US President Donald Trump said Friday that Washington is "locked and loaded" to respond if Tehran kills protesters, after hyperinflation-triggered demonstrations in Iran turned deadly.
Protesters and security forces clashed in several Iranian cities Thursday with six reported killed in the first deaths since the unrest escalated.
Trump said on his Truth Social platform that "if Iran shots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue."
"We are locked and loaded and ready to go," the Republican leader added.
Tehran responded to Trump's threats through Ali Larijani, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary, who accused the US and Israel of provoking protests and consequently causing chaos, without providing evidence.
“Trump should know that intervention by the US in the domestic problem corresponds (to) chaos in the entire region and the destruction of the US interests,” Larijani wrote on X. “The people of the US should know that Trump began the adventurism. They should take care of their own soldiers.”
Larijani is former brigadier general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and once served as parliament speaker.
Iran commonly accuses the US, Israel other "disruptive actors" of being behind any pushback against the regime. Tehran officially blocked access to X for ordinary users in 2009.
What we know about the protests
Shopkeepers in Tehran went on strike Sunday over high prices and economic stagnation, when the currency reached 1.42 million rials per dollar, its weakest level on record. Crowds assembled near Republic Street and the historic Grand Bazaar.
Demonstrations then expanded to Isfahan, Shiraz, Mashhad, Kermanshah and Hamadan by Tuesday. Authorities used tear gas against gatherers in parts of the capital.
Iran's IRGC-affiliated Fars news agency reported Thursday that two people were killed in clashes between security forces and protesters in the city of Lordegan, in the province of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, and three in Azna, in neighbouring Lorestan province.
State-run television reported earlier that a member of Iran's security forces was killed overnight during protests in the western city of Kouhdasht.
University students joined protests during the third day, with gatherings reported at campuses in Tehran and other cities. Campus security detained several Tehran University students before releasing them within 24 hours.
Some participants voiced support for the restoration of the monarchy, led by Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, whose father Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi ruled until 1979.
December food prices were 72% higher than the previous year, according to government statistics. Medical supplies and services increased 50%. Overall inflation measured 42.2%.
The demonstrations represent the most significant wave of unrest in Iran since the last major incident in 2022, triggered by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, who was arrested for allegedly violating Iran's strict dress code for women.
Her death sparked nationwide protests that left several hundred people dead, including dozens of members of the security forces.
