The Iranian regime has the potential to cause mass casualties by smuggling nuclear materials into Europe, as warned by the exiled prince of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, in an interview with The Sun.
While the US and Israel have managed to mitigate the “immediate threat” posed by Iran’s nuclear ambitions, there remains a risk that the regime’s leaders could still obtain and use a dirty bomb.
It comes as Donald Trump announced a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran – which he implored the archenemies not to violate.
However, soon after announcing a peace deal, the situation appears unstable as Iran faces accusations of launching new missile attacks towards Israel.
Defence minister Israel Katz warned he has ordered Israel’s military to “forcefully respond” – threatening to leave the hours-old ceasefire pact in tatters.
Tehran had on Sunday vowed hellish revenge after the US president pulled the trigger on striking nuke sites after nine days of Israel and Iran trading blows.
The Ayatollah gave the green light to blitz a US base in Qatar with missiles – which Trump mocked as a “very weak response”.
He had earlier hailed Operation Midnight Hammer as a “bullseye” that caused “monumental damage” to critical nuke sites in Iran.
But Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, warned callous Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could still attempt to utilise his warped allies in a bid to get his hands on nuclear matter.
Speaking to The Sun at an undisclosed location in Paris just hours before the ceasefire, he said: “Terrorism has many means of hurting big time. Nobody anticipated 9/11. It was a terrorist attack.
“What keeps people not to worry about the fact that the call of these terrorist networks of sleeper cells could smuggle in a few grams of enriched plutonium, throw it in a lake in Europe, and instantaneously kill tens of millions of people who will be radioactively attacked.
“You don’t need a missile or warhead for that.
“We have at least eliminated the imminent threat of the regime. Does that mean that the regime still doesn’t have the capability to acquire nuclear weapons or a dirty bomb by purchasing it from the North Koreans?
“It doesn’t eliminate that, that’s the entire point.”
Pahlavi, whose family was forced to leave Iran after the Islamic Revolution in 1979, warned unless the Islamist regime is toppled, the threat of nuclear material being weaponised looms large.
He added: “The immediate imminent threat of nuclear facilities has been neutralised and may have caused a lot of delay to the regime.
“But that doesn’t mean you have eliminated the problem altogether. The only way to ensure that the danger is completely eliminated is in direct correlation with this regime
“This regime cannot be trusted. This regime in its attitude will perhaps become even more virulent if given a chance even though it’s been severely weakened.”
Trump himself alluded to regime change in a post on Truth Social on Sunday night as he called on the world to “Make Iran Great Again” in a nod to his notorious MAGA slogan.
The US president said: “If the current Iranian regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn’t there be a regime change? MIGA!”.
Pahlavi – who has been advocating for regime change for decades – announced on Monday he is offering to lead a transitional government to make Iran a democratic, secular country.
The self-styled crown prince has been trying to rally support for the restoration of his deposed dynasty.
And he said he’s ready and waiting to speak directly to Trump.
“I think that MAGA will only work if we have MIGA,” Pahlavi argued.
“I haven’t had an opportunity yet to talk directly with the president. I hope this opportunity presents itself.
“The important thing and the message I would have for President Trump and world leaders at this point is to recognise that this is a golden opportunity now.
“Whatever it is that satisfies your concern may have been realised, but the ultimate guarantee of peace and stability is for this regime to no longer be there.
“Not because your foreign policy calls for regime change, but because the Iranian people have been asking for it for years.
“And the only obstacle between them providing the world with an option of stability and peace has been this regime.
“Now that it’s been weakened, now that it is collapsing, now that all the elements that the regime have utilised to repress its own people…they say, okay, good, now we have a more equal playing field.
“And hopefully the world this time will be wise enough to say, let’s not throw this regime a lifeline. This is time to put an end to it. Not by their means.”
Pahlavi demanded Khamenei step down and said in a direct message to the ruler: “If you do, you’ll receive a fair trial and due process of law.”
He appealed to world leaders to help Iran’s people force out the Ayatollah’s religious dictatorship – and presented himself as an option to “lead my compatriots down this road of peace”.
Pahlavi insisted that if the regime – which has had its claws in Iran for 46 years – is ousted it will benefit not just its heavily-repressed people, but the entire world.
He said: “When I look at the potential that Iran has in terms of, first of all, we have many resources, both natural and human resources.
“When I’m thinking of the potential of Iran’s economic revival, from high tech to so many other areas, from tourism to refurbishing our existing infrastructure, the sky is the limit.
“Iran is the greatest untapped reserve in terms of foreign investment that will help us rebuild the country, but the opportunities that are created, none of which we can do under the circumstances.
“A very corrupt mafia-like regime that nobody wants to do business with.
“But as soon as that element is in place, it opens the door. It opens the floodgates for investment. That’s the quickest way to address the immediate need of society.”
Pahlavi outlined a plan for a move towards “stability, freedom and justice” – and insisted he is not seeking “political power” and promised to not “repeat the mistakes made in other failed transitions.”
He announced he is establishing a “channel for military, security, and police personnel to reach out directly to me, my team, and our expanding operation.”
Pahlavi said: “As soon as we redress the situation and Iran is back on the standards of economic practice recognised, this is part of our process of dealing with that.
“Not just the liberalisation of Iran, but also a plan for economic recovery. The two go hand in glove.
“We are basically pushing these two formulas, the immediate first 100 days, which is critical, the short-term phase, and ultimately what people can see.
“There’s a roadmap that they can tangibly feel and understand its components.
“That’s part of our discourse and presentation to the nation and of course for the world to see.”
Who was the Shah?
By Annabel Bate, Foreign News Reporter
THE last Shah of Iran was Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
He ruled from 1941 to 1979, having succeeded his dad Reza Shah.
Mohammad Reza had a pro-Western foreign policy and encouraged economic development in the nation.
What led to his downfall initially however was 1963 The White Revolution – a series of social, political and economic reforms that Mohammad Reza initiated.
This looked to both modernise and westernise Iran.
But the reforms were perceived as controversial and led to some resistance from various religious and political factions.
On February 11, 1979, Iran’s army declared its neutrality, paving the way for the fall of US-backed Shah Mohammad Reza.
He died in exile in Egypt in 1980.
