Imam himself explains this event: "They (the Iraqi government) said that: 'due to the fact that we have certain agreements with the Iranian government and the actions of you and your companions do not observe these agreements, we can no longer have you here.' I answered that you have made agreements, I haven't. I have a religious duty, which I will carry out, and I will pay no attention to your agreements.
I will preach on the Manbar issue statements and make recordings on tapes and send them. This is my duty. Whatever duty you have, carry it out… I then got ready to leave… under strict Iraqi supervision I went to the Kuwaiti border and the same pressure that was put on the Iraqi government was also put on the Kuwaiti government (and so refuge was not given to the Imam)…from there we returned to Basra and then we went to Baghdad.
I realized that whichever Muslim country we go to it will be the same. It was for this reason that, without any previous thought on the matter, I decided to go to France."
During this time, the Shah found himself in a crucial situation where the foundations of the regime were very shaky. He tried to carry out various different measures but they were not successful and angered the people even more.
For instance he made it the responsibility of different prime ministers to supposedly change the government. News of the people's anger and of an upcoming revolution spread throughout the world and grabbed Media attention.
On 12th of October 1978 Imam Khomeini said the following to a BBC reporter: "This regime must be overthrown and then…When the parliament is sworn in people's opinion should play the main role." On other occasions, Imam Khomeini explained what he intended to do after the downfall of the Shah's regime.
The Iraqi army surrounded Imam Khomeini's house in the first day of October 1978 in the holy city of Najaf. The Muslims in Iran, Iraq and other countries reacted angrily to this news. Iraq's manager of security organization said in a meeting to Imam Khomeini that if he wants to stay in Iraq, he should let go off the combat and politics.
This came after in the late periods of Pahlavi government, while Imam Khomeini lived in Iraq in exile, there was held a meeting between Iran and Iraq's foreign ministers in New York in which they decided to dismiss Imam Khomeini from Iraq.
In response, Imam Khomeini firmly stated he would never accept any compromise and getting silent in front of the responsibility he had toward the Islamic nations.
After consulting with his beloved son Seyyed Ahmad Khomeini), he decided to migrate to Paris. He arrived to Paris in the 14th of Mehr, and two days later, he went to stay in one of the Iranian's house in Nofel Loshato (suburbs of Paris).
Imam Khomeini spent four months in Nofel Loshato which had become the most important news center of the world.
After consulting his son, Hojjatol-al -Islam Hajj Sayyed Ahmad Khomeini, the Imam decided to migrate to France and on 14 Mehr, he entered Paris and two days later, he was stationed in the house of an Iranian, in Neauphle-le Chateau, a suburb of Paris.
Thus a larger number of people of the world became familiar with the Imam's dynamic ideals and thought and his uprising, and it was from this stage and station that he guided the most critical period of the movement in Iran.
During the four-month stay of Imam Khomeini in Paris, Neauphle-le ChAteau was the most important news center in the world. Imam Khomeini's various interviews and his visits revealed to the world, his views of Islamic government, and the future aims of his movement.
Imam made a historic return to homeland in February 1979 after spending nearly 15 years in exile.