Exiled prince’s office calls for Lion and Sun flag displays at World Cup
The office of Iran’s exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi called on Iranians abroad to hold gatherings around June 16 to mark the birthday of Majidreza Rahnavard, a protester executed after Iran’s 2022 nationwide protests, and to use World Cup matches to display the lion-and-sun flag and images of protesters killed by the Islamic Republic.
The call comes as Iran’s team is due to be based in Tijuana, Mexico, for the World Cup, while playing its group-stage matches in Los Angeles and Seattle. Several outlets have reported that FIFA plans to ban Iran’s pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun flag at the tournament.
The statement said the World Cup provided a rare opportunity to bring the voice of the Iranian people to the world.
“Now is the time to show up; the time for even greater unity under Iran’s national flag,” Pahlavi’s office said.
It called on Iranians in North America to gather in large numbers inside and outside stadiums and show what it described as “the will and determination of a united nation to reclaim its homeland.”