A quarter of a million protesters in Munich demand regime change in Iran, as exiled prince Reza Pahlavi pledges to lead a democratic transition.
MUNICH: A massive rally of 250,000 people in Munich demanded an end to Iran’s leadership on Saturday, as exiled opposition figure Reza Pahlavi pledged to guide the country toward democracy.
The pro-monarchist crowd, which police said travelled from across Europe, gathered under a sea of historic flags at the Theresienwiese fairground. Their demonstration coincided with the nearby Munich Security Conference, where world leaders were meeting.
Anger at Tehran’s rulers has intensified following a bloody crackdown on protesters last month. US President Donald Trump has massed warships in the Middle East and declared that a change of government in Iran would be the “best thing that could happen”.
“We are here today to support the people in Iran that were murdered by the mullah regime,” protester Ali Farzad, 40, told AFP. “And we are here to support Reza Pahlavi as our leader through the transition for a period.”
Braving a cold drizzle, the crowd cheered loudly when Pahlavi took the stage. “I am here to guarantee a transition to a secular democratic future,” he told them.
“I am committed to be the leader of transition for you so we can one day have the final opportunity to decide the fate of our country through a democratic, transparent process to the ballot box.”
Many waved the lion-and-sun flag of the monarchy overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Chants of “long live the shah” and “Pahlavi is coming back” echoed through the crowd.
“The Iranian regime is a dead regime,” said a 62-year-old protester who gave his name only as Said. “It must be game over.”
US Senator Lindsey Graham also addressed the rally, pumping his fist in the air. “The Iranian people are going to have their freedom,” the Republican senator declared. “It is a matter of time, help is on the way — make Iran great again.”
Pahlavi, who has lived in exile since his father was overthrown, earlier spoke at the security conference. He called on Trump to “help” the Iranian people and urged an outside “humanitarian intervention to prevent more innocent lives” being lost.
Several demonstrators denounced international negotiations with Tehran’s leaders. “They shouldn’t talk to them because they are not actually a government,” said Riana, a 40-year-old doctor in Germany who withheld her last name for safety.
“When a government kills their people on the street, they are not (trustworthy),” she added. “The people that you are negotiating with are not representative of the Iranian people,” Farzad said.
Rallies calling for action against Tehran were also planned in Toronto and Los Angeles on Saturday. Last week, an estimated 10,000 people rallied in Berlin at the call of an exiled opposition group considered “terrorist” by Iran.
The Sun Malaysia
