Some 2,500 years ago, a farsighted and benevolent king, Cyrus the Great, issued a historic proclamation to the varied peoples of his vast empire. He granted every people their rights to dignity, independence, beliefs, and way of life. This trailblazing king considered the first author of the Charter of Human Rights, showed the justice and feasibility of diverse peoples living peacefully with one another to benefit all.
One of the peoples was that of the Jews who had been exiled by the Babylonian kingdom conquered by Cyrus. The Jews. although not al of them, returned to Israel and built the Second Temple as a result.
Fast-forward
For the past 45 years, Prince Reza Pahlavi has put his life on the line to help his people, who desperately want him to return. Pivotal to the liberation of the people, their well-being, and prosperity is the enshrining of liberty as the birthright of every individual, group, and nation. Without freedom of thought, belief, and conduct within the bounds of the law, both the individual and the collective will be stifled, resulting in a human enterprise unworthy of the name.
Prince Pahlavi has spent most of his life abroad, mainly in the US. He has become an avid supporter of human rights and a passionate advocate of freedom for his fellow compatriots inside Iran, who call his name almost daily. He is the most popular and beloved opposition figure among Iran's young and old. Years of activism have made him a seasoned political practitioner.
Pahlavi believes in equal justice under the law for all Iranians. It is indispensable to exercising freedom and protecting the rights of all Iranian people to choose their own government through a transparent referendum and a complete separation of religion and state. The Islamic Religion and civil governance are separate realms; intrusion into the other is fraught with significant harm. Hence, iron-clad provisions are needed to keep the two domains apart.
Equally, as with King Cyrus, Prince Pahlavi is also aware that Iran is home to religiously and ethnically diverse peoples, and each and everyone is an equal shareholder of the homeland. Therefore, Pahlavi guaranteeing equality to all its citizens demands no less than total adherence to the principle of unity in diversity, a unity of purpose that draws from the strength and uniqueness of its constituents.
Sadly, history repeats itself. The Obama and Biden administrations failed to voice their support for the people. They implied that what was happening in Iran was a kind of family squabble best left to be settled by the Iranians themselves. A family feud indeed. One side of the “family” with legions of savages armed to the teeth, the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) and their hired thugs, and the other side of the “family” defenseless civilians using their voices to plead their case. The Islamic rulers spared no heinous means in mercilessly silencing the voices of the people.
In fact, the courageous honorable MK Gila Gamliel, Minister of Intelligence of the State of Israel, hosted a historic invitation of His Imperial Highness Crown Prince of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, and his beautiful Queen, Yasemin Pahlavi.
No other country provided even moral support for the Iranian people, while the vicious mullahs and their thugs consolidated their rule of terror with impunity. In fact, the world's silence is deafening while they are deeply engaged in the Ukraine war
In an interview with VOA, while not explicitly ruling out his potential candidacy for the elected monarch, the crown prince said he does not envisage it. “My national and political mission will come to an end when Iranian people go to vote to select their future system of government,” Pahlavi said. “The leadership [of the nation] will emerge from within the people in Iran,” he added
The non-violent position Pahlavi transcends its practical value has roots in the Iranian belief in the organic oneness of humanity as expressed by the classic Persian poem, Sadi “The children of Adam are members of one body; their creation is of the same essence; when a member suffers; other members have no peace.”
A quick look at the current regime will reveal why people unanimously favor regime change. Under the rule of these adherents of death, everything in Iran has been deteriorating and dying. Despite substantial oil revenues, the per capita income of Iranians is now approximately two-thirds less than what it was before the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Every form of misery has also skyrocketed. Drug addiction, prostitution, and suicide have gone through the roof. The young and the educated continue deserting Iran and family, fleeing to the four corners of the earth in search of a decent life.
Iranian people inside and abroad have given Prince Reza Pahlavi symbolic power of attorney to lead the current revolution. “Pahlavi, you are our representative,” and “Pahlavi is our choice, the leader of our revolution,” people in every corner of Iran shouted.
Pahlavi’s mission is a transition from the present failed Islamic regime to a secular democracy as the central objective in pursuance of a Constitutional Assembly, elected by the entirety of eligible Iranian voters under the supervision of international monitors. It could be the means to usher in a new system of governance.
The most promising solution is the free world's united support of Iranian groups opposed to the mullahs' rule. The Iranian people themselves are fully capable and determined to remove this cancer from their country. The United States, Israel, and other democracies have a considerable stake in the success of the Iranian people in ridding themselves of Islamic tyranny.
The recent revolt may not lead to the immediate downfall of the regime, but we are witnessing the death throes of the Islamic Republic. Even if the uprising ends today, it is but one step in a long struggle to achieve a more representative, democratic, and popular government.
The Iranian warriors are the best match for the ruthless mullahs and their hired Islamic Stormtroopers. The people of Iran themselves are the best solution for the present Iranian conundrum.
Time is of the essence; the clock is ticking, and the window is closing on the Iranian people. Diplomacy cannot be open-ended. We can avoid this unnecessary looming civil war if we only stand and support our opposition leader, Prince Reza Pahlavi, the most rational and politically savvy figure to lead. History has many faces; this time, hopefully, we can and will invest in the people of Iran under Prince Reza Pahlavi’s leadership.
The best strategy that stands the greatest chance of success and entails the least risk of stopping an explosive chain reaction is for a "coalition of the willing," to borrow a phrase, to rally behind the leadership of Prince Reza Pahlavi.
Amil Imani is an Iranian-American writer, satirist, novelist, public speaker, political analyst, foreign policy, National & Homeland Security, Intelligence & Counterterrorism who has been writing and speaking out about the danger of radical Islam both in America and internationally. He has become a formidable voice in the United States against the danger of global jihad and Islamization of America.
Imani is the author of Obama Meets Ahmadinejad and Operation Persian Gulf and is currently working on his third and fourth book.
He is 2010 honoree of EMET: “The Speaker of the Truth Award” at the Capitol Hill.
