Son of Iran's last Shah appeals for more pressure to help protesters

By Humeyra Pamuk

WASHINGTON, Jan 16 - Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi on Friday urged the international community to ramp up pressure on the Iranian government to help protesters overthrow clerical rule, even as a deadly crackdown appears to have broadly quelled demonstrations.

Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran's toppled shah, held a news conference in Washington D.C. on Friday morning to call for political, economic and military pressure on Tehran.

He said that "large sections" of the Iranian army and security forces have "whispered" their loyalty to him and that he is uniquely positioned to ensure a stable transition for the country.

Having emerged as a prominent voice in the country's opposition, Pahlavi, 65, seeks to play a role in Iran's future even as President Donald Trump earlier this week expressed uncertainty over his ability to muster support within the country.

"The Iranian people are taking decisive action on the ground. It is now time for the international community to join them fully," Pahlavi said.

U.S.-based Pahlavi has lived outside Iran since before his father was toppled in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Iran's opposition is fragmented among rival groups and ideological factions - including the monarchists who back Pahlavi - and appears to have little organised presence inside the Islamic Republic.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene in support of protesters in Iran, where thousands of people have been reported killed in a crackdown on the unrest against clerical rule.