In his statements at the time and later, Mohammad Reza credited his easy success in Azerbaijan to his “mystical power”. Knowing Qavam’s penchant for corruption, the Shah used that issue as a reason to sack him.By this time, Fawzia had returned to Egypt, and despite efforts to have King Farouk persuade her to return to Iran she refused to go, which led Mohammad Reza to divorce her on 17 November 1948.