Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last shah ousted by the 1979 Islamic Revolution, has called for a two-day strike across the country, which has been rocked by more than 10 days of anti-government protests.
The exiled opposition figure appeared to address protesters in a video posted on X calling for “workers and employees in key sectors of the economy — especially transportation, oil and gas, and energy — to begin a nationwide strike” from Saturday, the start of the working week in Iran.
His online video address comes during a government-imposed internet blackout in Iran, implemented amid ongoing unrest across the nation.
“I also ask all of you… to come into the streets with flags, images and national symbols and to reclaim public spaces as your own,” he said.
“The goal is to prepare to seize city centers and hold them,” he added, claiming that Friday’s protests sent a powerful message to Iran’s leaders.
It is not clear how popular Pahlavi is inside Iran.
The US-based figure was only 16 when the revolution ended his father’s 40-year rule. The eldest son of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, he was the first in the line to inherit the oil-rich, thousand-year-old empire.