Shah's Dilemma

Wanted: retirement home

Still pursuing the top figures on its long enemies list, the Tehran regime announced last week that the deposed Shah and other members of the Pahlavi family would soon be tried by an Islamic Revolutionary Court for treason, corruption and illegal transfer of funds abroad. The possible trial site: a sports hall in the Iranian capital that, with a capacity of 12,000, would be ideal for a classic show of revolutionary justice.

The Shah is not likely to appear. Since late January, he and Empress Farah have been guests of Morocco's King Hassan II at a heavily guarded palace outside Rabat. Iran's new rulers evidently intend the trial to establish the Shah as not a political exile but a criminal fugitive. That could enable the regime to seize the Pahlavi family's foreign financial holdings and discourage other states from giving refuge to the Shah. Iran's Foreign Minister Karim Sanjabi has warned that any country that grants asylum to the Shah "under any pretext" can expect a "negative effect" on its relations with Iran.

The Pahlavis have prior experience with exile, of course. After Reza Shah, the present Shah's father, was exiled in 1941, he found refuge in South Africa, where he died in Johannesburg at age 66. Now it is like father, like son. Doors everywhere have slammed shut. Spain and Austria do not want the Shah. West Germany and France, both of which are big buyers of Iranian oil, make clear that he would not be welcome, while Britain, where the family owns a 166-acre estate outside London, is distinctly cool to his living there. Even Switzerland, the Shah's favorite vacation retreat, where he has extensive bank accounts and major property holdings including a villa near Saint-Moritz, acknowledges that a visit by the Shah would require prior Cabinet approval.

The Iranians have been pressing Morocco to return the Shah to Tehran, and while Hassan has refused to do so, the time may come when the Shah will decide he has to go elsewhere to avoid creating problems for his host. But so far, only two countries have offered the Shah a welcome: the U.S., which the Shah avoided at first but now says he "perhaps" will visit; and Egypt, where the Shah's old friend Anwar Sadat welcomed him when he left Tehran. Cairo's Kubbeh Palace, where President and Mrs. Carter stayed last week, is being readied for the Shah, should he decide to go there. If he does, the Egyptians will be prepared for a mighty squabble with Tehran. Egyptian officials are already pointing out that acceptance of an exile is rooted in Islam. Asked one of them last week: "Is not this the foundation on which Khomeini's revolution stands?"

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