Reza Pahlavi, accepting Freedom Prize for Iranians: Europe sees the regime must go

Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi told The Jerusalem Post that a growing number of European politicians now understand Iran's Islamic Republic "must go," as he prepares to accept the Friedrich Naumann Foundation's 2026 Freedom Prize in Frankfurt on Saturday on behalf of the Iranian people.

The German foundation is awarding the prize to Iranians as a nation for the first time in the award's two-decade history, citing the bloodshed of protests earlier this year. Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran's last shah, has been asked to receive it until a freely elected Iranian government can.

"This award and the productive meetings I have had this week with leaders from across Europe show me that a growing number of politicians understand that this regime must go. It is a matter of how," Pahlavi said in written answers to the Post after meetings in Brussels and Germany.

Foundation trustee Prof. Ludwig Theodor Heuss said January's crackdown — with estimates of thousands killed and an internet blackout — drove the choice. "I think no people in the world paid a higher price for freedom in this year," he said. The ceremony is set for Nov. 7 at Frankfurt's St. Paul's Church.