Farah Pahlavi, the exiled last empress of Iran, has called on the West to lend support to anti-government protesters who have taken to the streets of her home country.
"The West can help them by telling all the horrors that are happening in Iran under this regime," the 83-year-old told the Israeli-based i24News channel in Paris. "I hope that this regime will be overthrown."
Iranian women have been fighting for their freedoms and their place in society for decades, said the widow of the last shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic revolution.
But Farah Pahlavi said the latest social unrest was "the first time we've seen such a big movement in Iran and in all cities in Iran."
"I have a special message for women: I am proud of them, of my countrywomen, my sisters, my children and my daughters. Despite the oppression, they are fighting and have the courage to stand up against this regime," she told i24News.
Protests prompted by a young woman's death in police custody have rocked Iran for 11 days.
Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old was arrested by the morality police for a violation of the strict dress code and died on September 16 under unexplained circumstances.
The authorities firmly reject firmly reject accusations that she was a victim of police brutality.
