THE exiled Iranian crown prince has urged citizens to stage a national uprising to oust the Ayatollah as the regime sits on the brink of collapse.

Ali Khamenei, 86, and his family are believed to have bolted to a fortified underground hiding place in a suburb of capital Tehran.

Reza Pahlavi, the exiled Crown Prince of Iran, is the firstborn son of Iran’s former Shah, who was the nation’s leader until the 1979 Islamic Revolution ended his rule.

He urged Iranians in a video posted to X on Tuesday: “[The] Islamic Republic has reached its end and is in the process of collapsing.”

Pahlavi called Khamenei a “frightened rat” who “has gone into hiding underground” and “lost control of the situation”.

He added: “What has begun is irreversible.”

Since leaving Iran during his teenage years, Pahlavi has resided near Washington DC from 2001. He maintains an optimistic perspective, expressing confidence that Iran’s “future is bright,” even amidst the ongoing turmoil.

Furthermore, he expressed his deep concern, stating that his “heart is with all the defenseless citizens who have been harmed and have fallen victim to Khamenei’s warmongering and delusions”.

Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 585 people across Iran and wounded 1,326 others, a human rights group has said.

Iran has not been publishing regular death tolls during the conflict and has a history of minimising casualties.

Pahlavi added: “The end of the Islamic Republic is the end of its 46-year war against the Iranian nation.

“The regime’s apparatus of repression is falling apart.”

He then called for a “nationwide uprising” to “put an end to this nightmare once and for all”.

Continuing his plea for a revolution, Pahlavi stressed that “now is the time to rise; the time to reclaim Iran,” urging Iranian citizens to “all come forward and bring about the end of this regime”.

He assured that if an uprising were to occur, Iranians shouldn’t fear “the day after the fall” of Khamenei’s rule” and promised the nation wouldn’t “descend into civil war or instability”.

The exiled crown prince said: “We have a plan for Iran’s future and its flourishing.

“We are prepared for the first hundred days after the fall, for the transitional period, and for the reestablishment of a national and democratic government – by the Iranian people and for the Iranian people.”

Addressing Iranian security and state officials, Pahlavi urged them not to “stand against the Iranian people,” adding that the regime’s “fall has begun and is inevitable”.

He said: “Do not sacrifice yourselves for a decaying regime.

“By standing with the people, you can save your lives.”

Pahlavi concluded: “A free and flourishing Iran lies ahead of us.

“May we be together soon.”

Pahlavi has relentlessly spoken out about Iran’s regime and pressed for change, urging President Donald Trump to put “maximum pressure” on the regime.

Iran fired several missile barrages into Tel Aviv in the early hours of Wednesday.

They are now reportedly preparing to launch missiles and other military equipment on US bases in the Middle East should Trump join Israel’s war, say American officials who have reviewed intelligence reports.

In response, Israel fired back with their own tactical strikes and left much of Tehran up in smoke.

Iran initially had roughly 2,000 missiles capable of hitting Israel, but a significant number were destroyed after Israel launched its surprise attack early Friday, Israeli intelligence officials said

In the past six days of the spiralling conflict, Iran has retaliated against Israeli airstrikes by launching some 400 missiles and hundreds of drones at Israel.

Terrified Tehran citizens have been fleeing in the thousands since Friday, with Trump later urging everyone to immediately evacuate the city.

Trump has already ramped up his threats towards the Iranian regime as he claimed on Wednesday the US and Israel know exactly where Iran‘s Supreme Leader is hiding.

The US president called him an “easy target” but said he won’t order any assassination plot “for now”.

Israel threatened Khamenei hours earlier saying he will face the same grisly fate as Iraq’s Saddam Hussein who was hanged by his own people if he doesn’t start to negotiate soon.

Khamenei went to ground after swathes of military top brass and nuclear scientists were wiped out in simultaneous surgical strikes at the start of Israel’s Operation Rising Lion on Friday. 

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.