritage,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s our only option at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Standing on a podium near the Spire on Dublin\u2019s O\u2019Connell Street, Roshin Farahani tells a gathering of Ireland\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":298171,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[615,61,11829,60,43,104173],"class_list":{"0":"post-298170","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ireland","8":"tag-dublin","9":"tag-ie","10":"tag-iran","11":"tag-ireland","12":"tag-news","13":"tag-o-connell-street"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/298170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=298170"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/298170\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/298171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=298170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=298170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=298170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}