Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last shah, was attacked Thursday during a visit to Berlin when a protester splashed him with red paint, according to video and media reports from the scene.
Pahlavi was not injured. Video showed him moving away from the protester as security personnel overpowered and detained the assailant. He later waved to supporters and got into his car.
Exiled Iranian crown prince splashed with red paint in Berlin
The incident took place after Pahlavi left a briefing with reporters, where he criticized the ceasefire between the United States and Iran. The attack occurred outside Germany’s federal press conference building, according to The Washington Post.
According to the newspaper, Pahlavi, who was not invited to meet with any government representatives during his visit to Berlin, said the ceasefire agreement assumed that the Iranian government’s behavior would change and that officials would now be dealing with people who had suddenly become pragmatic.
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Exiled Iranian crown prince splashed with red paint in Berlin
(Photo: AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
“I don’t see that happening,” he said. “I’m not saying that diplomacy should not be given a chance, but I think diplomacy has been given enough chance.”
Pahlavi called on Europeans to do more to “support the Iranian people fighting for democracy.” He said 19 political prisoners had been executed by Iran’s government over the previous two weeks and that 20 others had been sentenced to death.
“Will the free world do something, or watch the slaughter in silence?” he said.
Pahlavi, 65, is the son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Iran’s last shah, who was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution that brought the clerical regime to power. His father was widely hated by millions of Iranians who took to the streets demanding his removal.
Even so, Pahlavi has sought to position himself as a player in Iran’s future, though it remains unclear how much support he has inside Iran after nearly 50 years in exile. He has publicly backed the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran and has been among the prominent voices urging President Donald Trump to follow through on promises to help protesters who were killed in demonstrations in Iran earlier this year.