Europe’s Overseas Affairs Committee backs son of Shah to take over in Iran – he calls himself “crown prince” – how is that democracy? asks former MEP Jim Higgins
Members of Iran’s feminine ‘self sacrificing daughters’ parade for Ayatollah (Picture: Getty)
At a important juncture for Iran, Europe should resist the temptation of simple narratives. The Iranian persons are demanding a democratic way forward for their very own making, not a return to discredited techniques. Having served for years within the European Parliament, together with inside its management buildings, I’ve adopted Iranian affairs carefully.
The European Parliament displays the values and aspirations of the peoples of Europe – freedom, human rights, and the rule of legislation. We count on these rights for ourselves, and we imagine they need to be common. Nowhere is that conviction extra urgently examined than in Iran. Over current years, the Iranian folks have repeatedly demonstrated their willingness to face up for his or her rights.
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The nationwide rebellion of January 2026 was one more stark reminder. The regime responded with brutal drive, killing hundreds and arresting tens of hundreds. Since then, it has resorted to a wave of executions concentrating on political dissidents, significantly activists related to the Folks’s Mojahedin Group of Iran (PMOI/MEK), in a bid to forestall additional uprisings.
Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi in Italy earlier this month (Picture: Getty)
On April 15, the European Parliament’s Overseas Affairs Committee (AFET), in cooperation with the Delegation for Relations with Iran, convened a gathering to evaluate the scenario. The session was offered as an alternate of views with representatives from various Iranian opposition teams.
In his opening remarks, the Chair emphasised that the committee’s political teams had agreed to organise such a dialogue and had sought to make sure range among the many invitees. Even a cursory evaluation means that a number of invitees are aligned with the identical political present advocating a return to the Pahlavi monarchy. This calls into query whether or not the assembly actually mirrored the variety of Iranian opposition voices.
As anticipated, these supportive of the Pahlavi dynasty didn’t give attention to the central problem of a free and democratic Iran. As a substitute, they used the platform to advertise Reza Pahlavi, repeating unsubstantiated claims—most notably that the Iranian folks have known as upon him to guide their battle.
Such claims don’t face up to scrutiny. They’re largely primarily based on manipulated narratives, together with doctored video clips and slogans that had been fabricated or amplified in deceptive methods. Quite a few social media accounts linked to Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have actively promoted this narrative.
Some audio system even claimed to talk “on behalf of the Iranian folks,” regardless of having no such mandate or recognition inside Iran or among the many diaspora. It was additional alleged that the January protests had been sparked by calls from Reza Pahlavi. In actuality, his first public response got here solely when he returned from holidays, ten days after the protests had already begun.
A number of Members of the European Parliament raised important questions that went largely unanswered. Issues had been expressed about using the title “Crown Prince,” which implicitly contradicts the precept that Iran’s future political system needs to be decided by its folks. Others pointed to the absence of key opposition voices and known as for a extra balanced and consultant dialogue. Some additionally expressed concern about his and his associates’ repeated requires additional assaults on Iran, together with strikes on infrastructure, and regarded him as a consultant of these powers.
These issues usually are not summary; they go to the center of how Europe engages with Iran. On this context, it’s price recalling the remarks of Italy’s former Overseas Minister and present Chair of the Senate European Affairs Committee, Senator Giulio Terzi, who warned towards legitimizing figures related to authoritarian legacies. He highlighted Reza Pahlavi’s personal statements expressing admiration for his father’s rule, in addition to his willingness to cooperate with components of Iran’s present safety equipment, together with the IRGC, a company designated as terrorist by the European Union.
Pahlavi’s current statements in Sweden additional reinforce these issues. When requested about his father’s document of repression, he dismissed the query as irrelevant, stating that he was “proud” of his heritage and refusing to have interaction with documented abuses.
The document of the Shah’s regime is effectively established: systematic torture, widespread repression, political executions, and the imposition of a one-party state. These usually are not peripheral points; they’re central to any sincere evaluation of Iran’s political future. What is evident is that Reza Pahlavi has more and more grow to be a divisive determine throughout the Iranian opposition.
There’s a deeply held perception among the many Iranian diaspora that the opportunistic, divisive, and hegemonic approaches of the Shah’s son in the course of the 2022 and 2026 uprisings gave the regime a a lot freer hand in suppressing them. Because of this, some remnants of the previous system have distanced themselves from Reza Pahlavi and have expressed concern about his present associates, lots of whom have come from Iran lately, and about their connections to the Iranian regime. To not point out that he himself has repeatedly spoken about having contacts with commanders of the IRGC.
Europe should due to this fact proceed with readability and warning. Supporting the Iranian folks doesn’t imply deciding on or selling a single particular person as their consultant. It means standing firmly with their aspirations for freedom, pluralism, and democracy.
Iranians have made their place unmistakably clear of their slogans and sacrifices. They reject each the present theocracy and any return to monarchical rule, demanding as a substitute a democratic way forward for their very own making. Europe ought to stand with them, not select for them.
- Jim Higgins was a member of the European Parliament from 2004 to 2014
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