President Donald Trump warned Iran’s authorities against killing peaceful protesters, writing on Truth Social that the United States is “locked and loaded and ready to go” and would “come to their rescue”. He did not specify what form any US action might take.
A senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ali Larijani, cautioned that US involvement would destabilise the Middle East and damage American interests. The intervention set up a direct exchange between Washington and Tehran over how Iran handles internal dissent.
Protests have run for nearly a week amid worsening economic conditions and another sharp fall in the rial. At least eight deaths were reported across several cities, although the BBC said it could not independently verify the figures. Footage circulating online showed burning vehicles and running clashes, with BBC Persian verifying protests in Lordegan, Tehran and Marvdasht.
The semi‑official Fars news agency and the human rights group Hengaw reported two deaths in Lordegan, naming the victims as Ahmad Jalil and Sajjad Valamanesh. Fars also reported three deaths in Azna and one in Kouhdasht in western Iran, without clarifying whether the dead were protesters or security personnel. Additional deaths were reported in Fuladshahr and Marvdasht.
Tensions flared further in Kouhdasht after a young man was killed earlier in the week. Officials described him as a member of the security forces, while protesters said he was one of their own and alleged he was shot by security units. During his burial, attended by thousands, mourners seized the coffin from uniformed personnel, prompting fresh confrontations.
Some demonstrators have urged outside pressure. A young woman in Tehran told the BBC’s Newshour that security forces “shake to the bones” when statements come from Mr Trump or Israel’s prime minister, arguing that such words carry consequences. Alongside economic grievances, chants have included calls for an end to Ayatollah Khamenei’s rule, with a minority expressing support for a return to monarchy.
Iran’s political messaging remains split. President Masoud Pezeshkian said he would listen to “legitimate demands”, while Prosecutor‑General Mohammad Movahedi‑Azad warned that any attempt to sow instability would face a “decisive response”. The protest geography has widened from bazaars to university campuses, testing the state’s capacity to contain unrest without escalating force.
The exchange unfolds against a fraught backdrop. In June, the United States carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear sites on President Trump’s orders, according to American officials, who said the action set back any weapons effort; Iran disputes this. Tehran later launched a missile attack on a major US military base in Qatar, reinforcing the risk of tit‑for‑tat escalation.
Policy considerations now turn on instruments rather than rhetoric. Washington’s recent toolkit has included sanctions designations, information support for protesters and military signalling; the president did not indicate which, if any, would be used. Any step beyond sanctions would trigger War Powers reporting to Congress and require reliance on existing authorisations or new direction. For European and Gulf partners, the near‑term risk is miscalculation between US and Iranian forces while Iran’s internal security posture hardens.
For human‑rights observers, this is the broadest mobilisation since the 2022 protests following Mahsa Amini’s death in custody, though not on the same scale. Indicators to watch include protest turnout, charging patterns from the judiciary, internet throttling, and whether security services shift tactics as demonstrations persist.