Iran’s Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has spent the past few weeks touring Europe, meeting lawmakers and parliamentarians in Sweden and Italy before arriving in Germany last week. Until Berlin, the trip had proceeded largely as expected, with the prince presenting his case for a democratic transition in Iran and seeking to build support among European policymakers.
In Germany, however, the visit took a different turn, and it’s one that reflects poorly on the Germans’ security arrangements, as well as on elements of the country’s political and media approach to the Iranian opposition.
During a press engagement in Berlin, Pahlavi was asked by German journalist Tilo Jung whether he was an “agent of Israel,” referencing his links to pro-Israel groups (Pahlavi’s trip was coordinated with the help of the Europe-Israel Press Association and the European Jewish Association) and broader geopolitical dynamics - Pahlavi has often stated that a free Iran should have peace with Israel and bring about a prosperous Middle East, rather than one rooted in war.
An agent of Israel?
One could almost see the prince’s inner thoughts: “This is what he wants to ask me about? Over everything taking place in Iran?”
Rather than focusing on his political platform, his proposals for Iran, or his support base among Iranians, the question repeated the familiar narrative long promoted by the Islamic Republic - that opposition figures are primarily instruments of foreign powers.
Pahlavi rejected the premise directly. He stated that he did not act on behalf of any foreign government, but rather as a representative voice for Iranians seeking change. At the same time, he did not shy away from expressing historical and cultural affinity between Iranians and Jews, retelling the story of Cyrus the Great and Iran’s long-standing tradition of offering refuge and religious freedom, including to Jews fleeing persecution.
The prince’s wider argument was straightforward in that support for human rights and religious freedom does not require external sponsorship, and that the Iranian people themselves are the source of his political legitimacy.
After addressing the “Mossad” question at the press conference and turning to the future of Iran, Pahlavi showcased the many European democracies operating under different constitutional systems and argued that democracy is defined by citizens' ability to choose their own system of governance.
Pahlavi attacked leaving the venue
Shortly after this exchange, as Pahlavi was leaving the venue, he was approached from behind and doused with a red liquid by an individual who had managed to get close to him. Berlin police later confirmed that the attacker had no accreditation or press credentials and had not previously come to their attention. He was taken into custody, and investigations were opened on suspicion of bodily harm, property damage, and insult against persons in political life. Police added that security measures for the prince were being reviewed and adjusted, but they had already failed. Had the man had a gun or knife, the prince could have suffered much greater harm.
Cameron Khansarinia, the prince's chief of staff, stated in a video message that on "overseas trips, the responsibility for providing security rests with the security forces and police of the host country."
Khansarinia also later posted on social media that after the prince’s press conference, “I stood next to the parents of the victims the Prince refers to. I was supposed to translate.
“I reminded the journalists of who these brave parents were. The journalists still ignored them. I had no questions to translate.”
So German journalists are happy to waste time asking the prince if he is an agent of Israel, but too busy to speak with the parents of victims of the Islamic Republic? A shame that speaks for itself.
Lacking adequate security
The attack raises clear questions about the adequacy of the security arrangements in place. Pahlavi is not an obscure figure. He is one of the most prominent Iranian opposition leaders internationally, advocating openly for the end of the Islamic Republic and for Iranians to choose their own future. Allowing an individual without credentials to approach him closely enough to carry out an attack is a major lapse.
At the political level, the response in Berlin has also been conspicuous. Asked whether Chancellor Friedrich Merz would meet Pahlavi, government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said that “the Iranian regime is currently the point of contact.”
The statement was typical of Germany’s continued preference for engagement with the Islamic Republic as the official representative of Iran, despite the regime’s record of internal repression and its destabilizing role in the region.
Merz, despite being a supporter of Israel and having a good relationship with the Jewish State, described last week the US-Israel war on Iran as “completely unnecessary”.
The German leader said the war was contributing to rising instability. If he believes that Israel and the US are the cause of instability, rather than the Islamic regime, perhaps it is worthwhile to spend some time re-immersing himself in the five-decade history of the Islamic Republic.
The German leader's view directly contradicts the message Pahlavi has been delivering during his European tour. In meetings with the Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman, in a cross-party parliamentary roundtable at the Bundestag, and with German MPs, the prince reiterated his message that the future political system of Iran-whether republic or monarchy-should be determined by the Iranian people through free elections.
Germany should be admired for its belief in democracy and human rights, but its rhetorical commitment to democratic values when protesters are massacred, and missiles are indiscriminately fired towards Israel and its neighbors, leaves a lot to be desired. Likewise, focusing on the prince’s relationship with Israel and accusing him of agency, when Iranians are dying in the streets, feels like a deliberate and targeted case of redirection. The security situation, in all honesty, was just a farce. All in all, the Berlin trip was an embarrassment, and one entirely of Germany's own making.